My buddy down in Southern California, web designer and social media entrepreneur Kenny McNett, is currently applying to graduate school, hoping to earn a PhD in communications. Wanting to do something unique to earn the attention and respect of those who will be reviewing his applications, he came up with the idea of capitalizing on the open and collaborative format of the Web by posting his essays for readers to edit and critique. Think of it as a twist to Clay Shirky’s “share, collaborate, and take collective action” – Kenny is sharing his essays, asking others to help collaborate on the editing, but taking singular action in actually writing and submitting the final essays to the various places he’s applying. As Kenny puts it:
I am applying for PhD programs in Mass Communications and I need to write my entrance essays. But instead of the humdrum normal approach, I am revolutionizing the writing process for my entrance essays to grad school by inviting the on-line community to comment on my essays. We’ll toss some comments back and forth, then I’ll post a new draft, rinse and repeat until it’s perfect. (See, cool, right?).
I built a website from scratch specifically for the cause. Will you please take a look and contribute?
I wish him the best of luck in his endeavor. I’ve already posted my own comments to his first essay, hoping to scare him out of his wits and remind him that doctorates are about research, not his experiences as student body president! haha All kidding aside, his project seems like a winner and it is fast progressing – I am sure a wise academic institution or four will happily admit him. Make sure you check out his essays and leave your thoughts. Another ‘hooray’ for the Open Web.
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