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Caroline Koppelman
Official Common App Essay Guide 2025-2026

We™ve spent the past few weeks breaking down each Common App essay prompt one by one, and now it time for the grand finale: our ultimate guide to writing the Common App essay. Sure, there are seven different prompts, but at the end of the day, every school is looking for the same thing: a story.

Caroline Koppelman
How to Write Common App Essay Prompt 7: Example ...

We™ve been waiting for this one: it finally time to dig into Prompt #7, the crown jewel of the Common App essay prompts.

Caroline Koppelman
Ultimate Guide to Letters of Continued Interest ...

Getting waitlisted or deferred from your dream school is hard. We know it hard! You feel rejected, but it this weird non-rejection rejection that can leave you feeling lost and confused. And while a lot of things in college admissions are totally out of your control, there is something you can do if you™ve been waitlisted or deferred to give yourself another chance. A letter of continued interest, sometimes known as a waitlist letter or deferral letter, is one of the few, actionable things you can control when admissions decisions seem so out of your control. It your only chance to make a good second impression, and we help students write them every single year.

Caroline Koppelman
Ultimate Guide to Getting Waitlisted 2025

Getting waitlisted is the ultimate limbo “ it not not a rejection, but it not a full-on denial, either. And depending on your circumstances, you could be feeling everything from mild disappointment to full-on panic. Don get yourself into a tizzy just yet, because there are things you can do to give yourself a shot at getting off the waitlist and make sure that you have a plan in place for the next year.

Caroline Koppelman
Best Early Decision II (ED2) Schools 2024-2025

Hey, look, sometimes ED doesn work out the way we want it to, and we have to change strategies. If you just got rejected or deferred from your ED/EA option, we™d like to introduce you to our good friend, Early Decision 2. ED2 is just as binding as ED, and it signals to the school that you are serious about attending that school, and guess what? Schools like when you™re serious about them.

safety school

What The Difference Between A Reach, Target, and Safety School?

There is very little randomness in the college application process. And while everyone seems to believe that they just might be the single outlier, there comes a time when you need to make decisions about how to best spend your time. This week, we™ve been focusing on creating and refining your college list. This blog post will help you categorize your list into reach, target, and safety schools.

How To Build a Balanced College List

Building a balanced list is about research and knowing what you want. The first component has to do with identifying the school numerical range that you™re interested in--the average SAT/ACT scores are available on the schools™ websites, and from there you compare your own score. If your scores are above, it a safety, if they™re around the same, a target, and if you fall below numerically, then the school is a reach. Before we delve into building your list, make sure that you read up on the difference between reaches, targets, and safety schools in our . This post builds on that knowledge.