#The Choice » What the New Dean at Pomona Looks for in an Essay Comments Feed The Choice Introducing The Choice Part 4: Answers on the Fafsa, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid Part 5: Answers on the Fafsa, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid RSS 2.0 alternate [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=Header1&query=qstring&keywords=?] [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=Header2&query=qstring&keywords=?] [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=Header3&query=qstring&keywords=?] [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=Top5&query=qstring&keywords=?] * Home Page * Today's Paper * Video * Most Popular Edition: U.S. / Global [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=Middle1C&query=qstring&keywords=?] Search All NYTimes.com ____________________ Search New York Times Education * World * U.S. + Politics + Education + Texas * N.Y. / Region * Business * Technology * Science * Health * Sports * Opinion * Arts * Style * Travel * Jobs * Real Estate * Autos _________________________________________________________________ [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=TopAd&query=qstring&keywords=?] [post&posall=TopAd,Bar1,Position1,Position1B,Top5,SponLink,MiddleRight,Box1,Box3,Box3A,Bottom3,Right5A,Right6A,Right7A,Right8A,Middle1C,Bottom7,Bottom8,Bottom9,Header1,Header2,Header3,Inv1,Inv2,CcolumnSS,Middle4,Left1B,Frame6A,Left2,Left3,Left4,Left5,Left6,Left7,Left8,Left9,JMNow1,JMNow2,JMNow3,JMNow4,JMNow5,JMNow6,Feature1,Spon3,ADX_CLIENTSIDE,SponLink2&pos=PushDown&query=qstring&keywords=?] The Choice - Getting into College and Paying for it _________________________________________________________________ January 12, 2012, 1:00 pm Comment What the New Dean at Pomona Looks for in an Essay By JACQUES STEINBERG Higher Education The Choice on India Ink Choice Logo Guidance on American college applications for readers in India from The Times’s admissions blog * Visit The Choice Blog » * Like The Choice on Facebook » As part of our effort to pass along authoritative guidance on applying to American colleges to an audience of students and families in India, we have recently posted the second installment in a regular Choice series on The New York Times’s India Ink blog. It is an essay by Seth Allen, the new vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid at Pomona College in California, about, well, the essay. While some of Mr. Allen’s advice about constructing admissions essays is particular to our readers abroad (the last of his seven tips is “When applying to schools in the United States, don’t try to ‘Americanize’ your application by focusing on your trip to the United States”), most of what he suggests is entirely relevant to American readers. Seth Allen, dean of admissions at Pomona College in California Stephen Mally for The New York TimesSeth Allen, dean of admissions at Pomona College in California Certainly his opening line is a powerful one worth heeding: “The essay just may be the most important aspect of your application to a United States college or university.” We hope you will give the post a look on India Ink, and leave a comment behind as well. Choice on India Ink, college admissions, College Essay, India, Pomona College _________________________________________________________________ * Previous Post Part 4: Answers on the Fafsa, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid * Next Post Part 5: Answers on the Fafsa, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid Add your comments... Your Name _________________________ Required Your E-mail _________________________ Required, will not be published Your Comment Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive. 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But it need not be. Join Jacques Steinberg, a New York Times senior editor and author of “The Gatekeepers: Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier College,’’ and Tanya Abrams, a higher education reporter for The Times and former high school teacher, as they examine all facets of the college admissions process. * Introductory Post, March 26, 2009 » * Video: How to Use Our Blog * Contact us: thechoicenyt@gmail.com. * Guidelines for comments and Why a post might be deleted. This Week: Guidance Office Fafsa Q. and A. Mark Kantrowitz Mark Kantrowitz, an expert on paying for college and the founder of FinAid.org, is answering select reader questions about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. * Introductory Post * Answers: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 * Paying for College » The Choice Newsletter Sign Up for Our Weekly Newsletter Sign up for The Choice newsletter » The Choice is now available in your in-box. To sign up, visit our subscription page and enter your e-mail address. Every week, you'll receive the latest college admissions news and advice from The New York Times. Sign up for The Choice newsletter The Envelope, Please 190 Thumbnail Eight high school seniors from around the world blog their college searches. * Meet the Students: Candice Childress | Sush Krishnamoorthy | Will Walker | Thanh-Tran Nguyen | Leobardo Espinoza Jr. | Maimuna Abdi Yussuf | Bryan Stromer | Chandler Buckingham * All Posts in the Series » College Planner Counselor's Calendar [choice-calendar-winter-hpSmall.jpg] * January College Checklists: * Seniors | Juniors Guidance Office 75 Thumbnail * Q. and A. With Deans: * Harvard | Penn. | Princeton Choosing a College 75 Thumbnail Applying to College 75 Thumbnail Paying for College [choice-paying-for-college-hpSmall.jpg] * Mark Kantrowitz: Financial Aid * College Cost Calculator » * Student Loan Guide » College Acceptance Rates 75 Thumbnail * 2013 Early Admission Trends * 2012 Acceptance Rates * 2012 Yield and Wait List Data Comments of the Moment “ Do not limit yourself by thinking that a degree should be required, to do so would indeed limit the success of our nation.” — JS No College Degree for One of Every 20 in Congress “ We have just celebrated the acceptance of the first of our five children to his first-choice college. We could not have reached that milestone without you.” — MOM OF FIVE IN MASS The Choice Blogger Graduates “ God bless you, I'm grinning for you! And God bless your mom too, she must be thrilled!” — Verity A Dream College Acceptance Arrives at Bedtime By the Blogger 75 Thumbnail The Gatekeepers: Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier College By Jacques Steinberg Given an unprecedented opportunity to observe the admissions process at Wesleyan University, Mr. Steinberg accompanied an admissions officer for nearly a year as he recruited the nation's most promising students. “The Gatekeepers” follows a diverse group competing for places in elite colleges. Buy This Book on Amazon.com Education Life MOOCs: Massive and Multiplying The phenomenal growth of massive open online courses. Also: brain training, vet school, term-paper tips. * The Brain Trainers * Asian-Americans in the Argument * Go to Education Life » Recent Posts January 18 Among University of California Applicants, Latinos Take the Lead The U.C. system also received 174,767 applications this year, a record high. January 18 Part 5: Answers to Your Questions About the Fafsa Mark Kantrowitz, an expert on financial aid, answers select reader questions about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Part 5. January 17 Preoccupying My Mind With Summer Plans as Colleges Decide My Fate Sush Krishnamoorthy, a student in New Delhi who is applying to universities in the United States, is avoiding the anxiety of college decisions by making plans for summer. January 17 Part 4: Answers to Your Questions About the Fafsa Mark Kantrowitz, an expert on financial aid, answers select reader questions about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Part 4. January 16 Lafayette Selects Its First Female President Alison R. Byerly will succeed Daniel H. Weiss as the new president of Lafayette College, a liberal arts institution that was founded in 1826. Archive [Select Month..] Latest Times Articles on College Admissions How to Choose a College By FRANK BRUNI; When picking a school, you can focus on ranking, reputation, ivy. 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