It’s almost October 1, commonly known as FAFSA time around here, and we have guidance for those completing the form this fall. We also have advice for teacher recommendations, from how they’re used to who to ask to how to ask for them. In Office Hours, we’re working through the supplemental questions for Haverford, Swarthmore, and Bryn Mawr, three colleges on the outskirts of Philadelphia.

It’s application season, and application season means supplemental essays! In this week’s show, we’ll dissect the supplemental questions for Vassar and University of Rochester. We’ll also answer your college admissions and finance questions in our Listener Q&A segment.

Dear Debt’s Melanie Lockert paid off $81 thousand in student debt in just a few years. She’ll join us to talk about how she got to $81 thousand in the first place, what she would do differently if she could do it all again, and what led to the creation of her Dear Debt blog (now also a book). We’re also discussing how to choose your Common App prompt and what Common App supplemental essays are all about.

On last week’s episode of Getting In: A College Coach Conversation, guest host Ian Fisher discusses three very different phases of the college admission process: writing supplemental essays, receiving admission decisions, and repaying loans.

You need guidance on Brown’s four supplemental essays. We’ve got advice. You and this blog are a perfect fit!

Before you get started, remember that while these are all short responses, they’re still essays, and all the essay rules apply: develop engaging openings and strong conclusions, and provide examples and specifics so that you are showing rather than telling.

So you’re interested in applying to Wellesley College? And why wouldn’t you be. Very few other colleges have the student opportunities and impressive alumni of this women’s college.

So you want to be a Duck!  What inspires you and motivates you to join the University of Oregon community, and what will you contribute to campus? Why is it a good fit for you? All things to consider as you dive into your University of Oregon application.

You might assume that college essay supplements are merely an opportunity for a college to learn more about its applicants; that they are known to students only after they’ve made a decision to apply to a particular university; that they are rooted in some important academic or cultural aspect of the institution with which they are associated. For nearly every college, you’d be right.

But not so for the University of Chicago.

The Princeton supplement is one of the most varied in terms of tone. One prompt asks for a long, thoughtful response, while the others are brief and informational rather than introspective. Let’s start with those short ones!

On the latest episode of Getting In: A College Coach Conversation, Elizabeth Heaton is in the host seat and here to talk about early action, supplemental essays for Georgia Tech and Emory, financial aid at Northeastern University.