Writing a college essay is exciting… and terrifying. Suddenly, the pressure is on: Will the Admissions Officer love my story? Does my essay show my authentic personality? Am I convincing them I belong on campus? What are they looking for?!
The truth is: so much happens after you press “submit” that you can’t control (your GPA is your GPA, for better or worse). However, your essay writing is something you can shape. And more often than not, it’s the small, silly mistakes rather than the big philosophical dilemmas that make a huge difference.
Below are 13 surprisingly common (and easily avoidable) mistakes that Admissions Officers inevitably see every year.
It’s amazing how often capitalization goes rogue in college essays. I know it seems simple, but Admissions Officers read so many essays each year (and day!) that these types of errors can jump off the page. Common offenders include:
While your story might be amazing, these tiny slips can make your essay look careless. The good news is that capitalization mistakes are an easy fix. A quick proofread, spellcheck, or editing pass can work wonders.
Punctuation isn’t glamorous… until it is. A missing comma? A random apostrophe? Too many exclamation points? Admissions Officers take notice. Here are a few that personally drive me nuts:
Thoughtful punctuation is the expectation as well as the norm. Whereas, chaotic punctuation can change the entire voice of your essay, so be intentional.
Clarity matters far more than flair. Formatting mishaps are perhaps the fastest way to distract from a beautifully written story. Fonts, sizes, spacing, and paragraph breaks should be consistent throughout the application. Admissions Officers regularly encounter:
Pro Tip: Fancy formatting rarely survives the upload process and often displays incorrectly in the application reader portal. Keep it clean and consistent to make your reader’s job easy.
Imagine writing your entire “Why Duke” essay only for it to be read by a Vanderbilt Admissions Officer… Yes, this really happens. And, yes, it’s as uncomfortable as you might imagine.
Before submitting, search your essay for any school names. Replace. Double-check. Triple-check. Do it even if you feel confident. Especially if you feel confident.
More importantly though, copy paste isn’t always your friend. The only difference between two “Why School” supplemental essays shouldn’t be the college or university’s name. These essays are intended to be highly specific and personalized. If you’re not sure where to start, Infinite Futures can help. We are essay brainstorming, writing, and editing pros.
Just like mixing up school names, this one is shockingly common. Students will enthusiastically (and awkwardly) write about:
Always confirm and verify major offerings on the school’s actual website. As a bonus, this extra step often helps students realize whether a school is actually the right academic fit. Save yourself time, stress, and potential heartache.
Some essays are perfectly fine, except that they miss the point of the prompt entirely. Admissions Officers ask specific questions because they want to gather specific information and insights. When they ask about a challenge, they’re not hoping for a charming story about your dog or an overview of quantum physics.
For most students, the Personal Statement is the place to be creative when it comes to topic choice. In fact, one of the prompts is even “Topic of your Choice.” Alternatively, when completing school-specific supplements, students should focus on answering the question being asked. Think of it this way:
If the limit is 650 words, they do not mean 652. Word limits exist for a reason and they mean what they say. If you go over, the system cuts you off mid-sent—
…exactly like that.
Being concise is part of the skill that Admissions Officers are evaluating. Further, most application portals have very clear word or character counters. Any extra will often get cut off in the application reader that Admissions Officers use. So write concisely and trim boldly.
“My couch thinks I’m good at volleyball.”
Unless her living room furniture is unusually supportive, I’m guessing this student meant coach. Unfortunately, homophones are sneaky. Oops!
Spell-check is a great first pass, but it always misses something. Typos can be accidentally hilarious but also humbling. While an Admissions Officer won’t deny a fantastic student because of a single errant typo, it can be highly embarrassing. And multiple typos do add up in the admissions process.
A big part of my job at Infinite Futures is editing essays for these types of spelling and grammar mistakes. Here’s what I recommend:
We all have our favorite words, and none of us (even me!) are immune to this one. Using the same word over and over (and over) again makes your writing feel flat. While we all occasionally fall into favorite-word ruts, Admissions Officers notice when every paragraph leans on “actually,” “really,” or “passionate.”
Here’s what I like to do for this one:
As you do this, please make sure you don’t overuse the Thesaurus when swapping out words. This can lead to other (even larger) issues.
Admissions Officers want to see your personality. At the same time, they don’t want to feel like they just opened your group chat or Discord server. Avoiding the following can help:
As you write, channel “polished, authentic, and conversational” vibes rather than TikTok or Instagram caption energy. In some cases, whether an Admissions Officer likes your application or not really comes down to whether they vibe with the person they meet in your writing.
While I can’t force you to take any of my advice, I’d strongly recommend using extreme caution when it comes to swearing in your college essay. Personally, I’ve never seen this work out very well. I promise Admissions Officers are not sitting there thinking, “Great use of profanity as a literary device!”
You can absolutely get your point across and be honest, emotional, and even intense without going down this path. At the end of the day, be yourself but keep it clean.
Quotes can be powerful, inspiring, and beautifully written… Which is exactly why they shouldn’t take over your essay. Every line you give to Maya Angelou, Nelson Mandela, or Suzanne Collins is a line admissions doesn’t get to hear from you. Here are my go to guidelines:
At the end of the day, the most important part of the college essay is that it sounds like your authentic and genuine voice. Don’t waste space by handing the mic to someone else.
All of the mistakes described above seem to happen far more frequently when you’re working on a cell phone. Small screens tend to equal more typos, less structure, frequent repetition, and autocorrect choosing chaos.
I know phones are incredibly accessible for jotting down an idea when inspiration hits. Usually this happens to me at 3am when I wake up from my go-to stress dream (tornados, anyone?). But why take the risk when it comes to your final essay submission? You should always plan to type out your essay responses and go through the editing process on a larger screen.
If you don’t have access to a home computer, I completely understand! I’d recommend using pen and paper to write your first draft or two. Then maybe you can find a way to complete your final edit and submission on a school computer, at a library, or at a friend’s house. Some high schools might even lend you a computer to take home for the weekend or for an extended period of time if you ask your counselor or librarian!
Nothing says “I’m totally ready for college” like emailing your Admissions Officer and misspelling their name. Yes, I say this from personal experience.
Always take an extra minute or two to double-check spelling, punctuation, and tone. Your future self will thank you. And Admissions Officers often do notice (and appreciate) when emails are well-written!
Correcting small errors makes your essay clearer, more professional, and more memorable. However, it’s important to keep in mind that essay editing is a skillset. There is literally an entire profession dedicated to developmental and copy editing. We don’t expect students (or even adults) to be experts. But we are!
Infinite Futures helps students brainstorm, draft, and edit essays that truly reflect their voice without typos, missed prompts, or formatting disasters. Our College Advising team is here to make this process smoother, saner, and way less stressful.
If you’re ready for personalized essay support or comprehensive college advising, schedule a consultation today. Let’s make your application memorable for all the right reasons.
Dr. Corinne Smith spent a decade as an undergraduate Admissions Officer for Northwestern University and Yale University. She has also read applications for Brown University and UC San Diego. Corinne has her B.A. and M.S. from Northwestern and received her Doctorate in Education from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. At Infinite Futures, she serves as the Director of Application Strategy and oversees the essay editing process for all students.
