Can I Use AI for my College Admissions Essay?

Writing admissions essays is one of the most difficult aspects of getting into college. What do you even write about? How do you start your essay? You know your essay needs a "hook," but how do you find one that grabs the reader’s attention and sets your application apart from thousands of others?

It can take students days and sometimes weeks to finish their first draft of “Statement of Purpose” or “Personal Statement.” Why? Because most of the time, students don’t know what to write about, or more specifically how to write a cohesive essay that connects their background (which is tough to have at the age of 18) to where they want to go in life and why they want to go to a certain school.

With AI advancing every single day, there are many ways students can use this technology to their advantage in the admissions process, but let’s address facts first:

• It is not ethical to use an essay that is not your own work as a part of your application, whether it was written entirely by AI, or somebody else (your sister, your college counselor, or even your best friend!)
• Submitting an essay that is not your own work can lead to serious consequences, including rejection of your application, or even expulsion from a university if the issue is discovered later.
• Colleges value authenticity and personal voice. AI-generated essays tend to sound the same and lack the unique perspectives and genuine reflections admissions committees are looking for.

Here’s what you can do ethically with AI:

• Brainstorm what to write about, and how to connect your life experiences to your application essay.
• Generate an outline of your essay so you have a structure to start with.
• Get a first draft of your thoughts with AI, from which you can then personalize it to add your own human touch.
• Polish your language and grammar.

Lucky for you, Gradly makes this process so much easier. When writing an essay with Gradly, we ask you a few short questions, and based on your responses, you will get a draft of an essay that incorporates these concepts into your personal statement. For example, Gradly will ask you things like “Describe a pivotal experience that influenced your decision to pursue your chosen field of study,” “What are your long-term career goals?” or “Provide a summary of the research or work you're most proud of.” All of these answers are going to help tease out nuance of your personal experience that you might not have considered discussing in your first draft.And in the college admissions process, nuance is key. You absolutely have to stand apart from other applicants if you want to get accepted.

After you answer Gradly’s questions, our platform will give you a draft for your essay. Do not submit this essay verbatim! Make sure to read it and make changes as you see necessary. This draft should help you write your college admissions essays ten times faster, and will also serve as invaluable resource to give you unique ideas to discuss and a great hook to begin your essay with, but here at Gradly, we implore you not to rely solely on AI for this process. Use our AI platform and take great advantage of it, but at the end of the day, make sure that the voice on the page is your own.