You’ve probably seen the headlines or the TikToks. A high school senior writes a college essay about a single letter. Not a grand adventure. Not a tragic loss. Just the letter s college essay. It sounds like a gimmick. Honestly, when most people hear about it, they think it’s some kind of urban legend or a fluke that only works for geniuses.
It isn't a fluke.
The most famous version of this story belongs to Abigail Mack, who was accepted into Harvard. Her essay didn't just mention the letter; it dissected how that tiny character changed her entire identity. It’s a masterclass in "showing, not telling." When she talked about moving from "parents" to "parent," the stakes became incredibly high. That’s the thing about great writing. It takes something microscopic and makes it feel massive.
Most students try to write about "The Big Game" or "The Mission Trip." Those are fine, I guess. But they’re boring. Admissions officers read thousands of them. They’re basically drowning in clichés. Then comes an essay about the letter S. It stands out because it’s weird. It’s specific. It’s deeply personal.
Why the Letter S College Essay Actually Worked
If you think the "S" was the magic ingredient, you’re missing the point. The letter was just a vehicle. Abigail Mack used the letter to talk about the death of her mother. That’s the heavy stuff. By focusing on the grammatical change—losing the "S" at the end of "parents"—she found a way to talk about grief without being overly sentimental or repetitive.
It gave her a structure.
She could talk about the "S" in "scars" or "survivals." It provided a linguistic framework for a very messy, very human emotion. Admissions officers at places like Harvard or Stanford aren't looking for a list of your trophies. They want to see how you think. They want to see if you can take a complex trauma and organize it into something coherent and insightful.
The Risk of Copying the "Letter" Format
Should you do it? Probably not.
Look, once a specific essay topic goes viral, it’s basically "retired" in the eyes of admissions committees. If you turn in a letter s college essay now, the reader is going to think, "Oh, another Abigail Mack wannabe." You don't want to be a sequel. Sequels are rarely as good as the original.
✨ Don't miss: Weather Forecast Calumet MI: What Most People Get Wrong About Keweenaw Winters
However, the strategy is worth stealing. You take a mundane object—a letter, a specific spice in your kitchen, the sound of your neighbor’s car—and you use it as a lens. That’s the secret sauce. It’s about the "micro-narrative." You zoom in so far that the reader can’t help but pay attention.
What Admissions Officers Really Want to See
They want your voice. Not a ChatGPT voice. Not a "I am a very serious student" voice. They want to hear the person who stays up late wondering why they like the smell of old books or why they can't stop reorganizing their closet.
The Harvard admissions process is notoriously opaque. But one thing we know from people like Rick Clark (Dean of Admission at Georgia Tech) and other experts is that they value "intellectual curiosity." Writing about a letter shows you think about language. It shows you notice the small things.
Most kids are too scared to be small.
They think they have to be "President of the Debate Club" on every page. But the letter s college essay proved that being small is actually a superpower. It allows for vulnerability.
How to Find Your Own "Letter S"
Think about your life in nouns. Then look at the verbs.
- Is there a word you hate?
- Is there a sound that makes you feel at home?
- What’s the one thing in your room that nobody else would value?
I once saw an essay about a cracked phone screen. The student used the cracks as a map of their year. Every time the phone dropped, something happened. A breakup. A failed test. A late-night laugh. By the end, the phone wasn't just a piece of tech; it was a diary.
That’s the same energy as the S essay. It’s taking a physical or linguistic limitation and expanding it.
🔗 Read more: January 14, 2026: Why This Wednesday Actually Matters More Than You Think
The Danger of Over-Engineering
A lot of students try too hard. You can tell when an essay has been edited by four different tutors and a worried parent. It starts to sound like a brochure. The beauty of the letter s college essay was its raw, almost jagged quality. It felt like a person talking, not a machine.
If you’re writing your essay right now, stop trying to be "impressive."
Just be interesting.
If you can’t make your topic interesting to yourself, you’ll never make it interesting to a tired admissions officer in an office in Cambridge. They’ve had too much coffee. They’ve read forty essays today. You need to wake them up.
Semantic Precision and Why It Matters
Language is a tool. Abigail used it to show she understood the power of a single stroke of a pen. This is "semantic precision." It shows you’re a high-level thinker. You aren't just using words; you’re analyzing them.
When you write about the letter s college essay, you have to mention that it wasn't just about grammar. It was about the transition from a plural life to a singular one. That’s a sophisticated concept. It’s the kind of thing that makes a reader sit up and say, "Okay, this kid belongs in a seminar room."
Don't just describe what happened to you.
Analyze it.
💡 You might also like: Black Red Wing Shoes: Why the Heritage Flex Still Wins in 2026
Why did it happen? How did it change the way you see the world? If you can’t answer the "so what?" question, your essay is just a story. A good essay is an argument for your own unique perspective.
Actionable Steps for Your Common App Essay
Forget the "S" for a second. Let's look at how to actually build something that captures that same lightning in a bottle.
First, go through your "Big Moments" list. Now, throw it away. Look for the "Small Moments." The time you burned the toast. The time you got lost in a grocery store. The way your grandfather's hands look when he's peeling an orange.
Second, find the "tether." The tether is the connection between that small thing and a big part of your personality. If the small thing is the orange peel, the big thing is perhaps your patience or your appreciation for tradition.
Third, write the first draft without a dictionary. Seriously. Use "kinda" if you have to. Just get the heart on the page. You can clean up the grammar later. The biggest mistake is polishing a rock before you’ve checked if it’s actually a diamond.
- Pick an object or a concept that is "too small" to be an essay.
- Write 500 words on why it actually defines you.
- Delete the first two paragraphs (usually, they’re just you clearing your throat).
- Start where the action or the "aha" moment is.
The letter s college essay didn't start with a long intro about the history of the alphabet. It started with the pain of a missing letter. It jumped right in. You should too.
Final Thoughts on the Viral Strategy
The world moves fast. What worked for a Harvard applicant a few years ago might not work today in the exact same way. But the core principle is timeless: specificity is the soul of all good writing. Whether you’re writing about a letter, a scar, or a specific brand of cheap cereal, the goal is the same. You want the reader to feel like they’ve just had a twenty-minute conversation with you at a coffee shop.
Don't be a generic applicant. Be the person who noticed the "S."
Next Steps for Your Essay:
Review your current draft and find one "universal" word (like happy, sad, or hard). Replace it with a specific image or a tiny detail that represents that feeling. If your essay feels too "big," try to find a single object or symbol that can act as a lens for the entire story. Once you have that "micro-focus," rewrite your opening hook to start with that specific detail rather than a broad statement about your life. This shift in perspective is exactly what made the S essay stand out, and it’s the most effective way to grab an admissions officer’s attention immediately.