Meet your editor
My name is Katy Oseas. For the past three years, I have been working with students on their college essays in coordination with two established and respected college counselors. I love the opportunity to help students improve their writing and learn about themselves through the college application process.
I received my Bachelor of Arts in English and Creative Writing from Barnard College, Columbia University. I then earned my Master of Science in Nursing from Columbia University School of Nursing.
At Barnard, I majored in English and Creative Writing, winning the Axinn Foundation/Anna Quindlen Award for Creative Writing. I have had the opportunity to craft my skills with apprenticeships with well-known writers, Mary Gordon, Rick Bass and the late poet, Saskia Hamilton. My work has appeared in Narrative Magazine as “Story of the Week” and in the Whitefish Review. I also write freelance pieces for news publications primarily focused on the healthcare industry and the nursing profession.
I believe that the college application process, however tedious, is an opportunity. When else are teenagers given the chance to grapple with the question of who they are and what they want for the future? From the artistic personal statement to the succinct short-answer, I love teaching students how to write in multiple drafts, how to write in a genuine voice and how to be clear and efficient without sacrificing style.
“Writing and rewriting are a constant search for what it is one is saying.”
Writing Drafts
Most students from all backgrounds have not had the experience of writing in drafts. There often isn’t time during the regular school year for a teacher to work one on one with a student through seven or eight drafts of an essay. I believe that learning how to edit your own work is where the real writing begins.
I like to explain to students that writing is like sculpting. The first draft is just about getting the massive hunk of granite off the truck, into your studio and shaped into the rough blob of your planned form. Future drafts are where you learn to chisel away, making finer details and sometimes creating something entirely different than what you set out to make.
When I was in college, I had only had one English class where the professor really worked with us through multiple drafts of an essay. I learned more in that class than my other semesters combined. Even though I majored in English and Creative Writing, it was expected that you already had a strong foundation in writing, and students were rarely asked to rewrite a paper.
The college application process, if completed thoughtfully, will help prepare students for college and the career that follows.
Finding an Authentic Voice
I love getting to know students through their writing. Every student has a different voice, style and sense of self. Some are very confident and social. Some are more reserved and anxious. Some are still really discovering who they are. My job as an editor is to help students come to life on the page. I help students throw away any idea of writing the essay they think collages want to see. Instead, they learn to express themselves on the page. Of course, I know some tricks and tips on how to better woo the admissions team, but that is easy, surface level stuff. A student can get into Harvard but blow the opportunity if they don’t have a strong sense of self that can withstand the inevitable ups and downs that college will bring.
When else are teenagers given the opportunity to grapple with the question of who they are and what they want for the future? The college application process may look like a mountain of paperwork, but it is also a list of questions that can help students reflect on their childhood and better ground themselves as they enter adulthood.
My job is to help students write a great essay, but along the way I also help students reach a better understanding of who they are and what they want in college. This developing authenticity can then be translated into writing. I read a lot of first drafts with formal and sometimes nonsensical sentences. Is anyone really, “passionate about the modalities of the scientific method and the collaborative and interdisciplinary resources available in the physical science sequence?” When I tell students to ditch that sentence and just tell me why they want to major in physics they burst into an excited rant, “I just love doing science experiments. I remember things so much better when I experience them in real life. I also love things that are ordered, organized and focused on small details. Plus, doing research makes you feel a part of the much larger scientific community, and I feel like I work better in groups when I can bounce ideas off other people.” How much more alive and genuine is the second answer? Translating personality to the page is key to developing a strong “voice.” I love helping students learn to bring their whole selves to the page.
Going Deeper
My favorite part of the job is helping students figure out what they are really writing about. Many students set out writing about one topic only to drop a beautiful sentence midway through the essay, a glint of the true essence shining through. As an editor it is my job to notice and draw this out. This always results in a much deeper essay that better represents and reflects the student and their values.
For example, I worked with one student who wrote their first draft on the importance of teamwork and leadership as discovered through their role as team captain of the lacrosse team. The essay was solid, and it focused on how he worked to rally his team through confidence, positive energy, determination and being a good role model. But midway through the essay he wrote, almost out of nowhere, “I never felt truly ready to be the team captain. I worried I wasn’t a good enough player and didn’t know how to lead a team of my friends and peers.”
That’s what his essay was about! His original essay was somewhat flat and generic: I am a leader. Look at all my great skills and how I lead my team. The final draft was much more dynamic and complex. How did he learn to rise to a leadership position before he was ready? How did he learn to gracefully navigate the task of being an authority figure over friends and peers? His final essay represented him on a deeper level by showcasing his personal struggle. More importantly, through writing it, the student had the chance to reflect on the experience, learning about himself in the process.