College Essay Workshop 2024

Students who participated in the workshop over the last eight years received admission to colleges such as Kenyon, Wellesley, Boston College, Bryn Mawr College, Rutgers University, George Washington University, TCNJ, Case Western Reserve University, St. Olaf College, Elon, NYU, UNC Chapel Hill, Duke, Tulane, Vanderbilt, UCLA, Johns Hopkins, Princeton, and MIT.

This workshop is designed to provide students with the information, approaches, and process they will need to tell the stories that are central to their college essays. The workshop will consist of three classroom meetings and then two individual meetings working to revise and fine-tune the student's work. If by the end of the second meeting, the piece still needs work, we will continue to meet until the piece is polished. We will begin by looking at models of great narrative storytelling, discussing both the mode and structure great writers use to collapse the distance between writer and reader. We will then examine model college essays, looking at the content, structure, and style of the essays. The third classroom meeting will be a discussion of approaches to different types of college essay questions, leaving time for the students to brainstorm outlines and ideas in preparation for writing their first drafts. Each session has a built in gap week to allow students time to draft their essays. These drafts will be emailed to the instructor on the Friday preceding the student's first individual meeting with the instructor. This will allow the instructor time to review the draft prior to the revision conference (Class 4). At the end of the week of the revision conference students will email their revised draft to the instructor for review in preparation for the final conference (Class 5). The goal of this process is that not only will the student walk away with a minimum of one completed college essay they can be proud of, they will also now possess the know-how to write additional college essays.

Classes 1, 2, and 3 of each session will meet at St. Elizabeth University, Santa Maria Hall, Room 24.

Classes 4 & 5 have a time of TBD because these will be individual appointment times scheduled on the day of Class 2 for each session. These individual conferences will happen over Zoom. Over the past couple of years, students and I have found that individual writing conferences via Zoom are as effective if not more effective than in person meetings. It allows the student and family flexibility with their plans and it allows us to fluidly discuss, edit, and revise the essay in real time.

Session 1: Closed

Class 1: Tues., June 25th (6pm-7pm)- Introduction to the Personal Narrative

Class 2: Wed., June 26th (6pm-7pm)-Evaluating the Qualities of Impactful College Essays

Class 3:Thurs.,June 27th (6pm-7pm)-Exploring College Essay Questions & Effective Approaches

Class 4: Tues., July 9th (TBD)-Revising the rough draft (individual meeting with instructor).

Class 5: Tues., July 16th (TBD)-Tuning up the revision (individual meeting with instructor).

Session 2: Closed

Class 1: Tues., July 9th (6pm-7pm)- Introduction to the Personal Narrative

Class 2: Wed., July 10th (6pm-7pm)-Evaluating the Qualities of Impactful College Essays

Class 3:Thurs., July 11th (6pm-7pm)-Exploring College Essay Questions & Effective Approaches

Class 4: Tues., July 23rd (TBD)-Revising the rough draft (individual meeting with instructor).

Class 5: Tues., July 30th (TBD)-Tuning up the revision (individual meeting with instructor).

Session 3: Closed

Class 1: Tues., July 16th (6pm-7pm)- Introduction to the Personal Narrative

Class 2: Wed., July 17th (6pm-7pm)-Evaluating the Qualities of Impactful College Essays

Class 3:Thurs., July 18th (6pm-7pm)-Exploring College Essay Questions & Effective Approaches

Class 4: Mon., July 29th (TBD)-Revising the rough draft (individual meeting with instructor).

Class 5: Tues.., August 13th (TBD)-Tuning up the revision (individual meeting with instructor).

Session 4: Seats Still Available

Class 1: Tues.., July 23rd (6pm-7pm) - Introduction to the Personal Narrative

Class 2: Wed., July 24th (6pm-7pm)-Evaluating the Qualities of Impactful College Essays

Class 3: Thurs., July 25th (6pm-7pm -Exploring College Essay Questions & Effective Approaches

Class 4: Mon., August 12th (TBD)-Revising the rough draft (individual meeting with instructor).

Class 5: Tues., August 20th (TBD)-Tuning up the revision (individual meeting with instructor).

To reserve a spot, complete the registration form below and email jellrott@gmail.com. Please note sessions will be capped at a max of 20 students per session so don't delay.

The $350 registration fee should be submitted just after filling out the registration form below. If you refer another student who signs up you can save 10%. All checks made payable to the instructor Jason Ellrott or to cash, and mailed to 9 Polk St., Sparta, NJ 07871. I can also accept payments via Zelle using my mobile number (862-354-7427). Madison students can drop off cash or check in my mailbox in the main office or by stopping by and seeing me in E41 before or after school (by June 20th).

If you wish to participate in the workshop but it's difficult for you to make all the meeting dates/times of a given session, please contact me to work out an individualized schedule.

Hi, my name is Jason S. Ellrott. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from SUNY Albany, a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing from Bard College, and I've completed my ABD at Drew University. I've been teaching high school English for 24 years and as a teacher of upperclassmen, I spend a good portion of each fall and winter working with students on their college essays. Getting to hear each student's story and being able to help him/her hone it into a fine piece of writing is always a rewarding experience.

Please feel free to contact me via email at jellrott@gmail.com or call or text 862-354-7427, if you have any questions.