Marriage of Hell and Heaven in College Application Essays

Parke Muth, a veteran college admissions counselor and writer from Virginia, interviewed me recently about my opinions and advice regarding college application essays. I thought I would share the interview, which he featured on his own highly informative blog. ...

College Application Essay Grabber Trick: Show First!

  When you write a college application essay, you want to “grab” the attention of your reader from the start. My favorite writing technique to hook readers is to engage them with an anecdote, which is a real-life moment or incident. You might have...

Aim High With Your College Application Essay!

  Meet Jessica Peyton Roberts, who is a talented and enthusiastic private college admissions consultant from Tacoma, Washington. Roberts, of Aim High Writing College Consulting, recently wrote a comprehensive guide for students and parents called Navigating the...

A Sample College Application Essay from Heavenly Essays

  I thought you might like to read one of the 50 sample college application essays featured in my new book, Heavenly Essays. This is the first one in the book. Like most of the essays in this collection, it was written by a former tutoring student of mine. I will...

Why I Do This: The Essay Hell Manifesto

I thought it might be helpful to type up an explanation of why I write my blog, the source of my intentions, and what I think about the dreaded college application essay. You might find it boring, but I wanted to get it out and all in one place. Here’s what I...

A Q&A With Me!

One of my favorite student-run blogs on college admissions, The Prospect, featured this interview with me last week. I thought the writer, Oriana Halverson, did a terrific job, and flushed out some helpful information:   Essay Hell’s Janine Robinson: Everything...

“Enrich Our Diverse and Inclusive Community.” Say what?

Stumped by the University of Colorado Supp? Me, too! I’ve had quite a few students this “season” who were flummoxed by the supplement for the University of Colorado. It kind of threw me a bit as well. But behind all that blah, blah, blah, I believe...