I’m struggling with college applications. It seems REALLY daunting and I can’t seem to scrounge up any free time to work on essays. How the heck are we supposed to get the time for this? I’m BUSY all the time and that’s what I think makes me a great applicant but at the same time I don’t have time for all the ‘stuff’ that I need to supply for a solid application! Help!

Dear Human (presumably),

This is a very real problem, and you’re not alone! I don’t know the specifics of your schedule so I cannot give you the perfect advice, but I recommend breaking your work into small pieces. Make a calendar for yourself, where everything isn’t due at the application deadline. What I mean by this is: set a deadline for your personal essay, and then set different deadlines for each supplemental you need to do (if applicable). This may help you focus on one thing at a time and be less overwhelmed with the process as a whole.

Additionally, don’t worry about having these massive chunks of time to work. If you have 10 minutes left in class and you’ve finished your classwork, start to outline for your essay and think about what you want to have in it. This will make writing the thing much faster when you have time available. Make sure to make use of advisory too!

Another thing that’s really important is having a network of people to help you edit your essay. This can mean friends, teachers, family, or a combination of all of them. Having someone else to help you edit will make the process a lot less stressful. Lastly, don’t forget to set boundaries with your time. If the time that you want to use for college applications is being taken up by friends, it’s okay to let them know you need to work. That doesn’t mean isolate yourself for the sake of college, though. Friends can help you de-stress, when not seen in excess. I wish you luck with your applications!

-Kevin the Pigeon

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