Should secondaries stand alone

[artist27]

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Starting to prewrite my secondaries. Should the essays be able to stand completely alone? Can I say something like "During my time volunteering at XYZ..." or should it be more like "I have been volunteering at XYZ, an organization that helps the homeless, for 2 years..."

Not sure if that made any sense or if there is even a difference but any insight is appreciated

 

[alana615]

It's all part of the same application so I would say don't reiterate. Don't waste time and space listing something they'll already know by the time they get to your secondary. I wrote mine assuming they already knew everything in my app.

 

[DrDwayneJohnson]

It's all part of the same application so I would say don't reiterate. Don't waste time and space listing something they'll already know by the time they get to your secondary. I wrote mine assuming they already knew everything in my app.

I am going to have to disagree with this one. Some schools (like my state school, for example) review your application by having specific subsets review parts of your application. Group A only looks at W&A entries, Group B only looks at Secondary App responses, Group C only looks at your PS, etc etc. Adding in an extra sentence or phrase to put things into perspective will help reviewers at schools that review this way. I don't see it being very hurtful to schools who use other methods.

 

[gyngyn]

The ones that are irksome are the "please see response in diversity essay," "I answered this in the adversity question,"and my favorite: "just read my personal statement, it's all there."

 

[SuaveCardigans]

The ones that are irksome are the "please see response in diversity essay," "I answered this in the adversity question,"and my favorite: "just read my personal statement, it's all there."

You have the best examples of doing it wrong. Would love to read a compilation if you ever find yourself bored and with plenty of time, unlikely as it may be.

 

[Catalystik]

I am going to have to disagree with this one. Some schools (like my state school, for example) review your application by having specific subsets review parts of your application. Group A only looks at W&A entries, Group B only looks at Secondary App responses, Group C only looks at your PS, etc etc. Adding in an extra sentence or phrase to put things into perspective will help reviewers at schools that review this way. I don't see it being very hurtful to schools who use other methods.

I'm with DrDwayneJohnson and gyngyn. Your essays should stand alone. Don't assume access to other parts of the application.