Personal Statement Tips & Brainstorming Session
Crafting a compelling personal statement is a pivotal step in your college application journey, and I'm here to guide you through it with clarity and creativity. This Personal Statement Tips & Brainstorming Session is designed to unlock your unique story and articulate it in a way that resonates with admissions committees. Whether you're just starting to explore ideas or need strategic guidance to refine your narrative, we'll tailor our approach to fit your needs and aspirations. Here's what we'll cover: - **Application Strategy & Exploration**: We'll begin by discussing your academic and personal journey, identifying key experiences and themes that define you. This exploration will help us pinpoint the most compelling aspects of your story to highlight in your personal statement. - **Personal Statement Brainstorming**: Together, we'll dive into brainstorming sessions to uncover the narrative threads that best represent your individuality and potential. I'll guide you in framing these ideas into a cohesive and engaging story that captures your voice and vision. - **Essay Development & Feedback**: As you draft your personal statement, I'll provide constructive feedback to enhance clarity, coherence, and impact. We'll focus on ensuring your essay not only meets the technical requirements but also leaves a lasting impression on the reader. Throughout our sessions, I aim to empower you with the confidence and skills to present your authentic self. My goal is to help you craft a personal statement that not only tells your story but also aligns with your future academic and career goals. Let's embark on this journey together and create a personal statement that truly reflects who you are and what you aspire to achieve.
What's included
I take a voice-driven approach to college admissions essays.
- Engaging brainstorming sessions to uncover and frame your unique narrative.
- Empowerment to present your authentic self with confidence in your application.
- Personalized application strategy highlighting key experiences and themes for your personal statement.
- Constructive feedback on drafts to enhance clarity, coherence, and impact.
Meet your expert
Chris N.
Harvard, Berkeley, & NYU Grad | Personal Statement Expert
Update (7/21/26): Just this last application season, I had several students accepted to Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, and Brown, with most admitted to two or more of these universities. Others include Duke, USC, Carnegie Mellon, Pomona, Occidental, the University of Rochester, Williams, Barnard of Columbia University, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Irvine, UCSD, Georgetown, Wesleyan, Macalester, University of Richmond, Reed, Whitman, Virginia Tech, and NYU. Additionally, four received the Gates Scholarship, one earned Jack Kent Cooke, and another earned a Coca-Cola scholarship. I earned my Master of Theological Studies in Religion, Literature, and Culture from Harvard, Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from NYU, and Bachelor of Arts in English from UC Berkeley. I also studied philosophy and law abroad at Oxford. I have a decade of experience teaching and coaching writing at the high school, undergraduate, and graduate levels, and most recently served as a Writing Instructor at the Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America (LEDA), hosted at Princeton and Yale Universities. Last year, among the many admissions offers LEDA students received, 37/100 earned spots at Yale. Previously, I taught writing at NYU, and I currently teach Generative AI and Responsible AI at the University of Maryland Global Campus, qualified by my experience as a Content Engineer and Reviewer at Google. My unique background and trajectory prove that I know how to reflect on my experience to consider my next steps, and I will help you do the same.
