what are colleges looking for in common app essay

What is the Common Application essay? The Common Application, or Common App, is a college application portal that is accepted by more than 900 schools.. Within the Common App is your main essay, a primary writing sample that all your prospective schools will read to evaluate your critical thinking skills and value as a student. Since this essay is read by many colleges, avoid mentioning any ...

The exact word limit for the Common App essay has varied somewhat over the years, but the current range is 250-650 words. You must stay within this length; in fact, the online application won't allow you to submit fewer than 250 words or more than 650. Some schools will state that if this isn't enough space, you can send them a physical copy of ...

Common App Essay Examples. Here are the current Common App prompts. Click the links to jump to the examples for a specific prompt, or keep reading to review the examples for all the prompts. Prompt #1: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without ...

What are these mystical college essays, anyway? Let's define our terms: Personal statement (PS): When people refer to the personal statement, they're talking about the 650-word Common Application Essay, which all schools using the Common App will see. Your personal statement is your major chance to articulate the qualitative aspects of yourself to the admissions committee and the ...

Because the Common App essay is 650 words long and has few formal directions, organizing a response might seem daunting. Fortunately, at CollegeVine, we've developed a straightforward approach to formulating strong, unique responses. This section outlines how to: 1) Brainstorm, 2) Organize, and 3) Write a Common App essay.

2021-2022 Common App Prompts. Here is a list of the prompts for this cycle. While they are largely unchanged, Prompt #4 is different this year (which is kind of a big deal, considering that the prompts have been the same since 2017). Prompt #1: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe ...

By Meredith Lombardi. We are pleased to announce that the Common App essay prompts will remain the same for 2023-2024. It's not just for the sake of consistency that we have chosen to keep the essay prompts the same for the upcoming application year. Our past research has shown that overall satisfaction with the prompts exceeded 95% across ...

The "Common App," short for the Common Application, is a general application used to apply to multiple college undergraduate programs at once.It's accepted by hundreds of colleges in the United States as well as some colleges internationally. The idea is that the Common App is a "one-stop shop" so you don't have to complete a million separate applications.

Below is the complete list of the Common App essay prompts. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success ...

How Important Is the Common App Essay? The Common App essay is a key part of your college application. According to a 2019 study by the National Association for College Admission Counseling, 56.4% of colleges surveyed considered the personal statement moderately or considerably important. Highly selective institutions tended to place more emphasis on the essay.

Essentially, the Common App essay is your opportunity to show colleges who you are beyond your grades and test scores. It's about your personality, experiences, and the qualities that make you unique. When picking a topic, go for something that's personally meaningful to you. This could be an experience, a person, an interest, or an issue that ...

A Common App essay is a personal statement submitted through the Common App. Astoundingly, over 1,000 colleges and universities in the United States use the Common App as an application platform. As a result, when you apply to college, you will almost definitely use the Common App.

Common App Essay Example #1: Seeds of Immigration. This student was admitted to Dartmouth College. In this Common App essay, they discuss their immigrant family background that motivates them. Although family is a commonly used topic, this student makes sure to have unique ideas and write in a genuine way.

Common App Essay Examples: Essay #4. The scent of crushed garlic permeates the air, mingling with tamari and sesame oil. The nutty smell of brown butter hits my nose next, followed by earthy sage. Something sweet and spicy—sweet potatoes tossed in cinnamon and gochujang.

The Common Application is a single online college application form used by over 900 colleges and universities. Instead of filling out the same general information—like your address, GPA, and extracurriculars— a dozen times, you only have to do it once. The Common App dashboard also helps you track necessary application documents (like your ...

All your prospective schools that accept the Common App will read this essay to understand your character, background, and value as a potential student. Since this essay is read by many colleges, avoid mentioning any college names or programs; instead, save tailored answers for the supplementary school-specific essays within the Common App.

February 27, 2024. We are happy to announce that the Common App essay prompts will remain the same for 2024-2025. Our decision to keep these prompts unchanged is supported by past research showing that overall satisfaction with the prompts exceeded 95% across our constituent groups - students, counselors, advisors, teachers, and member colleges.

Once you input their names and contact information, the Common App will send them an invitation to create an account, guide them through the recommendation form, and enable them to upload their recommendation letter to the Common App platform. 4. Complete Writing requirements. Many colleges ask applicants to submit essays with their application.

Common App Prompt #5. I always imagined my band's first show would take place on a stage. Maybe not in front of a packed amphitheater, but a stage. One with lights, a sound system, a curtain behind it, and some mixture of friends, family, and strangers ready to hear us play.

Each year, more than 1 million students apply to more than 1,000 Common App member colleges worldwide through our online college application platform. Learn more about applying through our first-year application by following our step-by-step guide below. Create a Common App account. 1. Gather materials. 2.

Brainstorm (I think it's the most important step). Structure your essay according to your topic. Draft. Revise. Repeat. Common App essay word limit. The word limit for the Common App essay is 650. That doesn't mean you need to use all 650 words—many of the great example essays below don't.

While we won't see Common App transfer essay examples from Harvard here, we'll read sample transfer essays from other competitive colleges. You can apply these transfer essay tips to any college transfer essay. Let's take a look at another Common App transfer essay prompt—this time, from Notre Dame.

Stanford students delve into the stories that inspired Common Application essays and how they feel about the essays now that they're enrolled in college. Ananya Udaygiri is the Vol. 265 Video ...

The sections below will help you understand how to categorize activities when creating your college application, while offering examples to illustrate each Common App category. Without further ado, here are many (many) examples and a brief(-ish) explanation of the 27 different Common App activity types (plus the oh so mysterious "Other Club ...

Explore more than 1,000 colleges on Common App. The world is ready for you. Be ready for the world. Common App and Reach Higher have united to inspire more people to complete their education and own their future, no matter what it holds. Get valuable advice from students who have been in your shoes.

You'll have access to four-year, three-year, or two-year scholarships if you decide to join Army ROTC as a college student. Four-year scholarships are most common for students who are on a five-year college plan, while two-year scholarships are more common for those who attend certain participating two-year community colleges before transferring to a four-year university.

If a consultancy promises insider information on the admissions process but fails to articulate specific strategies for helping your student boost their admissions profile, they are likely all ...