美国大学网申系统Common Application 是在申请美国大学时最常用的的系统，如今限制该网申系统对于2011-12 美国大学申请 main essay的字数限制在250到500之间。

　　The Common Application widely used for college admissions by high school seniors has set a 250-500 limit for the essay as part of the 2011-12 college admissions season because essays written without any limits had become too long and poorly written, the organization said.

　　Some counselors complained about the change on an e-list used by college admissions counselors at high schools, saying they are worried that students will not have enough room to adequately display their writing abilities.

　　美国学校升学指导老师对于美国网申系统的这一变化不是很高兴，他们担心自己的学生没有足够的空间来展现写作技巧。

　　But officials for the Common App — which is accepted by 415 college and universities — say the change is only a return to a practice that had been used for 31 years bore the unlimited essay experiment started four years ago, and that kids will be helped by the limit.

　　但是美国网申Common App 系统(被415所大学和学院使用)说这一变化只是要回到31年前的传统，要知道没有字数限制的essay是最近四年才规定的。有限制字数的essay肯定对学生有帮助。网申系统的主管人员对这一改变进行了解释：

　　Executive Director Rob Killion and Director of Outreach Scott Anderson sent an e-mail to the e-list explaining the decision, and here’s part of their response to complaints about the change:

　　“To give you some history regarding how we arrived here: After a four year experiment with no maximum essay size, we are simply returning to the practice of the prior 31 years in specifying a 500-word maximum. Our Board of Directors re-instated this maximum word limit at the unanimous recommendation of our counselor advisory committee and our member advisory committee. Both groups indicated that the lack of any guidance regarding a maximum size over the last four years had led to essays that were far too long, less well-written, and, at the end of the day, often skimmed rather than read by admission officers. In addition, the absence of a maximum size proved to be confusing for students — particularly those without access to counseling — who simply did not know when to stop writing. (他们表示四年的时间了没有字数限制的essay使得学生的申请文章太长，并且质量也不好。这给学校招生人员带来了不便，实际上，很少有人能完全读完很长的一篇文章。另外，没有字数限制也给没有老师指导的学生造成困惑，他们根本不知道在哪里停笔。)

　　“Any maximum size we might have chosen — 500, 750, 1000 — would have been subject to criticism in some quarters as arbitrary — either too short or too long. Since there is no magic number that would be acceptable to all, we returned to our historic 500 word limit, which allows an applicant approximately two double-spaced pages to express their thoughts and writing skills. Colleges that want longer writing samples can ask for them on their supplements, as many of them already do. Finally, the additional information section/upload remains available for students to use as they wish.”

　　下面来看看美国大学网申系统2011-12 Common App 关于essay写作的规定：

　　A preview of the 2011-12 Common App is available here. The essay prompt(提示) says:

　　Please write an essay of 250 –500 words on a topic of your choice or on one of the options listed below, and attach it to your application bore submission. Please indicate your topic by checking the appropriate box. This personal essay helps us become acquainted with you as a person and student, apart from courses, grades, test scores, and other objective data. It will also demonstrate your ability to organize your thoughts and express yourself. NOTE: Your Common Application essay should be the same for all colleges. Do not customize it in any way for individual colleges.

　　Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.

　　Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.

　　Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.

　　Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.

　　A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.

　　以上文章来源于华盛顿邮报，希望广大申请美国大学的学子们注意到essay字数的限制问题。

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