50 Successful Ivy League Application Essays

You Don’t Have to Write about a Tragedy or Curing a Disease
“I have several pieces of advice, but I suppose they all relate to one idea: 
Be honest in your essay. There is a myth that in order to get into a top ranked 
school, you must have a)endured great tragedy in your life or b)have cured 
a disease, have a geometric theorem named after you, be a published author, 
etc. While all of these are excellent topics to write about, they don’t apply to 
everyone, and you don’t need to make up a story if they don’t fit your life. I’ve 
had an amazing childhood, my family is fantastic, and like most teenagers, 
I’m still waiting to do my world-changing work (assuming I have any in my 
future). So, I wrote about what was important to me: the small things I am 
doing currently to better the world and the bigger things I hope to do. Essay 
readers know when they’re being played, and they also realize that we’re just 
kids—we have the rest of our lives to do great things.”
—Suzanne Arrington, Columbia University

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50 Successful Ivy League Application Essays