Student from Cary adds his site to essay-writing toolbox

Travis May, a Harvard University sophomore from Cary, has founded a Web site -- www.ivyadmits.com -- designed to help college applicants. The site has collected more than 65 application essays written by students who were accepted by Ivy League schools. Visitors can view three sample essays for free. Further access is available for a minimum $5 donation to a charity of your choice. Admitted Ivy Leaguers can get in for free by submitting an essay.

In bold-face, capital letters on the "Essays That Worked" home page, there's a warning: "No content or ideas should be taken from any essay. Plagiarism is wrong."

May responded to e-mail questions from education editor Roger van der Horst.

Q: How'd you come up with the idea?

A: In my senior year at Cary Academy, the school's college counselor came into our English classes one day in mid-September to explain the process of writing a college application essay. This lesson was useful, but the two sample essays were the most helpful part.

After I was admitted to Harvard, there was a message board set up by the university for admitted students to talk to each other. I thought that a collection of these sample essays would be useful, but at first I was just curious to see what other people had written about. I found the essays through the Harvard message board, message boards on other college sites and [mainly] through word of mouth among admitted students.

Q: In reality, aren't Ivy League students getting there more on their grades and SAT scores?

A: Students are accepted into great schools for a variety of reasons, including their academic ability, their intellectual passion and their extracurricular achievements. ... The essay is the personal side of an application, where passions and obstacles can be described in more depth. ... A well-written essay that captures genuine passions can help to differentiate an applicant by creating a "hook" factor.

Q: Would you be willing to share your SAT scores and GPA at Cary Academy?

A: My SAT I score was a 1520 (800 math, 720 verbal). Cary Academy does not officially calculate GPAs or class rank; I was a straight-A student and got a score of five [the maximum] on 12 Advanced Placement exams.

Q: Is there any identifying information with the essays and/or any indication of where the applicants were or were not accepted?

A: To protect their privacy, [the essay writers] can ask to remain anonymous. ... There is also a textbox that asks for further information that the author of the essay would like to share. While many people who have submitted their essays have chosen to remain anonymous, some of the authors have also opted to list where they were accepted.

Q: Have you gotten any feedback from college admissions people on the site? How do you think they'll feel about it?

A: Most of the feedback I have heard has been from applicants using the site, which has all been positive. I have also received positive feedback from some college counselors at high schools. I have not heard much from admissions representatives within schools.

While the site is a tremendous resource, there are two clear potential problems: plagiarism and over-emphasis on one component of the application. For the most part, the essays posted are extremely personal, so plagiarism would be very difficult. And several other services provide sample essays (though not for free and in the same quantity). I have also tried to make it clear that there is no formula for the perfect essay, and there is a diverse selection of essays on the site.

Q: So, what's the secret to writing a good essay?

A: What has really stood out to me in the best essays I've read is how personalized they are. A good essay is able to leave the reader feeling like they know the author pretty well and that the author is somebody they would want in their community.