Getting help with your college essay: what is allowed
Help that asks you questions, points out problems and checks your grammar is allowed and useful. Help that writes, rewrites or invents your essay is not: the words, ideas and story must be yours. Free help from a teacher or EducationUSA is a good start. If you pay a coach, ask who writes the words, and walk away from anyone who offers to write it for you.
What kind of essay help is allowed?
Help that makes you a better writer of your own essay. Someone can ask you questions, tell you where a draft is unclear, suggest what to cut and check your grammar. What crosses the line is anyone else, or any machine, supplying the words, ideas or story. The essay must be yours.
That is not only a rule. An essay written by someone else tends to sound like them, and admissions officers read it next to your recommendations, your activities and sometimes an interview. A voice that does not match the rest of the application is noticed.
Where is the line?
Between feedback and authorship. A simple test: could you explain why every sentence is there, and did you choose every word?
| Allowed and useful | Crosses the line |
|---|---|
| Questions that help you find your story | Someone choosing your story for you |
| "This paragraph is general; what exactly happened?" | Someone rewriting the paragraph |
| "You could cut this section" | Someone cutting and rewording it |
| Correcting spelling and grammar | Polishing until it sounds like the editor |
| Reading sample essays to understand the form | Copying ideas or phrases from them |
| Brainstorming out loud with a friend | Using AI to draft any part of it |
When in doubt, keep the pen in your own hand. Take notes on feedback, then close the conversation and rewrite yourself.
What do the rules say?
The Common App asks every applicant to affirm that the application is their own work, and its fraud policy counts submitting the substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform as your own work as fraud. Universities also publish their own guidance: Brown, for example, sets out what it expects in its statement on integrity in the application process.
Read the guidance for each university on your list. Rules on AI in particular vary, and they are changing.
Where can I get free help?
From four places, all worth using before you pay anyone:
- A teacher or counsellor who reads well and will be honest with you.
- EducationUSA, which advises students for free in Accra and Kumasi and runs sessions on applications.
- Older students who applied to US universities, ideally from your school.
- A friend who does not know your story, who can tell you where they got lost.
Ask each one specific questions: what do you remember, what did you learn about me, where did you lose interest? Specific questions get useful answers.
Can I use AI at all?
Carefully, and not for writing. The Common App's line is the substantive content of your essay: the ideas, the story, the sentences. A tool that spots a spelling mistake is different from one that drafts a paragraph. Some universities have their own rules; follow the strictest one on your list.
There is also a simpler reason not to. AI writing tends to sound general and polished in the same way, which is exactly what makes an essay forgettable. The value of your essay is that it sounds like you.
What should a paid essay coach do?
The same as good free help, with more time and experience. A good coach asks questions until you find your story, reads each draft for what works and what does not, and helps you plan revisions, while you write every word. They should know what US admissions readers look for and how the Common App works.
What you are paying for is time, attention and judgement, not writing. Our guide to choosing a study abroad consultant covers how to judge any paid help.
What should I ask before paying anyone?
Five questions, in writing:
- Who writes the words? The only right answer is: you do.
- How many sessions and drafts are included?
- What happens in a session? Questions and feedback, or edits?
- Do you guarantee anything? No honest coach guarantees admission.
- Do you sell sample essays or write essays for students? If yes, walk away.
What are the warning signs of a bad essay service?
Any of these:
- An offer to write the essay for you, in full or in part.
- "Admission guaranteed" or "scholarship guaranteed".
- A bank of ready-made essays to choose from or adapt.
- Fast turnaround on a finished essay you have not drafted.
Using any of these puts your applications at risk, and the money is wasted if a university discovers it.
How should parents help?
By remembering, not writing. Parents are often the best source of material: the story your child has forgotten, the habit they had at seven, the moment you noticed they had changed. Share those memories in conversation, then let your child decide what to use.
Avoid correcting the English or adding achievements. A parent's sentences in a seventeen-year-old's essay are usually easy to spot, and they push the essay towards a formal, impressive tone that works against it. The most useful thing a parent can do is make time and space for the drafts, and read the final version for facts. Our parents' guide to studying abroad covers the rest of the season.
When is help most useful?
At two points: the start and the middle. At the start, a good reader helps you choose the story, which decides most of the essay's quality. In the middle, after your second or third draft, feedback on order and focus makes the biggest difference. Grammar checks matter, but they come last and anyone careful can do them. Our guide to how to write a personal statement sets out the drafting rounds.
What should I do first?
Decide who your two or three readers will be, and write down the questions you will ask them. If you are paying for help, send the five questions above to anyone you are considering and compare the answers.
If you would like a coach who asks the questions and leaves the writing to you, our Personal Statement Studio offers four working sessions and written feedback on every draft, with the words always yours.
Questions people ask
Is it allowed to get help with my college essay?
Yes, within limits. Feedback, questions and proofreading are normal and expected. Having someone else write or rewrite your essay is not: the Common App asks you to affirm that your application is your own work.
Can I use ChatGPT for my college essay?
Not to write it. The Common App's fraud policy counts submitting the substantive content or output of an artificial intelligence platform as your own work as fraud. Some universities publish their own guidance on AI; read it for each one on your list.
Where can I get free help with my essay in Ghana?
A teacher or school counsellor, EducationUSA's free advising in Accra and Kumasi, and older students who have been through the process. Ask each for specific feedback rather than corrections.
What should a paid essay coach do?
Ask questions that help you find your story, point out where the draft is unclear or general, and suggest what to cut, while you do all the writing. They should never write sentences for you.