So I'm a senior in high school so college applications is pretty much all everyone talks about. In two of my classes (English and Creative writing, I have the same teacher for both) I will be writing college essays. So I looked at the common app to see their prompts. For english I am going to do one about an experience that has had a big impact on you, I am thinking of doing the whole, "i became an orphan last year" thing. I went over to my friend Drew's house last night (he is my trans FtM friend) and mentioned that there was a prompt about choosing a fictional character and the impact that they have had on you. In my head I was thinking of doing Brittany from glee and how she saved me from my depression and what could have been suicidal thoughts. But Drew was like "colleges love coming out stories" probably thinking that I was referring to Santana (also from glee). I thought about it, but I'm still not sure. Do colleges like that sort of stuff? I mean I feel pretty confident that I could write a pretty decent essay on how either of them have helped me. But my other problem is, is that only a couple of people at school know, and I know them from outside stuff like church. Since I am doing this at school, my teacher will be reading it and helping me with it. This is like my favorite teacher ever, but the only adult that knows about me right now is my lesbian aunt and I don't know if I am ready for that. I am looking forward to college because I am hoping that it will be a much better place and starting over with new people, I can just start as being "out." What do you think I should do?
Not American, so I don't know for sure, but I think when they say fictional character, what they're after is a character from a book. No matter how deep and personal your relationship with a TV character is, college professors will probably just dismiss it as shallow and not responding properly to the prompt.
I think you should write about what feels most meaningful to you, not try to figure out what you think a college wants to hear. However, to me, dealing with becoming an orphan sounds like a better topic. It's a more unique experience too- I'm not trying to diminish your experiences, but more people at your age have had to deal with depression and being lgbt than the loss of parents.
Depends on where you're applying. If I were to have done something like that, it would have been my luck for a homophobe to be reviewing my essays and transcripts. If you're applying to a school in a place like New York City, go for it. A school in the South? Might want to rethink it. I want to be the person that tells you to write from the heart, but every other student is trying to be the applicant that colleges want most. I would advise against choosing a television character for the fictional character essay. It will be more impressive if you chose semi-obscure character from a well known book. That way the person reading will understand the context while appreciating a more complex analysis of a character. Just bein' real. Hope you don't take offense to any of my comments. I've picked up a few tricks over the years, and if it adds any weight to my arguments, I go to a good university. ;P Good luck!
