Collaboration is a key quality that top US universities highly value in prospective students, and yet effectively describing ourselves as collaborative, without overusing “collaborate” or “collaboration,” can be a tricky challenge.

“To collaborate” means “to work jointly on an activity, especially to produce or create something.” Phrases like “to work together,” “to team up,” and “to pool resources” convey the same or similar ideas.

While the word “collaboration” is rarely found in literary fiction, it is commonly used in professional, academic, or social contexts. For example, Charles Darwin connects collaboration to species’ survival and progress, noting, “In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too), those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.”

Similarly, big corporations like Coca-Cola prominently feature “collaboration” as a core value. It states on its website, “Collaboration is key to our success. Working together is integral to how we achieve, how we lead and how we learn. The goal is not collaboration for collaboration’s sake; it’s to achieve business results that would not be possible without multiple parties working together.” 

In college application essays, following the “Show, don’t tell” principle means embodying  the essence of “collaboration” without explicitly using the word. Sometimes, simple pronouns like “we,” “us,” and “our” can subtly show a collaborative mindset.

Let’s consider this example from a poorly-written college application essay: “During my sophomore year, I led my club to raise funds to buy children’s books for a local public library. I initiated the idea of selling milk tea at a community street fair, and stepped in to cover their roles when a few student officers did not show up. I felt very accomplished when my club raised $600 for the library.”

This version focuses too heavily on the individual and takes credit for almost every aspect of the club’s fundraising project. We could rewrite it as follows, “During my sophomore year, I led our club in organizing a milk tea sale to raise funds for children’s books for a local library. I worked closely with other student officers in coordinating shifts and handling high-demand periods at our booth. Through this experience, I realized that fundraising is not only about the amount of money raised, but also about how everyone’s efforts can come together to make a meaningful difference in our community.”

By replacing “my” with “our” and emphasizing teamwork, the revised version strikes a balance between showcasing leadership and acknowledging the contributions of others. It also shifts its tone from self-centered and arrogant to humble and reflective. After all, in today’s collaborative world, trying too hard to overshine others rarely works, and can often backfire.

协作精神，是美国顶尖大学在挑选潜在学生时十分看重的一个品质。然而，在申请文书中，如何巧妙地描述自己具有协作精神，同时又不过多使用“协作”这个词，达到“神在形不在”，却不是容易的事。

“协作”字典解释是“共同完成某项活动，尤其是为了创造或生产某些东西”。它的同义或近义词组包括“共同努力”、“团队协作”、或“资源共享”等。

尽管“协作”这个词在文学作品中很少出现，但在职业、学术和社交场合中经常使用。例如，达尔文将合作与物种的生存和发展联系在一起：“在漫长的人类历史（以及动物历史）中，最善于协作和应变的，最容易生存胜出。”

同样，知名大公司常将“协作”作为核心价值之一。譬如，可口可乐在其官网上写道：“协作是我们成功的关键。共同努力是我们如何实现目标、领导团队和持续学习的核心方式。我们的目标不是为了协作而协作，而是为了实现那些只有多方协作才能完成的商业成果。”

遵循“娓娓道来，而非直接告知”的文书写作原则，我们在大学申请文书中，需要体现自己是有协作精神的人，但不必直接使用“协作”这个词。有时，通过简单的代词如“我们”（we）、“我们自己”（us）和“我们的”（our），就能巧妙地传递出团队协作精神的意味。

以下是一个写得不好的大学申请文书示例：“10年级时，我带领我的俱乐部筹款，为社区图书馆购买儿童书籍。我提出了在社区街头集市上卖奶茶的点子，并在几位学生干事未到场时，主动顶替了他们的工作。看到我的俱乐部筹集到600美元时，我感到非常自豪。”

以上这个文书版本的主要问题在于，过于强调个人，把整个筹款项目的功劳几乎都归于自己。我们也许可以这样改写：“10年级时，我带领我们的俱乐部组织了一场奶茶义卖活动，为社区图书馆筹资购买儿童书籍。我与其他学生干事紧密合作，一起协调排班，在摊位需求高峰时段共同分担工作。通过这次经历，我体会到，筹款不仅是关乎筹集了多少钱，更是关于如何将大家每个人的努力汇聚在一起，给社区带来有意义的改变。”

通过将“我的”（my）换成“我们的”（our），并强调团队协作，改写后的版本在展示学生自己的领导力的同时，也更好地认可了团队中其他成员的贡献。相应地，之前版本带有一种以自我为中心的傲慢口吻，改后版本转为谦逊、深思的语气。毕竟，在当今这个越发强调协作的世界里，如果用力过猛地强调自己，往往不太奏效，反而可能适得其反。