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Why AI Essays Don't Get Into Harvard
20 July 2026

Why AI Essays Don't Get Into Harvard

The 7Sage Podcast

About

A stack of applicants with 174-plus LSAT scores, all rejected from Harvard. The common thread? Most of them wrote their essays with AI. In a new format, the team digs into what actually separates a strong application from a competent one. The team hears from Jo, a Canadian applicant in the high 170s aiming for a 177 with her sights on Stanford and Toronto, and provides her with advice on how to make her application its strongest. Plus, you'll hear why AI raises the bar instead of clearing it for you, how admissions officers catch an essay the moment it stops sounding human, and why the perfectionism that wins on test day can sink your personal statement.