The supplemental essays colleges ask for are a constant challenge for students. We have created the essay guides to help with this, analyzing past essays from Ivy Scholars students who successfully answered these prompts. Of course, colleges do sometimes change up their prompts, but the guidance on what they’re looking for remains true.
This admissions cycle, however, many colleges have introduced new prompts. Some have completely overhauled their applications, while others have simply added one new prompt. While a degree in turnover is expected, this is many new prompts. In this article, we’ll break down what these prompts are, why so many colleges have introduced new prompts, and how to go about answering the most common of them.
Why so Many New Prompts?
As we discussed in a previous article, the Supreme Court has ended the practice of affirmative action in college admissions, declaring it unconstitutional. That said, they did still allow colleges to consider a student’s unique experiences and circumstances, and use those to make admissions decisions, so long as race itself was not the deciding factor, and they did not use these as a proxy for race.
What colleges are doing becomes clear in light of this. They want to maintain diverse classes, with statements published widely to that effect, but can no longer consider race directly. Therefore, they are introducing new questions to gain further insight into your circumstances and background, and to learn how you may contribute to diversity on their campus.
Not all colleges are asking new prompts like this, and not all are making their prompts mandatory, but this is a noticeable shift. You are likely going to have to answer at least one essay on diversity if you are applying to top colleges this year, so we will cover how to approach these questions at the end of this article.
New Supplemental Essay Questions
Some schools already had prompts which touched on the topic of diversity, and so have not added new ones for this admissions cycle. Others introduced new prompts beyond diversity. We’ll let you know what new prompts to expect, and give brief advice on answering them, if they are something unexpected. Colleges are organized alphabetically, for your convenience.
Babson:
- A defining element of the Babson experience is learning and thriving in an equitable and inclusive community with a wide range of perspectives and interests. Please share something about your background, lived experiences, or viewpoint(s) that speaks to how you will contribute to and learn from Babson’s collaborative community.
Brandeis:
- Brandeis was established 75 years ago to address antisemitism, racism, and gender discrimination in higher education, and today, the university remains dedicated to its founding values of inclusivity and justice. How has your educational experience shaped your perspective on these values? (250 words)
Brandeis is a distinctly Jewish university, though you do not need to be Jewish yourself to attend.
Boston College:
- In her November 2019 Ted Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi warned viewers against assigning people a “single story” through assumptions about their nationality, appearance, or background. Discuss a time when someone defined you by a single story. What challenges did this present and how did you overcome them?
This is just one of multiple prompts offered; you do not need to answer this one specifically.
Brown:
- Students entering Brown often find that making their home on College Hill naturally invites reflection on where they came from. Share how an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you, and what unique contributions this might allow you to make to the Brown community. (200-250 words)
Columbia:
- A hallmark of the Columbia experience is being able to learn and thrive in an equitable and inclusive community with a wide range of perspectives. Tell us about an aspect of your own perspective, viewpoint or lived experience that is important to you, and describe how it has shaped the way you would learn from and contribute to Columbia’s diverse and collaborative community. (150 words or fewer)
- In college/university, students are often challenged in ways that they could not predict or anticipate. It is important to us, therefore, to understand an applicant’s ability to navigate through adversity. Please describe a barrier or obstacle you have faced and discuss the personal qualities, skills or insights you have developed as a result. (150 words or fewer)
Columbia has two new questions, both of which relate to the central theme, though in different ways. Barrier and challenge essays are less common than strict diversity ones, but we will see more of them as we continue.
Cornell:
- In the aftermath of the U.S. Civil War, Ezra Cornell wrote, “I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.” For over 150 years, Cornell University has remained deeply committed to Ezra’s vision. Explain how your life experiences will help inform your contributions to a learning community devoted to “… any person … any study.” We encourage you to think broadly about your life experiences, including how local (e.g., family, school, neighborhood) or global communities you’ve been part of have helped shape your perspective
Emory:
- Reflect on a personal experience where you intentionally expanded your cultural awareness
- Emory University has a strong commitment to building community. Tell us about a community that you have been part of where your participation helped to change or shape the community for the better.
These are both optional; Emory gives you two sets of prompts, and makes you choose one from each to answer. You do not need to speak to diversity if you have nothing to say; we will cover when you should consider answering one of these prompts more in the next section.
Harvard:
- Harvard has long recognized the importance of enrolling a diverse student body. How will the life experiences that shape who you are today enable you to contribute to Harvard? (200)
- Briefly describe an intellectual experience that was important to you. (200)
- Briefly describe any of your extracurricular activities, employment experience, travel, or family responsibilities that have shaped who you are. (200)
- How do you hope to use your Harvard education in the future? (200)
- Top 3 things your roommates might like to know about you. (200)
Harvard has changed all of their prompts, though some only slightly. They have also expanded the word count, and increased the number of questions they ask. As Harvard was one of the main targets of the suit, it makes sense that they greatly restructured their supplemental questions. For advice on answering the roommate question, see our guide to Stanford, which asks something similar.
Johns Hopkins:
- Tell us about an aspect of your identity (e.g. race, gender, sexuality, religion, community, etc.) or a life experience that has shaped you as an individual and how that influenced what you’d like to pursue in college at Hopkins.? (This can be a future goal or experience that is either academic, extracurricular, or social). 300 word limit.
This question is asking two completely unrelated things, and you will need to answer both. They want to both understand some aspect of your identity, and what you want to study at Johns Hopkins. This would work better, and be easier to answer, as two distinct questions.
Notre Dame:
- What is distinctive about your personal experiences and development (eg, family support, culture, disability, personal background, community, etc)? Why are these experiences important to you and how will you enrich the Notre Dame community? (150 words)
This is one of several questions you can choose to answer, and is not required.
Rice:
- Rice is strengthened by its diverse community of learning and discovery that produces leaders and change agents across the spectrum of human endeavor. What perspectives shaped by your background, experiences, upbringing, and/or racial identity inspire you to join our community of change agents at Rice? 500 word limit.
This essay is one of two possible prompts you can answer. The other also deals with community, but is the same essay they have used in the past. We believe this new prompt is a direct response to the Court’s decision.
Stanford:
- Please describe what aspects of your life experiences, interests and character would help you make a distinctive contribution as an undergraduate to Stanford University. (250)
Don’t worry, Stanford is still asking their notorious roommate essay questions as well, this is merely a new addition.
Tulane:
- Describe why you are interested in joining the Tulane community. Consider your experiences, talents, and values to illustrate what you would contribute to the Tulane community if admitted. (250 words)
This is a major change, because Tulane, until this year, asked for a far longer essay. This change seems less due to the Supreme Court decision, though it may have impacted the form the new question took. Instead, this seems a realignment in how Tulane is handling admissions.
UChicago:
UChicago has new essay prompts each year, as their uncommon essay always changes. These do not relate to the new Supreme Court ruling, and should be answered as UChicago’s particular brand of weird essays always are. You can find these prompts here.
UNC Chapel Hill:
- Discuss one of your personal qualities and share a story, anecdote, or memory of how it helped you make a positive impact on a community. This could be your current community or another community you have engaged.
- Discuss an academic topic that you’re excited to explore and learn more about in college. Why does this topic interest you? Topics could be a specific course of study, research interests, or any other area related to your academic experience in college.
UNC was the other school named directly in the lawsuit, and like Harvard has completely revamped their prompts. They used to have multiple options, which students could choose two of to answer. Now, they have only two prompts, and all applicants must answer both.
UPenn:
- Write a short thank-you note to someone you have not yet thanked and would like to acknowledge. (We encourage you to share this note with that person, if possible, and reflect on the experience!) (150-200 words)
This one doesn’t follow the trend of the other new prompts, but is an interesting form for an essay to take. This essay should still tell readers something about you, so we recommend discussing how the person impacted your life positively. Note that it specifically says someone you have not yet thanked; thus parents and other close family members should be out.
Wake Forest
- Dr. Maya Angelou, renowned author, poet, civil-rights activist, and former Wake Forest University Reynolds Professor of American Studies, inspired others to celebrate their identities and to honor each person’s dignity. Choose one of Dr. Angelou’s powerful quotes. How does this quote relate to your lived experience or reflect how you plan to contribute to the Wake Forest community? (150 words)
This essay, along with all of the supplementals for Wake Forest, is optional. We recommend all students answer them anyway.
Washington University St. Louis:
- Discuss a fresh perspective or opinion you brought to a collaborative setting or project.
- Describe a community you are part of, and your place in it.
- Tell us how your identity has impacted the way you view or interact with your community.
All of these have a 250 word limit. The essay is now optional, and you may choose any of these prompts to answer. You may also submit a 90 second video, either in place of or alongside whichever essay you choose to complete.
How to Answer These Questions
While not all of these schools are asking the same thing, a clear trend can be seen in the kinds of questions they are asking. While the exact phrasing differs, most of these questions seek to supplement what was lost in the Supreme Court decision, and to gain an understanding of how your circumstances shaped the person and student you are.
These are all forms of diversity questions, and can be intimidating for many students to answer. The trick is understanding what these schools mean by diversity, and using that to write a compelling essay.
These schools care about more than race; they want a diversity of views and experiences, things that can only be learned through living, and then shared with your peers at college. Here are examples of diversity and experience which shapes you, and which can be used to answer these questions:
- Your ethnic or racial identity. This is the most straightforward, and what many people think of when they hear the term diversity. This can focus on any aspect of your identity, and how it has shaped your view of the world around you, and what unique outlooks it has given you.
- Your geographic origin. Especially if you are from somewhere that most people are not; thus writing about a small town in North Dakota often works better than writing about being from NYC.
- Your gender or sexual identity, especially if it has significantly impacted your view of the world, and your experiences in it.
- Your cultural identity. Culture is a broad and slippery thing, surrounding everything humans do, and each of us is shaped by the culture we are born into.
For all of these, the trick is not to focus on the identity itself you are writing about, but about how this particular aspect of your identity shaped your view of the world, and gave you unique insights you can share with the university’s community.
When to Answer a Diversity Essay
A few of these questions are optional; merely one of many you may decide to answer. Whether to answer one is then a strategic decision. There are a few factors to consider when deciding whether or not to answer one of these questions:
- Could you respond to one of the other prompts with an essay you’d already written, saving you the time to write a whole new essay?
- Will you have to write more diversity essays, and is it worth it to have one written specifically for these prompts?
- Have your experiences shaped you significantly, and is sharing these worthwhile for a supplemental essay?
We have written about the challenge of trauma essays before, and in some cases diversity essays may be an extension of this. Don’t think you need to answer one of these questions, but it can give admissions officers a look at another side of you, and give them insight into how you would contribute to their school they would not see otherwise.
Final Thoughts
The essays are one of the most challenging parts of any college application, but they are also among the most important. They are your best chance to speak directly to admissions officers, and let them know who you are, and how you can contribute to their campus. These new prompts are an attempt by colleges to help students communicate exactly that, spurred on by the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Of course, writing is a difficult process, one you don’t have to go through alone. Ivy Scholars are experts when it comes to crafting the perfect essays, to allow you to tell your own story, and show off to colleges who you are. If you want to hear how we can help you with your applications, schedule a free consultation today.
