College Essay Prompts (aka Personal Statement)
Excerpts from On Writing the College Application Essay, by Harry Bauld
Helpful Hints:
1. Keep it short. Avoid going to three pages. One and a half pages is a nice size. Many schools
require 300 to 500 words.
2. Avoid beginning too many sentences with “I.”
3. Be wary of the ten deadly essay topics ~ unless you have a very fresh approach:
 The Trip (I had to adjust to a whole new way of life, broadened my horizons, gave me
a new perspective on my native land – the United States, on my trip to the Grand
Tetons I learned to work with people, I got a very religious feeling from the Sistine
Chapel and I was proud to be an Italian.)
 My Favorite Things (Things I am for; things I am against.)
 Miss America (I think world peace is the biggest issue facing us today.)
 Jocks, musicians, actors, yearbook editors, club officers (Through my experiences as
a blank I have learned Noble Value A, High Platitude B and Great Lesson C.)
 My Room (Highlighted tour of your room.)
 Three D’s – discipline, determination and diversity
 Tales of My Success (I crossed the finish line first and received the congratulations of
my teammates, and I realized all the hard work had been worth it.)
 Pet Death (As I watched Button’s life ebb away, I came to value the important things in
life.)
 Selling and Telling – Autobiography (Hello, my name is…, I am a very unique person,
I come from a close-knit family…)
 Building a House (for a less fortunate family) – This is a newly overused topic. Way
too many applicants are writing about their Habitat for Humanity experiences.
a) Stanford – How has the place in which you live influenced the person you are? Define “place”
any way that you like... as a context, a country, a city, a community, a house, a point in time.
b) Stanford – Of the activities, interests, and experiences listed above, which is the most
meaningful to you and why?
c) Stanford – Sharing intellectual interests is an important aspect of university life. Describe an
experience, book, class, project, or idea that you find intellectually exciting and explain why.
d) Stanford – Jot a note to your future college roommate relating a personal experience that
reveals something about you.
e) Stanford – You may use this space to tell us anything you would like us to know about you.
f) UC ’08 – Using a total of 1,000 words, answer both prompts:
1. Describe the world you come from – for example, your family, community or school – and
tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.
2. Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is
important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how
does it relate to the person you are?
g) USC – Describe a book, play, composition, poem, scientific discovery, technical achievement,
myth, historic event or work of art that has inspired and intrigued you. You can assume we are
familiar with the plot and details; instead tell us what it means for you personally. The essay
should be a maximum of 300 words in length.
h) USC – Tell us a story which will help us to know you better. Illustrate one or more themes,
events or individuals that have helped shape you. Be clear and forceful.
i) Penn – What characteristics of Penn, and yourself, make the university a particularly good
match for you? Briefly describe how you envision your first year in college. How will your
presence be known on campus?
j) Penn - In an essay, not to exceed three hundred words, answer one of the following:
1. If you were given the opportunity to spend an evening with any one person, living,
deceased or fictional, whom would you choose and why?
2. Please cite and discuss a literary quotation or brief passage that has special meaning to
you.
k) Penn – While we are very interested in your intellectual abilities, your sense of imagination
and creativity are also important to us. You have just completed your 300-page autobiography.
Please submit page 217.
l) U of Chicago – The word “hero” is loosely used to describe a wide array of human beings. The
writers of ancient Greece used the word only to honor warriors who sought glory on the
battlefield. Today, we acclaim as “heroes” such varied kinds of people as astronauts,
firefighters, athletes, movie stars, and ordinary citizens caught in extraordinary situations. Are
we correct in using the term so broadly? Give an example of a real or fictional person you
consider a hero and discuss what makes that person heroic.
m) U of Chicago – Concepts and feelings are sometimes represented by common household
items. For example, the theory of an expanding universe is sometimes portrayed in terms of
raisin bread rising or love as a red, red rose. Illustrate how an object in your kitchen can be
used to represent a significant concept or feeling. (Feel free to discuss more than one subject.)
n) Harvard – You may choose ANY topic about which you would like to write.
o) Georgetown – What would you most like the Admissions Committee to know about you when
reading your application?
p) Bryn Mawr – An autobiographical statement of 200 – 400 words.
q) Yale – Please use the space on the back to let us know something about you that we might not
learn from the rest of the application.
r) Wesleyan – Identify a person who has had a significant influence on you and describe that
influence.
s) Princeton – We invite you to reflect on an issue or experience that is significant to you or to
your perspective on the world around you.
t) Old UC Prompt – Reflecting on your family’s experiences and personal circumstances, what
would you like to tell us that is not already revealed or explained sufficiently in your
application?
u) Old UC Prompt – What you do in the classroom defines only a part of who you are. How do
you spend your time when you are not in class or studying? Focus on one activity, two at the
most, and discuss what you have gained from your involvement.
v) Old UC Prompts – ’06-’07: There were three prompts to answer. Two of your answers must
be limited to 200 words with the third one to be the extended answer of 600 words. (The online application will stop you if you go over the word limit.) Here are the three prompts:
 (Academic Preparation) How have you taken advantage of the educational opportunities
you have had to prepare for college?
 (Potential to Contribute) Tell us about a talent, experience, contribution or personal quality
you will bring to the University of California.
 (Open-Ended) Is there anything you would like us to know about you or your academic
record that you have not had the opportunity to describe elsewhere in this application?