Kim Lifton, President of Wow Writing Workshop, joins us today to address the often misunderstood "Why us?" essay. The "Why us?" essay is a unique opportunity in the college application.
"And of course none of it matters very much at all, none of these early successes, early failures. I wonder if we had better not find some way to let our children know this..."
In 1968 in the Saturday Evening Post, author Joan Didion published an essay on being denied admission at Stanford University. It's timeless commentary on dealing with rejection and the complex feelings stirred by that bitter pill many applicants face at some point in the application process. Didion rooted out her rejection letter as an object lesson for a 17-year-old niece going through the process and then employed it as an opportunity to appraise the college admission landscape -- an appraisal that is surprisingly relevant in 2013. Enjoy...
On Being Unchosen by the College of One's Choice
