All is there in the title. You simply should not ever include URLs in your application essays or resumes
There can be only one exception: if you’d like, you can leave one URL for your LinkedIn page in your resume contacts.
But be aware: you should include your web page, only if it has something worth showing. If it’s new or empty, better not.
Some might ask: why is that you absolutely cannot leave URLs in your essays?
The answer is quite simple: many admissions officers will read your documents printed out, not online. When your application is submitted, admissions committees print it all out, every time.
According to Dartmouth Tuck, the process of reviewing candidate applications inevitably includes printing our all documents and putting it in folders for everyone to read.
Some universities like MIT do it differently – they make a point that their admissions officers read all applications with Apple computers and tablets. Still, even if you are absolutely sure that your school of choice reads applications online, it’s not the best decision to put a lot of URLs into your documents.
Why then? Because if reading something on a tablet, people tend to click links they don’t want to click which makes them angry.
Just admit it: an essay is not a Wiki page or a web site. It just contains your extended answer to a prompt. It’s a text which has to be smooth and feel whole. Also, remember that admissions officers never have a lot of spare time to just do a Wiki-walk with your multiple URLs.
Granted, sometimes links are inevitable. For instance, you are a successful creator of a great phone app which really shows your talents and professionalism. If that’s the case, sure, include it into your resume, but not into your essay. Better give a description of the app and say how important and state-of-the-art it is.
The thing about URLs is, they’re like footnotes in a book. They just interrupt your reading. You have to skip a whole page or even the whole book to find what they meant there. And while you are looking for the right footnote, you forget where you were in the book or on the page.
It’s simply frustrating. By the way, some candidates even tried to put real footnotes into their essays, which is a very, very bad idea. Stylistically, an essay is not a place for footnotes or links – just go with it.
By BeatTheGMAT
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