My common app essay is just 650 words about my part-time job

[Zara]

So my topic is not glamorous at all. I work at a grocery store. I stock shelves. I deal with rude customers. I clean up weird spills.

And my entire common app essay is just... that. It's about the rhythm of the night shift, the strange community of overnight stockers who become your second family, and the patience I've learned from the one elderly lady who comes in every Tuesday and tells me the same story about her cat.

My friends think I'm insane. They're writing about starting nonprofits or doing research in labs. One friend literally climbed a mountain in Peru and wrote about that. And I'm over here like, "Let me tell you about the proper way to stack canned goods."

But here's the thing: this job taught me more about real people than any club or competition ever did. I've learned how to de-escalate a Karen situation, how to spot someone who's genuinely having a bad day and just needs a smile, and how to find dignity in work that some people look down on.

The common app essay doesn't have to be about something big, right? It can be about something small and real and human? I feel like my essay has heart, even if it doesn't have a fancy internship attached to it. Tell me I'm not crazy for betting on the mundane.

 

[MaryaL]

Think about it: they read thousands of essays. Thousands. Most are about:

• The mission trip that changed everything
• The research internship that sparked passion
• The varsity championship that taught leadership
• The nonprofit startup that saved the world

After the 50th one, they all blur together. They become noise.

Then they get yours. About stocking shelves. About the cat lady. About the dignity of honest work. About community at 2am. And they WAKE UP. Because it's REAL. It's HUMAN. It's not performative.

Your essay shows things no resume can: emotional intelligence, perspective, humility, the ability to find meaning in the ordinary. Those are the qualities that actually predict success in college and life.

The mountain climbers will be fine. But you? You'll be MEMORABLE.