College essay guides
Straight answers to the questions students actually ask before they start writing. No sign-up, no paywall, no rewriting of anybody’s sentences.
Start here
How to write a college essay
A step-by-step guide to writing a college application essay: finding a topic, structuring a draft, the six things readers score, and how to revise.
How to write a "Why Us" supplemental essay
What a "Why Us" essay is, the research that makes one specific, a paragraph-by-paragraph structure, and the generic lines that get supplements discarded.
The Common App essay prompts, explained
What each Common Application personal statement prompt is really asking, which ones are hardest to write well, and how to choose between them.
How long should a college essay be?
Word counts for the Common App personal statement, supplemental essays and short answers, plus what happens if you go under or over the limit.
How to brainstorm college essay topics
A twenty-moment exercise for finding a college essay topic, the filters that separate a usable idea from a cliche, and what to do if nothing has happened.
How to compare two college essay drafts
Why writers pick the wrong draft, a six-axis comparison method that replaces gut feel, and how to decide between two essays you are attached to.
Then get your own draft scored
Essay Clarity scores your essay against the same six axes these guides describe, with line-level feedback on your own sentences. It does not rewrite them.
Get started See the rubric