Charles Arndt
We sent my niece to Hamilton for help with her college application essays, and her experience there was not good at all. Though she was a strong writer, Mr. Hamilton consistently dismissed her ideas. Instead, he pushed her to include all kinds of strange and obscure things: random ideas from pop psychology and books from 300 years ago. I suppose the point was to make the essay seem “smart.” But the result was a piece of writing that was overstuffed, phony-sounding, and that just didn’t make any sense. I worked in PR for twenty years, and if I’d have handed my boss this kind of writing, he would have fired me on the spot. But Hamilton loved it and insisted we use it. After a few months, and a few early rejections, my niece was so discouraged with the process that she threw away her Hamilton writing and dusted off an essay that she had written in 11th grade. I helped her edit one or two parts, and we sent it in. Guess what happened when she got the results? The colleges that she applied to with the Hamilton-directed essay – roundly rejected. The colleges where she used her own writing? Accepted to four out of five. If you are looking for college help, save your money. Chatgpt would give you better suggestions.
