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4 Tips for Writing Perfect University of Washington Essays

College Essays

The University of Washington is often ranked among public Ivy Leagues —that is, public schools with the academic clout and selectivity to elevate their reputations. So if you want to be a Husky, it's not just about good grades and test scores. You'll also need to prove yourself with a good University of Washington essay, combining your technical skill with your knowledge of the school and your reasons for wanting to attend to attract attention from admissions officers.

But to do that, you need to know how to write great UW essays. The University of Washington uses the Common Application , which can be submitted to multiple schools and includes an essay section with several different prompts. The supplemental UW essay prompts are pretty standard, but we have all the helpful tips you need to make sure your application is set to impress.

Feature Image: Cody Logan/ Wikimedia

What's Included in the University of Washington Essay Section?

There are two required essays you need to write for the University of Washington, along with an optional third essay. These essays are:

• Common App essay (650 words)
• Short response (300 words)
• Additional information (optional, 200 words)

Part of the Common App includes answering an essay prompt in 650 words or less. While there are seven Common App essay prompts, the University of Washington doesn't allow you to choose which prompt to answer; all applicants must answer the same prompt and submit them as part of their Common Application .  

The University of Washington application also includes a required short response question of 300 words and an optional short essay of 200 words.

Additional space is available, but it's recommended that you don't take it unless you absolutely need it. Show restraint when responding to UW essay prompts; it shows that you can be concise and follow directions , and you won't run the risk of volunteering too much information or making yourself memorable for the wrong reasons. That said, we'll cover some exceptions below!

What Is the Common Application Essay Prompt?

Although there are seven Common App essay prompts , the University of Washington requires you to answer a specific prompt; you don't get to choose. The maximum length of this essay is 650 words, but the University of Washington recommends the essay be closer to 300-400 words.

This is the Common App essay prompt you must answer:

Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it.

This essay prompt is pretty broad; it allows you to focus on any significant experience in your life. To answer it effectively, you'll want to relate a specific anecdote or event that had a strong impact on you as a person and how you define yourself today.

When answering this prompt, you'll want to choose a particularly significant experience. It doesn't need to be super rare, but the experience should hold deep meaning for you. Ask yourself: what defines you? What do you find important? Can you connect a key part of your personality or a goal you have to a specific event in your life?

You should also focus on only one experience. Don't try to cram in as many stories as possible—concentrate on the one incident that's most important to you, and use this essay as a chance to really delve into the specifics of it. How did the experience make you feel at the time? Why did it have such an impact on you?

If you decide to write about a negative experience, try to put a positive spin on it. You don't need to stick with a happy-go-lucky story—maybe you lost a friend because of a heated argument, or forgot to pick up your little brother from school one day. Regardless of the incident, keep the focus on how this situation ultimately taught you something important about life, such as the value of responsibility or the meaning of maturity.

Tips For Brainstorming Topics for Your University of Washington Essay

If you're struggling to come up with an experience to write about, try these brainstorming ideas:

• A time you helped someone in need, such as a friend, a classmate, or a sibling, and how your assistance revealed to you the value of cooperation or compassion. For example, did you tutor a peer in math? Help your sibling recover from a bullying incident?
• A time you made a mistake or acted against your true character and what this taught you about morality and being true to yourself. Perhaps you lied about a grade you got to your parents or said something out of anger to a friend and later regretted it.
• An incident that emphasizes a particular skill or ability you have. For example, you could write about the time you organized a winter holiday food drive at your high school and how it highlights your leadership skills and passion for social work.
• A time you faced a challenge and how you ultimately overcame it. Maybe you struggled severely with geometry and were about to fail your math class, but because of a great friend who encouraged you to keep trying, you eventually raised your grade from a D- to a B.

When writing this essay, make sure to avoid pretending something is more important or unique than it actually is. Don't tell a story the admissions committee has likely heard hundreds of times. Choose an event that speaks to your life and has had a large impact on how you see yourself. Basically, don't write about what you think the admissions committee wants to read. For example, instead of discussing how you've been in Honor Society since 9th grade, it'll be a lot more interesting if you wrote about somebody you met through Honor Society or why you decided to drop out of it.

Also, don't focus too much on the negative part of the story. While it's OK to write about a time when you made a mistake, did something wrong, or faced a challenge, try to avoid writing only about the bad parts. Your story should overall be optimistic and reveal something positive about yourself.

What Is the Short Answer Prompt?

Once you've finished the Common Application essay, the University of Washington has an additional requirement for you—a short response question with a 300 word limit.

The University of Washington suggests that concise writing is particularly valuable, and recommends that the Common App essay be between 300 and 400 words rather than 650. Though they don't offer word count recommendations for the other prompts, it's best to assume they're looking for short answers. Cutting out 100 words might feel excessive, but do try to leave some breathing room within your essay rather than squeaking in right under the allotted 300 words .

Additionally, the University of Washington states that students tend to answer this essay more informally than the longer essay. However, they expect formal, polished essays for both prompts, so don't slack off on proofreading or editing this essay.

For the UW short response essay, here is the required prompt:

Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. Community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the UW.

UW offers a helpful tip right below the prompt: "Keep in mind that the UW strives to create a community of students richly diverse in cultural backgrounds, experiences, values and viewpoints." What this means is that UW wants to see students who are going to be right at home in that diverse student body. When answering this question, consider specifically what you might add to the community. What perspective do you bring? What traits make you a good fit?

Some students might struggle with this, because it's easy to assume that UW means they're only looking for students from diverse backgrounds, such as students of color, LGBTQ+ students, or students of other marginalized identities. But the prompt doesn't at all mean that you have no chance if you don't belong to one of those communities. Students who fit into those groups may have an easier time of identifying what diversity they bring to the school, but belonging to a marginalized group doesn't in any way guarantee admission.

The University of Washington is looking for students who foster and embrace diversity, so be sure to think on those terms. Consider, for example, how your rambunctious family Thanksgiving taught you to embrace chaos, and how your ability to stop Great Aunt Kathy from throwing mashed potatoes at your cousin for bringing up a sensitive political issue translates to a college campus. Think about how having several different friend groups in high school—nerds and jocks, for example—taught you to move between spaces while always being your authentic self.

For students who are of marginalized backgrounds, the same advice still applies. You likely have different lived experiences than other students, but UW wants to know exactly what you're going to bring to the student community . You can discuss advocacy work, for example, or how your less advantageous upbringing taught you to work hard for everything you want. Always come back to that request to "Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the UW."

Embracing diversity isn't just about being a member of a marginalized community; think about how you participate in your social groups and how your experiences before college will help you have and, more importantly, create a good experience for others. Again, it's not about what identity you do or do not have, but rather about how you build communities and support others. UW is a big school, but you'll still be interacting with people from all walks of life on a daily basis—how will you navigate difference and fit into a student body made up of so many different people?

Let UW know exactly how they're going to help you make a slam dunk.

What Should You Add in the Additional Information Section?

The University of Washington essay prompt offers an additional 200 words for you to talk about yourself and your unique circumstances. This section is optional, and UW advises that the following types of students may benefit from taking the opportunity to expand on their application:

• You have experienced personal hardships in attaining your education
• Your activities have been limited because of work or family obligations
• You have experienced unusual limitations or opportunities unique to the schools you attended

Even if you don't fall into one of these groups, it's wise to take advantage of this additional space. Everyone has a goal that's important to them, after all, which is explicitly included in the second bullet point. However, you only have 200 words, so you'll need to make them count .

Again, UW mentions earlier in their guidelines for the writing section that they value brevity. Don't try to hit that 200 word mark just because it's there—use only the space that you need. Be succinct and clear about any obstacles you've overcome, what draws you to your major, and what makes you want to attend UW specifically.

For example, say you, like many prospective UW students, are interested in becoming a doctor. The University of Washington is highly ranked among medical schools , so saying you want to go there because it's a good medical program isn't doing any legwork in setting you apart from other students . Instead, use this space to talk about why your major is important to you, and why placement at UW is going to help you achieve more.

Following the medical school example, maybe your primary care doctor was a UW grad, and the depth of care they gave you convinced you it wasn't just what you know as a doctor that matters, but also how you deploy that knowledge. Because you want to make the same difference in somebody's life, you're applying to UW to have access to the same information and instruction that your doctor did. In essence, use this space to explain something you didn't have space to explain elsewhere, but make it count .

Be careful not to retread the same ground! This is an opportunity to flesh out your application, not to hammer something home. If you haven't had a chance to discuss that your grades slipped sophomore year because of a family illness or that your local library has a special box for you because of all the engineering books you keep checking out, now's the time to mention it. Keep it short, direct, and original—the admissions office is reading this supplemental section in the context of your application, so you don't need to revisit anything.

Careful not to fall into the trap of using more space than you need.

Should You Use the Additional Space? How?

It can be tempting to use UW's provided additional space to squeeze a few more words into your application, but resist it . Those word counts are there for a reason, and you should aim to get under, not exceed them.

That said, there are legitimate reasons to use this additional space. The University of Washington mentions clarifying answers from elsewhere on the application or providing extra information to the admissions office.

If you have special considerations as a student that you want to be sure the office is aware of, but that you didn't discuss in the previous additional information section, you could include that here. You could also include relevant awards or distinguishing recognition you've received. If your high school had an unusual grading system, it might be useful to explain how to interpret your grades.

But don't take the lack of a word requirement to mean that you can talk about whatever you want, or that you should use this space to expand on one of your earlier essays . Use only what you need, no more. Try to keep it under 200 words. Brevity is important!

Tips and Advice for the University of Washington Essays

Specific advice for each prompt will help you craft a better essay, but there are some general things to keep in mind, too !

Proofread Your UW Essays

It's a small space, so there should be fewer mistakes, right? Nope . You still need to proofread . Consider writing your essays by hand and then transcribing the drafts—it feels like more work, but turning written words into typed words is a great way to spot mistakes. Go through multiple drafts, and read your essay out loud before you submit it.

Don't let typos get through; no matter how good the rest of your essay is, a typo will make it look as though you didn't edit it at all, suggesting you didn't take your time. Do everything you can to avoid the perception that you wrote it up without thinking! On the UW admission website they are very specific that you should “write like it matters, not like you’re texting. This is an application for college, not a message to your friend.”

Get Editing Help

Seek feedback from those you trust, not just those who are going to tell you your essays are great . You want your essays to be as good as possible, so let people who are going to be truthful with you make suggestions. They'll help you write a better essay, and a fresh pair of eyes can spot holes in your logic and errors you might miss after repeated revisions.

Think about going to teachers or counselors rather than friends or family. Though they undoubtedly want to help you, they might also be worried about hurting your feelings. Someone who's a little more objective but still wants to see you succeed is the kind of editor you want.

Be Specific

Always remember that you're applying to the University of Washington. Don't just write an essay that could impress any college (that's what the Common Application essay is for!); write one that ties into UW's core values . Their vision includes an emphasis on discovery, research, community, optimism, and even celebrating the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest. All of these are angles ripe for exploration in your essays . If one of your answers is lacking, try folding a little of this vision into it by finding parts of your essay that match the mission and making them stand out more.

Read Essays That Got Students Into UW

It can be tricky finding essays that got applicants into UW, but it can also be a great indicator of what the school values in an application. Take these essays by Issa Rice . Though written for a different set of prompts, it's not hard to see why Rice was accepted.

Notice how his essays could only come from him; they're so tied to personal experience that it's unlikely anyone else would have the same essay. That's the kind of personalization you want to strive for. Your essay should speak about your own unique experience and leave the admissions office with a clearer picture of who you are as a person, not just as a collection of grades and test scores.

What's Next?

Crafting a perfect essay is just one part of the admissions process to the University of Washington. Because UW is a moderately selective school, you need to be aware of all admissions requirements before applying to be sure that your application is up to snuff .

As you're writing and rewriting your UW essay, be sure that it meets all the guidelines of a good college essay in addition to the UW requirements. A little extra polish will go a long way to cementing your application in the admission office's memory!

If you're struggling to understand why UW uses the Coalition App and what that means, never fear! We have all the information on what distinguishes one application system from another , helping you plan your college applications with less stress.

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Melissa Brinks graduated from the University of Washington in 2014 with a Bachelor's in English with a creative writing emphasis. She has spent several years tutoring K-12 students in many subjects, including in SAT prep, to help them prepare for their college education.

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University of Washington Supplemental Essays 2024-25 — Prompts and Tips

July 22, 2024

The University of Washington’s main campus in Seattle isn’t the type of public school that just services local residents. Rather, UW-Seattle attracts twice as many applicants from out-of-state/country than in-state each year. Top-ranked computer science, engineering, business, and nursing programs, in particular, attract an endless stream of high-caliber applicants from around the globe. Great grades and test scores will put aspiring Huskies on strong footing. However, the University of Washington also requires you to address two supplemental essay prompts.

 (Want to learn more about how to get into UW? Visit our blog entitled: How to Get Into the University of Washington: Admissions Data and Strategies  for all of the most recent admissions data as well as tips for gaining acceptance.)

Let’s dive right in and begin examining the one required essay and one required short response.

University of Washington Personal Statement (required)

Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (maximum length: 650 words)..

This essay prompt succeeds in being both a) simple and straightforward and b) immensely challenging for many applicants. As you brainstorm, remember that the admissions committee is not looking for a rambling list of things you believe in the abstract. Instead, they are specifically asking for one experience that is revealing of your character and/or life story.

For many students, settling on a singular incident in their lives that will speak volumes about the core of their being is not an easy task. You could write about a moment of individual triumph here, but don’t rule out sharing about an incident where, for example: You are not the hero of the story, you had a humbling experience, or you changed a previously held belief.

University of Washington Supplemental Essays – Continued

The good news is that you have up to 650 words to tell this story, which means you will have plenty of real estate in which to share rich details that will make your essay more compelling.

(Even better news: UW doesn’t read your Common App essay, so you can use it as-is here.)

University of Washington Short Response (required)

Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the uw. (maximum length: 300 words)..

Straight from the UW admissions staff, “Keep in mind that the UW strives to create a community of students richly diverse in cultural backgrounds, experiences, values and viewpoints.”

Your answer here could be about an ethnic, religious, or neighborhood community/identity or a group of individuals who gather for a club, sport, or service project. Whichever elements you choose to focus on, make sure that you use your writing ability to  show  the admissions officer what type of community member you are rather than merely  telling  them.

You can also discuss how you have engaged with your high school local/community and what you have learned from interacting with people of a different ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual identity, etc. Draw on past evidence of your commitment to being a positive force in your community. You can also speculate how that is likely to manifest on the University of Washington’s campus. Research and cite student-run organizations at UW-Seattle, local nonprofit groups, or anything else you are excited about. The admissions committee wants to understand precisely how you will contribute to their campus community. Drawing the link between your past efforts and future aims is critical here.

How important are the supplemental essays at the University of Washington?

UW-Seattle only labels three factors as being “very important” to the admissions process. Those factors are: the rigor of your high school coursework, GPA, and your application essays. In fact, the essays are rated as being of greater importance than test scores, extracurricular activities, or talent/ability.

Want Personalized Essay Assistance?

If you are interested in working with one of College Transitions’ experienced and knowledgeable essay coaches as you craft your University of Washington supplemental essays, we encourage you to get a quote  today.

Need additional writing resources? Consider checking out the following:

• Common App Essay Prompts
• 10 Instructive Common App Essay Examples
• College Application Essay Topics to Avoid
• Should I Complete Optional College Essays?
• How to Brainstorm a College Essay
• 25 Inspiring College Essay Topics
• “Why This College?” Essay Examples
• How to Write the Community Essay
• College Essay

Dave Bergman

Dave has over a decade of professional experience that includes work as a teacher, high school administrator, college professor, and independent educational consultant. He is a co-author of the books The Enlightened College Applicant (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016) and Colleges Worth Your Money (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).

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University Of Washington Admission Essay Writing Guide

Application Guide

Essay examples, university of washington entrance essays and admission process.

Different rankings place the University of Washington at different positions — from No.14 in the world (2018 Academic Ranking of World Universities) to No 64. in the 2020 National Universities List — it has always had a flawless reputation, entering the public Ivy League, the highest rating for public schools with profound academic achievements.

The University of Washington becomes the alma mater for students from all over the country each year. Its campus welcomes over 54 000 people annually. The UW site boasts of their ever-present optimism and their belief in human skills and ambitions. The 49% acceptance rate supports this optimism because the applicants have decent chances to become the new UW freshmen.

If you're in the application process for the University of Washington and are up against a tight essay deadline, StudyMoose offers a quick and reliable essay writing service to meet your specific needs.

One of the peculiarities of University of Washington supplemental essays is that you don’t need the standard Coalition Application essay. The university even states it separately at the site, redirecting the applicants to its own admission page. But it doesn’t mean that the enrollment process will become any easier for college applicants. Instead of the standard “Why UW” essay prompt at Coalition App, you need to write the essay on one of the custom University of Washington prompts. You will also need to complete one shorter, community and diversity-related essay. For those who want to say something more, there are 200 extra words of free writing. The aspiring students who want to enter the two Interdisciplinary Honors Program should write yet again an additional UW essay, using one of the two prompts. Now a single Coalition App essay may look way better, but the UW reputation is worth it.

Let’s look closer at each of these essay types and understand what exactly the admission committee wants to see in them. But first, some interesting facts and statistics.

Types of UW Admission Essays

As we said before, the Coalition essay isn’t mandatory, moreover, it won’t be scored by the admission officers. But if the University of Washington isn’t the only one you are going to apply to, you may still write this essay to send it to the other universities later. The Coalition Application essay has one of the biggest word limits: 650 words, so you may use it to combine everything you’d like to say in all the UW essays.

The main University of Washington supplementary essay should consist of 300-400 words. The UW site states that they expect it to be more personal storytelling than just a bunch of facts. It goes along well with the declared principles of attention to every individual student, not only their scores and grades. Keep in mind that you should submit your University of Washington admission essay instead of the standard Coalition one in the Coalition App form.

The short response should be also added to your Coalition App profile. If the first part is about you and your perspectives, vision, and principles, this one shows your ability to work in a community and respect the diversity in it. You don’t have to search for the “right” answers, the WU team isn’t very fond of standardized responses. You may have a look at our list of UW short response examples and see dozens of ways to express your attitude to diversity without being boring and too good to be true.

Additional 200 words are, well, exactly what is said on the tin. You may use it as you please or not use them at all. Don’t try to write something extra if you have nothing to say. This space is reserved for something very important for you that doesn’t fit into the first two prompts. Maybe, you want to share a brilliant idea, maybe you want to express gratitude, or say something else that you want the university to know. They won’t affect your enrollment chances that much, so think of them as bonuses.

The Interdisciplinary Honors program responses are the most understandable of all. You just have to write why you are interested in them and what you are going to do with the knowledge gained. The style of these University of Washington supplement papers is similar to the first essay, just shorter and more specific.

All the essays have similar format requirements and the ones stated separately at the UW site:

They evaluate both the content and grammar, punctuation, and spelling, so consider spell-checking and proofreading your essay first.

To avoid losing the formatting, the UW team advises you to compose the essay separately and then paste it into the application form. The wrong formatting won’t influence the total grade, but the text will simply look better with it.

They ask the students to use formal English, both for the main essay and short responses. Any of the papers you submit are expected to be in the same style, suitable for the application essays.

Statement Essay for Students who Apply after High School

This prompt usually looks a lot like the standard application portal essays, even more general and vague. You have to talk about yourself, your background, personal story, and experience that made you who you are. But there is one major difference: this essay is much shorter than the Common App’s notorious 650-words one. Maybe, it’s better to choose a single aspect of your life, be it family, friends or study. A single powerful event that changed your life and made you inclined towards this university and this major.

Think about the best speeches in history. Often, the speakers start from something small, personal, seemingly irrelevant. But it unwinds slightly, but steadily, and you see a bigger picture that started from that very story. You might be surprised, but a great short speech takes just enough words to fit into an essay word limit.

The broad UW essay topics allow you to choose any experience you want to share, but try to choose the one that the rest of the audience can relate. Something may have a deeply symbolic meaning for you personally but is difficult to understand outside the context. But if you have the time, words, and passion to explain this context, your essay may become a truly outstanding gem in a pile of similar ones. Remember that University of Washington admission essays are all about personality (or so they say at their site).

You may use a great plot twist and start from the negative experience. Sometimes the challenges shape us in a much more prominent way than good times. If you show what great lemonade you can make from life’s lemons, what endurance and integrity you’ve got after the tough times, it may become a very powerful story. You’ll present yourself as a strong and mature personality able to rise and go further towards your goal no matter what. But to achieve this effect you need to focus on the positive sides and lessons learned. The negative experience is just a premise here, not the main reason you need to be accepted into the UW campus family.

UW Diversity Essay

This is a type of a community essay that shows your attitude and relations to the society. The most common approach to it in many schools is to get the “correct” answer about ponies, rainbow, celebrating diversity and being absolutely tolerant to anything. The University of Washington application essay isn’t about that at all.

The UW site gives you a tip: its goal is a diverse students’ community with a rich cultural background and all the range of opinions. So, you can’t just get a wrong answer here. They just want to know what you may add to this metaphorical “cultural soup” and — what is equally important — what are you “allergic”, too.

It’s okay to have a strong personality and be intolerant to something: you may not be involved in social activities and it’s okay. You may not be eager to learn about other cultures and it’s also okay while you still respect them. Respecting others in any aspect doesn’t mean having no borders and accepting everything they give to you. Don’t focus on your borders and issues, but it’s okay to outline them. Remember, each organization chooses its members, but the members also have the right to choose.

On the positive side you may tell the admission committee about your extracurricular activities, your hobbies, your way of finding friends, activities and interests. It isn’t just a waste of your time and keyboard: the UW management wants to know what they can do to make the campus life fancier. Maybe your ideas may contribute to something cool that will happen: students organizations, clubs, parties or other ways to have a good time. With your UW Diversity essay you invest into the university’s life, and these investments may soon pay back.

The Interdisciplinary Honors Program

This part is the most obvious of all. The UW admission officers want to know why they should enroll you in this program. You should briefly (actually as briefly as possible) let them know about your plans and projects. The Interdisciplinary Honors programs aren’t the thing people want to do just for fun: it’s a serious piece of work and research and great time investment from both sides. So it’s fair that the University of Washington wants to know how the effort of its teachers will later pay off to the society, and what are you going to do with the new knowledge gathered during the program.

The advice here is simple: be laconic and honest. Even if you don’t have the explicit draft of your project, give them the idea, outline your plan of making this idea true and show how the university and society would benefit from it. Don’t worry: only a few people have a solid project idea before application. Show them all the cards you have and we’re sure it will be more than enough.

Cover Letter and Additional Information

The additional 200 words are called additional for a reason. They don’t have a great impact on the application process and they will be considered the last. But still, you may use them to explain something that may look odd in the other documents. For example, if you have an unusually low grade on the list that looks good in any other way, there might be a reason for it. Possibly you were ill, or had issues with that particular teacher, or had to focus on any other subject. You are not trying to talk it out of it, the low grade stays low grade. But you may at least show that you are motivated to learn this subject better and will do so when the conditions will be suitable.

A calm and adult explanation may make you a bit more sympathetic and the admission committee may give you an extra chance despite your grade. But be ready to show them the proof if your story looks very unusual. We don’t have to say the obvious things, but telling the truth, without exaggeration and hiding the uncomfortable details is the best strategy here.

Another way to use these 200 words is to talk about your big dream. Not your project with a palpable plan and milestones to achieve, but something bigger. Something you are ready to dedicate your life to. Maybe it’s helping people in a particular way, maybe it’s discovering new worlds in our galaxy — anything you truly believe in. It won’t necessarily get you enrolled, but it will help the admission committee to see your true colors, and, possibly, some of the equally passionate professors will notice you and offer you a project to work together.

But remember: using these 200 words to extend your main essay is a big no. They are left for something very different. Think of them as a cover letter, while the rest of your application is your CV. Your awards, your mindset, everything that can matter for the university — that’s what the extra space is for.

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Essay Questions For Each Major

Provided below are the personal statement prompts used for each specific engineering major. Students are encouraged to use these prompts to begin drafting their personal statements.

Aeronautics & Astronautics

Aeronautics & astronautics question.

The personal statement (approximately one page, single-spaced) should describe your interest in Aeronautics & Astronautics. Explain why you would like to study in the department, your goals while in the undergraduate program, and some ideas of what you would like to do after graduation. Our department strives to understand prospective students in a holistic manner. Please include any experiences (e.g., work, internship, research, leadership, or extracurricular activities) that will give us a better understanding of your academic interests, professional goals, and personal experiences. If your experiences have given you a unique perspective that you believe will add to our student body you may choose to include that in your statement. Similarly, if you have encountered any unusual or extenuating circumstances that have affected your education, you may wish to include that information as well. The information you provide in your personal statement will help the A&A Undergraduate Admissions Committee learn about you. We look forward to receiving your application.

Bioengineering Question #1

Please write a brief personal statement (approximately one page, single-spaced for all prompts) addressing the following questions:

1. Tell us what aspect of bioengineering you are most interested in pursuing. How have you explored this interest, and how has this led to your decision to apply to the bioengineering major?

Bioengineering question #2, 2. tell us more about your personal and academic journey and how you have grown during your college career. describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, have contributed to the social good and a better world and/or will do so in the bioengineering program and in your career., bioengineering question #3, 3. additional materials (optional): applicants may petition the admissions committee for consideration if they are missing one or two prerequisite courses or if they plan to add bioengineering as a second degree. if you have been approved to apply with missing admission requirements or if you are interested in pursuing a double-degree, please provide additional information here., bioresource science and engineering, bioresource science & engineering question.

Personal Statement Write a brief, 1 page personal statement that will give the Bioresource Science and Engineering departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your background. Your statement must include your reasons for choosing Bioresource Science and Engineering, and your career objectives. You may also include other factors such as personal, family, economic and educational circumstances. Honors and Activities Please include a list of school, work or community honors and activities if applicable. Please indicate your most significant contribution, the organization name (if appropriate), and dates of service/award.

Chemical Engineering Question

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 single-spaced page). Formatting will be removed, so do not use special characters, italics, or other formatting. Proofread. Be concise.

We suggest you respond to the first question in the list, regarding your interests and goals. You can choose to address any combination of, including none or all of the additional topics in your personal statement - the admission committee uses this statement to better understand you as a person, your academic record, and your interest in chemical engineering:

• Discuss your academic and personal interests and goals.
• Discuss how your personal experiences prepare you to solve problems in diverse teams, and for a diverse world.
• Discuss any activities/extracurriculars you are particularly committed to (ChemE-related or not), why you are involved in these activities, and the skills or insights you gained that you will bring into your future work.
• Describe any challenges or hardships you have overcome in pursuing your education. For example: serious illness; disability; first generation in your family to attend college; significant financial hardship or responsibilities associated with balancing work, family, and school. Include how you persevered, and how the experience(s) impacted yourself or your education.

Additionally, please address the following if they are applicable to you:

• If you have applied to ChemE before, please discuss what has changed or improved since your last application.
• If you plan to complete more than one major, please provide an intellectual or career justification for the double-degree.
• If you will take more than 4 years to graduate, please briefly explain why and discuss your plan for graduating efficiently.

Civil Engineering Question

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering The purpose of the personal statement is to give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. Write a brief statement (approximately one page, single-spaced) telling us about your motivation for majoring in Civil Engineering, the experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that are important to you, and your future goals. If you have faced unusual or extenuating circumstances, you may wish to discuss this in your personal statement. For example, if you have had to overcome significant obstacles (medical, financial, cultural or personal) to reach where you are now, you could describe how these challenges affected your education and impacted your academic record. If you are requesting to apply conditionally with a missing application or enrollment requirement, please review the process for a Conditional Application and complete the request form at your earliest convenience. Applicants who are approved to apply conditionally must address it in their personal statement when and where the outstanding course(s) will be completed.

Environmental Engineering Question

Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering The purpose of the personal statement is to give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. Write a brief statement (approximately one page, single-spaced) telling us about your motivation for majoring in Environmental Engineering, the experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that are important to you, and your future goals. If you have faced unusual or extenuating circumstances, you may wish to discuss this in your personal statement. For example, if you have had to overcome significant obstacles (medical, financial, cultural or personal) to reach where you are now, you could describe how these challenges affected your education and impacted your academic record. If you are requesting to apply conditionally with a missing application or enrollment requirement, please review the process for a Conditional Application and complete the request form at your earliest convenience. Applicants who are approved to apply conditionally must address in the personal statement when and where the outstanding course(s) will be completed.

Computer Science & Engineering

Computer engineering question #1.

Please address all the required topics below. The response under each heading should be no more than 250 words.

• Tell us about your college career to date, describing your performance, educational path, and academic choices.
• Share what led you to choose to study Computer Science or Computer Engineering.
• Explain any situations that may have had a significant positive or negative impact on your academic progress or curricular choices. What happened, and what was the impact for you?
• Transfer applicants only: What are the specific reasons you wish to leave your most recent college/university or program?

Computer Engineering Question #2

• Tell us about your future academic goals in college and your career and/or post-graduation plans.
• How will the Allen School help you achieve your goals?
• If you plan to pursue more than one major, tell us why both majors are important to you (if applicable).
• If you will take more than 4 years to graduate, please briefly explain why and discuss your plan for graduating efficiently (if applicable).
• Transfer applicants only: Why do you want to transfer to UW?

Computer Engineering Question #3

• Tell us about any significant communities that you are actively involved with or have recently been a part of within the past two years, and your role in them.
• Why are you involved in these communities?
• How did these communities benefit from your involvement? Emphasize in particular any leadership roles or impact you have had in these communities.
• What perspectives, skills, or insights will you bring to the Allen School community or future work as a result of your participation in these communities?

Computer Engineering Question #4

• Tell us about how any of your identities, perspectives, or life experiences would help you contribute to the Allen School community and the computing field. This could include but is not limited to: race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, ability/disability, age, socioeconomic background, academic experience, and veteran status.
• Describe any significant responsibilities you may have in addition to being a student (e.g. parenting responsibilities, work, familial responsibilities). What impact has this had on your college experience?

Computer Science Question #1

(Same as Computer Engineering above)

Computer Science Question #2

Computer science question #3, computer science question #4, electrical & computer engineering question.

Prior to applying to the ECE major, please review the ECE Admissions page. Prospective students are also strongly encouraged to attend an information session prior to applying to the ECE major.

The personal statement (approximately one page, single-spaced) should describe your interest in Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE). Explain why you would like to study in the department, your goals while in the undergraduate program, and some ideas of what you would like to do after graduation.

Please include any experiences (e.g., work, internship, research, leadership, extracurricular activities, community, personal, etc.) that will give us a better understanding of your academic interests, professional goals, and personal journey.

If you would like to address or clarify anything particular in your transcripts/academic record, such as challenges or hardships you have overcome that have impacted your education, you have the option to use the “Additional Comments” section to briefly explain this.

Human Centered Design & Engineering Question

Prior to applying to the HCDE major, please review the HCDE BS admission FAQs . Prospective students are also strongly encouraged to schedule an appointment with an HCDE peer adviser prior to applying to the HCDE major.

Please provide a personal statement that will give the admissions committee an understanding of how you have explored HCDE and determined that majoring in HCDE will be the best fit for your goals. You should number and respond to all 3 prompts separately with a statement of ~250 words per prompt question.

1. Please describe the specific activities you have engaged in to learn more about HCDE, including, but not limited to: involvement in student organizations, research, internships, projects, volunteer work, courses, or personal experiences that have helped you identify HCDE as the best fit for your interests and goals for the future. 2. Share instances from your past academic experiences that best show your ability to learn and succeed. What about these experiences contributed to your success, and how will you build on those experiences in HCDE? Please do not share information of a sensitive, traumatic, or private nature. 3. You should also discuss how your personal experiences prepare you to work successfully in diverse and interdisciplinary teams, and toward a more human-centered world. How will your identities, perspectives, and life experiences help you contribute to the HCDE community and the field?

Juniors/seniors only: Please note that the HCDE curriculum takes a minimum of 2 years to complete. If you will be applying to the HCDE major at the end of your junior year or later, please use the “Additional Comments” box in the application to briefly share why you are deciding to change your major, add another degree, or do not yet have another major in progress. Describe the reasons why you will need to extend your graduation timeline beyond 4 years/12 quarters and why this is the best path for meeting your individual academic and career goals.

Industrial Engineering Question

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g., work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record, or any personal hardship or barriers you have faced, and explain how they affected your education.

Materials Science & Engineering Question

MSE has removed the personal statement requirement for the 2023-24 admissions cycle. Please write, "N/A" in the essay submission box and complete the rest of the application and documentation requirements.

Mechanical Engineering Question

Write a brief personal statement (approximately one page, single-spaced) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. You may also use the personal statement to discuss any unusual or extenuating circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record. For example, if you have overcome significant obstacles (medical, financial, cultural or personal) to reach where you are now, you may describe them in the essay.

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How to Write the University of Washington Supplemental Essays 2024–2025

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The University of Washington (UW), which has three campuses in Seattle , Tacoma , and Bothell respectively, enrolls more than 60,000 students . The UW’s vibrant student life , impactful research , and diverse academic opportunities all contribute to its high U.S. News and World Report ranking at #7 in Best Global Universities . The UW’s accomplished alumni include Rainn Wilson, Frank Herbert, Tim Lincecum, and Gita Gopinath. Hoping to become a Husky? First, you’ll need to nail the University of Washington supplemental essays. Let’s dive in.

UW’s 2024-2025 Prompts

The University of Washington sets three essay prompts for applicants. The first two prompts are required, while the third prompt is optional and only applicable to students who feel that their applications are missing something crucial. A lot of emphasis is put on the University of Washington supplemental essays in the application process, so let’s break those prompts down.

The UW Required Essay Questions

Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (650 words or fewer), our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the uw. (300 words or fewer), the uw optional essay question, you are not required to write anything in this section, but you may include additional information if something has particular significance to you. for example, you may use this space if: you have experienced personal hardships in attaining your education. your activities have been limited because of work or family obligations. you have experienced unusual limitations or opportunities unique to the schools you attended. (200 words or fewer), we’ll review your essay.

Receive edits in as little as 24 hours

General Tips

Writing the University of Washington supplemental essays is easier said than done, so here are some tips to help you write stand-out essays! Let’s dive in.

Imagine your reader.

While writing the UW essays, it can be helpful to think through each sentence as though you are speaking it to the admissions officer who will eventually read your writing. Your reader is a stranger who may or may not have the rest of your application materials in front of them. They’re evaluating you as a person, writer, and student all at the same time. What do you want them to know about you? How do you want to say it? While writing, try to answer these questions.

Context matters.

It’s important that you provide context to the story or stories you tell about yourself. Your reader doesn’t know what kind of high school you attended or how many siblings you have. If there is information that will help your reader understand your story, you should include it. If you’re having trouble determining whether to include a certain piece of context, ask someone who doesn’t know the story you’re telling to vet whether they can understand what’s going on without the context.

Details, details!

Details can make or break your essay. Details make an essay personal and special. On the flip-side, too many details can bog down your essay. So here’s a quick guide to what details you should include, and which you should avoid:

• Vivid, sensory details
• Personal details that show your personality
• Details about the time and place
• Humorous details (if tonally appropriate)
• Contextually necessary details (see the section above)
• Repetitive details (avoid using synonymous adjectives)
• Abstract details
• Long asides, regardless of whether they are humorous
• Contextually unnecessary details

With these general tips, you should have a good sense of what kind of information to include in your essays. That said, if you’re looking for more tips, check out the general tips in our other supplemental essays articles!

You may notice that this prompt looks extremely similar to the prompt for the Common App personal essay. Notably, the UW admissions team does not review the Common App essay. Their admissions team does, however, review this essay prompt. Thus, if your Common App personal essay fits within the parameters of this prompt, you can reuse it here. Check out our article on the Common App personal essay prompts for the 2024-2025 application season for more info.

Most likely, your Common App personal essay will fit within the parameters of this prompt. If it doesn’t, consider whether it is sufficiently focused on you, your life experiences, and your worldview. These are the topics a Common App personal essay should focus on, so this may be a sign to pivot your essay. If your essay does focus on you but doesn’t quite answer the prompt in describing any of your life experiences, we recommend using the same tactics as you would for a Common App personal essay to write the UW personal essay. Who knows, maybe you’ll even like your UW essay better than your Common App personal essay and opt to replace it!

This prompt asks you to reflect on your identity, background, and experiences as a community member. Then, the prompt asks you to extrapolate from your past experiences to envision how they will inform a future UW experience. Because the UW admissions team is trying to predict whether you will be a good fit for their student community, they seek to understand what mindset, background, and perspectives you intend to bring to the UW. Furthermore, by sharing who you have been in the past, you can potentially indicate who you will be in the future.

As the prompt indicates, you should take an expansive interpretation of the word “community” when answering this prompt. Likewise, you should interpret the word “diversity” expansively. Although the stereotypical interpretation of the word “diversity” limits it to identifiers like race and gender, it also extends to gender/sexual identity, cultural background, ethnicity/nationality, immigration status, neurodivergence, political beliefs, academic or other interests, disability, socioeconomic status, and much more.

For instance, a student from a rural community will have something to add to a group of students from urban communities, and vice versa. A student who grew up cheerleading will have a different high school experience compared to another student who pursued classical music, and another student who didn’t have time for extracurriculars because they were helping out in the family business. Whatever, wherever, and whoever you come from, the UW wants to understand what makes you, you. No one is “too boring” or “basic” to write a great response to this question, because everyone is unique. What will make you stand out is whether you share the personal, thoughtful, and specific details of your life experiences, and how vividly you imagine yourself contributing to the UW community.

For many applicants looking back at their applications, something seems missing. If there was a drop in your grades during sophomore year and nowhere else in your application did you have the opportunity to explain this situation, this essay is your chance.

If you faced a significant hardship in your personal life, perhaps you want to explore that hardship here. Or if you faced a financial or other barrier to participating in certain extracurricular activities (for instance, you were accepted into a selective academic summer camp but couldn’t afford to attend), then you may wish to provide those details in this essay.

The above are just a few of the many examples of topics you could write about in this essay. Before beginning your draft, think about your application as a whole. Does it truly show you as you are? As a student, classmate, friend, and family member? If so, then remember, this prompt is optional. But if not, you’ll want to provide details here. “Details” is a key word. You’ll need to be specific for the admissions team, who doesn’t necessarily know you very well, so they can fully understand the situation you choose to describe. Once again, be genuine and specific, and this essay has the potential to strengthen your application.

If you need help polishing up your University of Washington supplemental essays, check out our College Essay Review service. You can receive detailed feedback from Ivy League consultants in as little as 24 hours.

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Students Also Read

University of Washington (UW) 2024-25 Supplemental Essay Prompt Guide

Regular Decision: 

Regular Decision Deadline: Nov 15

University of Washington 2024-25 Application Essay Question Explanations

The Requirements: One 500 word essay (required), one 300 word essay (required), one 200 word essay (optional). Supplemental Essay Type (s): Oddball ,  Community , Additional Info 

At the UW, we consider the college essay as our opportunity to see the person behind the transcripts and the numbers. Some of the best statements are written as personal stories. In general, concise, straightforward writing is best, and good essays are often 300-400 words in length.

Please note that the uw essay questions must be answered within our application. for the common app, that means within our uw questions. we do not consider the common app essay., essay prompt, tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (650 words max).

You can think of this prompt as the slightly more general cousin to the Common App’s first prompt, which is about your background. You can write about almost anything in your life experience that has shaped who you are today. But maybe you feel like you used your best story in your personal statement. What to do? Your goal is to reveal a different side of yourself, so try thinking in opposites! If your personal statement was about your family, maybe this essay could focus on school or work. If your personal statement was about your leadership skills, could this essay cover a time when you let someone else lead the way and learned something new? As you begin to zero in on the area of your life that you haven’t tapped into yet, think about how your past experiences still resonate in your life today. Maybe your summer job as a lifeguard taught a new sense of personal responsibility that has made you more attentive in your day-to-day life. Maybe an ill-fated childhood attempt to drink an entire carton of milk taught you how to balance enthusiasm and moderation in every major project you take on. The experience itself can be big or small, but its connection to who you are today must be clear. UW wants to know who you’ll be on campus, so show them!

Short Response

Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the university of washington. (300 words).

Ah, the infamous “community” essay. Many schools ask students about their communities because they want to know how applicants relate to the people around them, forge connections, and commune with their peers. In this particular instance, the question calls attention to family as well, so consider how the people who you are related to (or those who you consider family even if they’re not bound to you by blood) have influenced your life and worldview. Maybe you’re very involved in your local synagogue, polka dancing club, or environmental organization. University of Washington wants to know about your life beyond the classroom and how you will continue those activities and interests on their campus. Why do you invest in the people you invest in?

Additional Information About Yourself or Your Circumstances (200 words)

You are not required to write anything in this section, but feel free to include additional information if something has particular significance to you. for example, you may use this space if:, -you have experienced personal hardships in obtaining your education, -your activities have been limited because of work or family obligations, -unusual limitations or opportunities unique to the schools you attended.

This prompt is an opportunity for you to explain just about anything else that you haven’t covered elsewhere on the application. Usually, we recommend this type of optional essay only to students who have experienced a major academic strain or have had noticeable blemishes on their records. One example could be the explanation of a complication, like an illness that caused you to miss school and impacted your grades. Perhaps your family moved around a lot, which made it hard to transfer grades or connect with your peers. Maybe an undiagnosed learning disability caused you major challenges in school until you learned how to cope with it.  UW’s prompt covers these circumstances, and invites responses from applicants who feel that their unique circumstances are not represented elsewhere in their application. 

Additional Space (Optional) (200 words)

You may use this space if you need to further explain or clarify answers you have given elsewhere in this application, or if you wish to share information that may assist the office of admissions. if applicable, be sure to include the question number to which your comment(s) refer..

Admissions is giving you one more opportunity to address anything that needs to be addressed. If you feel inclined to answer, think about what else might admissions officers might want or need to know about you. You have an additional 200 words at your disposal to speak to them in your own voice, so use them as long as what you’re writing isn’t simply filler — if that’s the case, it’s better just to leave this blank. 

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How to Write the University of Washington Essays 2024-2025

The University of Washington has 2 essay prompts, plus an optional one and an additional one for Honors College applicants. The first one is a personal statement-style prompt, as UW does not require you to submit the main Common App essay, and the second is about how your communities have shaped you. The Honors College question asks you to discuss your excitement about learning.

While we normally encourage you to write optional essays, this one is asking about exceptional circumstances, so you should only respond unless you actually have something relevant to share.

Read these University of Washington essay examples written by real students to inspire your writing!

University of Washington Essay Prompts

All applicants.

Prompt 1: Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (650 words)

Prompt 2: Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. Community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the University of Washington. (300 words)

Prompt 3 (optional): You are not required to write anything in this section, but you may include additional information if something has particular significance to you. For example, you may use this space if:

You have experienced personal hardships in attaining your education

Your activities have been limited because of work or family obligations, you have experienced unusual limitations or opportunities unique to the schools you attended. (200 words), uw interdisciplinary honors program applicants, we want to understand your enthusiasm for learning unfamiliar things and exploring different ways of thinking. tell us why you are excited to push your education outside the areas of learning you are most comfortable with. (450 words), all applicants, prompt 1, tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (650 words), understanding the prompt.

This essay is similar to the personal statement you may have already written for other colleges, but UW actually does not require the submission of the Common App essay, and instead has their own prompt. If you are planning on also submitting the Common App essay, take care that the information you share here is not redundant with what you wrote about there.

In terms of topic, you can write about nearly anything. The admissions committee wants to learn about your inner qualities through a specific experience or story. That could be a moment of growth, a decision that reflects your values, or an instance where you demonstrated important traits like resilience, empathy, leadership, or adaptability.

At 650 words, you have enough space to share a rich, detailed narrative. However, avoid trying to cram in two unrelated stories, or cover too many themes. Instead, focus on one clear, cohesive experience, and dive deeply into it. Your goal is to show, through storytelling, how this experience either revealed or shaped a key part of who you are.

Brainstorming Questions

To find the right story, ask yourself:

• What is a moment in my life where I was challenged, and how did I respond?
• Is there an experience that shaped how I see the world or approach problems?
• When have I had to make a difficult decision that required me to reflect on my values?
• What’s a moment where I helped someone, stood up for something, or took a risk?
• When have I learned something important about myself or the world around me?

Try to come up with a list of 10-15 possibilities. Even if you’re drawn to one story right away, having options allows you to choose the one that’s truly the best fit for this prompt. Plus, thinking through different experiences can help you start to identify common themes throughout your growth, which you could highlight in this essay.

What Makes a Good Response

A strong response will:

• Focus on one specific experience that highlights an important aspect of your character. The whole essay doesn’t have to revolve around a single moment, but if you include different anecdotes, the connections between them should be obvious.
• Show growth or insight , to illustrate how the experience helped shape your broader worldview or approach to life.
• Engage the reader with vivid storytelling , by using descriptive language to make your narrative come alive.
• Reveal self-awareness , through thoughtful reflections on what you learned or how you changed.
• Connect the story to your present and future , so that UW admissions officers can see how the experience continues to influence who you are and what you hope to achieve at UW.

Hypothetical Student Examples

Here are three examples of hypothetical students and how they could approach this essay:

• Kaitlyn, an aspiring journalist : Kaitlyn could write about an experience where she reported on a sensitive local issue in her high school newspaper, and ended up facing backlash from some students and faculty. She could then reflect on her commitment to truth, the ethical dilemmas she faced, and how this experience shaped her passion for investigative journalism.
• Daniel, a first-generation student interested in medicine : Daniel could share a story about helping his mother navigate a complex healthcare system when she fell ill. He could discuss the frustrations and obstacles they encountered and how this experience inspired his desire to become a doctor focused on patient advocacy.
• Aaliyah, a dancer and choreographer : Aaliyah could recount an experience where her team was preparing for a major competition, but a key dancer was injured just days before. She stepped up to re-choreograph the routine, which taught her leadership, adaptability, creativity, and resilience.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Being too general : Don’t try to cover multiple experiences or traits in one essay. Admissions officers aren’t expecting you to tell your whole life story in 650 words, and trying will likely cause your essay to feel scattered. Instead, focus on one story in depth, to immerse your readers in one cohesive narrative.
• Overloading on achievements : The point of this essay is to demonstrate your character, not to list accomplishments. Be sure the essay focuses on the story’s emotional impact and your personal growth, not your more objective achievements that admissions officers can already see in other parts of your application, like your transcript.
• Cliché topics without a unique angle : Avoid overdone topics like a sports victory or a volunteer trip unless you can provide a truly fresh perspective that is highly personal and not predictable.
• Lack of reflection : Don’t just tell the story—explain why it matters for understanding what kind of UW student you’d be. Reflect on how it shaped you, what it taught you, and how it will continue to guide you moving forward.

Excerpts of Good and Bad Examples

Good Example (shows vivid storytelling, clear character development, and insightful reflection):

“The clatter of pans echoed through our small kitchen, but the dinner we were about to serve didn’t match the chaos. I carefully plated the tamales, as my mom directed me in Spanish, her words cutting through the steam from the stove. This wasn’t just any dinner—it was a meal for the Lopez family, who had recently lost everything in a house fire. 

My mom had volunteered our family to help, and for the first time, I realized how much work goes into preparing a meal for someone in crisis. After I worked side by side with my mom, it was worth it when I saw the relief in Mrs. Lopez’s eyes as we handed her the trays of food.

That night, my mom explained why she always helped others, even when we didn’t have much to spare. ‘When you give,’ she said, ‘you make the world feel a little lighter for someone.’ Her words stuck with me, and over the next few years, I started to see small ways I could make others’ lives easier—whether that was tutoring classmates, organizing a school drive for a local shelter, or just listening to a friend in need.

Preparing tamales that night shaped my commitment to service. It wasn’t about grand gestures; it was about consistency and kindness. Now, as I apply to college, I want to pursue a career in social work, to make sure others feel the same kind of support that my mom showed the Lopez family that night.”

Why this works : This essay uses vivid imagery to tell a specific, personal story. The writer clearly connects the experience to their overall character, through a thoughtful reflection on how it shaped their values and future goals. The story is engaging, meaningful, and authentic.

Bad Example (feels generic and lacks depth):

“Throughout my life, I’ve always been a hard worker. I’ve faced many challenges, but I always push through because I’m determined to succeed. One example of this was when I had to juggle school and work last year. It was really difficult to manage my time, but I learned that I’m good at prioritizing and staying organized. These traits will help me succeed in college because I know how to manage my responsibilities effectively. I’m proud of my ability to work hard and stay committed, no matter what comes my way.”

Why this doesn’t work : This essay is vague and tells instead of shows. It doesn’t include a specific story or example, and the reflection is shallow. There’s no emotional depth or insight into the writer’s character beyond a basic statement about being hardworking, which doesn’t do anything to set them apart from the thousands of other applicants to UW.

In Conclusion

By choosing a personal, meaningful story and reflecting on how it shaped you, you will create an essay that gives UW’s admissions committee a strong sense of who you are, what you value, and how you’d contribute to their campus community in a way nobody else can.

All Applicants, Prompt 2

Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the university of washington. (300 words).

This question serves two purposes: it gives UW an opportunity to learn more about how you developed your values, and it allows them to consider how you might interact with others on campus. It is easy to get mired in focusing on describing your community, but remember, UW wants to learn about you through seeing how your community impacted you.

Use a description of your community to frame your essay, but always remind yourself to connect the story back to how it changed you. Once you have framed the essay with a description of who you have become as a result of your community’s impact, be sure to extend this thread to your potential future influence on UW.

There are several ways to interpret community. You could interpret it in the literal sense by explaining how your hometown and family have guided your ambitions. For example, maybe growing up on your family’s farm inspired your appreciation for agriculture and working with your hands. You hope to share this appreciation with other students by working on the UW farm and organizing workshops where students can learn how to plant their own flowers or herbs.

Or, perhaps the community you want to highlight is less conventional, such as the coffeeshop you work at. You could discuss how your coworkers are from all walks of life, and how you’ve befriended a retired older couple that picks up weekend shifts. They offer you advice based on their many life experiences, showing you the importance of having an older mentor. This makes you want to join the Big Brothers Big Sisters chapter at UW.

Regardless of what your community is, be sure to highlight how you’ll contribute to UW’s diversity, whether that’s through your perspective, actions, ideas, cultural traditions, etc.

All Applicants, Prompt 3 (optional)

You are not required to write anything in this section, but you may include additional information if something has particular significance to you. for example, you may use this space if:.

This portion of the application is optional, and while we recommend that you fill out most “optional” essays, this space is truly optional. If you don’t have any unusual circumstances, you can leave it blank without penalty. If feel that the parameters apply to you, you should fill this section out.

This is your chance to explain anything that hasn’t been addressed in other parts of your application. Since the maximum is 200 words and the prompt is straightforward, you can (and should) also be totally straightforward in your response, rather than painting a picture with vivid imagery. 

For the first prompt, an example of a response could be:

“In my sophomore year of high school, my dad was diagnosed with cancer, and it profoundly affected multiple areas of my life, including my academic performance. For that reason, there is a significant dip in my grades in the spring semester of that year.”

For the second:

“Because my parents own a small restaurant, it is often my responsibility to watch my younger siblings while they are working, and even help out by doing the dishes or bussing tables in my free time. For that reason, I was unable to join as many extracurriculars as my after school time went towards helping ensure the family restaurant was running smoothly.” 

For the last prompt, you can briefly state school-related limitations or opportunities, like if your school did not have an AP or IB program, or if it did have a special internship program that you participated in but haven’t had room to mention elsewhere.

This prompt asks you to demonstrate your intellectual curiosity and willingness to challenge yourself academically. The admissions committee is looking for students who are excited to engage with diverse subjects and new ways of thinking—students who thrive when stepping outside their academic comfort zones, and thus will take full advantage of the unique opportunities at UW’s Honors College.

This essay is almost the opposite of the traditional “Why Major?” question , in that you’re being asked not what you’re currently most passionate about, but why you’re eager to engage with topics that are unfamiliar or outside your main areas of expertise. This prompt aims to uncover:

• Your desire to be intellectually challenged.
• Your openness to interdisciplinary learning and diverse perspectives.
• Your motivation to pursue a holistic, well-rounded education in the Honors Program.

To get started, consider the following:

• What subjects or areas of knowledge have you encountered that initially felt unfamiliar or difficult, but eventually sparked your curiosity?
• Have you ever taken a class, participated in an extracurricular activity, or read about a topic that was outside your usual interests, but that you felt a connection to anyways and ultimately changed the way you think?
• What excites you about learning in general? Why do you believe in the importance of exploring topics beyond your comfort zone?
• How do you handle the challenge of learning something new? What strategies or mindsets do you adopt?
• Why do you want to be in the Honors Program, specifically? How will it help you push the boundaries of your education?

A good response to this prompt will:

• Highlight your intellectual curiosity : Show genuine excitement for learning and discovery, especially when stepping into unknown or challenging territory.
• Show openness to new perspectives : Describe how going outside your comfort zone can broaden your thinking and understanding of the world.
• Be specific : Provide examples of past experiences where you encountered new topics, ideas, or ways of thinking that challenged or excited you.
• Reflect on personal growth : Explain how exploring unfamiliar areas has helped you grow as a learner, thinker, and overall person.
• Connect to the Honors Program : Mention specific aspects of the UW Honors Program (such as interdisciplinary learning or Honors Study Abroad Programs) that will support your desire to push your educational boundaries.
• Samantha, an aspiring computer scientist with a passion for ethics: Samantha could write about how she first learned about ethics in a biology class when talking about testing on animals. At first, the abstract discussions felt unrelated to her coding skills, but soon she realized the ethical questions were directly relevant to issues like AI development. This experience sparked her interest in exploring how technology intersects with moral and philosophical dilemmas, and she’s eager to take advantage of the Honors Experiential Learning opportunities at one of Seattle’s many tech startups to see how these ideas play out in the real world.
• Jacob, a biology student also interested in public policy: Jacob could describe a time when he joined a student group focused on climate change advocacy. He was used to thinking about environmental issues through a scientific lens, but this group introduced him to the legal and political challenges of addressing climate change. He could reflect on how stepping outside the lab and into the world of public policy made him realize the importance of interdisciplinary thinking in solving global problems, and how he will take advantage of the Honors Program’s Partners in the Parks initiative, where students spend a week at a National Park learning about research and management issues, to learn even more about how to develop comprehensive, data-driven solutions to climate change.
• Alex, a visual artist curious about data science: Alex could talk about how, during a museum internship, they encountered data visualization for the first time, in an exhibition quantifying lives lost during various wars. They had always viewed art and numbers as opposites, but seeing data used to tell stories and convey beauty opened Alex’s mind to the potential of merging creativity with analytics. They’re excited about the Honors Program’s study abroad opportunities, like the program “Art and Activism in the Nordic Region,” because they want to learn more about how art can be used to drive concrete change.
• Focusing too much on your current comfort zone: This essay is about stepping outside of what you know well, so avoid spending too much time discussing your established academic strengths and interests.
• Writing generically about curiosity: Avoid vague statements about loving to learn or enjoying challenges without backing them up with specific examples. Be as detailed as possible about a time when you actually encountered something new and unfamiliar.
• Neglecting the Honors Program: Be sure to tie your essay to specific opportunities in the UW Honors Program that will help you explore new ideas and disciplines. Note that the examples above go beyond just the Honors Program being interdisciplinary, and instead build a concrete bridge to specific opportunities that will allow them to explore their particular interests.
• Overloading on achievements: Don’t turn this essay into a résumé. Instead, focus on your intellectual growth and what excites you about venturing into new academic territories. Your response should complement, not repeat, the information found in your transcript.

Good and Bad Examples

Good Example (highlights the student’s intellectual curiosity and includes a specific experience that shows how stepping outside their comfort zone led to growth):

“As someone who has spent most of my high school years immersed in STEM, enrolling in a creative writing class last year felt like diving into the deep end of unfamiliar waters. I signed up on a whim, hoping to add some variety to my schedule, but I soon realized just how uncomfortable I was when I couldn’t rely on formulas or equations to find a ‘correct’ answer. Instead, I had to navigate the ambiguity of fiction, where the strength of an idea came not from its accuracy, but from its emotional resonance.

I struggled at first, feeling out of place among students who seemed more naturally inclined toward literary expression. However, as we studied authors like Gabriel García Márquez and Virginia Woolf, I began to appreciate how stories could explore human experience in ways that science alone couldn’t. 

One assignment required us to write a short story based on an emotion we’d never personally experienced, and I chose grief—a daunting task. I spent hours researching the psychology of loss, reading memoirs, and watching interviews with survivors of tragedies. Immersing myself in the grief of others showed me the power of emotion alone to communicate lessons that empirical data alone cannot.

In the Honors Program, I’m eager to push my boundaries even further by enrolling in classes that challenge me to think outside of the scientific framework I’m most comfortable with. ‘HONORS 210 D: Aristotle’s Concept of The Tragic in Theory and Practice’ would be a fantastic opportunity for me to continue my exploration of grief through philosophy, a field I’ve never explored, and ‘HONORS 220 A: Storytelling in the Sciences’ would give me guidance on how to bring some of the lessons I’ve learned from the humanities back to my STEM work.

My experience in my creative writing class taught me that knowledge from one discipline alone is incomplete. In college, I look forward to continue opening doors that I previously would have never even knocked on, as there’s no telling how what lies behind them could shape my understanding of the world.”

Why this works : The essay tells a specific story about an academic challenge, and the student clearly explains how the experience pushed them out of their comfort zone. The reflection is thoughtful, and the connection to the Honors Program is clear.

Bad Example (lacks depth and concrete examples, and feels generic as a result):

“I have always loved learning new things and exploring unfamiliar areas of knowledge. Ever since I was young, I’ve been curious about the world and excited by the prospect of discovering new information. Whether it’s science, history, or literature, I enjoy learning different perspectives and pushing myself to think in new ways. 

I believe that true intellectual growth comes from stepping outside of what you know and being open to ideas that challenge you. That’s why I’m excited about the University of Washington Honors Program—it will allow me to learn across disciplines and push my education to new heights.”

Why this doesn’t work : This essay is too vague and doesn’t provide specific examples of the student stepping outside their comfort zone. The language is generic, the reflection lacks depth or personal insight, and the motivation for pursuing the Honors Program is impersonal. Essentially, the student simply states they like learning–which will be true of anyone applying to this program–without showing how they’ve engaged with unfamiliar subjects in the past, or what specifically they’re hoping to get out of this program at UW.

By selecting a specific example of when you’ve explored unfamiliar areas and reflecting on what you learned from the experience, you can craft a strong, engaging essay that demonstrates your intellectual curiosity and readiness for the challenges of the University of Washington Honors Program.

Where to Get Your University of Washington Essays Edited For Free

Do you want feedback on your UW essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. 

Need feedback faster? Get a  free, nearly-instantaneous essay review  from Sage, our AI tutor and advisor. Sage will rate your essay, give you suggestions for improvement, and summarize what admissions officers would take away from your writing. Use these tools to improve your chances of acceptance to your dream school!

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

University Of Washington Supplemental Essays + Examples

Reviewed by:

Former Admissions Committee Member, Columbia University

Reviewed: 12/5/23

The University of Washington supplemental essays play a crucial role in the admission selection process. To learn more about how to write these essays, read on. 

The University of Washington uses essays to see the student behind the transcripts and numbers. With a mission to admit the most diverse, accomplished, and well-rounded students, UW urges all prospective students to consider their essays to ensure they reflect their unique stories.

However, supplemental essays don’t come easy to most students, especially open-ended prompts. You may have no idea where to start, struggle to articulate your thoughts or wonder if your story is worth sharing.

‍ Rest assured, all of these concerns and more will be answered in this guide! By the end, you can write the most compelling supplemental essays.

The University of Washington Supplemental Essay Prompts 2023-2024

Before getting into how to write the University of Washington essays, let’s go over the prompts themselves! 

UW Essay Prompt #1

“Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (650-word limit)”

UW Essay Prompt #2

“Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. Community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the UW. (300-word limit)”

UW Essay Prompt #3

“You are not required to write anything in this section, but you may include additional information if something has particular significance to you. For example, you may use this space if:

• You have experienced personal hardships in attaining your education
• Your activities have been limited because of work or family obligations
• You have experienced unusual limitations or opportunities unique to the schools you attended (200-word limit)”

How to Write Each Essay Prompt for the University of Washington 

If you’re still unsure of how to write a good college essay , let’s break down each of these prompts! This way, you’ll have a better understanding of what kind of answers the admissions team is looking for! 

How to Write UW’s #1 Essay Prompt: Analysis and Tips

Analysis of prompt #1 : This first prompt is very similar to a personal statement . It gives you the opportunity to share any story that has made a significant impact on your life. UW wants to know more about what makes you, you. They want to know what makes you tick. 

Start by deciding which traits you want to highlight about yourself, your values, and your unique traits. Brainstorm several stories that you think are worth sharing and use the process of elimination to choose one. 

To make this process easier, consider creating a list of questions to ask yourself about each story so you can eliminate options that do not meet your criteria! Here are the questions we suggest you use: 

• Does this story reflect who I am and/or who I want to be?
• Does this story show development?
• Can I turn this story into a narrative?
• Is this story unique, or does it involve a common experience?
• Does this story share my most important identities?
• Does this story involve my best characteristics?
• Am I the protagonist in this story?
• Do I feel connected to this story, or do I just think it’ll impress the judges?
• Do I think about this story often, other than for applications? Has it truly had an impact on my life?

Here are some other tips to help you tackle this essay prompt: 

• Tip #1: Choose a Significant Story : You should write about something that is truly significant to you and has real meaning. Choose a topic that’s unique to you and your identity, and make sure that the story you choose is focused on yourself and your personal growth! 
• Tip #2: Write Narratively : Tell a story! Start with an intriguing hook , such as the climax of your story or an interesting part of it. Spend the rest of the essay explaining the rest of the story and its impact on you. Use sensory details to show your reader what you experienced; don’t just tell them. 
• Tip #3: Don’t Overwrite : Do not feel obligated to write 650 words if you can tell your story in fewer words. In fact, UW states the most successful essays are typically around 400 words! The admissions committee would rather read a short story that packs a punch than a dragged-out story with little meaning.

How to Write UW’s #2 Essay Prompt: Analysis and Tips

Analysis of prompt #2 : This next University of Washington supplemental essay has a word limit that is almost half of the first prompt. It does not need to be written as a narrative, although it can be if you believe it’s the best way to convey your feelings. 

The main purpose of this prompt is for the University of Washington to learn what your values are and how well you’ll fit into their community. Here are some helpful tips on how to answer this prompt well: 

• Tip #1: Choose a Meaningful Community : As a student, you’ll be part of many communities: your residential area, your group of friends and family, your workplace, your school, and more. Choose one that resonates with you and has had the most impact on your life.
• Tip #2: Express Your Values : Explain how your community has shaped you into the person you are today and how it will continue to impact you at UW. Prove your community has instilled valuable traits in you that will help you become a more productive student at UW.
• Tip #3: Get Specific : Little details can add a lot of power to your essay. Be specific about significant moments that have shaped you in your community. 

UW has also expressed that the tone for this short-answer prompt should be just as formal and polished as your first, longer essay. Make sure to keep your writing professional!

How to Write UW’s #3 Essay Prompt: Analysis and Tips

Analysis of prompt #3 : The final prompt is not required. However, if you have extenuating circumstances that have affected some aspect of your application, this is your chance to explain yourself. This could include a low GPA, a lack of extracurriculars, or other related situations. 

If you choose to write this response, keep the following tips in mind:

• Tip #1: Stick to the Facts : This answer should be straightforward. Unlike your first response, you should not paint a picture using narrative techniques or descriptive or emotional language. Stick to the facts and be honest
• Tip #2: No Pity Parties : It’s important you do not throw a pity party for yourself or try to make the admissions committee feel bad for you. The committee does not admit students out of pity, so don’t waste your time trying. 
• Tip #3: Only Answer If Necessary : This prompt should only be answered if students have experiences they’d like to share with the committee that have not already been discussed in their other responses. This is not an opportunity for students to expand on their responses to the other prompts.

Examples of UW Supplemental Essays That Worked

If you feel overwhelmed and unsure of where to start, don’t worry. Take a look and get inspired by these UW supplemental essay examples written by successful applicants to the University of Washington! 

Sample Essay #1

Prompt : “Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it. (650-word limit)”

Here’s a sample response to this question that can inspire you:

“It was the fourteenth rabbit that had come in with bloodshot eyes, curling nails, and patches of discolored fur that resembled my overwatered lawn. He had the same mistrusting gaze that darted from me to the zookeeper. I could see his heart trying to escape his sunken body as I got whiffs of a faint medicinal smell coming from his fur.

In my sophomore year, I joined my school’s animal rights club out of curiosity and passion. I’ve always considered myself to be an avid animal lover, but was unconvinced I could actually make a difference in their wellbeing as a fifteen-year-old teenager—an assumption that could not have been further from the truth, as I was about to learn. 

Our group decided to attend a volunteer brigade in Peru for three weeks in June. I picked up extra shifts at my part-time job at McDonald’s and saved up enough to attend the brigade.

We were stationed with a Peruvian family in a tiny house that seemed to never sleep. The endless creaks and thin walls made it difficult to sleep the first few nights, but it was the experiences I had after settling in that were far more deafening. 

We volunteered at a local animal sanctuary that took in animals that were abandoned or abused by their caretakers. There were old circus bears that slumped in the same position for hours, turtles without shells, monkeys missing digits, and dozens of discarded lab rabbits. 

It was a paradoxical mixture of chaos and tranquility. Among the cries of frightened baby monkeys who were ripped away from their real mothers to be raised as pets were the soothing words and lulls of zookeepers and volunteers trying to undo all the damage these animals went through.

Some of these zookeepers lived in tiny rooms at the zoo with no running water or AC, to provide these animals with around-the-clock care and comfort.  

The majority of them made less than $600 US dollars a month, but still greeted me every morning with warm smiles and unrelenting enthusiasm to love the flock of new animals that would be brought in that day.

I was only in Peru for a few weeks, but over those weeks I saw the immense changes I made in these animals' lives, even as a fifteen-year-old girl. 

Most memorably, I noticed the curiosity of an abused fawn flourish as she remembered what trust felt like. She went from cowering behind fence posts to following me around the zoo, nudging my hands for pets any chance she got.

These transformations stuck with me even when I was miles away in my silent suburban home with overwatered grass. They inspired me to pursue a career in veterinary medicine, specifically with exotic animals. 

With a newfound commitment to animal welfare, I recognized all it took for me to better the lives of so many animals in Peru was an unwavering love for animals. I cannot wait to see what a profound impact I have on animals in the future when I combine this passion with advanced veterinarian training .” 

Why Essay #1 Worked

This essay works because it shares a unique story that the student has a deep connection to. It uses descriptive language so that the readers can feel like they’re part of the narrative. They can hear the sounds of the animals, imagine how the lab rabbit looked, and imagine the joy the student felt.

This student’s passion for animals also clearly shines through. It ties into the student’s career aspirations and demonstrates clear drive and intent, two traits that are important for college students to have as they enter challenging programs.

Sample Essay #2

Prompt : “Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. Community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the UW. (300-word limit)”

Consider this response from a student who has an unconventional view of community:

“Growing up in a South-Asian household, the importance of family was instilled in me from the moment I learned the word. I was told my family always came first and they were my community. 

So, I morphed myself to fit my family’s rigid ideals. I remained silent in the face of familial confrontation, gave my respect to older cousins that constantly picked on me for my weight, and remained complacent as my parents planned my entire future for me. 

I completed the majority of my education dreading my future. My parents decided I would become a doctor to continue the long line of successful physicians I come from. There was always a looming sense of anticipation for me because of this. I was always waiting for a future that I knew wasn’t mine. 

That was until I joined my school’s theater club. There, I learned what community really means. I was part of a group that still had a deep respect for one another, but held each other accountable. 

We disagreed with each other sometimes but always encouraged open conversation nonetheless. Often, my group acted as a sounding board for me. I would tell them my true aspirations of becoming a drama teacher, and they would provide me with solutions to achieve my dream without upsetting my parents. 

We taught each other about new perspectives, traditions, and cultures, but what I appreciated most about my community was that we challenged each other. We all came from different backgrounds, had different identities and stories, but pushed each other to do our best in and outside of the classroom.

Through my wonderful club mates, I understood that true community involves the celebration of differences, open intellectual conversation and debate, the embracement of diverse identities, mutual respect, equal collaboration, and sometimes even vulnerability. 

With an understanding of what true community looks and feels like, I hope to join The University of Washington's body of diverse individuals united by the shared collective of bettering themselves and the world, the same value that united my theater community.”

Why Essay #2 Worked

It’s clear this student put a lot of thought into their response. While they could have gone the traditional route by talking about the type of community values their family instilled in them, they take a unique approach by claiming they found a truer community outside of their expected one. 

This unexpected ending makes this response more memorable. Additionally, the response clearly defines community based on this student’s values. It does not use overused or generic definitions of the term. Near the end, this student also ties in UW and affirms they will be a productive member of their community.

Sample Essay #3

Prompt : “You are not required to write anything in this section, but you may include additional information if something has particular significance to you. For example, you may use this space if:

Here’s a great example of how to answer this optional essay:  

“During the pandemic, my father, the sole provider in my family, was laid off from his full-time position as an assistant manager. The business he worked for had to close its doors because of the pandemic, and he had a hard time finding a new job. 

To keep my family of four afloat as my father looked for a job, I began working at a local restaurant as soon as restrictions were lifted.

I was working 30–40 hours a week for the majority of my junior and senior year, which limited the time I had to pursue extracurriculars. Due to the demands of AP courses, I was able to only take three of these advanced courses in my final two years of high school.

During the first semester of my junior year, in particular, I struggled with my academics as I learned to juggle multiple commitments at once. Fortunately, I was able to manage my time better and adapted to my circumstances quickly. I improved my marks significantly in the remainder of my high school career.”

Why Essay #3 Worked

This essay works because the student sticks to the facts. They explain the situation, give relevant background information, and explain how they tried to resolve the issue. 

This student mentions the measures they took to accomplish their goals despite the obstacles they faced, which demonstrates their resiliency, perseverance, and adaptability.

These University of Washington essay examples will give you a better idea of what to write for your essays. Ensure you put in effort and craft a personalized essay when applying to the University of Washington. 

Get More Sample Essays Here!

If you found these sample essays helpful, great news! You can read many more examples of successful college essays with our essay database down below. 

Insert tool 

For any remaining questions, read on to find your answers.

1. How Many Essays Are Required For the University of Washington?

Students are required to write two essays to apply to the University of Washington. There is an optional third section where students can share more about other life experiences or circumstances that they weren’t able to share elsewhere on their application.

2. How Do I Write An Essay For the University of Washington?

Your personal story and voice should be evident in all of your supplemental essays, so there isn’t a perfect formula or list of topics you can choose from to ace these essays. Choose experiences that had meaningful impacts on your life, show, don’t tell where appropriate, and use language within your abilities.

Avoid overused topics or falsifying stories just to impress the admissions committee. You don’t have to write about tragic or life-changing experiences to have a compelling essay! Address the statement at hand, and don’t forget to proofread your responses several times before submitting them.

3. How Important Are the University of Washington Essays?

While your essays aren’t the most important part of your application, they serve a unique and critical function. These essays are used to learn more about what applicants do outside of the classroom, what their identities are outside of being students, and what their overall principles and values are. 

The admissions committee will evaluate all of these factors to decide whether you’d fit in at UW and your potential to contribute to it. 

4. Are There Any Topics I Should Avoid In My Supplemental Essays?

There are endless topics students can write about in their supplemental essays, but only a few topics they should avoid. If your chosen topic reveals information about you that only your therapist knows, you may want to brainstorm some less personal ideas. You don’t want to make the admissions committee feel uncomfortable.

Similarly, if your topic discusses illegal or unethical conduct, you’ll absolutely want to go back to the drawing board. Even if you’re a changed person now, sharing this information can make the admissions committee hesitant to admit you, especially if the misconduct is not on your record. 

5. How Can I Improve My UW Supplemental Essays?

If you’ve written your essays and feel they are lackluster or fail to share a unique story, there are several ways to improve them:

• Write freely at first : Let your ideas flow for your first draft. Cut down on your essays once you’ve written all of your ideas down so you can choose the best ones
• Add some color : Include sensory details and imagery to engage your readers
• Narrow your scope : Focus on one main experience for each response so you can develop it to its fullest
• Maintain your voice : As people edit your work, their input can weaken your voice! Avoid this by accepting grammar, punctuation, and structural edits instead of content or language suggestions.

If all of these suggestions fail, you may have to start all over again using a different approach! While it’ll be time-consuming, you shouldn’t submit your essays until you feel confident they reflect your most important traits, skills, and experiences in an interesting and insightful way.

This is why it’s important you begin your essays early! Give yourself ample time to create several rough drafts and revise them until you’re satisfied.

Final Thoughts

For students who still doubt their abilities to craft extraordinary essays, we leave you with some inspiring words by the renowned author Sylvia Plath : “Everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” 

We believe in you, and you should, too!

Access 190+ sample college essays here

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Main Content

You are required to complete a Personal Statement as part of your application. This is a critical part of your application, both for admission and scholarship consideration. Content, as well as the form, spelling, grammar, and punctuation will be considered. When you write your personal statement, tell us about the aspects of your life that are not apparent from your academic record.

Personal statement

Freshman applicants will choose one of the following prompts (400-600 words):

1.) Tell us a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it.

2.) Describe a time when you made a meaningful contribution to others in which the greater good was your focus. Discuss the challenges and rewards of making your contribution.

3.) An essay topic of your choice. If you have written another admissions essay that captures what you want the UW Tacoma Admissions Committee to know about, feel free to share it with us. Be sure to include the topic or question you answered. 

Transfer applicants are asked to address the following writing prompt:

Describe how personal, professional or educational experiences have shaped your academic, career and/or personal goals. How will UW Tacoma help you attain these goals? (650 words)

Other comments (optional)

If there is anything else you think we should know, you can include that in the "Other Comments" section of the application.

Tips for Success

• Tell us who you are. We encourage you to share those aspects of your life that are not apparent from your transcripts. Be concise, but tell the whole story even if you need a little more space. All of the information you provide in your application and statement will remain confidential.
• Be specific. Personal Statements too often include sentences such as "I've always wanted to be a Husky" or "My whole family attended the UW." Though this may be important to you personally, such statements are not particularly valuable to the Admissions staff. Why? Because they don't tell us anything distinctive about your experiences and ultimate goals.
• You are a college student. Your Personal Statement should reflect the experience and maturity of someone who has already attended college. It should reflect your understanding of the components of an undergraduate education, such as general education and the major. We want to read how your academic and personal experience to date fits into your academic, career and personal goals and how UW Tacoma can help you attain these goals.

Write your statement first in a word processing program (such as Word). Then copy/paste your work into the application text box.

Here are some tips on  how to write a great college essay .

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Transfer personal statement

All applicants must write a personal statement and submit it with the transfer application for admission. The personal statement should be a comprehensive narrative essay outlining significant aspects of your academic and personal history, particularly those that provide context for your academic achievements and educational choices. Quality of writing and depth of content contribute toward a meaningful and relevant personal statement.

You should address the following topics in your personal statement. Within each subtopic, such as Academic History, write only about what is meaningful to your life and experience. Do not feel compelled to address each and every question.

Required elements

Academic history.

• Tell us about your college career to date, describing your performance, educational path and choices.
• Explain any situations that may have had a significant positive or negative impact on your academic progress or curricular choices. If you transferred multiple times, had a significant break in your education or changed career paths, explain.
• What are the specific reasons you wish to leave your most recent college/university or program of study?

Your major & career goals

• Tell us about your intended major and career aspirations.
• Explain your plans to prepare for the major. What prerequisite courses do you expect to complete before transferring? What led you to choose this major? If you are still undecided, why? What type of career are you most likely to pursue after finishing your education?
• How will the UW help you attain your academic, career and personal goals?
• If you selected a competitive major, you have the option of selecting a second-choice major in the event you are not admitted to your first-choice major. Please address major or career goals for your second-choice major, if applicable.

Cultural Understanding

Our families and communities often define us and our individual worlds. Community might refer to your cultural group, extended family, religious group, neighborhood or school, sports team or club, co-workers, etc. Describe the world you come from and how you, as a product of it, might add to the diversity of the University of Washington.

Optional elements (include if applicable)

Educational challenges/personal hardships.

Describe any personal or imposed challenges or hardships you have overcome in pursuing your education. For example: serious illness; disability; first generation in your family to attend college; significant financial hardship or responsibilities associated with balancing work, family and school.

Community or volunteer service

Describe your community or volunteer service, including leadership, awards or increased levels of responsibility.

Experiential learning

Describe your involvement in research, artistic endeavors and work (paid or volunteer) as it has contributed to your academic, career or personal goals.

Additional comments

Do you have a compelling academic or personal need to attend the Seattle campus of the UW at this time? Is there anything else you would like us to know?

Content, as well as form, spelling, grammar and punctuation, will be considered. Suggested length is 750-1000 words.

• Online application: You should write your statement first in a word processing program (such as Word) or a text editor, and then copy/paste it into the text box provided on the application. All line breaks remain. However, some formatting may be be lost, such as bold, italics and underlines. This will not affect the evaluation of your application.
• PDF application (spring applicants only): Type or write your statement on 8.5’’ x 11’’ white paper. Double-space your lines, and use only one side of each sheet. Print your name, the words “Personal Statement” and the date at the top of each page, and attach the pages to your application.

Tell us who you are

Share those aspects of your life that are not apparent from your transcripts. In providing the context for your academic achievements and choices, describe your passions and commitments, your goals, a personal challenge faced, a hardship overcome or the cultural awareness you’ve gained. Tell us your story. Be concise, but tell the whole story.

Be specific

Personal statements too often include sentences such as “I’ve always wanted to be a Husky” or “My whole family attended the UW.” Although this may be important to you personally, such reasons are not particularly valuable to the Admissions staff because they do not tell us anything distinctive about your experiences and ultimate goals.

Write like a college student

Your personal statement should reflect the experience and maturity of someone who has already attended college. It should reflect your understanding of the components of an undergraduate education, such as general education and the major. We want to read how, specifically, your academic and personal experiences fit into your academic, career and personal goals.

Keep in mind

• We want to know about your intended major and career aspirations, and we want to know your plan to get there.
• You have the option of selecting a second-choice major. If you do, be sure to address it in your personal statement.
• The UW strives to create a community of students richly diverse in cultural backgrounds, experiences, values and viewpoints.

All writing in the application, including your essay/personal statement and short responses, must be your own work.  Do not use another writer’s work and do not use artificial intelligence software (ChatGPT, Bard, etc.) to assist or write your statement.

University of Washington Information School

Informatics.

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Application Materials

Application.

In order to apply to the program, applicants who are current UW students or transfer students must complete an application and provide the information and materials listed below.

The Informatics program has two admissions cycles per year, spring and autumn.

• The application to start the program for Winter 2025 is now open with a Sept. 27, 2024, deadline at 5 p.m. Pacific Time.
• The application to start the program in Autumn 2025 will open in March 2025, with a deadline in early April 2025.
• Transfer students should also complete a UW transfer application for the quarter they wish to enter the program.

What you will need:

• Schools and Transcripts
• Prerequisites courses
• Informatics AI usage
• Application Limit
• What we Look for

Schools and transcripts

Applicants are required to provide information about all schools where they have earned academic credit and are required to provide an unofficial transcript for each. Please include all schools even if the courses appear on your UW transcript. If you have taken any UW Seattle courses, you also need to list and attach an unofficial transcript for the UW.

Prerequisite courses

Applicants will provide information about the prerequisite courses they took. They will be asked at which school they took the course, what term it was taken, and the course number. If they have taken more than one course that meets any prerequisite course requirement, it is recommended that they enter the course that has the highest grade.

• Current UW student prerequisites
• Transfer applicant prerequisites

Satisfactory Progress review

For students with 150 or greater credits completed, including transfer credits, the Informatics Advisors will run a degree audit during the application process. This audit will be used for pre-planning to ensure those students we admit can successfully complete the degree within the University's Satisfactory Progress Policy . 

Beginning with autumn 2026 entry, students unable to complete the degree within the University's Satisfactory Progress Policy , will not be considered for admission. 

Application essay

Essay prompts for the academic year Winter 2025 applications are below. Essay prompts are significantly changed from previous years; please read. 

In addition to providing information about prerequisite grades and academic history, applicants must submit an application essay composed of three sections. The essay is evaluated based on the 3 prompts below as well as the overall writing; all prompts are weighted equally.

Writing and Formatting Requirements:

We expect students to already be capable of writing clearly and coherently in English. Your response helps us evaluate that.

What we’re looking for: Clear communication is central to thriving in our courses, as most involve writing. Be sure to check your spelling. Do your best to avoid grammar errors, but note that we will not penalize you for them unless they significantly interfere with our ability to comprehend your writing.

You may include anything you want in your application essay, as long as it satisfies the following requirements:  

The structure of your responses is up to you. You will be asked to submit your response for each prompt separately.

Applicants will copy/paste their submission as plain text into a text box in the application. Be sure to test this before the deadline. This means that bold, italic, etc formatting will not be included. 

Do not include links to external information or websites. Additional information cannot be considered, so such links will just use up the word count.

Please tell us about yourself and why you want to study Informatics and join our community. Provide specific, concrete example(s) drawing from your lived experience, interests, and passions to convey why you want to learn with us. Please limit your response to 250 words.  

What we are looking for : We are looking for students who understand and appreciate Informatics, will contribute to our community and discipline, and who will thrive in our program. Such students demonstrate many of the following characteristics: 

They are interested in Informatics, the topics we investigate, and the problems we care about solving. 

They are creative thinkers who consider and explore novel approaches and ideas. 

They are resilient when things get challenging. 

They are good communicators and can effectively convey ideas through writing. 

They are effective collaborators who work well in teams and support their peers. 

They are actively engaged participants in class activities and discussions. 

You can’t talk about all your experiences or qualities in a short statement! As you write your application, consider what strengths you want to highlight in the limited space you have. We encourage you to pick one or two personal characteristics from the above list to highlight and give us specific, concrete experiences as examples to share with us. 

Information technologies and systems can have profound impacts of all kinds. Give us an example of an information technology or system that you think has been a success or a failure or both. What question(s) and/or implication(s) does this example raise for you? You may consider the context, complexity, and/or environment in which the success/failure occurred. Please limit your response to 250 words.  

What we are looking for : We are looking for students who think broadly and critically about information technologies and their impacts. Such students demonstrate many of the following characteristics: 

They are deep critical thinkers who can reason about and find connections between disparate ideas   

They are curious and able to ask insightful questions 

They are enthusiastic problem solvers who embrace solving complex challenges  

They are aware of and interested in the social impacts of information 

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access, and Sovereignty are core values and foundational concepts in the Information School. The iSchool makes a commitment to IDEAS in all that we do.   

Tell us what experiences you have with  inclusion, diversity, equity, access, and/or sovereignty  in relation to information or information technology. These experiences might include learning, volunteering, activism, community organizing, mentoring, teaching, or personal experiences with exclusion or oppression. We are especially interested in experiences in which you took action to address issues of fairness, bias, or exclusion, whether advocacy or self-advocacy, social or technical. You may want to consider the  iSchool diversity statement  when composing your response. Please limit your response to 200 words.  

What we are looking for : It’s important that Informatics majors are attentive to ways that people can be excluded and oppressed by information and information technology and in general. We’re seeking students who are committed to making information technology more just, equitable, and inclusive. Such students demonstrate many of the following characteristics: 

They are aware of and interested in the social impacts of information. 

They share the iSchool beliefs in social justice, the importance of the quality of life for all people, embracing diversity, and making a difference in the world. 

They are enthusiastic problem solvers who embrace solving complex challenges. 

They take action. 

We encourage you to pick  specific, concrete experiences as examples to share with us. 

Informatics AI usage — ChatGPT or generative AI usage

ChatGPT and similar tools can be valuable in making your writing better and your thinking richer. But it cannot be used to replace writing and thinking. 

During the application process, you will be asked "Did you use ChatGPT and/or similar tools in writing this essay? If so, please indicate how you used the tool(s)."

Not acceptable:

Enter prompt and/or some notes into ChatGPT; submit some version of what comes out, even with some modifications. This will be considered plagiarism.

Acceptable:

• Use ChatGPT to find a better word (as you would a thesaurus)
• Use ChatGPT to assure your grammar is correct
• Use ChatGPT to find a better way to phrase an idea, a sentence or two

Note: two-application limit

Applicants will be allowed to apply to the Informatics major a maximum of two times. For this reason, applicants are encouraged to be selective and apply only when they have fulfilled all the criteria and feel that they can present a strong application.

First-year direct-to-major admission applications do not count toward the two-application limit. 

Only applications that are complete and considered for admission are counted in the two attempts. Starting an application or submitting without all prerequisite courses completed will not count toward your two attempts. 

What We Look for

As you write your responses, keep in mind that the admissions committee seeks a diverse range of students. We value various perspectives and backgrounds because they enrich our learning environment. Whether you’re passionate about people, technology, or information, we want to understand what makes you unique.

When reviewing your responses, the admissions committee will consider the three essay prompts. Therefore, as you share your story, aim for clarity and coherence. Remember to link your personal experiences to the Informatics major. Show us how your journey aligns with our program and why you’re a great fit for our community.

The Informatics admissions committee believes all students interested in information deserve to major in Informatics. However, meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission. Admission is capacity-constrained because we have limited teaching capacity and space; thus, we can only admit a portion of the students who apply. 

Applications are evaluated based on the written essay (80% of the overall score) and a calculated average of grades in the prerequisite courses (20% of the overall score). An essay score is calculated with equal weight to the guideline for reviewers . We use statistical methods such as z-scoring to calculate the ranking of applications reviewed. All applicants are reviewed by at least two people on our admissions committee. We review the prerequisite course scores where students use AP, credit/no credit, or satisfactory/not satisfactory grades to ensure this is not disadvantaging a student's final rank.

If you have any questions while working on the application, please contact the admissions team at [email protected]  Do not wait until the due date to reach out to us if you do have questions!

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Essay Writing Topics: Getting Started on Your College Essays

Essay writing topics.

Writing essays is one of the most challenging parts of the college admissions process–and the most important. To write the best college essays possible, you’ll need to explore a variety of essay writing topics. If you’re looking for a great essay topics list from which to start brainstorming , you’re in the right place.

Naturally, you might use different types of essay writing to cover different essay writing topics. As you might have guessed, essay writing topics for college essays are quite personal. They share something unique about who you are, adding character and depth to your overall application. In fact, the most memorable college essays often communicate something about how a student sees themselves or the world.

Given how broad college essay prompts are, college essays truly can be about anything. Just do a search of 100 college essay topics, and you’ll see the possibilities are endless. So, how can you decide the best essay writing topics for your college essays?

In this article, we’ll cover the basics of essay writing for college applications and how to get started . We’ll discuss what the best college essays have in common and how to narrow down potential essay writing topics. Specifically, we’ll look at: 

• How essays factor into the college admissions process
• The basics of how to write a college essay
• Why writing college essays is so challenging
• Tackling college essay prompts
• Common essay writing topics
• 35 Great College Essay Topics list
• Essay writing topics to avoid
• How to choose the best essay writing topics
• Where to find college essay writing samples, and more!

By the end of this article, you’ll know how to pick the right topic for a stand out application essay . To start, let’s get a sense of what exactly is a college admissions essay and how it’s different from other types of essay writing.

Types of essay writing

You’ve likely encountered many different types of essay writing in your high school classes. Common types of essay writing include analytical essays, persuasive essays, and compare and contrast essays. These types of essay writing usually include a thesis statement that is backed up by supporting evidence. However, a college admissions essay is a little different.

College admissions essays are typically categorized as narrative essays. Unlike other types of essays, narrative essays center around a story and are written in the first person. In general, essay writing topics for narrative essays are based on personal experiences.

Since you’re writing an essay about you, from your perspective, you have more freedom to be creative with your writing. However, a strong narrative essay should also provide commentary on some central theme or have a message. Essentially, for a narrative essay to be good, it needs to have a point. You can think of this central message as the “thesis” of a narrative essay.

Qualities of a narrative essay

While a strong analytical essay may be direct and convey an argument, a strong narrative essay relies more heavily on storytelling. Common elements of storytelling include plot, character, theme, and conflict. All of these work together to engage the reader, taking them through a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Another important characteristic of narrative writing is showing, not telling. You’ve likely heard the phrase “show don’t tell” in your English classes. Essentially, this means using descriptive sensory details and moments of action to tell a story, rather than simply describing exactly what is happening. This allows your reader to experience your story in a more engaging way, and it allows you to further personalize your narrative.

If you haven’t written an essay like this before, it may seem intimidating. Especially when you think of who your audience is. So, let’s talk about why this type of writing is part of the college application process.

Why do colleges require essays?

To understand what makes strong essay writing topics, we need to understand the role essays play in the college admissions process.

In the US, most colleges and universities follow a holistic approach to admissions. That means they take your whole application, not just your academic performance and test scores, into consideration when evaluating you as an applicant. Moreover, they are looking for well-rounded individuals who align with their values and mission as an institution.

Essays provide insights not quantifiable in grades and test scores, such as your values, character, and challenges you’ve had to overcome. Colleges can get a sense of your growth, maturity, and ability to contribute to the diversity and depth of their student body.

Therefore, the best college essays showcase an applicant’s best qualities and demonstrate why they’d be a great addition to the school. They give admissions a real chance to get to know the real you. Furthermore, since interviews are often not a requirement of the admissions process, your essays are the only chance admissions gets to hear your unique voice.

Personal Statement vs Supplemental Essays

In general, students can expect to write many essays over the course of the college admissions process. The two most common types of essay writing you’ll do for your college applications are personal statements and supplemental essays.

Personal Statement Essay

A personal statement is a general college application essay. It’s typically a longer essay that is shared with every school you apply to. Your personal statement is an opportunity for you to share your voice, values, and authentic self with the admissions committee.

Different application platforms, like Questbridge , the Coalition Application , and the Common Application , all have their own version of the personal statement essay. This includes specific prompts, like the seven provided by the Common App. It also includes specific word counts. In the case of the Common App, the personal statement is defined as a 650-word essay.

For the Common App personal statement, the prompt you choose will influence your potential essay topics list. For instance, prompt #2 is about a challenge, setback, or failure. On the other hand, prompt #6 is about a topic, idea, or concept that captivates you. Even just from these short descriptions, it’s clear each of these prompts would produce a very different essay topics list.

However, different from the other prompts, prompt #7 invites you to share an essay on any topic you choose. A prompt like this is extremely open-ended. That is, there could be 100 college essay topics that might be a good fit for this prompt. So, while some prompts do provide different paths for you to explore, there are no limits to what kind of essay writing topics you could use for your personal statement.

Given its length, and importance in your application, the personal statement might feel like the most difficult essay to start brainstorming for. As you start building out an essay topics list, consider looking at personal statement essay writing samples for inspiration.

Supplemental Essays

In addition to your personal statement, you may also encounter supplemental essays. Supplemental essays can vary by length, with most being around 150-350 words. However, supplemental essays also include short answer questions, which can be anywhere from 5-100 words.

Many supplemental essays are about why you’d be a good fit for a specific school. Therefore, these “ Why School ” or “ Why Major ” essays don’t allow much room to explore out of the box essay writing topics. However, other supplemental essays are more about your interests and experiences. So, your essay topics lists for these essays might look more similar to that of your personal statement.

As with the personal statement essay, reading samples can help you get inspired as to what kind of topics you might consider for your essay topics list. We have essay writing samples by school , which include in-depth guides to their supplemental essay questions. We also have a collection of 30+ essay writing samples with tips on how to answer short answer questions . Using these resources will help you create a unique essay topics list for you!

How to write a college essay

Now, let’s discuss the writing process. While your essay topics list is important, it’s certainly not the only part of the process. And, although you’ve certainly heard it before, it’s worth saying again: the best college essays aren’t first drafts. It takes time and effort to write a compelling college admissions essay. Following a writing process can help you organize and focus your ideas, while breaking down the whole process into manageable parts.

Earlier, we discussed various types of essay writing and how they’re different. More specifically, we talked about how the style of a college admissions essay is a little different than your typical homework assignment. However, the process of writing a college admissions essay is actually very similar.

So, before we dive further into essay writing topics, let’s review the four basic steps of the writing process.

The Writing Process in 4 Steps

Brainstorming. This is where the best college essays start: with an idea. When brainstorming, don’t worry about trying to come up with 100 college essay topics. Just start by making an essay topics list of things that are important to you.

If you can’t decide between a selection of prompts, try making an essay topics list for each of them. Then see which ideas you feel most connected to and do some more brainstorming around those.

Writing a first draft. Once you’ve narrowed down your essay topics list to the right idea, you’re ready to start writing. The first draft can often be the hardest, especially if you’re worried about getting it right the first time.

Instead of trying to make it perfect, stay within the word count, or come up with an amazing hook, just start writing! Once you have a first draft, you’ll actually have something to work with, and it’s a lot easier to then cut out what’s not important and build out what is.

Rewriting. This is where your essay will really start taking shape. Now that you’ve gotten your essay writing topics down on paper, it’s time to start developing them further. In many cases, this means exploring the why . Why was this moment in time so important to you? Why should an admissions team care?

This is how you can take an essay from good to great. Play around with your structure and explore different ways to introduce your topic. You might even find yourself rewriting entire sections of your essay. If you have a limited word count, this is where you’ll have to decide what is most important, and how to communicate your point as clearly and succinctly as possible.

Editing and proofreading. This is the polishing stage of the writing process. At this point, you’ve already done the hard part of transforming your essay topics list into a well-written essay. But, to make it a final draft, you’ll need to do one more edit, ensuring you’ve caught any small spelling or grammatical errors. 

While a double period or a misspelled word might seem like minor errors, remember your essay is a reflection of who you are and what you value. Professionalism and attention to detail showcase maturity and dedication. And, a clearly polished essay shows you’re ready to take on college-level writing courses.

Remember, the most memorable college essays are more than just polished. They are also honest and authentic. And, they center around a compelling topic. So, it’s no surprise that strong essay writing topics are key to writing focused and meaningful essays.

Next, we’ll review the basics of essay writing and the role these elements play in a strong college essay.

The basics of essay writing

While there are many different types of essay writing, the best college essays all have some things in common. Let’s review the fundamentals of crafting a strong essay.

When learning how to write an essay in school, you’ve likely discussed the importance of structure and clarity. These two components often go hand in hand. Having a structure to your essay allows a reader to follow your thought process, making your ideas more clear. Additionally, your sentences themselves should be constructed in a way that clearly communicates your ideas.

In addition to these elements, you might have also discussed the importance of voice. In essay writing, your voice is essentially the unique style in which you express yourself. It is created by your word choice, punctuation, point of view, and tone. Voice is at the heart of narrative writing, and it is often what gives college essays their authenticity.

Reading essay writing samples can help you understand how these elements work together in a great college essay . For more essay writing tips, check out our guide to writing better essays .

College Essay Format

There is no set format for how to write a college essay, so long as you meet the requirements of the prompt. Therefore, you can feel free to explore different formats and find the best one to tell your story. However, as previously mentioned, a narrative should have some kind of plot. That is, it needs to have a sort of forward momentum.

Let’s go back to one of the basics of essay writing: structure. Often, narrative essays are structured in chronological order. There is a beginning, middle, and end, and the story moves forward from the past to the present. In some cases, it may end looking towards the future.

However, that doesn’t mean the best college essays are only written chronologically. You can certainly jump around in time and make the order of your story your own. However, your reader should still have a sense of a clear beginning, middle, and end. Most importantly, they should feel like something has changed and that they’ve learned something by the end.

Additionally, keep in mind that the most memorable college essays have a strong hook and compelling conclusion. The very first sentence of your essay needs to draw your reader in and set them up for the rest of your essay. On the other hand, your final sentence should leave a lasting impression, driving home the main message of your essay.

In the next section, we’ll address the specific challenges of writing college essays.

The challenges of college essays

Certain types of essay writing come with their own challenges, and college admissions essays are no different. So, let’s talk about it!

Many students come to our team of college counselors looking for essay help. Even though most students are familiar with the basics of essay writing, they know college admissions essays are a different type of challenge.

Memorable college essays are engaging, even inspiring, without being braggy or overly personal. Indeed, striking the right tone is one of the most challenging parts of writing college essays. While you do need to highlight your strengths and best qualities, it’s important you’re mindful of how you’re doing it. Remember, your reader has no personal connection to you, so your essay needs to be able to stand alone.

Additionally, students may find it challenging to showcase their best qualities in the form of a story. It can be easy to simply list your accomplishments and achievements, but doing so lacks depth and nuance. The more specific the better, but make sure you’re keeping your essay focused rather than haphazardly throwing in details from every topic on your essay topics list.

Another big challenge is time management. Many students have to write countless essays over the course of an application season, which can be extremely time consuming. On top of that, students still have to manage their coursework, extracurriculars, and additional responsibilities. Starting early and giving yourself plenty of time to go through a complete writing process is crucial to writing the best college essays you possibly can.

How do you start a college essay?

Before you can write a great college essay, you’ll need to first settle on a topic. As we mentioned earlier, brainstorming is the first step in the writing process. You can use our guides or webinars for some inspiration to start brainstorming. While you may want to jump straight into writing, don’t rush the process. In fact, taking the time to brainstorm and plan your essay can save you hours of frustration when you finally sit down to write. 

But, you may be wondering, where do essay topics lists come from? In most cases, they come from a specific prompt . Indeed, your prompt will provide you with a starting point and a word count, so you’ll know what kind of topics might work best. So, let’s talk a little more about prompts.

Finding college essay prompts

Your college essay prompts will depend on the specific colleges you’re applying to. You can find your personal statement prompts on the application platform you’re applying through. The Common App should provide the most up-to-date supplemental prompts for each school on your list. For schools that have their own school-specific application , you can find information on their writing supplements online. 

We recommend always checking the school’s official admissions website for the most current prompts. Prompts can change year to year, and you don’t want to be brainstorming an essay topics list for an out-of-date prompt.

Once you have your prompts, it’s important you understand them fully. This will ensure your essay is focused, and that you complete the basic requirement of addressing and answering the prompt. Failure to do so might indicate a lack of attention on your part, and ultimately does a disservice to your application.

Interpreting unusual or creative college essay prompts

While some prompts are more straightforward, such as the “Why School” or “Why Major” prompts we mentioned earlier, some are more open-ended. The University of Chicago is a great example of a school that takes pride in their unpredictable essay questions.

For example, here are two prompts from the 2024-2025 UChicago Supplement :

• Essay Option 1: We’re all familiar with green-eyed envy or feeling blue, but what about being “caught purple-handed”? Or “tickled orange”? Give an old color-infused expression a new hue and tell us what it represents.
• Essay Option 4: “Daddy-o”, “Far Out”, “Gnarly”: the list of slang terms goes on and on. Sadly, most of these aren’t so “fly” anymore – “as if!” Name an outdated slang from any decade or language that you’d bring back and explain why you totally “dig it.”

So, how should you approach these types of prompts? To start, you’ll need to find a topic for your essay that directly answers the question of the prompt. Then, as you continue to develop your ideas, you’ll need to find a way to somehow relate your topic back to you. Remember, the best college essays reveal something about who you are. In the case of unconventional or abstract prompts, they also showcase your creativity.

Even if your prompt is unusual or requires you to explore offbeat essay writing topics, don’t forget the basics of essay writing. Your writing needs to be clear and organized and your ideas fully developed, no matter the topic.

Now that we’ve discussed the basics of essay writing and how to approach different college essay prompts, let’s start talking about specific essay writing topics.

College Essay Topics

With so many essay topics lists out there, it’s clear there’s a lot to consider when choosing the right essay writing topics. If you’ve already started making your own essay topics lists, great! We’ve got more tips coming up about what kind of essay writing topics make the best essays. On the other hand, if you have no idea how to start thinking of essay writing topics, we’ve got plenty of inspiration coming your way.

When it comes to generating strong essay writing topics, there are many ways you can go. In general, you want to explore topics that demonstrate your personal strengths. No matter what essay writing topics you choose to write about, they should always connect back to you. More importantly, they should communicate the qualities and experiences you’d bring to a college campus.

Though essay writing topics determine what your essay is about, they don’t determine what your essay s ays. For instance, after brainstorming potential essay writing topics, you and a friend might both decide you want to write about your family’s respective traditions. However, that doesn’t mean these essays are going to be the same.

You might want to celebrate your family’s traditions and discuss how they’ve influenced your values. On the other hand, your friend might talk about growing out of their family’s traditions and carving a path of their own. Although these essay writing topics are generally the same, they would actually result in two essays that are vastly different.

Now, let’s look at some more specific essay writing topics.

What are some good college essay topics?

As we’ve said, the best essay writing topics come from your personal experiences. However, it’s important they have specific meaning to you. Additionally, they need to be relevant to your college application. They need to provide context for you to share something about who you are, rather than just summarizing something that happened to you.

For instance, we wouldn’t include “that time you met a celebrity on vacation” amongst good essay writing topics. It’s likely this interaction did not fundamentally change your character or your interests, and is just a fun anecdote to tell your friends.

However, maybe you got to serendipitously meet your favorite author, and they inspired you to write a short story you had been thinking about. In this case, the anecdote is an important moment on your path to becoming a writer. But that doesn’t mean this interaction should be your entire essay. The focus of your essay would more likely be on your passion for writing and how it’s impacted your life (one of the essay writing topics you’ll find below).

With all that in mind, here is a short essay topics list that includes some great essay writing topics.

Great Essay Writing Topics

• Turning point in your life. In your essay, you might reflect on a pivotal moment that significantly changed your perspective or direction in life.
• Overcoming adversity. Here, you might focus on a specific challenge you faced, how you addressed it, and what you learned from the experience.
• Passion and purpose. An essay about your passion in life may have to do with something you love or a future career. You might explore the role it’s played in shaping your values and goals.
• Personal growth. Most college essays are in some way about personal growth and require you to reflect on how you’ve evolved and matured through your life experiences.
• Unique life experience. This is an opportunity to share an unusual or extraordinary experience, or something atypical about your background, that has had a profound impact on who you are today.

Some of the most memorable college essays are about these essay writing topics. In fact, you’ll likely see these essay writing topics featured on our essay topics list.

The reason why these are good essay topics is because they all contain an element of conflict or change, which are crucial for crafting an interesting narrative. Furthermore, they show how you became who you are. And, they help admissions imagine the person you might one day become.

What are the most common college essay topics?

Before we give you our essay topics list, let’s look at some of the most common essay writing topics. If you’re looking for overdone topics or themes to avoid, keep reading. We’ll give you our essay topics list of topics to avoid later on in our guide. For now, we want to focus on common essay writing topics, and how you can use them to your advantage.

Here are three of the most common essay topics:

• Extracurriculars (clubs, volunteering, leadership roles, work experience) 
• Family (shared traditions, loss of a family member, change in your family situation)
• Passions/interests (both related to and outside of academic pursuits)

As you look at this essay topics list, you may struggle to think of anything to write about that doesn’t fall into these categories. But, guess what? The best college essays will fall into one or multiple of these categories.

How to write about common essay writing topics

Since everyone is using these general essay writing topics, the danger is writing an essay that sounds generic. You may be worried that your story about trying out for the varsity soccer team sounds similar to someone else’s, and therefore wouldn’t be a good topic. Indeed, a generic essay won’t help your overall application. This is why the details of your essay are so important.

However, rather than discounting a topic you saw on an essay topics list for fear of being too common, think about why you’re drawn to the topic. It probably matters deeply to you, and has in some way helped you become the person you are today. The best essay writing topics are ultimately the ones you are most passionate about and require some level of self-reflection.

If you decide to use common essay writing topics in your essays, the basics of essay writing becomes even more important. You need the quality of yours to stand out amongst the crowd, and you don’t want incorrect spelling or grammar or too much repetition to be the reason your essay writing topics don’t shine .

35 Essay Topics List

Of course, no guide to essay writing topics would be complete without a comprehensive essay topics list! Instead of giving you a random list of 100 college essay topics, here are 35 great essay writing topics to help you start brainstorming for a memorable personal essay.  

35 Essay Topics

1. A significant challenge you’ve overcome. First on our list of essay writing topics is overcoming challenges. Writing about a significant challenge you’ve moved past, and hopefully learned from, shows that you can reflect objectively on your life. And, it shows you can speak intelligently and honestly about your flaws and strengths. 

2. An experience that changed your perspective on life. Next on our list of essay writing topics is describing a moment that changed the way you see the world. Highlighting an experience like this shows that you are open-minded and introspective—both positive traits in a college student.

3. A passion project that showcases your creativity. When brainstorming essay writing topics, you can never go wrong writing about something you truly care about. Colleges like students who care deeply about things, especially when they have shown that they can create something based on that passion.

4. A time you stood up for something you believed in. This is one of our essay writing topics that often inspires some of the best college essays. But be careful, you don’t want to come off as performative. To avoid this, make sure you are humble about your successes and honest about your actions.

5. How a piece of art, music, or literature has inspired you. Again, some of the best essay writing topics touch upon things that you’re passionate about. Plus, engaging deeply in and being able to analyze art and culture are great qualities in a student. 

6. An invention or innovation that excites you. Essay writing topics about new discoveries can be a smart way to tie in your future major or career. Imagine writing about AI before it was popularized from the point of view of a computer scientist, or even better, someone more unexpected like an anthropologist. 

7. A moment when you discovered a new passion. Essay writing topics like this one give you a chance to really put the reader inside your mind. And, with this prompt, you can explore your interests, your values, and even your future goals.

8. The impact of a cultural or family heritage on your identity. Culture and heritage, broadly, are popular essay writing topics, so make sure that you can be specific. Add details and use anecdotes to showcase parts of who you are or what you value.

9. A time you took a risk and what it taught you. Generally, essay writing topics where you learned something or changed perspectives are always a safe bet. But remember, the point of the exercise is introspection, not recounting events as they happened. 

10. A challenge you faced in a leadership role. Essay writing topics like this offer the same benefits as #1 in our essay topics list. However, in this case, you also get to highlight who you are as a leader. 

11. A cause you are passionate about and why. Again, essay writing topics about social justice can be great, but emphasize curiosity and humility rather than righteousness. Plus—the essay needs to ultimately be about you, not the cause . 

12. An ethical dilemma you’ve faced and how you handled it. This could be a more exciting version of essay writing topics about a cause. What if, while you were advocating for something, you encountered an ethical dilemma in the process? How did it change your perspective?

13. An achievement that means more to you than accolades. This topic on our essay topics list is another great opportunity to highlight something that genuinely excites you. And, you can go deeper by exploring how this achievement strengthened your values or changed your perspective.

14. How you balance multiple responsibilities or interests. This one of our essay writing topics is interesting because it tells a lot about you. It demonstrates your values, your priorities, and your ability to handle a busy college schedule. But if your answer is just “Google calendar,” maybe look elsewhere on the essay topics list. 

15. A unique hobby or interest that defines you. This can be a great option amongst essay writing topics, but make sure that you’re incorporating self-reflection and engrossing storytelling. Everyone has hobbies that they like, and you need to go a little deeper than that to make your essay truly unique.

16. The impact of a loss or failure on your growth. Odds are, just about any essay topics list will include topics of loss and failure. These popular topics are simple facts of life, but discussing how you handle them is a great opportunity to showcase your strength of character.

17. An aspect of your personality that surprises people. This is also a great addition to any collection of essay writing topics, because it asks you to find qualities that make you stand out. If it surprises people, chances are it will surprise college admissions as well.

18. A personal tradition that brings you comfort or joy. This one of the essay writing topics depends a lot on the unspoken why . You’ll need to go beyond simply describing the tradition itself and reflect on why it brings you comfort and joy and what it means to you. 

19. How you’ve contributed to your community. One of the essay writing topics classically found on supplemental essay topics lists, this question is pretty straightforward. Again, just make sure to bring you and what you learned from the process to the forefront of your essay.

20. A moment when you had to balance competing priorities and what you learned from it. Very similar to #14 on the essay topics list, this prompt emphasizes what you learned. Everyone has to make hard choices in their life, and this topic demonstrates your maturity and self-determination.

21. An unexpected mentor in your life. “Unexpected” is a key word here–don’t hesitate to think big and weird. A mentor could be a TV character , a teacher you never took a class from, the aunt your mom hates but you begrudgingly admire, really anyone! Just make sure the focus of your essay is still on you, not them.

22. A problem you’ve solved or want to solve. For this topic, we recommend thinking small. Instead of trying to solve world peace, think of something more specific. What’s something that affects you or your loved ones that you genuinely think you could fix if given the resources?

23. An experience where you had to step out of your comfort zone. Like all of our essay writing topics, this topic also pushes you to self-reflect. But make sure you’re being specific and thinking about what you discovered in the process. Bonus points if it’s an unusual experience (eg, not singing a solo, public speaking, or playing a new sport).

24. A challenge you’ve faced in pursuing your academic goals. Next on our essay topics list is a topic directly related to your academics. Consider writing this essay if you think you have faced hardships or challenges that other students might not have in their education. On the flip side, if your challenge is just being busy from too many extracurriculars, that’s fantastic, but focus on essay writing topics that center the skills built rather than the adversity. 

25. How you’ve handled a difficult conversation or conflict. The next prompt on our essay topics list encourages students to think about hard conversations. In doing so, you have the opportunity to emphasize traits like open mindedness and the ability to communicate and compromise. (Again: make sure that you learned something, and mention what it was!) 

26. Your approach to learning and intellectual curiosity. If you love learning and think you have a unique approach to it, go for #26 one on our essay topics list! Here you can talk about what kind of student you are, both in and out of the classroom. And, you’ll likely have the added benefit of sharing a bit about your passions and what inspires you.

27. Your role in a group or team and what you learned from it. If you pick this topic from our essay topics list, think about words like “compromise,” “teamwork,” “communication.” Additionally, be sure to include anecdotes and specific examples that demonstrate whichever characteristics or skills you want to highlight.

28. An experience that sparked your interest in a particular field or career. This topic is more often than not at the heart of any great “ Why Major ” essay. Focus on the journey, looking back on how you got to where you are today–and even where you hope to go in the future.

29. A moment of serendipity that led to a significant personal discovery. Sometimes, the most rewarding experiences in life come unexpectedly, and adding a touch of serendipity can bring an extra spark to your essay! Like our other essay writing topics, just be sure you learned something significant from the experience.

30. An object or artifact that has personal significance. Next on our essay topics list, we’re focusing on an object rather than an experience. Be as detailed as you can describing the object, and always remember to explore the why , considering what this object symbolizes for you. 

31. How a particular failure influenced your long-term goals or dreams. Another instance of failure showing up on our essay topics list, this is an opportunity to emphasize your future. You’ll want to connect failure to your ambition, connecting the two in a meaningful way. 

32. An instance where you were let down, but ultimately learned something. As you may have noticed exploring our essay topics list, many great topics turn negative experiences into positive ones. More specifically, how you made the most of a bad experience by learning something from it.

33. A moment when you had to advocate for yourself or others. This entry on our essay topics list speaks to a time when you had to advocate for yourself. But remember, this isn’t always an easy thing to do. Don’t be afraid to explore why this was challenging, and why it was ultimately important for you to act.

34. An experience where you had to adapt to a new environment or situation quickly. Like many of the other topics on our essay topics list, this one directly relates to how prepared you are to attend college. After all, you’re certain to find yourself in new environments where you’ll have to adapt and learn on the go. As always, be sure to describe what you learned and how you have grown. 

35. How you’ve navigated and embraced change in a particular aspect of your life. Last but not least, the final prompt on our essay topics list foregrounds change. As you consider this topic, be sure to go internal and reflect on how you may have changed in order to accommodate new circumstances in your life. 

That was a lot of essay writing topics to take in at once. Keep this essay topics list handy as you start brainstorming for your college essays–you never know what ideas it might uncover!

Choosing the best college essay topics for you

As you saw on our essay topics list, there are countless topics that could one day become amazing college essays. So, how do you choose which are the best essay writing topics for you? Choosing essay writing topics can feel difficult because there’s a lot of pressure to choose the best topic so you can write the best college essays. But remember, the best college essays come from stories that feel personal, reflective, and speak to your character. These kinds of stories can absolutely come from a variety of essay writing topics. 

If you’re stumped, try a free-writing exercise. It doesn’t have to take long. To start, give yourself 15 minutes to write down anything that comes to mind for each of the Common App essay topics. You can also pick from a larger list, but you don’t need to try 100 college essay topics to know which ones work. Pick the ones that spark your interest and do some further brainstorming to see which ones you actually have something to say about. 

Keep in mind, essay writing topics fill an important hole in your college application. They should help add a puzzle piece to admissions officers’ ideas of who you are. If you’re still unsure which essay writing topics will work best for you, think about what the college won’t learn about you from the rest of your application. Specifically, consider what you want them to know about your character. Then, write about that. 

What makes a good college essay topic?

Good essay writing topics have a few key qualities. First and foremost, they are about you . This means that topics that ask you to talk about something other than yourself—a cause, a mentor, a passion—need to be refocused. Why do you care about the cause, and what would you want to do about it? How did your mentor help you at a specific moment in your life, and how have you changed positively because of them? What has pursuing your passion done for your personal growth? The college admissions process can feel a lot simpler if you remember that it’s all about expressing who you are. 

The best essay writing topics also ideally touch upon something original about you and your story. It can be hard to think of what’s unique, but just ask yourself: could these essays have come from anyone? Or could they only be written by you? If you answered “yes” to the second question (or at least, “probably”), then you’ve likely already written memorable college essays.

You can also find essay writing topics that speak to a key part of your application. This could be your intended major, or even your favorite extracurricular. Just don’t forget the basics of essay writing, like good grammar and spelling, and to offer new information and details that enhance rather than repeat. If you do these things, then those essay writing topics can also be great choices.

What should you not write your college essay on?

If you’re smart about it, there are no essay writing topics you should truly never write about. However, there are some that you might want to steer clear of. 

Essay writing topics where you just summarize your accomplishments or mention a cool thing that you did without reflection, like traveling to a new place, aren’t going to make for memorable college essays. As mentioned earlier, essay writing topics that focus more on someone or something else rather than yourself do not make for the best college essays.

Try your best to avoid clichés , overly general topics, and anything that doesn’t sound like you. Remember, you want your essays to be personal, impactful, and appropriate. That means not writing about drugs, romantic experiences, or anything that you wouldn’t feel comfortable with your teacher or boss reading.

10 College essay writing topics to avoid

Now that we’ve covered some of the best essay writing topics, here are some college essay topics that you might want to avoid.

Essay Writing Topics to Avoid

A recounting of a single, isolated achievement without context or personal reflection..

If the college finishes reading your essay and doesn’t learn anything about you except that you’re a soccer player who scored a big goal one time, that is not a good essay. Add some reflection: What did you overcome? What did you learn? How has this changed your perspective or goals (pun intended) going forward?

A description of a personal relationship or breakup.

Essay writing topics about romantic relationships are a bit inappropriate for this setting. However, if the relationship is a very small sidebar to a really fun and compelling story, you might be able to sprinkle it in. (For example, if your heartbreak led you to go on a 1940s movie binge and now you’re convinced that though love is fleeting, cinema is forever, and therefore you are going to major in film.)

A vacation or travel experience without personal growth.

Unless travel has changed you in a way you can articulate, save the beach pics for Instagram. Of course, if a trip inspired you to change your major, showed you what kind of career you want to have, or illuminated what kind of person you want to be, then it’s worth exploring.

A story about a famous person or celebrity.

Unless this person is an “unusual mentor” in a way you can communicate compellingly, this topic is unlikely to impress admissions. 

An essay focused solely on someone else’s achievements.

Essay writing topics about someone else’s achievements do not tell the college anything about you. There are lots of types of essay writing, but this one does not belong in a college admissions essay.

A discussion about a personal skill or talent without connecting it to how it has shaped your goals or identity.

Talking about your talents in a college essay without any self-reflection or analysis feels braggy. For instance, if you want to talk about your skiing or bowling skills, you better have a good reason for why an admissions team needs to know about it.

A story with excessive graphic details or trauma.

Some people will say you have to trot out trauma to get into college. That is not true. You are welcome and encouraged to write about significant experiences, including challenging ones. However, do not at all feel like you must recount the hardest moments of your life just so a college will let you in. Take care of yourself, and remember that there is a real person reading your essay on the other end. 

A narrative solely about how you were misunderstood or misjudged.

Talking down your nose or focusing on other peoples’ perceptions of you isn’t the way to win an admissions team over. In your essays, you want to focus on what’s true and authentic about who you are, not what other people think they know about you.  

A superficial discussion of a major historical event or current issue without personal connection.

Again, essay writing topics need to be about you. No matter what you choose to write about, relate it to you and make sure it says something about who you are.

A generic essay about wanting to “make a difference in the world” without specific examples or personal motivation.

Essay writing topics about changing the world are admirable, but you need to make sure these are grounded essays about how you personally relate to these issues, and how you plan on enacting change.

Remember, there are always exceptions to the rule, so long as your essays are focused on you . 

How to write a college essay about yourself

As we said at the beginning of this guide, there are many types of essay writing. Some types of essay writing are persuasive, some types of essay writing are argumentative, some types of essay writing are analytical, and some types of essay writing are narrative. The best college essays are always narrative, and personal, which means you can put your own spin on things. 

When you’re doing types of essay writing you haven’t done as much of, like narrative essay writing, it can seem daunting. That’s totally fair: though you get a lot of training in school to do types of essay writing like argumentative essays, narrative essay writing isn’t as common. 

To write the best college essays, you’ll need to do some serious self-reflection. The point of your essays is to go deeper than a surface level experience, getting into the “how” and the “why.” This looks like focusing on how you achieved something rather than the achievement itself. It might also mean being open about flaws and how you’ve worked to overcome them. Going back to personal growth, it’s about what you have learned from all of the cool things you’ve done. 

As you explore potential essay topics, there are two things you can do to help set yourself up for success: brainstorming and writing a strong thesis. So, let’s talk about what these look like for narrative writing.

Brainstorming for college essays

Learning how to write a college essay begins with learning how to brainstorm. The best college essays are creative and embody your personal voice. So, you’ll want to choose college essay topics that allow you to do that.

One way to brainstorm is to “free write” to different essay topics. Just set a timer, and write whatever comes out—don’t worry about editing, or about cohesive structure. If you get to the end of the time and you’re inspired and want to keep writing, that could be the start of a great college essay.

Brainstorming is part of the basics of essay writing, and is therefore present in all types of essay writing. However, since this is a personal essay, your brainstorming has to be introspective. Ask yourself: What experiences in your life have been impactful? What do you value? What are you interested in? How has your background influenced you? Remember, no matter the topic, you should always try and focus on what is truly meaningful to you.

You can also ask yourself questions about specific moments in your life. Think back to times when you met a good friend, failed a test even though you studied hard, or changed your mind about something. Does anything stand out? 

Once you’ve brainstormed a topic you’re interested in, you’ll want to turn again to the basics of essay writing. That is, you’ll need to further refine your topic by coming up with a strong thesis.

Crafting a strong thesis statement

In the basics of essay writing, there’s usually a thesis statement involved. However, a thesis for a college admissions essay isn’t the same compared to the types of essay writing you do at school. 

A narrative essay needs a driving theme, or a “why.” Unlike in the basics of essay writing for argumentative essays, this thesis doesn’t need to be stated outright. Still, you should be able to tell someone in one sentence what your essay is about, and your reader should be able to understand that as well.

Essentially, your thesis is: what is your essay saying, and why is it important? You can think of the thesis as having a “because” in it, and even a “so what?” at the end. Like “I came in first place in the swim meet because swimming provided a healthy coping mechanism for stress. So what? So now I’m pursuing a major in Clinical Psychology to do research on the brain-body connection!” 

Balancing multiple essay topics

When you’re applying to multiple schools, as most students do, you’ll likely be balancing different college essay topics across multiple college admissions essays. That can feel like a ton of work, but there are always ways to repurpose different essays for different applications. 

When you’re thinking about the basics of essay writing, think about a prevailing personal brand or story about yourself that you want your college admissions essays to reinforce. What makes you, you, and what makes you a great fit for this college? You will have to answer that question for every single school you apply to—so if you get the first half (or even the first three quarters) of that ironed out, it will be easier to translate that story into different formats.

The best college essays still need to be specific to the school you’re applying to, but it’s the same you applying to each school. If you’re a funny STEM major, you don’t have to pretend to be something you’re not just because a school is more competitive or prestigious. And you can certainly reuse your best anecdotes at different schools–just make sure your supplemental essays work well with one another, and that you don’t leave out anything important.

Memorable college essays

Of course, the best college essays are memorable. Since the point of a college essay is to leave a good impression on your reader, the best college essays and the most memorable college essays are one and the same.

You can make a good impression on college admissions officers through your essays by remembering the basics of essay writing. Tell a well-structured story, use great grammar, and write in a way that conveys your voice. And, by the end, be sure they know more about you than they did when they started reading. 

How do I make my college essay stand out?

Here are five tips for how to write a college essay that stands out :

5 Tips for Stand-Out Essays

• Strong writing. Having strong writing means not only having good sentence construction, but good story construction. Even though a personal essay is only 500-650 words, you still want it to have a clear progression: in other words, a beginning, middle, and end. You want to start somewhere, and end somewhere else. And don’t forget a good hook to draw the reader in!
• Have good grammar, but don’t sound like a thesaurus. You don’t need SAT words in  your college admissions essay to ace the college admissions process. Just speak clearly, and don’t submit something full of simple spelling mistakes a quick spell check would have caught.
• A unique or interesting experience—or unique way of thinking about something. It’s not the experience that has to be unique; the way that you process something can be unique as well. If something typical happened to you but you chose a different response, and learned something in the process, that uniqueness will stand out.
• Writing in your own voice. While still being appropriate, you should feel free to write in a way that feels authentic to you. That means you can be funny or sarcastic, or even recount dialogue that uses slang, when appropriate. And remember, if you get help editing, your final essay should still sound like a polished and thoughtful version of you .
• Tell them more about you. If you wrote your whole Common App about your extracurriculars, don’t pick a supplemental essay topic that also asks about extracurriculars. That is, choose your essay writing topics wisely! You want each piece of your application to feel like a piece of the puzzle of you.

Asking for help on your college essays

Your essays are important, so don’t be afraid to ask for help reviewing them. But be cautious of ending up with a product that doesn’t feel or sound like you. Your mom’s college essay isn’t the same as yours, and it shouldn’t be! 

It’s good to ask for help with your essays when you’re brainstorming and deciding between what feels like 100 college essay topics. You can also ask a teacher, parent, or college counselor for help after you have written a draft. After all, when it comes to the basics of essay writing, revising is one of the most crucial steps towards making your essays the best they can be.

Where to turn for essay writing samples?

A great way to learn what makes for memorable college essays is to read essay writing samples. To find more essay writing samples, take some time to explore CollegeAdvisor’s essay resources. We have plenty of successful Common App essays and supplemental essays for you to explore.

Essay writing samples are a great way to see examples of what worked so you can conceptualize how to apply the advice in guides like this to your actual writing process. When you finish reading any essay writing samples, ask yourself if you can pinpoint why it’s good, or try and explain it to a friend. If you can do that, that means you really understand what makes  a good essay. 

Essay Writing Topics – Final Thoughts

Essay writing can be one of the most stressful parts of the college admissions process, but it doesn’t have to be. Colleges use essays to gain insight into who you are in your own words, rather than just relying on grades or SAT scores. You’ll likely have to write many types of essays for your college applications, some shorter, some longer, and some more straightforward than others. Personal essays are longer and can be more focused on who you are outside of school, whereas many supplemental essays are more school or major-focused. 

Tell your story!

No matter the essay, the basics of essay writing requires good storytelling, good grammar, and a good idea. Coming up with an essay topic can feel impossible, so we’ve provided a huge list of potential personal essay topics to brainstorm from. These are also topics you might encounter as supplemental essay prompts. Whether the prompts are to the point or creative, what matters most is what you write. 

Above all, don’t be afraid to be yourself in your writing, because that’s what admissions officers are looking for. In fact, it’s the whole point of the college admissions process!

If you’re looking for personalized guidance and revisions throughout the college admissions process, CollegeAdvisor is here to help. Our advisors offer in-depth feedback and brainstorming support to help you craft outstanding essays, with a dedicated team focused on perfecting your work.

This article was written by Stefanie Tedards and Rachel Kahn. Looking for more admissions support? Click here to schedule a free meeting with one of our Admissions Specialists. During your meeting, our team will discuss your profile and help you find targeted ways to increase your admissions odds at top schools. We’ll also answer any questions and discuss how CollegeAdvisor.com can support you in the college application process.

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Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, uw essay topics and tips.

Hey guys, I'm applying to the University of Washington and I'm curious about their essay topics and any tips you might have for writing an amazing essay that stands out. Much appreciated!

Hey there! Luckily for you, CollegeVine has a blog post breaking down UW's current supplemental essay prompts, to give you a clear sense of how to tackle each one: https://blog.collegevine.com/how-to-write-the-university-of-washington-essays/. Additionally, CollegeVine offers both a free peer essay review tool and paid reviews by expert college admissions advisors - either of these resources lets you get a more objective set of eyes on your essay, which can help you identify areas for improvement that you had previously missed.

There are also some general tips that will lead you to success for any college essay:

1. Be genuine and authentic: Stay true to yourself and your experiences. Honesty resonates with the admissions committee.

2. Focus on one story or aspect: Don't try to cover everything. Choose a specific story or experience that truly represents you and provides insight into your character.

3. Show, don't tell: Use vivid details and descriptive language to paint a clear picture of your experiences. This approach will help the reader feel connected to your story.

4. Break clichés: Avoid cliché topics or generic statements. Instead, find a way to discuss your experiences from a unique angle or write about something uncommon. CollegeVine's blog also contains guidance on generic topics that you'll want to avoid: https://blog.collegevine.com/cliche-college-essay-topics.

5. Edit and revise: Take the time to proofread, edit, and revise your essay to ensure it's polished and well-written. Get feedback from someone you trust, such as a teacher, counselor, or a friend - they can help you evaluate how well your true personality is coming across.

Remember that a great essay is one that represents you well and gives the admissions committee insight into who you are. Good luck with your application to the University of Washington! Break a leg!

About CollegeVine’s Expert FAQ

CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.