Conquering the College Admissions Essay in 10 Steps, Third Edition: Crafting a Winning Personal Statement (Complete Guide to College Application Essays)

I can safely say that this book is the best essay guide I've read. Being an international Early Decision applicant, I was pressed for time when I first started reading this book. The methodology is concise yet comprehensive. Each aspect and step of the essay-writing process has been detailed in this guide. If CollegeBoard's Blue Book is the SAT bible for students, this is the bible for an amazing personal statement. I've never seen a more accurate description and breakdown of a process as subjective as essay-writing. While Princeton Review and books like '50 Successful Admissions Essays' offer examples of essays that were accepted by top universities, this book sets the guidelines, rules and protocol of writing a top-notch college essay. Though I still haven't received my admission decision, I am confident that this book has helped my essay stand out from the crowd. The author also worked personally with me on my essays, and I strongly recommend his editing services. Without doubt, Mr. Alan Gelb has used his vast experience to author a masterpiece that will allow any college applicant to reveal his or her personal voice through a variety of essay prompts. I can strongly suggest all college applicants to read this book without a second thought, especially if they are considering applying to selective colleges.

If you want step by step excellent advice on how to focus your son or daughter on their college essay, this book is exactly what you need. From selecting a topic to figuring out how to construct the essay and make it special, this is really an extraordinarily well thought out and accessible resource. What was really wonderful was that the advice on constructing the college essay also spilled over into excellent pointers about writing more generally so it was a valuable book for more than just the college essay. If you're wondering how your child is ever going to get started, if s/he's hit a wall in putting the essay together, or if you just feel as though the essay could be better, get this book. It's not easy helping a high school senior put together the college application (I've now done it with three children) so it's a real gift to find a book this good that you can just give to your child and know they're getting excellent advice. I really do think every parent should buy this book for their college bound high school student.

'Conquering the College Admission Essay in the 10 Steps', by Alan Gelb reviews basic high school composition and how it applies to the college applicant's personal statement. Developing the technical aspects of conflict, protagonists and timing are critical to an interesting product. I recommend that the editing parent and student read 'Conquering . . ', then everyone is on the same page. Gelb crafts a great example of story telling by a classic 'mom', then injects the critical aspects of a successful essay. Very clever and interesting example for discussion between writer and editor. Another great book is 'On Writing the College Application Essay', by Harry Bauld. In contrast, Bauld's book gives incredible insight into who is the recipient of the essay; how to fashion the final product to intrigue the decision maker and their panel; and the process of the application. 'On Writing . . ' is smartly written for the Ivy League applicant -- or the best prepared future state school attendee. Together these two books will supply the writer with ammunition and the tools needed for a solid essay. Good Luck!

'Conquering the College Admission Essay in the 10 Steps', by Alan Gelb is an excellent book for high school students who are getting ready to write their personal essay. The personal essay can be the most intimidating part of the college application process because it is so open. Many students wonder how on earth would they be able to give a perfect snapshot of themselves to a application committee? What tone would be best to use so as not to come across as overtly arrogant or timid? Did I not provide enough detail or just give an overview of my life? And most importantly is this what my college wants? Regardless of writing acumen, most students will wonder about these things as they are writing. What Mr. Gelb accomplishes with his book is he gives a comprehensive overview of what sort of approach one ought to take with a personal essay. The way this book is able to simplify such a complex and confusing task makes it truly a masterpiece.

I have read two books about college admission in each of 3 categories and this the first one I write a review for. The other books were certainly worthy of a review but students and their parents may have gross misconceptions about college essays, which is why I am writing this review (even though I positively hate typing on a Kindle). I am a father doing a lot of reading on behalf of his junior but this is a book that my son WILL read. It is brief in the realm of college books yet comprehensive with the subject. My son WILL write his essay but I will be along as a coach thanks to this book. As the author, who has a wealth of experience with the process, writes, the essay matters more than certain aspects of an application that students devote more time to. I read this book in less than a week and it was time well spent. If you're a student, best of luck with finding the college best suited to your personality, but don't take short cuts with your essay, read this book.

This book had a few helpful tips. However, I felt that it focused wayyyy too much on conquering procrastination which isn't really a problem for me. It did also have a lot of helpful information on grammar and how to write technically well. I would say that this is a book to read if you have a lot of time to write your essay, not if you're closing in on the deadline.

Alan Gelb's book covers everything a high school senior needs to know in an easy-to-read format. As the mother of a senior who procrastinated on every writing assignment he's ever been given, I dreaded the college admission process. I envisioned the last day of December as a frantic time pushing my son to write essays at the last moment. Alan Gelb's book provides an excellent analysis of the human feelings behind procrastination. His book is a great primer on writing, from choosing a point-of-view to replacing adverbs with strong verbs. It's a must read for any writer. But what I liked best about his book is the process he uses for teasing out the conflict in an essay otherwise lacking in one. The clear format and chapter summations make it easy to use as a reference during the actual writing process. I highly recommend this book for every high school senior.

Your initial post: Jul 20, 2014 9:23:14 AM PDT I'll go out on a limb and say: this book is not only invaluable for crafting a college admissions essay, but it will make anyone a better writer. I do a lot of writing in my (legal) profession and consider myself an adept writer, but boy, did I learn a lot from Mr. Gelb -- about getting right to the point of an essay, about focusing on the tension/conflict that makes a piece of writing interesting, about letting your voice shine through, about dealing with procrastination and writer's block. Mr. Gelb's own writing is quite direct, graceful and humorous, so it's easy to trust his writing guidance. He never minimizes how hard writing is -- especially a piece of writing like the college essay, with so much riding on it -- but his roadmap makes it much easier to get the job done. Now to convince my applying-to-college daughter to take these lessons to heart.

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