AI Is Now Reading College Essays—So Your Voice Matters More Than Ever.

A new AP report highlights a twist students didn’t see coming: while applicants are being warned not to use generative AI to write their admissions essays, some colleges are now adopting AI to evaluate them. AP News

That shift changes what “a strong essay” means in practice — and it’s exactly why Schooligio.ai’s Essay Support is built around quality, authenticity, and student voice, not copy-paste perfection.

The new reality: AI is entering the admissions review pipeline

According to AP, schools are using AI in different ways:

Virginia Tech is debuting an AI essay reader that scores alongside a human reviewer, primarily to speed up decisions and create consistency. If the AI and human scores differ beyond a set threshold, another human steps in. AP News+1
Caltech is using an AI-supported process to assess “authenticity” for student-submitted research projects by having students explain their work in an interview format reviewed by faculty. AP News
Some schools have faced pushback (AP cites UNC-Chapel Hill) when applicants felt AI was being used without enough clarity — making transparency part of the story now, not an afterthought. AP News

Bottom line: admissions offices are trying to reduce workload and inconsistency, but students are now writing for a world where humans + machines may both react to their words. AP News

What AI-assisted review tends to reward (and penalize)

Whether an essay is read by a person, an AI tool, or both, the same “quality signals” matter more than ever:

What gets rewarded

Clear structure (a real beginning → tension/turn → reflection → landing)
Concrete detail (specific moments, not generic claims)
Coherence (the story matches the lesson)
Consistency (tone, tense, point-of-view, pacing)

What gets penalized

Generic “perfect” writing with no fingerprints (the essay could belong to anyone)
Overstuffed thesaurus language
Vague reflection (“I learned leadership”) with no evidence
Sudden style shifts (common when students patchwork AI text + their own)

This is where students often get stuck: they want polish, but polish can accidentally erase personality.

How Schooligio.ai Essay Support helps students keep essay quality high — without losing authenticity

Schooligio.ai’s Essay Support is best thought of as a coach and editor’s room, not a ghostwriter. It’s designed to help students do the hard part—thinking, choosing, reflecting, revising—so the final essay still sounds like them.

1) From “good topic” to “usable story”

Many weak essays fail before drafting even begins: the topic is fine, but not story-shaped. Essay Support guides students to:

pick a moment that actually moves
identify the “change” (what was true before vs. after)
avoid the résumé-in-paragraphs trap

2) Structure that holds up under any reader (human or AI)

Students get help turning a draft into a readable arc:

strong hook that isn’t gimmicky
clean progression (scene → meaning)
reflection that’s earned, not announced

This is crucial if essays are being scored consistently against rubrics, as described in the Virginia Tech approach. AP News+1

3) Voice-preserving feedback (the opposite of “AI-sounding”)

Instead of rewriting in a generic style, Essay Support focuses on:

highlighting where voice is strongest and weakest
flagging “over-polished” lines that sound unnatural
keeping diction, rhythm, and humor consistent

The goal: cleaner writing, same human signal.

4) Revision discipline: fewer drafts, better drafts

A common failure mode is “endless tinkering.” Essay Support encourages:

targeted revision passes (clarity pass, detail pass, reflection pass)
removing filler
tightening sentences without flattening tone

5) Integrity by design (because policies are still a gray area)

A Kaplan survey noted that many colleges still don’t have clear official rules on how applicants may use genAI in admissions essays, leaving students guessing. Kaplan+1
So the safest strategy is: use AI like a tutor, not a substitute—brainstorming, outlining, feedback, and edits that preserve authorship.

A quick “AI-era essay” checklist students can use today

Before submitting, students should ask:

Specificity: Could someone else swap their name into my essay and it still works?
Story: Is there a scene with sensory detail, not just summary?
Reflection: Did I show how I changed, not just say “I learned”?
Consistency: Does the voice sound like one person all the way through?
Simplicity: Did I choose clarity over impressing with vocabulary?