What are supplemental essays?
In addition to the Common App essay, many colleges require you to write additional or supplemental essays. The number of these essays varies, and their lengths can range from 50 to 700 words, depending on the school's requirements. These essays are crucial for demonstrating your fit with the university, highlighting how your values and goals align with what the school offers. Each university and each essay prompt requires a separate, tailored response. While it is okay to reuse some content across essays, never copy and paste entire essays for different schools. Each essay should be uniquely crafted to address the specific prompt and university.
🗣️ veronica says...
Veronica Lee
Admissions ExpertA good supplemental essay starts with a thorough college search! To demonstrate a college fit, you first have to understand what the college is looking for, what their unique offerings are, and how that college will help you achieve your goals.
7 types of supplemental essay types
- Why College X Essay: Explain your motivations for wanting to attend this particular university.
- Why Major X Essay: Discuss your reasons for choosing your intended major.
- Extracurricular Activity Essay: Elaborate on one of your most significant extracurricular activities.
- Community Essay: Describe how you have positively impacted your community and how you plan to continue this contribution on campus.
- Leadership Essay: Discuss your experiences with leadership and the skills you've developed.
- Diversity Essay: Share aspects of your unique background, such as your ethnicity, race, or the languages you speak, and how these contribute to your perspective.
- Quotation Essay: Reflect on provided quotes that resonate with the university's mission and how they relate to your experiences or viewpoints.
Sample supplemental essay prompts
As we discussed in the previous section, every university has its own prompts, so here are a few examples to give you an idea of what you might be asked:
Brown University - Why Major X essay: Brown's Open Curriculum allows students to explore broadly while also diving deeply into their academic pursuits. Tell us about any academic interests that excite you, and how you might pursue them at Brown.
Columbia University - Why College X essay: Why are you interested in attending Columbia University? We encourage you to consider the aspect(s) that you find unique and compelling about Columbia.
NYU - Quotation essay: We are looking for peacemakers, changemakers, global citizens, boundary breakers, creatives and innovators – Choose one quote from the following and let us know why it inspires you; or share a short quote and person not on our list who inspires you, and include why.
Vanderbilt University - Extracurricular Activity Essay: Vanderbilt offers a community where students find balance between their academic and social experiences. Please briefly elaborate on how one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences has influenced you.
Tufts University - Community Essay: How have the environments or experiences of your upbringing – your family, home, neighborhood, or community – shaped the person you are today?
Tips for crafting compelling supplemental essays
- Be Specific: Mention exact opportunities, courses, and professors that align with your interests and goals at the college.
- Avoid Cliches in 'Why College X' Essays: Instead of generic reasons like size or location, focus on unique aspects of the school that genuinely appeal to you.
- Provide Fresh Information: Each essay should offer new insights about you to the admissions officers. Avoid repeating content from other parts of your application.
- Be Concise and Direct: Unlike personal statements, supplemental essays should be focused and to-the-point. Eliminate unnecessary details and flowery language.
- Stay Authentic Yet Professional: Express genuine interest without resorting to overly emotional or dramatic statements.
- Treat All Essays as Mandatory: Even if an essay is labeled 'optional,' consider it mandatory. Complete every supplemental essay to maximize your application's impact.
🗣️ veronica says...
Veronica Lee
Admissions ExpertA "Why College X" essay is ultimately a "Why You" essay. Therefore, it's important to not only discuss what you want to gain from the college, but also show why you are a great fit for the school and what you will bring to their community.
How to write "Why College X" essay
Colleges want to see that you're serious about attending—not just throwing in another application for fun. This essay is your chance to prove that this school is the place for you. But it's not just about what you'll gain; you also need to show how you'll contribute to their community.
Step 1: Find 3 specific reasons that excite you about this university.
- Academic Reason: What class do you genuinely want to take, and why?
- Student Life Reason: What club or extracurricular excites you, and why?
- Values Reason: What part of the university's mission or values resonates with you, and why?
Step 2: Make it personal.
Anyone can copy and paste course names or club descriptions. That's not enough. You need to connect these reasons to your own experiences and interests. Ask yourself:
- How does this class build on something you've already done or love?
- How does this extracurricular fit into your current passions or future goals?
- How do this university's values align with who you are?
The goal? To answer: Why YOU at this college?
Step 3: Put it all together.
Now that you have solid reasons and personal connections, it's time to shape them into a clear, concise essay. Add an introduction and conclusion, but don't waste words—stay within the limit! The best essays are specific, personal, and to the point.
How to write "Why Major X" essay
This essay is all about your academic interests—not just what you want to study, but why. Colleges want to see dedication, intellectual curiosity, and a genuine passion for your chosen field. But don't stress if you're not 100% sure what you want to do yet. That's normal. Just focus on what excites you right now, even if it's not your final career path.
Step 1: Elaborate on your passion.
- When did you first become interested in this subject?
- What experiences show your engagement with it? What have you actually done?
- Reflect on those experiences—what made you want to explore this field further?
Step 2: Connect your passion to the university.
- What class at this university will help you deepen your knowledge?
- What do you hope to learn from it?
Step 3: Put everything together.
Now that you have solid material, shape it into a clear, structured essay. Add an introduction and conclusion, but keep it concise. The best essays show specific interests, real experiences, and a clear connection to the university.
How to write "Extracurricular Activity" essay
Your extracurricular activities are one of the most important parts of your application, but 150 characters in the Activities section often isn't enough to show the depth of your impact. That's where the extracurricular essay comes in—it's your chance to go beyond the surface and show how an activity shaped you.
Step 1: Pick a meaningful activity and reflect on it.
Don't just go for the activity with the most awards or recognition. Choose the one that means the most to you, where you truly invested yourself and have a personal story to tell. But if your Personal Statement is already about an activity, don't repeat it here.
- Why did you start this activity? What motivated you?
- What challenges or memorable moments did you face? Recall a specific situation.
- How did you handle that challenge? What did you accomplish?
- What have you learned from this activity that you'll carry into the future?
Step 2: Put everything together.
Now that you have the key details, shape them into a clear, structured essay. Every university might phrase the prompt a little differently, so make sure you're actually answering the question. Be concise, be specific, and make every word count.
How to write "Community" essay
The Community Essay is your chance to show how you've made a difference in a group you care about and how you'll continue that impact in college. Schools want to see real engagement, not just participation—so focus on specific contributions and tangible impact rather than vague statements about “helping others.”
Step 1: Pick a community you are a part of and reflect on it.
- What specific contribution did you make? Be detailed!
- How did your actions positively impact this community? Show real results.
- What did you learn from this experience that you'll carry forward?
Step 2: Connect it to University X.
- Based on what you've done, how will you contribute to this university's community in a real, actionable way?
Step 3: Put everything together.
Now that you have strong details, structure them into a clear and compelling essay. Every school phrases this prompt a little differently, so make sure you're actually answering the question. Be specific, be personal, and keep it concise!