If you put a college essay in front of me that a parent got a little too involved with, a parent who took too many editing or flat out writing liberties, I’ll know it. Immediately. After doing this for 12 years and reviewing as many applications as I have, I’ve developed a sixth sense for this kind of thing. Most counselors do.
But after even just one year on the job, most admissions officers will have already read more applications than I have. How good do you think their sixth senses are? Pretty damn good.
Parents see the world differently than 17-year-olds do. But the colleges want to hear the 17-year-olds’ thoughts, not the parents’. In fact, most admissions officers are much closer in age to kids than they are to parents. Maybe that’s why their sixth senses are so good? They know when something didn’t come from a teenager.
So parents, let your students do the applications and essays themselves. It’s fine to proofread and offer feedback, but once you start jumping in and doing it for them, you’re going too far. And the sixth senses will know. It’s not worth the risk.