Free Resources
Free Guides for the College-Bound Family
Practical, no-fluff resources from two former Colorado high school principals. Grab what you need.
Common App Honors Section Guide
A one-page visual guide to every honor and award students can list in the Common App honors section, including many they forget.
Common App FAQ Guide
Quick answers to the most common questions seniors ask while filling out the Common App.
Common App Activities Section Guide
A one-page guide showing how to write activity descriptions that stand out, with before and after examples.
Free Resource
Real Scholarship Essays That Worked
A few of these won money. A few opened doors at the writer's top-choice school. All of them started exactly where your student is right now, staring at a blank page, not sure what to say.
One thing to notice as you read: none of them are trying to sound impressive, instead they sound interesting! They're specific, honest, and they sound like an actual teenager. That's the whole trick, and it's the thing most students get wrong when they try to write what they think a scholarship committee wants to hear.
If your student is a senior, the essays are the urgent part right now. If they're a junior or younger, you've got time to do this the calm way instead of the panicked way, and that's where knowing the month-by-month plan makes all the difference.
For now, read a couple of these together. See which one your student reacts to. That reaction is usually the door into their own essay.
If you'd like to talk through your student's specific situation, that's exactly what our free 30-minute call is for. No pitch, just a real conversation about where they stand and what to do next. Book anytime here.
Spencer