common app essay questions and answers

What are the 2023-24 Common App essay prompts?

Jul 25, 2023 • knowledge, information, below is the full set of common app essay prompts for 2023-24..

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. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

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Get help writing your college application essays. Find this year's Common App writing prompts and popular essay questions used by individual colleges.

The college essay is your opportunity to show admissions officers who you are apart from your grades and test scores (and to distinguish yourself from the rest of a very talented applicant pool).

brainstorming college application essay topics

2023–24 Common App Essays

Nearly 700 colleges accept the The Common Application , which makes it easy to apply to multiple schools with just one form. If you are using the Common App to apply for college admissions, you will have 250–650 words to respond to ONE of the following 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. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

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Tackling the Common App Essay Prompts

Prompt #1: share your story..

Answer this prompt by reflecting on a hobby, facet of your personality, or experience that is genuinely meaningful and unique to you. Admissions officers want to feel connected to you and an honest, personal statement about who you are draws them in. Your love of superheroes, baking chops, or family history are all fair game if you can tie it back to who you are or what you believe in. Avoid a rehash of the accomplishments on your high school résumé and choose something that the admissions committee will not discover when reading the rest of your application.

Prompt #2: Learning from obstacles.

You're trying to show colleges your best self, so it might seem counterintuitive to willingly acknowledge a time you struggled. But overcoming challenges demonstrates courage, grit, and perseverance! That’s why the last piece of this prompt is essential. The obstacle you write about can be large or small, but you must show the admissions committee how your perspective changed as a result.

Prompt #3: Challenging a belief.

Your answer to this question could focus on a time you stood up to others or an experience when your own preconceived view was challenged. Choose this prompt if you have a relevant—and specific!—experience to recount (and reflect on). A vague essay about a hot button issue doesn’t tell the admissions committee anything useful about YOU.

Prompt #4: Reflecting on gratitude.

Colleges are looking for students with unique experiences that can enhance their future campus community, and this is your chance to share that by recognizing what someone else has done for you. Even though this prompt requires you to reflect on the action of another person, make sure that the focus remains on how the act of kindness impacted you and the way you live your life. This essay should make you and the reader smile.

Prompt #5: Personal growth.

Just like Prompt #2, the accomplishment or event you write about can be anything from a major milestone to a smaller "aha" moment. Describe the event or accomplishment that shaped you but take care to also show what you learned or how you changed. Colleges are looking for a sense of maturity and introspection—pinpoint the transformation and demonstrate your personal growth.

Prompt #6: What captivates you?

This prompt is an invitation to write about something you care about. (So avoid the pitfall of writing about what you think will impress the admission office versus what truly matters to you). Colleges are looking for curious students, who are thoughtful about the world around them. The "what or who do you turn to when you want to learn more” bit isn't an afterthought—it's a key piece of the prompt. Make sure you explain how you pursue your interest, as well.

Read More: QUIZ: Test Your College Knowledge!

Prompt #7: Topic of your choice.

This question might be for you if you have a dynamo personal essay from English class to share or were really inspired by a question from another college’s application. You can even write your own question! Whatever topic you land on, the essentials of a standout college essay still stand: 1.) Show the admissions committee who you are beyond grades and test scores and 2.) Dig into your topic by asking yourself how and why. There isn’t a prompt to guide you, so you must ask yourself the questions that will get at the heart of the story you want to tell.

Describe a person you admire.

Avoid the urge to pen an ode to a beloved figure like Gandhi or Abraham Lincoln. The admissions committee doesn't need to be convinced they are influential people. Focus on yourself: Choose someone who has actually caused you to change your behavior or your worldview, and write about how this person influenced you .

Why do you want to attend this school?

Be honest and specific when you respond to this question. Avoid generalities like "to get a good liberal arts education” or “to develop career skills," and use details that show your interests: "I'm an aspiring doctor and your science department has a terrific reputation." Colleges are more likely to admit students who can articulate specific reasons why the school is a good fit for them beyond its reputation or ranking on any list. Use the college's website and literature to do your research about programs, professors, and other opportunities that appeal to you.

Read More: 5 Ways College Application Essays and High School Essays Are Different

What is a book you love?

Your answer should not be a book report. Don't just summarize the plot; detail why you enjoyed this particular text and what it meant to you. What does your favorite book reveal about you? How do you identify with it, and how has it become personal to you?

Again, be honest in answering this question—don't choose a classic from your literature class or a piece of philosophy just because you think it will make you seem smarter. Writing fluently and passionately about a book close to you is always better than writing shakily or generally about a book that doesn't inspire you.

What is an extracurricular activity that has been meaningful to you?

Avoid slipping into clichés or generalities. Take this opportunity to really examine an experience that taught you something you didn't previously know about yourself, got you out of your comfort zone, or forced you to grow. Sometimes it's better to write about something that was hard for you because you learned something than it is to write about something that was easy for you because you think it sounds admirable. As with all essay questions, the most important thing is to tell a great story: how you discovered this activity, what drew you to it, and what it's shown you about yourself.

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How To Answer the 2023-24 Common App Essay Prompts

Looking for help with the 2023-24 Common Application Essay? Below CEA’s Founder, Stacey Brook, breaks down all you need to know about this year’s prompts.

Stacey Brook, Founder and Chief Advisor

Hello, students and parents of the future class of 2028! The time has come. The Common App essay prompts for 2023-24 have been released and—spoiler alert—they’re exactly the same as last year’s! 2023-24 college applicants, like those who came before them, will have seven (that’s right, seven) essay prompts to choose from. This wide range of questions, meant to inspire candidates in their search for compelling personal stories, is ideal for exploring essay topics of all tones, styles, and subjects. Students’ personal stories and feats of insight will again be relegated to 650 words, which equates to a little more than a single-spaced page. We happen to believe this is the perfect amount of space in which to make a quick and powerful impression with admissions (or write a comprehensive fan letter to Beyoncé), so as far as we’re concerned, you’re golden.

Because we are committed to getting you the most timely and comprehensive essay advice on the interweb, we have made a guide to help you navigate the ins and outs of all seven prompts.

Before you dive (or cannonball!) into our pool of essay advice, we’d like to leave you with one last little secret: the prompts are not actually as important as you think they are . In fact, in our instructional YouTube videos and private advising , we encourage applicants to root around for their most meaningful stories first and consider the prompts later. This is a process we call the Backwards Brainstorm, and you can learn more about it here . For now, the main point we want you to take away is this: The prompts don’t really matter. What matters is the story you want to tell. (And that you floss at least every other day—trust us, it will pay off in the long run.) We are as sure as ever that every single one of you has a valuable story (or two or twelve!) to communicate to admissions. All it takes is ample time for reflection and a little writerly elbow grease to find it. So take a peek at what the 2023-24 application has in store for you, absorb what these prompts are really asking, and then forget about them (really!) as you explore the endless possibilities.

How To Write Common App Prompt #1: The Background Essay

PROMPT #1: 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 Common App’s Prompt #1 is the Old Faithful of essay questions. It’s been around for years and offers all the flexibility an applicant could ask for from a prompt, with just enough direction to get those creative fountains flowing. Focus on the key words, “background,” “identity,” “interest,” and “talent,” and use them as launch points for your brainstorming. What about your history, personality, hobbies, or accomplishments might be worth highlighting for an admissions officer? It can be something as small as seeing an episode of a television show (are you living life in the Upside Down?) or as large as the struggle of moving to a foreign country (especially if you had to leave behind grandma’s cooking). The most important thing to consider for this prompt is that your subject and/or perspective is dynamic and specific to you and who you are and no one else.

Some questions to ask yourself as you brainstorm:

What about my history or background sets me apart from my peers?
How do I define myself? How do the people who are closest to me define me?
What have I achieved that has been integral in molding my character and ambitions?
What, in my seventeen years on this earth, has helped shape the person I am today?

And some examples to consider:

Has your family’s love of food and your resultant adventurous tastes and culinary curiosity allowed you to connect with cultures from around the world?
Does your crazy, dyed-blue hair define you?
Did going to a Picasso exhibit inspire you to start an art collection that has since expanded beyond the borders of your bedroom?
Have your yearly trips to see your extended family in China revealed something to you about your parents’ ability to overcome challenges and the work ethic you have absorbed as a result?
What are the challenges and rewards of having same-sex parents? Or of being raised by your siblings? Or of being part of a family made up of stepsisters and stepbrothers?

Overall, this prompt is what we at College Essay Advisors call a “choose-your-own-adventure” prompt. It has historically served as a fabulous catch-all for subjects that don’t fit within the confines of the other prompt options. A recent addition to the Common App’s prompt selection now offers even more freedom to applicants (more on that later), but students should still think of Prompt #1 as a topic of immense choice, reeled in by a few helpful guidelines.

How To Write Common App Prompt #2: The Setback Essay

PROMPT #2: The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

We have always believed that essays about overcoming obstacles are most effective when they focus more on solutions than problems. Accordingly, Prompt #2 essays should be predominantly filled with a student’s response, outlook, and demeanor when presented with one of life’s many hurdles, rather than a detailed account of the hurdle itself. Applicants should aim to showcase qualities like resilience, determination, and humility. The obstacles you choose to explore can vary widely in nature, especially with the recent additions that allow students to explore challenges and setbacks in addition to failures. They can be as serious as being tormented by bullies, as ingrained as the financial issues that have plagued your family for years, or as seemingly pedestrian as a mistake that costs you a tip while waiting tables. While the possibilities are almost endless, students should be careful not to choose challenges that may seem trite (the inability to achieve an A on an exam and/or secure tickets to that BTS concert) or that illustrate a lapse in good judgment (that time you crashed your car or ate 15 bags of Cheetos in one sitting). Still, if you can isolate an incident of trial in your life and illustrate how you learned from it, this can be a rewarding prompt to explore.

Some key questions to consider:

How do you deal with hardship?
What qualifies as a challenge or setback in your life and world?
Are you the kind of person who can rebound and turn every experience, good or bad, into one from which you can learn something? What experiences might illustrate this quality?
What have been some of the major challenges you’ve encountered in your life? And was there a silver lining?

And a few examples to think about:

Has a lifelong battle with stuttering ultimately increased your overall confidence and allowed you to participate in social activities and public forums without self-judgment?
Did a parent’s fragile health situation challenge you to take on more responsibilities than the average teenager?
Did a series of setbacks on your road to becoming a child actor introduce you to screenwriting, your professional goal and biggest passion?
Did your failure to follow directions lead you to a botched home science experiment (root beer explosion!) and an appreciation for a balance of creativity and planned procedure?

Overall, try to keep these stories as positive as possible. Remember, these essays are not contemplative musings on your toughest times or reflections on the hiccups that populate everyday life (though these things can certainly be touched upon); they are about overcoming obstacles and refusing to submit to life’s greatest challenges.

How To Write Common App Prompt #3: The Challenge Essay

PROMPT #3: Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

This remains one of the most challenging prompts of the Common App’s selection, even though it has become slightly friendlier with the addition of the option to discuss a time you questioned an idea instead of challenged one. This prompt requires a student to speak passionately about beliefs and ideology, which are often onerous subjects that can be difficult to mold into compact stories. It can be one of the hardest questions to steer in a positive, productive direction without traveling into preachy, overly didactic territory. This is also a more precarious prompt than most in that students need to carefully assess the risks of espousing beliefs that might be polarizing for the readers of their applications.

That said, a response to this prompt can be incisive and deeply personal, as it was for a student who stood up to her parents’ old-fashioned outlook on feminism. Applicants who can articulate their thoughts and feelings while showcasing malleability and willingness to thoughtfully consider the ideas of others will likely stand out as valuable additions to any campus. If this prompt jumps out at you because you have a very specific story to tell or opinion to voice, run with it!

Consider these questions as you brainstorm:

When has your opinion been unpopular?
Why are you the kind of person who is willing to stand up for what you believe in?
What is important to you on a fundamental level of morals and values?
How passionate are you about the things you believe in?

And here are a few examples for you to ponder:

Are you openly gay in a strict Catholic school environment? What has that meant for your self-esteem and personal relationships?
Did you work as an intern on a political campaign caught at the center of a scandal? How did you react?
Did you challenge the idea of horror as a throw-away genre by executing an extensive research paper on the subject, launching a horror movie club at school, and arranging the most elaborate, best-received haunted house your neighborhood has ever seen?

Your essay does not have to be focused around a fundamentally serious or groundbreaking issue (see the horror genre example above). What matters most when responding to this prompt is that you have strong convictions about the belief or idea you are trying to convey, and that you examine the personal effects of this ethos on your life and world. For this reason, Prompt #3 can be a great vehicle for showcasing your consideration, persuasive skills, and passions to admissions.

How To Write Common App Prompt #4: The Gratitude Essay

PROMPT #4: Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

We love Prompt #4, which asks students to talk about a time when they felt gratitude. So many of the Common App prompts set students up to talk about what they do for others. Just as important, however, is how applicants react and respond when they are the recipients of something meaningful themselves. Gratitude is quickly becoming a quality individuals are encouraged to connect to and reflect on regularly, hence the popularity of gratitude journals and exercises. (Brainstorming method alert!) This question is meant to offer students the opportunity to reflect on the role gratitude plays in their lives, as well as how the practice of giving thanks and acknowledging life’s gifts motivates and inspires them.

Students should think about times when they have felt acknowledged, heard, and seen. Moments when they have felt that swelling in their chest, as their heart grows three sizes. Think creatively about what you appreciate in your life. It can be a physical gift, an action, or even just a set of feelings projected in your direction. You can be intimately familiar with the person who has inspired your gratitude, or reflect on the actions of a near stranger or even a public figure who has impacted your life for the better. Just remember that this essay needs to focus on how you process, appreciate and draw inspiration from the action of others, so make sure your response is focused on YOU. Ultimately, admissions wants to know more about how you relate to others in the world, and how you repurpose good intentions.

Some questions to ponder:

How do you like to pay it forward in your daily life?
How (and why!) do you express gratitude and appreciation?
What are your favorite random acts of kindness?
Has anyone ever restored your faith in humanity? How?
Do you believe in karma? Why?

And examples to use as food for thought:

Did a kind gesture from a stranger inspire you to keep paying it forward? How do you do so and what’s become of your wholesome intentions?
Have you ever received an unexpected gift from someone? Why was this gift so meaningful to you? How did you express your gratitude?
Do you feel appreciative of a public figure for the work they have done to raise awareness about issues that are important to you? How do you give back?

It’s important that the story you choose to tell is linked to your life and world in a meaningful way. The whole purpose of this exercise is to reveal something valuable about yourself to admissions, so be sure to link the act of kindness you highlight to your passions, actions, or aspirations. And don’t forget to detail how this gift affected you then and still motivates you now. Once you’ve settled into your prompt of choice, following instructions to the fullest and answering all parts of each question are critical.

How To Write Common App Prompt #5: The Accomplishment Essay

PROMPT #5: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

There are a few things to note when unpacking this prompt. Keep in mind that the words “accomplishment” and “event” leave themselves open to interpretation; thus, an essay inspired by this question can tackle anything from a formal event to a very small occurrence. A formal event or accomplishment might include anything from obvious landmarks like birthdays or weddings to achievements like earning an award or receiving a promotion. More informal examples might include something as simple as meeting a special person in your life, taking a car ride, or eating a particularly meaningful meal. We have often found that smaller, less formal events make for more surprising and memorable essays; but as with any of the other prompts, as long as you can answer with originality and put a unique twist on your subject matter, all ideas are fair game.

Your reflection on what you have learned and how you have grown will be a source of great insight for admissions, and you want to make sure your essay highlights the intangible qualities that don’t show up anywhere else on an application.

Some other things to consider:

How do you react to periods of transition? What inspires a change in your perspective?
When have you had a “eureka” moment, and how has it impacted the way you lived your life thereafter?
What were the moments in life that fundamentally changed you as a person?
When did you learn something that made you feel more adult, more capable, more grown up?

For example:

Did your expansion of a handmade stationery hobby into a full-fledged business give you the motivation and wherewithal to combat the effects of a debilitating illness?
Have you learned to love the football team playback sessions that force you to routinely examine your mistakes, welcome constructive criticism and point yourself toward self-improvement?
Did a summer-long role as the U.S. President in a mock government and diplomacy exercise bring out leadership skills you never knew you had?
What did playing bridge at a senior citizens’ home each week show you about the value of enjoyment over competition? How did this change the way you interact and connect with others?

The most important things to keep in mind when searching for these moments are the elements of growth, understanding, and transformation. The event, accomplishment, or realization you discuss should be something that helped you understand the world around you through a different, more mature lens.

How To Write Common App Prompt #6: The Passion Essay

PROMPT #6: Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

One could argue that college is largely about the pursuit of knowledge, so you can imagine it would be quite appealing for an admissions officer to have a meter for your level of self-motivated learning, along with a better understanding of how and why you choose to pay attention to the things that intrigue you. This is a window into your brain: how you process information, how you seek out new sources of content and inspiration. How resourceful are you when your curiosity is piqued to the fullest? The answer to this prompt should also reveal something to admissions about the breadth or depth of your interests. For example, if you’re interested in studying astrophysics, you might choose to discuss a concept that shows how far your exploration of the sciences truly reaches. How consumed are you by this passion you are choosing to pursue academically?

What floats your boat? Do you have an appetite for knowledge about something specific? Or, as we asked in the breakdown for Prompt #1: what do you love, and why do you love it?
What lengths have you gone to in order to acquire new information about or experiences related to a topic of interest?
How do you typically seek to enrich your knowledge when something appeals to you? Do you have a favorite corner of the library (or internet)? A mentor who is open to answering your burning questions?
What about the process of learning, especially about subjects that call out to you, is satisfying?

And a few examples to get those wheels turning:

Did the idea of open source code inspire you to create a tech startup with a few of your friends? What new projects within the company are you most excited to work on?
Did getting an internship at an accounting firm inspire you to start each day by checking the markets? Do you participate in a mock trading club that allows you to use the expertise you gather from culling through economic news and analysis online and beyond?
On any given Sunday morning, could we find you lost in the literature of Kurt Vonnegut or immersed in a collection of stories by Isaac Asimov?
Have you taught yourself to master the compositions of Mozart and Beethoven and break down the songs of Bruno Mars by ear in your spare time?
Do you have an obsession with pizza so intense it led you to study the culinary arts and keep a pizza journal that documents the 700+ slices you’ve consumed thus far? (We know someone who did this—really.) How is pizza-making more scientific and/or artistic than the average person realizes?

Whatever you’re into, embrace it. Show your feathers. Let your freak flag fly (within reason, obvs). This prompt is about the pursuit of knowledge and your desire to proactively challenge yourself. Whether you are devouring the classics on your Kindle or nerding out over the perfect cheese for calzone-making, your attachment to a subject may inspire admissions to want to learn more about it…and you.

How To Write Common App Prompt #7: Topic of Your Choice

PROMPT #7: Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Feared by some, coveted by others, and legendary in its existence; regardless of where you stand on the issue, this was a newsworthy addition to the 2017-18 Common App prompt choices. For years, students have been treating Prompt #1 (which asks about your background, etc.) as topic of your choice *light*—it wasn’t exactly the delicious, full-freedom version students were looking for, but they were able to make it work in a pinch. Applicants around the world likely let out a big exhale when they saw they could still serve up a big scoop of Prompt #7 to admissions in previous seasons. And this year will be no different.

Some questions to consider as you brainstorm, in addition to all of the ones we’ve posed thus far:

What do you want admissions to know about you that they wouldn’t be able to glean from your transcript, test scores, or teacher recommendations?
What are the stories that come up over and over again, at the dinner table or in the cafeteria with your friends, that might give admissions some insight into who you are and what is important to you?
If you had ten minutes alone in a room with an admissions officer, what would you want to talk about or tell him or her about yourself?
What would you bring to a college campus that no one else would or could?

And a few examples of potential subjects and their related (custom!) prompts:

Were you born with a congenital eye defect that literally (and metaphorically) affects how you see the world? ( Q: How is your perspective on the world unique?)
Do you spend 40 minutes each Friday night tutoring a class of elementary school students in Cambodia? How has that impacted the way you mete out your time and assess your commitments? ( Q: What is the value of 40 minutes?)
Did your parents let your older brother choose your name? What was his inspiration? (Please tell us your name is Gaston .) What does your name represent for you? How has it impacted your interactions in the world? ( Q: What’s in a name?)

While being able to write about whatever you wish sounds great in theory, some students find—especially at the beginning of the brainstorming process—that they are debilitated by the “topic of your choice” option because it offers too much choice. If that is the case, fear not! Use some of the other prompts as starting points for your brainstorming and free writing journeys. Begin keeping a diary ( now! ) and jot down subjects, events, and memories as they float to the surface. Now that you have read our handy-dandy prompt guide and understand what admissions is looking for from these prompts, you could very well have a notebook filled with ideas that are ripe for expansion by the time you sit down to write.

So don’t worry about having too many ideas, or not having enough ideas, especially at the beginning of the topic selection process. Once you figure out what you’d like to say (and maybe even after you draft the crux of the essay itself), see if your concept fits one of the first six prompts. Trying to tailor your essay to a more specific prompt option may inspire an interesting spin on the story you are trying to tell—one you may not have thought of otherwise. Form influences content. If, after careful consideration, your magic essay topic does not work within the confines of Prompts 1-6, you are in luck. The glorious, all-encompassing Prompt #7 will be here to catch you.

With some brainstorming and hard work, every student can uncover a story worth telling in response to one of these prompts. Remember, admissions wants a glimpse of your personality, your values, your interests and your passions. They want to get an idea of what kind of attitude and energy you will bring to the classroom and campus life.

So take a few minutes to probe your memories, collect your stories and strike up that creative core. Every student has a fabulous essay inside of them – these prompts can help you find yours.

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How to Answer the Common App Essay Prompts for 2023-2024

In 2023, the Common Application announced that the Common App essay prompts will remain unchanged from the 2022-2023 school year. The Common App essay prompts have remained almost the same for the past five years, but crafting a strong and compelling essay to respond to these prompts has remained as important as ever to getting into top schools

This article will explain how to choose the Common App prompts, organize your essay outline, and craft a compelling, concise response that college admissions officers will love. We also provide links to additional articles with details about writing the Common App essay for each specific prompt.

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Which Common Application Essay prompt is best to choose?

One truth that most colleges won’t tell you is that the Common App essay prompts don’t matter that much to your admissions success. What actually matters choosing a compelling story and telling it in a compelling way. Whether they believe it or not, every college applicant has an interesting story to relay to admissions officers.

An important rule to keep in mind is to leave room in your essay to discuss the things you love and what drives you, both as a student and as a unique person. The Common App essay is similar to an open-ended job interview question like “How would you define yourself?” It isn’t just an answer on a test or job application.

So let’s look at the 2022-2023 Common App essay prompts, get an idea about what they are all about, and decide how to choose the best prompt that will allow you to communicate your personal story.

Common App Essay Prompts for 202 3-2024

The Common App essay prompts for the 2023-2024 cycle have not changed from previous years, with the exception of prompt #4. Each allows writers to take a different path and perspective on their lives and issues. Choosing the prompt that lines up best with the personal story of yourself you want to tell is the key to writing a great Common App essay.

Here are this year’s 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. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

How To Write Common App Prompt #1: Background, Identity, Interest, or Talent

Prompt #1: 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.

Common App Prompt #1 has been around for many years and gives applicants as much flexibility as they could ask for in an essay prompt, with just enough direction to provide a scaffolding for their ideas. It is often known as the “choose your own adventure” prompt.

Focus on the keywords, “background,” “identity,” “interest,” and “talent,” and use them as launch points for your brainstorming. Does anything in your personality, hobbies, history, or personal accomplishments come to mind as being worthy of highlighting to an admissions officer? These categories could be something as minor as seeing a profoundly powerful film or as large as the struggle of acclimating to a new school, state, and/or country. The most important factor to consider for this prompt is that your subject and/or perspective is dynamic and specific to YOU and your narrative and to no other students.

Questions to ask yourself for Prompt #1:

How does my background or history set me apart from my peers?
What have I achieved that has been central to creating the person I am today?
How do I define myself? How would my friends, family, and peers define me?

Examples to consider for Prompt #1:

Has your family’s love of travel taken you to new places and shaped you as a “worldly scholar” wise for your age and subgroup?
Does your love of old jazz define how you fit into society at large?
Did going to a Warhol art exhibit inspire you to start an art collection that you have turned into a more expansive hobby or calling?
What are the challenges and rewards of having biracial parents in your small town? Or of being an adoptee or a member of a family made up of non-traditional members?

How To Write Common App Prompt #2: The Setback Essay

PROMPT #2: The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

Essays about overcoming obstacles should focus more on solutions and mindset than on the problems themselves. Accordingly, Common App Essay Prompt #2 essays should focus on the student’s mental and emotional response, as well as the actions they took when confronted with a difficulty or hurdle. Showcase your qualities like determination, humility, and growth. The difficulties you choose to explore can be diverse, especially considering the addition of “challenges and setbacks” in addition to “failures.” They could be as serious as a death in the family, as practical and material as the financial issues that you or your family have faced, or as banal as a stupid mistake that cost you the winning place at a school contest.

However, students should avoid choosing challenges that are too trivial (not getting tickets to your favorite concert) or that illustrate dangerous or risky behavior (illegal activities or those that hurt others would certainly NOT be good topics for this essay prompt). But if you can isolate an event or trial in your life and show what you learned from it and how you grew, this prompt can encourage a powerful essay.

Questions to consider for Prompt #2:

How do you usually respond to and deal with hardships or difficulties?
What is your personal idea of a “setback or difficulty”?
Do you rebound easily and turn your experiences into learning opportunities? Think of experiences that might highlight such qualities.
Brainstorm and list some major challenges you’ve encountered in your life.

A few examples for your reference:

Has a lifelong battle with seizures or another neurodivergent condition raised your overall confidence and allowed you to participate in activities without judging yourself too harshly?
Did a long-term or serious health situation challenge you to take on more responsibilities than the average middle- or high-school student?
Did several setbacks on your road to becoming a violin prodigy introduce you to public relations, being your own manager, and dealing with different kinds of people in the industry?

Keep your personal story as positive as possible and again, focus on how you overcame the challenge. You ultimately want to provide evidence to the admissions officials that you are more than ready for the challenges that college presents.

How To Write Common App Prompt #3: Challenging a Belief or Idea

PROMPT #3: Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

Ironically, the “challenge” essay is one of the most challenging prompts the Common App essay presents, though it is now slightly easier with the addition of the option to discuss a time you merely questioned an idea instead of directly challenging it. The student must speak passionately about their beliefs and worldview, which are often difficult subjects to fit into short narratives. Thus, Common App Essay Prompt #3 can be one of the hardest questions to aim in a positive direction without making yourself sound condescending or judgmental of other views.

That being said, you can respond to this prompt in a way that is insightful and personal, as it was for a student who stood up to parents’ staunch position on one’s public expression of sexual identity. If you can articulate your thoughts and feelings while showing your willingness to earnestly consider the ideas of others, you will stand out as an excellent addition to any college campus. If this prompt jumps out at you and you can think of a time you challenged a belief and it made a difference, go for it!

Questions to consider while brainstorming:

Was there a specific time you held an opinion that was unpopular among your family or peers?
Why are you the type of person willing to stand up for your positions or values?
What morals and values are most important to you on a fundamental level?
What drives your interest in and position on these topics? Philosophy, your own religious background or culture, a popular media channel?

Some examples to get you started:

Are you the only atheist member in a deeply religious household? How did this impact your personal relationships and interactions?
Did you work as an intern on a campaign caught in a big scandal? Did your reaction show your values as an active member of the community?
Did you challenge the notion that modern dance or art is not “artistic” by crafting an extensive research paper on the subject in a way that impressed (or horrified) your teachers?

You don’t need to focus on a fundamentally serious or controversial issue. What matters most when responding to this prompt is that you plainly show your strong convictions about the belief or idea you are trying to convey and examine how this position impacts your thinking and your actions. Prompt #3 can be useful in showcasing your argumentation, persuasive skills, and critical thinking to admissions officers.

How To Write Common App Prompt #4: Showing Gratitude

PROMPT #4: Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

Common App Essay Prompt #4 asks students to talk about a time when they felt gratitude for something someone did. Gratitude has become a quality that individuals are encouraged to connect to and reflect on, which explains the commonality of essays on gratitude in college classes. This question offers students the opportunity to reflect on how gratitude impacts or directs their own lives, as well as how giving thanks for the little things in life can inspire and energize them.

Think about times when you have personally felt heard or seen as an individual. These could be moments when you felt an immense about of pride or encouragement. Think hard about what you appreciate in your life: material gifts, individual actions, or even simply a set of feelings someone aimed in your direction. The bestower of these feelings could be someone you know well, or it could be a public figure you have never met you has nevertheless changed your life for the better. Remember that this essay should primarily focus on how you process, appreciate and respond to the actions of others, which means you need to focus more on YOU than on the generous act or words themselves.

Consider these questions for Prompt #4:

Do you ever “pay it forward” in your daily life? How, when, and why do you do this?
How do you usually express thanks in your own life?
Do you have any random acts of kindness that inspire you?
Have you ever had your faith in humanity restored by someone’s deeds or speech?
Is karma a driving force for your actions, or do you have some other cosmic reason for doing good?

Examples to use as guidance:

Did a gesture from a stranger inspire you to continue doing good acts for others? How do you actually do these acts and how has it changed how you view giving?
Do you feel appreciative of a public figure for the work they have done to raise awareness about issues that are important to you? How do you give back?
Have you ever received a gift or token of value from someone that was completely unexpected? Why was this meaningful to you? How did you show gratitude? Did the unexpected, non-transactional aspect of the gift impact your perception of helping or encouraging others?

Link your story to your life and world in a concrete and meaningful way. Don’t forget to detail how this gift or act of kindness affected and motivates you today. After choosing your essay prompt, be sure to follow the instructions and answer all substantive parts of the question.

How To Write Common App Prompt #5: The Accomplishment Essay

PROMPT #5: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

In Common App Essay Prompt #5 , the words “accomplishment” and “event” are somewhat open to interpretation. Therefore, an essay inspired by this question could address anything from a minor event to a major occurrence in your life. An event accomplishment might include birthdays or weddings, or perhaps big achievements like winning a competition or earning an esteemed award.

Informal examples could include meeting a person in your life who ended up being special; taking a fateful bus or train ride; or participating in a meal or social event that opened up your mind to other realities you hadn’t considered. Events that are smaller or less formal can actually lead to more surprising and memorable essays, but these must also be written with originality and add a personal or unique twist. The art of storytelling is important in this essay prompt.

Some other things to consider:

How do periods of transition impact you in general? Are there actions or events that have inspired a change of heart or thought in your mind?
Have you ever had a “eureka” moment that has fundamentally shifted how you view the world in some way?
Did you ever learn a fact or hear a viewpoint that made you feel more capable or confident in voicing your own opinion and position?

Some example topics for this prompt:

Did your expansion of a lemonade stand into a successful small business motivate you into raising funds for a friend or relative’s illness or encourage you to pay off a debt?
Do you love sports playback video that forces you to examine your mistakes and take criticism that leads to self-improvement?
How did serving soup each week at a homeless shelter for half a year help ground your views of social opportunity and giving? How did this impact how you connect with and serve other people?

Keep in the front of your mind the central elements of growth, understanding, and transformation. The realization or activity you write about should be something that helped you mature in your understanding of the world and other people.

How To Write Common App Prompt #6: an Engaging Topic, Idea, or Concept

PROMPT #6: Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

Since college is at root (at least historically) the pursuit of knowledge to enlighten yourself as an individual, it might be beneficial for an admissions officer to have an understanding of how you demonstrate self-motivated learning, as well as the reasons for why you pay attention to topics that fascinate you. Common App Essay Prompt #6 is a kind of window into your mind, showing how you process information and search for new sources of content and inspiration–or new positions to analyze and critique.

How does your interest demonstrate your willingness to investigate deeper into a given topic or idea? Your essay answer should also reveal the scope and depth of your intellectual or artistic interests. For example, if you’re interested in studying biochemistry, you might discuss a concept that illustrates how far your knowledge in this core domain extends to actual current findings and dialogues in science. How does this passion impact what you are choosing to pursue academically?

Some key questions to think about:

What engages you generally? Do you have a thirst for some specific kind of knowledge? Or, what do you love to think about or engage in insofar as it nearly defines you as a person and thinker?
What exact steps have you taken to acquire new information about or experiences that are related to your topic of interest? Have you gone out of your way to turn your interest into an activity or even a kind of profession?
How do you actively enrich your knowledge when you find some appealing idea or topic? Hours spent weekly in the school library or with a teacher or mentor who can guide you in your academic pursuit could be great examples of this active enrichment.
What is so satisfying about the process of learning and applying your knowledge to the conversation or to the discipline itself?

And a few examples to get those wheels turning:

Did your learning about open source code move you to create a startup with a few like-minded peers? What related projects are you prepared to work on next?
Did your advertising firm internship experience inspire you to do benchmarking and market research to create your own ads (even if they were only for yourself)?
On a Saturday afternoon, could you be found perusing the classics and learning Latin at the same time? How else have you interacted with this literature and language?
Perhaps you have an obsession with Italian food that is so strong it led you to study Italian cooking online through a master class. How is Italian food actually more scientific and interesting than the average person might think?

Whatever category or topic drives you to learn more and DO more, reflect on it, and then share it in colorful detail. This prompt deals with pursuing knowledge for knowledge’s sake, but also how this knowledge stokes your desire to challenge yourself in concrete ways.

How To Write Common App Prompt #7: Topic of Your Choice

PROMPT #7: Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

This prompt was first introduced to the 2017-2018 Common App prompts. Although Prompt #1 is similar to “choosing a topic of your choice,” Common App Essay Prompt #7 offers students a lot of freedom and flexibility to illustrate their character, background, growth, worldview, or any other important central facets important to being a college student. You could really take any number of directions with this essay prompt–but as always, be sure that you are addressing the prompt fully and not being too trivial (or cliche) in your subject matter and how you tell your narrative.

Some examples of potential subjects and their related prompts:

Do you have a health defect that impacts how you view or interact with the world and people around you? ( Q:Why is your personal perspective unique and special?)
Do you spend your free time teaching guitar lessons for free to children at the community center in your town? What do these interactions look like, what do they mean to you, and how have they affected your goals and direction? ( Q: Why is self-sacrifice a virtue and benefit in a college candidate?)
Did your parents give you a highly unusual name that has colored how you are seen and how you move about the world? What were their reasons for giving this name to you? How has it made you a better student and person? ( Q: What does origin have to do with excellence?)

Some students find that choosing a “topic of your choice” is quite difficult because it offers too many options to choose from. But this should not prevent you from attempting this essay prompt if you have something interesting to say. You can use the other prompts as starting points to brainstorm ideas and free-write first.

Now that you have read our handy-dandy prompt guide and understand what admissions is looking for from these prompts, you could very well have a notebook filled with ideas that are ripe for expansion by the time you sit down to write.

A Detailed Plan for Writing the 2023-2024 Common App Essay Prompts

The Common App essay has a maximum word count of 650 words, and the Common Application site does not provide any further instructions on how to write the essays, such as organization and amount of time to spend on each essay section. Fortunately, we at Wordvice have some experience with crafting impactful essays. The following is a brief summary of how to approach the Common App essay, regardless of which essay prompt you ultimately choose to write on.

1. Brainstorming your Common App essay topics

Brainstorming is crucial to writing any creative or personal essay. Before you even pick an essay prompt, consider a “high level” passion you have and all the ways in which you interact with it and how it shapes you as a person. For example, using “computer programming” as a central idea, you could stress your love of coding for various reasons and how that has impacted the projects you have done and continues to shape your self-identity (i.e., as a “programmer”).

Another idea might be to discuss how you have developed in relation to your other family members. Perhaps you have a relationship with two of your siblings that has come to define you and how to interact with people in general: maybe your younger sister is a “dreamer,” while your older brother is a “technician,” and as a middle child, finding out where you belong in this family dynamic led you to a way of thinking that differentiates you from most other candidates. Formative stories could be quite interesting and instantly give the reader a window into who you are.

To develop your own central idea, answer the four essential questions that apply to all Common App essay prompts:

Address your personality traits and anything else about you that tells something about who you are. This question can be answered in any number of ways: discussing a formative event or circumstance, a hobby, a time you overcame great difficulty, or a profound learning experience.
Distinguish yourself by showing your uniqueness. You don’t need to explicitly state why you are different from others–rather, show this in your story details.
In paragraph form and using concrete details, give the reader a strong idea about what is important to you: family, work ethic, success, money, etc.
Don’t forget to include some of the essential qualities that will make you a great student: time management, great communication, interest in topics, etc. Again, you can evidence these strengths in your story details rather than telling the reader THAT you are good at X, Y, and Z.

Start brainstorming by writing down a few aspects of your personality or experiences you find central to your development. Think about some basic narratives you could tell that use different combinations of these aspects before you actually choose a prompt.

For instance, you could note that you are in love with classical philosophy, made varsity on the debate team, and are now working with a local community organizer on a political issue that is important to you. Then organize these experiences into a very rough structure that will make it easier for you to choose the best Common App prompt.

An example narrative from these aspects: You discuss a specific interest you currently have associated with this community work; discuss what you have learned and the failures and successes you have had; explore how you could make a bigger difference, if only you were a lawyer or official advocate, etc. In contemplating these personal aspects, you are already beginning the organization step, which is crucial to composing a great essay.

2. Choosing a Common App essay prompt that best fits you

There is no “best” common app essay prompt that will guarantee your acceptance into top schools. However, choosing a prompt that first you well will help you craft a more convincing narrative for admissions committees.

Consider the following prompt for instance (Common App Essay Prompt # 2):

This is a prompt that might work great if you can think of any salient challenges or obstacles that helped shape who you are today. Perhaps you were a high-profile member of your high school’s speech team, but you were sidelined by a financial crisis in your household. To help your family overcome this hardship, you got a part-time job and had to quit the speech team. However, your speech coach recognized your talent and dedication and allowed you to practice on your own time.

This story would show that you are a dedicated son or daughter willing to help out your struggling parents and sacrifice your time to do so. It also shows that you have negotiation skills that help you overcome difficulties–a valuable personal trait for a college student.

Remember to show who you are in your essay!

One of the most common mistakes that students writing the Common App Essay make is not including enough of themselves in their essay content. Your admissions essay should be personal enough that a reader who knows you would identify the applicant as you even without looking at your name or application form details.

If you find yourself getting lost in what to write, don’t panic. This is a common feeling, as an admissions essay is often the first REALLY important personal essay candidates will have written. One method of removing your essay writer’s block is to ask yourself “why?” whenever you might not know what you write next.

For example, here is what your inner monologue might look like as you walk yourself through some questions:

“I have always loved biology.”

Why do I love biology?

“Because I enjoy learning facts about living organisms.”

Why do I enjoy this?

“Because I have always wanted to take things apart and see how they work from the inside.”

Why is this important to who I am?

“It is indicative of my approach to all of my passions, including academic interests.”

By following this kind of “stream-of-consciousness” dialogue, you can get to the bottom of some of your motivations, actions, fears, and other aspects that define a person’s identity.

It can also help to bounce your essay ideas off of a friend or family member. Closer friends can make for a good sounding board since they know a lot about your personality, likes, skills, drives, and ambitions. This might help you choose the most appropriate essay prompt for you.

3. Organizing your essay’s story

There are a couple of different approaches to take when it comes to organizing and outlining your essay. Feel free to be creative with your structure and use descriptions. You could even employ dialogue if it helps you tell a story better.

However, your essay still needs to flow logically and naturally at the level of the sentence and even paragraph. You can achieve this by structuring chronologically, making a story arc, or beginning en media res (in the middle of your story) to hook the reader, and then moving back to a former period to unveil your complete narrative.

Some applicants prefer to take a wholly different and “experimental” approach to writing a personal essay. For instance, a student with a passion for theatre and fiction writing could write a “scene” in dialogue form (like a Samual Beckett play) that represents two parts of their personality. A mathematics expert could use an algorithm or algebraic formula as a metaphor for their life and draft their essay using that structure.

Writing a more creative essay can certainly be risky, and it isn’t easy for most writers to pull off–even for professional authors! However, this just means that if your essay is well-executed and gets your point across, and shows the reader who you are, you will be highly rewarded for it in the end with high marks from adcoms.

4. Write a Common App essay that is clear and focused

Show, don’t tell–rather than telling the reader simply that you “love science,” prove it by describing how many hours you spend per week in your room reading science books.
Use lots of concrete detail–the more vivid detail, the better
Avoid using cliched language or stories–using a tired personal essay story is one of the most application essay errors writers make.
Make your tone fit the goals of the essay. For instance, if you are a straight-A student with no extracurriculars, you might want to use your essay to show the officials how much of a laid-back person you are in real life.

Final Thoughts on the Common App Essay Prompts and Answers

The main objective of any Common App essay is to impart a lasting, authentic portrayal of yourself on your reader. Whenever you feel stuck, refer back to the four Core Questions that a Common App essay must answer. And above all, always make sure that the ideas and analysis in your essay reflect the characteristics you want to reflect to the admissions officers at your target schools.

We hope these essay-writing strategies and tips help you write a powerful and winning admission essay. And remember that, as one of the best admissions editing services out there, Wordvice is there for you after your draft with essay editing services to ensure that your essay is compelling and makes the maximum impact on college admissions officers. Check out the complete list of English editing and proofreading services we offer.

Best of luck writing your Common Application essay for the 2023-2024 school year!

The 2023-2024 Common App Prompts (7 Example Essays & Analysis)

Writing your college essay can be a bit daunting. We’re going to help you make it less so.

Because the Common App essay prompts are your chance to help college admission officers understand who you are and what you bring to their college classrooms and community.

Just in case, for context: The Common App is a college admission application with 900+ member colleges that students can apply to. The Common App can allow students to submit essays, recommendation letters, and numeric measures like test scores and class rank.

Below, we’ll talk through the prompts, how to brainstorm and write your essay, and offer example essays and analysis.

Let’s dive in.

What Are the Common App Essay Prompts?
Why Are the Common App Essay Prompts Important?

Which Common App Essay Prompt is Best?

How Do You Answer the Common App Essay Prompts?
Prompt #2 Essay Example
Prompt #3 Essay Example
Prompt #4 Essay Example
Prompt #5 Essay Example
Prompt #6 Essay Example
Prompt #7 Essay Example

What are the Common App Essay Prompts?

According to the 2023/2024 Common Application , the Common App essay prompts are as follows:

1. Background Essay

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.

2. Challenge Essay

3. Belief Essay

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

4. Gratitude Essay

Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

5. Accomplishment Essay

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

6. Topic Essay

Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

7. Create-Your-Own Essay

Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Note: While you might be tempted to just pick one of the questions and start writing, we recommend holding off. Why? We’ll explain below, after a few quick important questions.

What’s the Common App Essay Word Limit?

650 words. Yep, that’s all you get.

Why are the Common App Essay Prompts Important?

Hundreds of schools use the Common App, so it’s likely that every school you apply to will read your personal statement. This is your chance to tell a story about yourself that tells us more than your test scores and grades do … to let colleges know about the wide range of skills, qualities, values, and interests that have shaped who you are today. And, most importantly, how those skills and values show that you’re prepared to attend college.

Let’s talk through which college essay prompt you should choose.

There is no “best” prompt. And this isn’t just our opinion (though it is also that), but what we know from talking to lots of admission officers. (Many admission officers have said they frequently don’t even look at what prompt a student chose.)

Instead, think of these prompts as a few different ways that the folks at the Common App are trying to help you talk about yourself in some interesting ways. And if none of those spark your interest, take a look at prompt #7, which is basically their way of saying, “You can write about your background or identity, a challenge you’ve overcome, a topic or idea that is interesting to you, or… just write about whatever the heck you want.”

So while some students might spend hours agonizing over why topic #6 on the Common App is actually better than topic #3, it’s actually not super useful to spend too much time thinking about it.

Instead, consider that colleges want to know two basic things:

Can you write well?

Will you make valuable contributions on our college campus and beyond?

If your essay provides insight into those two questions, you’re doing great.

In fact, one of our favorite college essay prompts to get students thinking about possible topics isn’t even on that list. But if we see a student struggling with what to write about, we’ll sometimes give them this prompt:

Describe the world you come from and how it has shaped your dreams and aspirations.

It’s beautiful. The “world you come from” can mean almost anything: your grandma’s cooking, the neighborhood or home country in which you grew up, or even the challenges that you faced at home.

Your “dreams and aspirations” could mean your future career or major, or even just your hope for your city, country, or the world.

So now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s dive into the fun part.

How do you Answer the Common App Essay Prompts?

This is the part we’ve been thinking and teaching about for over 15 years.

We answer this question in much more depth in our free guide to the personal statement , but here’s the TL;DR version.

IT STARTS WITH GREAT BRAINSTORMING.

When you’re getting started, we’d recommend that students don’t look at the college essay prompts at all. Instead spend some time digging deep. This blog post has a list of my favorite brainstorming exercises. And here’s

How to brainstorm common app essay topics

Values Exercise

Essence Objects Exercise

21 Details Exercise

Everything I Want Colleges To Know About Me Exercise

Feelings and Needs Exercise

By the time you’re done, you should have a giant menu of ideas, images, or experiences from your life that can serve as a potential essay topic, either for your main essay or for your supplemental essays .

IT CONTINUES WITH FINDING A SOLID STRUCTURE FOR YOUR ESSAY.

There are a few ways to structure an essay, but here are two structures that we think can work for any student, based on how you answer these two questions:

Will you focus on one specific challenge/experience in your life? If so, consider using Narrative Structure .

Or will you focus on a series of moments or images in your life. If so, you might consider using Montage Structure .

THEN, IT’S LOTS OF REVISING.

From there, it’s all downhill (but like in a good way). We’d recommend planning to do 6-8 drafts after getting feedback from your counselor, a teacher, a trusted mentor, or friend.

Looking for some specific guidance/tools for revision? Here you go:

How to build a better beginning

Better transitions

Revising for insight

Stronger endings

Either way, the key is to write your deepest story and reveal insight into who you are and what you care about. (If you’re curious, here are the four qualities we think every great college essay should demonstrate.)

GET FEEDBACK.

One roadblock to improving stagnant essays is not having an outside perspective. Find a teacher, parent, or peer whose opinion you trust and ask their feedback on what they like about the essay and what they think might improve it. Remember: Sometimes people can give conflicting feedback, so beware trying to please everyone. If you’re looking for some advanced help on your essay and you can’t afford it, you may qualify for the Matchlighters Scholarship to receive some individualized feedback.

If you and a peer have swapped essays to get each other feedback, you can always follow the guide to giving feedback in the Choose Your Own Adventure Tool .

If you’re at a loss for where to go next and don’t have someone to get feedback from, you can always self-assess using the Great College Essay Test to see if your final draft is doing all of the things a great college essay should.

THEN DECIDE WHICH PROMPT FITS YOUR ESSAY.

At the end, once it’s time to submit, you can scan the prompts and see which prompt fits best. Often, great personal statements work for multiple prompts.

Don’t see one that fits? Just choose prompt #7.

Lastly, it can help to take a look at essays that do a great job. Why?

By seeing what other students have written and seeing a range of topics, structures, and style, you might get some inspiration on how to tell your own story.

Common App Essay Examples for each Prompt

Here are some of my favorite sample essays, with a bit of analysis on why I like each one so much.

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #1

When I was very little, I caught the travel bug. It started after my grandparents first brought me to their home in France and I have now been to twenty-nine different countries. Each has given me a unique learning experience. At five, I marveled at the Eiffel Tower in the City of Lights. When I was eight, I stood in the heart of Piazza San Marco feeding hordes of pigeons, then glided down Venetian waterways on sleek gondolas. At thirteen, I saw the ancient, megalithic structure of Stonehenge and walked along the Great Wall of China, amazed that the thousand-year-old stones were still in place. It was through exploring cultures around the world that I first became interested in language. It began with French, which taught me the importance of pronunciation. I remember once asking a store owner in Paris where Rue des Pyramides was. But when I pronounced it PYR–a–mides instead of pyr–A–mides, with more accent on the A, she looked at me bewildered. In the eighth grade, I became fascinated with Spanish and aware of its similarities with English through cognates. Baseball in Spanish, for example, is béisbol, which looks different but sounds nearly the same. This was incredible to me as it made speech and comprehension more fluid, and even today I find that cognates come to the rescue when I forget how to say something in Spanish. Then, in high school, I developed an enthusiasm for Chinese. As I studied Chinese at my school, I marveled how if just one stroke was missing from a character, the meaning is lost. I loved how long words were formed by combining simpler characters, so Huǒ (火) meaning fire and Shān (山) meaning mountain can be joined to create Huǒshān (火山), which means volcano. I love spending hours at a time practicing the characters and I can feel the beauty and rhythm as I form them. Interestingly, after studying foreign languages, I was further intrigued by my native tongue. Through my love of books and fascination with developing a sesquipedalian lexicon (learning big words), I began to expand my English vocabulary. Studying the definitions prompted me to inquire about their origins, and suddenly I wanted to know all about etymology, the history of words. My freshman year I took a world history class and my love for history grew exponentially. To me, history is like a great novel, and it is especially fascinating because it took place in my own world. But the best dimension that language brought to my life is interpersonal connection. When I speak with people in their native language, I find I can connect with them on a more intimate level. I’ve connected with people in the most unlikely places, finding a Bulgarian painter to use my few Bulgarian words with in the streets of Paris, striking up a conversation in Spanish with an Indian woman who used to work at the Argentinian embassy in Mumbai, and surprising a library worker by asking her a question in her native Mandarin. I want to study foreign language and linguistics in college because, in short, it is something that I know I will use and develop for the rest of my life. I will never stop traveling, so attaining fluency in foreign languages will only benefit me. In the future, I hope to use these skills as the foundation of my work, whether it is in international business, foreign diplomacy, or translation. I think of my journey as best expressed through a Chinese proverb that my teacher taught me, “I am like a chicken eating at a mountain of rice.” Each grain is another word for me to learn as I strive to satisfy my unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Today, I still have the travel bug, and now, it seems, I am addicted to language too. — — —

Tips + Analysis:

Find a thematic thread. After a close read, you’ll notice that the author didn’t necessarily overcome a specific challenge but rather used the Montage Structure to write around a general theme (or multiple themes). In this case, the guiding themes were the student’s love of language and travel. Think of these themes as a clothesline and each body paragraph as a particular article of clothing being hung on it to dry. Don’t be intimidated if you don’t have a narrative story to tell. Notice how well the author gives us a visceral sense of time and place, jumping from different memories and observations about people he’s met and places he’s been. This type of essay gives you tons of room to experiment and cover lots of different topics at once.

Show (don’t tell) your values. One of the most important things to do in your personal statement is give your reader a sense of who you are and what you value . Of course you can’t cover everything, but a great essay (no matter the prompt) will give people a sense of what makes you, well, you. In this essay, some of the core values this author shows are: adventure, culture, curiosity, attention to detail, history, abstract thinking, human connection, and others too. If you’re not totally sure what your values are, that’s totally okay! Check out our Values Exercise to get started.

Think about the future. Whatever type of essay you choose to write, it’s a good idea to spend some time thinking about what’s next. This essay discusses the qualities that he believes will serve him in his future career. But don’t freak out about it. You don’t necessarily have to get hyper-specific about what career you plan to go into (although if you know what you want to do, go for it!). You can also talk about things more generally in terms of the interests or values that guide you so your reader knows you have some sense of direction.

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #2

They covered the precious mahogany coffin with a brown amalgam of rocks, decomposed organisms, and weeds. It was my turn to take the shovel, but I felt too ashamed to dutifully send her off when I had not properly said goodbye. I refused to throw dirt on her. I refused to let go of my grandmother, to accept a death I had not seen coming, to believe that an illness could not only interrupt, but steal a beloved life. When my parents finally revealed to me that my grandmother had been battling liver cancer, I was twelve and I was angry--mostly with myself. They had wanted to protect me--only six years old at the time--from the complex and morose concept of death. However, when the end inevitably arrived, I wasn’t trying to comprehend what dying was; I was trying to understand how I had been able to abandon my sick grandmother in favor of playing with friends and watching TV. Hurt that my parents had deceived me and resentful of my own oblivion, I committed myself to preventing such blindness from resurfacing. I became desperately devoted to my education because I saw knowledge as the key to freeing myself from the chains of ignorance. While learning about cancer in school I promised myself that I would memorize every fact and absorb every detail in textbooks and online medical journals. And as I began to consider my future, I realized that what I learned in school would allow me to silence that which had silenced my grandmother. However, I was focused not with learning itself, but with good grades and high test scores. I started to believe that academic perfection would be the only way to redeem myself in her eyes--to make up for what I had not done as a granddaughter. However, a simple walk on a hiking trail behind my house made me open my own eyes to the truth. Over the years, everything--even honoring my grandmother--had become second to school and grades. As my shoes humbly tapped against the Earth, the towering trees blackened by the forest fire a few years ago, the faintly colorful pebbles embedded in the sidewalk, and the wispy white clouds hanging in the sky reminded me of my small though nonetheless significant part in a larger whole that is humankind and this Earth. Before I could resolve my guilt, I had to broaden my perspective of the world as well as my responsibilities to my fellow humans. Volunteering at a cancer treatment center has helped me discover my path. When I see patients trapped in not only the hospital but also a moment in time by their diseases, I talk to them. For six hours a day, three times a week, Ivana is surrounded by IV stands, empty walls, and busy nurses that quietly yet constantly remind her of her breast cancer. Her face is pale and tired, yet kind--not unlike my grandmother’s. I need only to smile and say hello to see her brighten up as life returns to her face. Upon our first meeting, she opened up about her two sons, her hometown, and her knitting group--no mention of her disease. Without even standing up, the three of us—Ivana, me, and my grandmother--had taken a walk together. Cancer, as powerful and invincible as it may seem, is a mere fraction of a person’s life. It’s easy to forget when one’s mind and body are so weak and vulnerable. I want to be there as an oncologist to remind them to take a walk once in a while, to remember that there’s so much more to life than a disease. While I physically treat their cancer, I want to lend patients emotional support and mental strength to escape the interruption and continue living. Through my work, I can accept the shovel without burying my grandmother’s memory. — — —

Tips + Analysis

Start with a great hook. Before you can tell your reader anything about yourself, they have to be invested enough to keep reading. That’s why your first couple sentences are so important . Think of writing your personal statement as a first date, you want to make a great impression from the very beginning. Starting with an interesting detail, funny anecdote, or shocking moment are a couple ways to do that. In this essay, the author does a great job of hooking us in with the visceral details about his grandmother’s funeral and the complex set of emotions he felt in the moment. It doesn’t take up too much of the word count, but afterwards, you can’t help but want to read more.

Be vulnerable. This is one of the most important tips we can give you about writing your personal statement. A great essay should give your reader critical insights into what motivates or interests you and that requires a level of vulnerability. Does this mean you need to tell them every part of your life story? Definitely not. But notice in this essay how raw the topic is for the author and how honest he is about his feelings. Seeing him struggle with the death of a loved one helps us understand how he thinks and allows us to empathize with him. And, to be vulnerable, you don’t have to write about a topic like a death in the family. Being vulnerable is as simple as digging into the “why.” You may not have gone through something life changing or traumatic like this author, but we promise you that you have tons to offer. Connect your experiences to your values and don’t be afraid to pose questions you don’t quite know the answer to yet. The more care you put into your essay, the more your reader will care as well.

Find your narrative arc. Unlike the first example essay, this one follows a Narrative Structure . This is a great structure for this student because they faced a significant challenge and could break it down into an initial challenge (their grandmother dying), what they did about it (channeled their grief into school and then eventually into volunteering and the cancer center), what they learned (they want to be an oncologist). These three components afford them a natural narrative arc for their essay that is satisfying to read and gives us a sense of how an important event/person shaped the person they are today. This author knows what career path they’re interested in pursuing, but if you’re not totally sure what you want to do in the future but have a significant challenge to write about, you can just talk about what you learned in more value-based terms (ie. I became more resourceful, this experience spurred an interest in artistic collaboration and creativity, etc.).

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #3

For over two years, my final class of the day has been nontraditional. No notes, no tests, no official assignments. Just a twenty-three minute lecture every Monday through Thursday, which I watched from my couch. Professor Jon Stewart would lecture his class about the news of the day, picking apart the absurdities of current events. The Daily Show inspired me to explore the methods behind the madness of the world Stewart satirized. Although I’d always had a passion for the news, I evolved from scrolling through Yahoo ’s homepage to reading articles from The New York Times and The Economist . I also began to tie in knowledge I learned in school. I even caught The Daily Show inexcusably putting a picture of John Quincy Adams at a table with the founding fathers instead of John Adams! Thanks, APUSH. Clearly, The Daily Show has a political slant. However, Stewart convinced me that partisan media, regardless of its political affiliation, can significantly impact its viewers’ political beliefs. I wrote a psychology paper analyzing the polarizing effects of the media and how confirmation bias leads already opinionated viewers to ossify their beliefs. As a debater, I’ve learned to argue both sides of an issue, and the hardest part of this is recognizing one’s own biases. I myself had perhaps become too biased from my viewing of The Daily Show , and ultimately this motivated me to watch CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News, allowing me to assimilate information from opposing viewpoints. I embraced my new role as an intellectual moderator in academic discourse… at my friend’s 17th birthday party. It was there that two friends started arguing over the Baltimore riots. One argued that the anti-police rhetoric of the protest was appalling; the other countered by decrying the clear presence of race discrimination still in the country. Both had their biases: the friend who argued on behalf of the police was the son of a police officer, while my friend who defended the protests personally knew people protesting in Baltimore. I questioned both on their positions, and ultimately, both reconsidered the other’s perspective. However, I began to wonder: was I excusing myself from the responsibility of taking a position on key issues? Perhaps there are times that I shouldn’t merely understand both sides, but actually choose one. In biology, for example, we studied the debates over evolution and climate change. Is it my role, as an informed student, to advocate both sides of the debate, despite one side being overwhelmingly supported by scientific evidence? Maybe I must sometimes shed my identity as Devil’s advocate and instead be an advocate for my own convictions. Although I don’t have a news (or fake news) network where I can voice my opinions, I look towards further assessing my own viewpoints while maintaining my role as an impartial academic debater. I am eager to delve into an intellectual environment that challenges me to decide when to be objective and when to embrace my bias and argue for my own beliefs. — — —

Demonstrate craft. While content is important, craft is what’ll bring the best stories to life. In some shorter supplemental essays , you might be more pressed in terms of word count and you may have to sacrifice poetry in favor of the facts. But, in the personal statement, it’s really important to demonstrate your ability to communicate relevant information in an interesting way. That’s why it’s helpful to think of writing as a process—it’s very rare that we’ve seen an outstanding personal statement that didn’t go through at least 5 drafts. Everything you write should be carefully considered . You don’t want your ideas to come off as sloppy or half-baked. Your reader should see the care you put into brainstorming and writing in every sentence. Notice how well this author uses the idea of having Jon Stewart of The Daily Show as his “teacher” every Friday, into his interest in debate and unbiased journalism/information. Through and through, the piece is clever, engaging, and unexpected in the best ways.

Show insight and growth. Your personal statement should ideally have at least 3-5 “so what” moments, points at which you draw insights or reflections from your experiences that speak to your values or sense of purpose. Sometimes, “so what” moments are subtle. Other times, they’re more explicit. Either way, the more illuminating, the better. They shouldn’t come out of nowhere, but they also shouldn’t be predictable. You want the reader to see your mind in action and take that journey of self-reflection with you. In this essay, the author questions whether or not he is using his dedication to impartiality as an excuse not to take sides on important issues. And although this tension isn’t fully resolved, his awareness of this potential blind spot is an example of a “so what” moment because it shows his increased ability to think critically about his own biases (or lack thereof) and demonstrates a new level of maturity as he develops his sense of self.

Embed your values in your essay. In a great personal statement, we should be able to get a sense of what fulfills, motivates, or excites the author. These can be things like humor, beauty, community, and autonomy, just to name a few. So when you read back through your essay, you should be able to detect at least 4-5 different values throughout. For instance, in this essay, the author emphasizes values like truth, honesty, clear communication, and introspection. When you look for these values in your own essay, also consider whether or not they’re varied or similar. For instance, values like hard work, determination, and perseverance … are basically the same thing. On the other hand, more varied values like resourcefulness, healthy boundaries, and diversity can showcase different qualities and offer a more nuanced sense of who you are.

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #4

What are you? I’ve been asked this question most of my life because people don’t know what to make of a face that’s both Japanese and Caucasian. But when I think about who I am, I think of Baba and Jiji. I think about making our favorite recipes, how each dish tastes a little bit different according to “ingredients” like the hour, place, or conversation. Much like these recipes, I am always changing in response to the things I learn from the people I love. One hot dog, a buttery rice ball, and a dash of shoyu. The butter and shoyu’s saltiness, the hot dogs’ smokiness, the nostalgia of every spoonful. They take me back to New York, where my grandparents lived only minutes away. Several days a week, a common scene unfolded in our apartment: Jiji stacked animals with me and my sister, while Baba serenaded us with the clink of pans in the kitchen as she prepared her signature “butter rice”. The pure joy I felt in those fleeting moments are important for me to remember because they keep my definition of joy alive and clear. A nori sheet, sticky rice, one shiso leaf, and two sashimi slices. The nori’s texture contrasts with the chewiness of the fish and rice, but this dish’s tastiest elements were the vegetables Baba carefully picked from the supermarket. What made them truly special was how we constructed and ate them between turns on Mahjong. Our family’s tradition of making handrolls and playing board games emerged after my grandparents moved to Hawaii to be closer to Japan. As our visits became less frequent, I began to grasp the lengths my family took to conserve our relationship with Baba and Jiji. With every trip, I grew more appreciative of the time we spent together, which deepened my understanding of joy by seeing that it creates ground from which gratitude can grow. Steaming shoyu broth, a boiled egg, bean sprouts, three nori sheets, and a serving of noodles. During my two-week visit to Japan, I had dozens of ramen bowls and traveled on the Shinkansen from the Golden Pavilion to the Fushimi-Inari Trail. However, what surprised me most about Japan was what I learned about my grandparents. Seeing them run errands, meet with friends, and take walks together gave me a sense of admiration for Baba and Jiji as individuals who led their own lives, rather than simply as doting grandparents. This admiration not only made me grateful for the time we shared; it brought me greater awareness of myself. I reflected on our experiences together to connect with my Japanese identity rather than relying on their physical presence in my life. When I heard Baba and Jiji wouldn’t be visiting anymore, I felt worried. Worried about what would happen to all our traditions of food and board games, worried that without them there, all the memories would fade away. But my relationship with Baba and Jiji has grown stronger by weathering time and distance. It’s become a part of who I am: a person who values change as a constant; a person who sees myself through the shifting lens of relationships rather than as a fixed set of traits; a person who employs joy, gratitude, and awareness to move through the world. — — —

Dig into the details. One of the main things that makes this essay stand out is the author’s incredible attention to detail. He uses sensorial observations about food he’s eaten as the thematic string to tie his essay together (if you’re wanting to find a theme or object like this for yourself, check out our Essence Objects brainstorming exercise). Notice how the first sentence of each body paragraph comes back to the details that root him in his culture and family (ie. “One hot dog, a buttery rice ball, and a dash of shoyu,” “A nori sheet, sticky rice, one shiso leaf, and two sashimi slices,” etc). Not only do these make the essay more fun and unique to read by harnessing the power of the senses, they also give us a consistent structure to orient ourselves throughout the piece. The more specific details you can give, the more you’ll be able to differentiate yourself from other applicants.

Ask questions. This essay actually starts with one—”What are you?” Don’t be afraid to reflect and ask big questions like this in your essay. Nobody knows the answer to everything, especially at this stage in your life. Don’t approach questions as a point of weakness, but rather as a source of strength and personal growth. Knowing how to ask a good question demonstrates a level of awareness, humility, and maturity that will endear you to readers rather than put them off.

Embrace the “and” of identity. Another great aspect of this essay is the author’s approach to understanding his own identity. Like everyone, he’s multifaceted, with different components to his family lineage and cultural background. Rather than try to condense these different facets of his identity into one thing for the sake of a clear narrative, he actually uses his personal statement to reconcile the tension between them and the messiness of trying to find a succinct narrative. In your essay, don’t be afraid to do the same thing! You don’t necessarily have to solve the tension between different values you uphold, identities you have, or communities of which you are a part. Articulately thinking through their complexities can be a really powerful way to approach the personal statement.

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #5

February 2011– My brothers and I were showing off our soccer dribbling skills in my grandfather’s yard when we heard gunshots and screaming in the distance. We paused and listened, confused by sounds we had only ever heard on the news or in movies. My mother rushed out of the house and ordered us inside. The Arab Spring had come to Bahrain. I learned to be alert to the rancid smell of tear gas. Its stench would waft through the air before it invaded my eyes, urging me inside before they started to sting. Newspaper front pages constantly showed images of bloodied clashes, made worse by Molotov cocktails. Martial Law was implemented; roaming tanks became a common sight. On my way to school, I nervously passed burning tires and angry protesters shouting “Yaskut Hamad! “ [“Down with King Hamad!”]. Bahrain, known for its palm trees and pearls, was waking up from a slumber. The only home I had known was now a place where I learned to fear. September 2013– Two and a half years after the uprisings, the events were still not a distant memory. I decided the answer to fear was understanding. I began to analyze the events and actions that led to the upheaval of the Arab Springs. In my country, religious and political tensions were brought to light as Shias, who felt underrepresented and neglected within the government, challenged the Sunnis, who were thought to be favored for positions of power. I wanted equality and social justice; I did not want the violence to escalate any further and for my country to descend into the nightmare that is Libya and Syria. September 2014– Pursuing understanding helped allay my fears, but I also wanted to contribute to Bahrain in a positive way. I participated in student government as a student representative and later as President, became a member of Model United Nations (MUN), and was elected President of the Heritage Club, a charity-focused club supporting refugees and the poor. As an MUN delegate, I saw global problems from perspectives other than my own and used my insight to push for compromise. I debated human rights violations in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from an Israeli perspective, argued whether Syrian refugees should be allowed entry into neighboring European countries, and then created resolutions for each problem. In the Heritage Club, I raised funds and ran food drives so that my team could provide support for less fortunate Bahrainis. We regularly distributed boxed lunches to migrant workers, bags of rice to refugees and air conditioners to the poor. April 2016 – The Crown Prince International Scholarship Program (CPISP) is an intensive leadership training program where participants are chosen on merit, not political ideologies. Both Shia and Sunni candidates are selected, helping to diversify the future leadership of my country. I was shortlisted to attend the training during that summer. July 2016 – The CPISP reaffirmed for me the importance of cooperation. At first, building chairs out of balloons and skyscrapers out of sticks didn’t seem meaningful. But as I learned to apply different types of leadership styles to real-life situations and honed my communication skills to lead my team, I began to see what my country was missing: harmony based on trust. Bringing people together from different backgrounds and successfully completing goals—any goal—builds trust. And trust is the first step to lasting peace. October 2016 – I have only begun to understand my people and my history, but I no longer live in fear. Instead, I have found purpose. I plan to study political science and economics to find answers for the issues that remain unresolved in my country. Bahrain can be known for something more than pearl diving, palm trees, and the Arab Spring; it can be known for the understanding of its people, including me. — — —

Use structure to enhance clarity. Rather than be intimidated by the 650-word count, think about how you can break down your essay into smaller, bite-sized pieces. The author here does this through chronology, linking each paragraph to a specific time up until the present moment. This is helpful on a practical level because it prevents things from becoming one dense paragraph that’s hard to read. It’s also nice from a content point of view because it groups similar themes or experiences together in an intuitive way. This is especially helpful for a Narrative Essay like this one because it helps us visualize the distinct parts of the story rather than try to figure it out on our own. In a sense, an effective structure helps set a good pace for the narrative and acts as a visual guide for readers. We’d recommend using the Feelings and Needs Exercise if you need some help figuring out which components of your narrative you a) want to write about and b) need to group together.

Always bring it back to you . Some students choose to write their personal statements about complex and politically-charged topics. And that’s a great idea if it’s something that connects to your values, culture, identity, and/or life experiences. However, a lot of these kinds of topics are very nuanced and have deep-rooted histories that would take years to fully understand. Remember, while you may be focusing on a specific event, conflict, or place, this essay is ultimately about you and what you want out of your college experience. Don’t get so lost in the weeds of explaining something that you forget to tie it to your own choices, values, thoughts, or aspirations. This author does a great job of that. Although he’s talking about his experience of a bigger event (the Arab Spring), he connects it back to clubs he’s led or academic paths he’d like to pursue in the future. Remember to keep the majority of the essay centered around you even if the context for it is bigger than just your story.

Vary sentence and paragraph length. If you want to keep your reader engaged throughout your essay, it’s important to think about how you can use structure to pace your writing. Notice how most of this student’s paragraphs are no more than 3-4 sentences max. He doesn't drone on about one topic for long or try to cram everything into a huge, dense block of text that’s impossible to read. Short sentences and sentence fragments can also be your friend. If used well, they can create impact and help draw the reader’s attention to a specific idea or value. In other words, be intentional with how you write and structure your piece.

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #6

My story begins at about the age of two, when I first learned what a maze was. For most people, solving mazes is a childish phase, but I enjoyed artistically designing them. Eventually my creations jumped from their two dimensional confinement, requiring the solver to dive through holes to the other side, or fold part of the paper over, then right back again. At around the age of eight, I invented a way for mazes to carry binary-encoded messages, with left turns and right turns representing 0s and 1s. This evolved into a base-3 maze on the surface of a tetrahedron, with crossing an edge representing a 2. For me, a blank piece of paper represented the freedom to explore new dimensions, pushing the boundaries of traditional maze making. I found a similar freedom in mathematics. Here's what I wrote when I was 9: N+B=Z M^2=P E-(L+B)=G C/Y=Z-Q B+B=Y (D-V)^9-(P*L)=J W=(I-V)^2 Y+B+C=R O^2+(Y*O)=T F^3-(T+W)=F^2 V-R=H-U A^3-C=N Y^2+B=L J^2-J=J+(P+I) Y^3=X X-R=M-O D*A-B-(V+Y)=E U-X-O=W P/P=B S-A=U (Z+B)*C=P C(+/-)B=A U+C=H R-L=S-T The object of puzzles like these was to solve for every letter, assuming they each represented a unique positive integer, and that both sides of each equation are positive. These are not typical assumptions for practical mathematics, and I didn't even need 26 equations. Upon formally learning algebra, I was dismayed that "proper math" operated under a different set of assumptions, that two variables can be equal, or be non-integers, and that you always need as many equations as variables. Yet looking back, I now see that mathematics was so inspirational because there really is no "proper" way, no convention to hold me from discovering a completely original method of thought. Math was, and still is, yet another way for me to freely express my creativity and different way of thinking without constraint. It's all about freedom. The thoughts are there, they just need a way to escape. The greatest single advancement that delivered even more freedom was my first computer, and on it, one of the first computer games I ever played: "Maze Madness." It was a silly and simple game, but I remember being awed that I could create my own levels. Through the years, I've made thousands (not exaggerating) of levels in a variety of different computer games. I get most excited when I discover a bug that I can incorporate to add a new twist to the traditional gameplay. A few years ago I grew tired of working within the constraints of most internet games and I wanted to program my own, so I decided to learn the language of Scratch. With it, I created several computer games, incorporating such unordinary aspects of gameplay as the avoidance of time-travel paradoxes, and the control of "jounce," the fourth derivative of position with respect to time. Eventually, I came to realize that Scratch was too limited to implement some of my ideas, so I learned C#, and my potential expanded exponentially. I continue to study programming knowing that the more I learn, the more tools I have to express my creativity. I plan to design computer systems that are as outside of the box as my thoughts. And who knows where it will lead? My way of thinking in different dimensions could be the very thing separating computers from humans, and it could motivate the creation of true artificial intelligence. To me, studying computer science is the next step of an evolution of boundary breaking that has been underway since my first maze. — — —

Take creative risks. Okay so, it’s not exactly normal to see a 24-line math equation right smack dab in the middle of a personal statement. That being said, it’s actually a very effective strategy given the interests and narrative voice of this particular student. It highlights his clear penchant for math at a young age and shows his fascination with numeric experimentation. It breaks up the flow of the essay in a way that’s a breath of fresh air. Actually, by showing his experimentation with equations, he’s also experimenting with how he writes, highlighting his creativity on two levels! Of course, you never want to sacrifice clarity or content for a creative gimmick but when it will really help your reader see your thought process in action, we would definitely urge you to give it a go. This is what first, second, third, and however many more drafts are for!

Use “geeky” language, when possible. Don’t be afraid to show off your interest-specific knowledge—but in a way that doesn’t feel off-putting. This student takes a nice approach of not going overboard when discussing mathematical concepts and computer programming, while also making sure the reader knows he has some expertise in this area through illustrative details and occasional definitions.

Go back in time as far (or as little) as it seems relevant. Many people stress over trying to fit everything about themselves into this one 650-word personal statement. Our advice? You can’t fit everything in and you shouldn’t try to. What you’re trying to do here is use one theme, object, or story to illustrate your core interests and values. In this case, the author is emphasizing his love of freedom and experimentation as well as his aspirations to pursue a degree in computer science. Now, clearly he’s been interested in mathematics for a long time, but that doesn’t mean he has to tell us every detail about his life from the age of two onward. Instead, he picks and chooses moments at different points in time that speak to the core of who he is and what he loves. The first paragraph is about his days as a toddler and the second is nearly seven years later. And after that, he jumps forward to things he’s done in high school and wants to do in college. That’s totally okay! As you think about your essay, don’t stress about cramming everything in. Rather, pick out a couple great moments you can highlight that will show your reader the most important takeaways.

COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPT #7

I have been pooped on many times. I mean this in the most literal sense possible. I have been pooped on by pigeons and possums, house finches and hawks, egrets and eastern grays. I don’t mind it, either. For that matter, I also don’t mind being pecked at, hissed at, scratched and bitten—and believe me, I have experienced them all. I don’t mind having to skin dead mice, feeding the remaining red embryonic mass to baby owls. (Actually, that I do mind a little.) I don’t mind all this because when I’m working with animals, I know that even though they probably hate me as I patch them up, their health and welfare is completely in my hands. Their chances of going back to the wild, going back to their homes, rely on my attention to their needs and behaviors. My enduring interest in animals and habitat loss led me to intern at the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley over the summer, and it was there that I was lucky enough to meet those opossum joeys that defecated on my shoes whenever I picked them up (forcing me to designate my favorite pair of shoes as animal hospital shoes, never to be worn elsewhere again). It was there that a juvenile squirrel decided my finger looked fit to suckle, and that many an angry pigeon tried to peck off my hands. And yet, when the internship ended, I found myself hesitant to leave. That hesitation didn’t simply stem from my inherent love of animals. It was from the sense of responsibility that I developed while working with orphaned and injured wildlife. After all, most of the animals are there because of us—the baby opossums and squirrels are there because we hit their mothers with our cars, raptors and coyotes end up there due to secondary rodenticide poisoning and illegal traps. We are responsible for the damage, so I believe we are responsible for doing what we can to help. And of course, there is empathy—empathy for the animals who lost their mothers, their homes, their sight and smell, their ability to fly or swim. I couldn’t just abandon them. I couldn’t just abandon them the same way I couldn’t let big oil companies completely devastate the Arctic, earth’s air conditioner. The same way I couldn’t ignore the oceans, where destructive fishing practices have been wiping out ocean life. These are not jobs that can be avoided or left half-finished. For some, the Arctic is simply too far away, and the oceans will always teem with life, while for others these problems seem too great to ever conquer. And while I have had these same feelings many times over, I organized letter-writing campaigns, protested, and petitioned the oil companies to withdraw. I campaigned in local parks to educate people on sustaining the seas. I hold on to the hope that persistent efforts will prevent further damage. I sometimes wonder if my preoccupation with social and environmental causes just makes me feel less guilty. Maybe I do it just to ease my own conscience, so I can tell people “At least I did something.” I hope that it’s not just that. I hope it’s because my mother always told me to treat others as I want to be treated, even if I sometimes took this to its logical extreme, moving roadkill to the bushes along the side of the road because “Ma, if I was hit by a car I would want someone to move me off the road, too.” The upshot is that I simply cannot walk away from injustice, however uncomfortable it is to confront it. I choose to act, taking a stand and exposing the truth in the most effective manner that I think is possible. And while I’m sure I will be dumped on many times, both literally and metaphorically, I won’t do the same to others. — — —

Choose a topic you’re genuinely interested in and passionate about. This may seem obvious, but you don’t want to talk about something just because you think it’s what colleges want to hear. If you don’t care that much about it, that’ll likely be reflected in the essay you write. It’s so clear from this author’s language how much she genuinely cares about taking care of the world around her. If anything, we see that it’s in her very nature to lend a helping hand when she sees something or someone in need (even if it means she has to get pooped on). Try picking a topic that shows off several different facets of your personality and skill set while also staying true to your authentic interests.

Give us a glimpse into your world. One thing that stands out about this essay is the clarity the author has about specific moments and memories around animals and the environment. She then is able to connect these details (like her tendency to move roadkill or get pooped on) to values like empathy and advocacy. Using the 21 Details Exercise will help you identify these moments or observations in your own life and connect them to values.

Be funny… or don’t. This author does a great job of using humor and sarcasm about her tendency to get pooped on as a lighthearted way to address meaningful connections she’s made with animals and the dedication she has to helping them. However, while humor is a great tool to use in some cases, it’s not the only way to write a great essay. If you’re a person who’s comfortable cracking a joke or two, go for it. If being funny doesn’t come naturally to you, don’t try and force it. Remember the personal statement can essentially be about anything and written in any way. The key is finding your authentic voice and channeling it into a topic that feels true to you.

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How to Answer the 2023/24 Common App Essay Prompts

Importance of Common App Essay

Common App Prompts for 23/24

How to Answer the Common App Prompts

Common App Essay Guidelines

Navigating the Common App essay prompts for 2023/24? This guide breaks down each prompt, offering insights, tips, and strategies to craft a compelling narrative. Plus, learn about the unchanged prompts from last year and how Crimson Education's mentors — graduates from top universities — can guide you in telling your unique story. Dive in to enhance your application and stand out in the admissions process.

The Importance of the Common App Essay

The college application process can be a whirlwind of forms, deadlines, and decisions. At the heart of this journey for many students is the Common Application, a uniform application form accepted by numerous colleges and universities.

The Common App streamlines the application process, allowing students to apply to multiple institutions using a single platform. One of the most crucial components of the Common App is the personal essay .

The essay isn't just another box to tick off in the application process ; it's a pivotal opportunity for submitting a more compelling and memorable application.

While grades, test scores, and extracurriculars provide a quantitative view of an applicant, the essay offers a qualitative glimpse into their character, aspirations, and experiences . It's the space where students can transcend numbers and voice their unique stories, challenges, and dreams.

The Common App essay can account for up to 30% of the importance of a college application, based on its weight amongst all other factors.

What US universities look for in your university application

In a sea of applications, the essay is the student's chance to showcase their personality, values, and the experiences that have shaped them . It's a canvas where they can paint a vivid picture of who they are and what they bring to the table.

In essence, the Common App essay is more than just words on a page; it's a reflection of the individual behind the application. Your essay is a vital opportunity to stand out as an applicant — with the power to turn an application from ordinary to extraordinary.

What’s new in 2023/24?

You might notice that the 2023/24 essay prompts have remained unchanged from the previous year . This consistency offers an advantage, as students can draw from a wealth of advice and examples from past years.

5 Common App Essay Tips

Overview of the 2023/24 Common App Essay Prompts

The Common App essay prompts serve as a lens through which applicants can share their unique stories, experiences, and perspectives. For the 2023/24 application cycle, the prompts are as follows:

Personal Background or Talent : 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.
Learning from Challenges : The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
Questioning Beliefs : Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
Acts of Kindness : Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Personal Growth : Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
Passion and Curiosity : Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Topic of Your Choice : Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Additionally, the Common App will retain the optional COVID-19 question within the Additional Information section . In this section you can share any meaningful personal experiences related to the pandemic and relevant to your applicant profile or background, which might include:

Illness or loss within your family or support network
Employment or housing disruptions within your family
Food insecurity
Challenges to mental and emotional health
New responsibilities, such as part-time work or caring for family members
Difficulties in accessing necessary technology or a conducive study environment
Shifts in your major or career interests due to the pandemic's influence

How to Answer the Common App Essay Prompts for 2023/24

For a detailed look at each prompt, visiting the official Common App website is always a good way to make sure you’re following the most accurate and up-to-date information and guidelines before you spend lots of time writing!

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 1?

"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.

Delving into Your Roots

This prompt beckons you to explore your cultural roots, upbringing, and defining experiences . To spark ideas, consider:

Where is your family from, and where did you grow up?
Were there cultural elements that played a significant role in your life?
What were the defining moments in your upbringing that shaped your identity?
Were there specific individuals, artworks, or philosophies that influenced your growth?
How did your environment or community mold your interests or talents?

Self-Reflection and Personal Evolution

Reflecting on your identity and its evolution can offer rich material for your essay. If you've experienced shifts in your identity or perspective, delve into the reasons behind these changes and their implications for your future aspirations . A significant event or realization that altered your worldview can be a compelling narrative focus.

Descriptive Lists as Brainstorming Tools

If you're grappling with where to start, jot down phrases or values that resonate with your identity . Words like "compassion," "resilience," or "innovation" can serve as anchors for your essay, guiding your narrative around pivotal experiences that exemplify these traits.

Narrative Depth Through Personal Stories

Select a story or incident from your life that encapsulates the essence of the chosen descriptive word . For instance, if "cooperation" resonates with you, narrate an instance where teamwork within your family or community led to a significant achievement.

Distinguishing Your Narrative

While the overarching theme of identity might be common, your unique experiences and reflections will set your essay apart . Remember, this essay is an opportunity to showcase aspects of your life and character not evident elsewhere in your application . Avoid redundancy and strive for fresh, engaging content.

Prompt 1 of the Common App essay challenges you to introspect and articulate how background circumstances or experiences have had a unique impact in shaping your identity, self-awareness, character, or goals .

While covering a broad spectrum is tempting, focusing on poignant moments and genuine reflections will make for a more compelling narrative. As you craft your essay, remember to be authentic and let your individual voice shine through.

The Essay That Got Me Into Brown University

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 2?

"The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

Prompt 2 requires identifying meaningful obstacles in your life, articulating lessons learned from them, and sharing how the lessons pave the way for future success.

Identifying Genuine Challenges

While it's tempting to narrate minor setbacks, such as narrowly avoiding tardiness, these stories often lack depth and don't offer insights into your character or values. Instead, focus on significant challenges that had a profound impact on your life:

Did you experience a major culture shock, like relocating to an unfamiliar place?
Were there struggles in building connections or finding friends in a new environment?
Did you grapple with personal tragedies, health issues, or other profound challenges?

Embracing Vulnerability

It's natural to want to present your best self, but genuine growth often stems from acknowledging failures and setbacks . Demonstrating how you initially struggled, made mistakes, or even failed but then learned and grew from those experiences showcases maturity and resilience.

Highlighting Personal Growth

Detail how you navigated the challenge. What catalyzed your transformation? Instead of merely stating that you overcame an obstacle, delve into the lessons it taught you .

How have these lessons equipped you for future challenges?
Would you approach similar situations differently now?

Expanding the Horizon

Challenges aren't always personal. They can encompass broader issues affecting your community, nation, or even globally. Discussing how you and those near to you collectively navigated such challenges, supported one another, and emerged stronger can offer a unique perspective.

Prompt 2 offers an opportunity to demonstrate personal growth, resilience, and the ability to derive lessons from challenges . While the obstacle itself is significant, the focus should be on your journey of navigating it, the lessons it taught you, and how those lessons have shaped your outlook and approach to future challenges.

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 3?

"Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

Prompt 3 is an opportunity to highlight a decisive realization that led you to question or challenge established beliefs while showcasing your ability to act with courage and in accordance with a deep conviction.

Challenging Authority and Norms

This essay explores your journey in standing up against established norms or beliefs . It could be a personal belief ingrained since childhood or a societal norm you felt needed challenging.

Did you confront a deeply-rooted cultural or religious belief?
Were you influenced by literature, cinema, or personal interactions that made you question your long-held views?

Courting Controversy with Care

While the prompt encourages you to delve into potentially controversial topics, it's essential to approach them with sensitivity and respect . Whether it's politics, culture, or religion, ensure your narrative remains personal, focusing on your journey of introspection and growth.

Navigating Uncertainty

This prompt is as much about the questions as it is about the answers. Reflect on:

How did you grapple with the uncertainty that came with challenging established beliefs?
Who were your pillars of support or guidance during this period?
Are you still on a journey of discovery, or have you found a new perspective?

Attributes of Open-mindedness

Your response will give admissions officers insights into your ability to think critically, remain open-minded, and evolve in your beliefs – qualities highly valued in the academic world.

Prompt 3 offers a unique opportunity to discuss personal growth stemming from challenging established norms or beliefs . While the topic you choose is significant, the emphasis should be on your journey of introspection, the challenges you faced, and how it has shaped your current perspective.

Common App Essay Guide Part 1: Ideation

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 4?

"Prompt 4: Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

Prompt 4 allows you to turn positivity in your life circumstances — as opposed to adversity — into an opportunity to showcase your capacity for gratitude and how gratitude shapes your character and actions.

The Element of Surprise:

Begin by reflecting on moments when someone's unexpected act of kindness caught you off guard.

Was it the sheer selflessness of the act, or was it the combination of the gesture and its unexpected nature that evoked gratitude?
How did this act redefine your understanding of family, friendship, community, or even the benevolence of strangers?

Delving Deeper into the Impact

While the act itself is significant, the emphasis should be on its ripple effect on your life .

How did this gesture reshape your worldview, actions, or aspirations?
Did it inspire you to pay forward the kindness or make changes in your life?

Reflect Beyond the Surface

While narrating the act and your immediate feelings is essential, delve deeper into introspection . Reflect on:

The broader implications of the act on your understanding of human nature.
How did it influence your interactions with others or your contributions to your community?
The long-term impact on your values, beliefs, and aspirations.

Prompt 4 offers a unique opportunity to discuss the transformative power of unexpected acts of kindness. While the act itself is the starting point, your essay should focus on your journey of introspection, the lessons learned, and how your capacity to cultivate gratitude impacted your character, perspectives, and actions in meaningful ways.

What I wrote about for my Common App Essay

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 5?

"Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

Prompt 5 specifically focuses on moments of realization and their profound impact on shaping one's understanding of self and others.

Choosing the Right Story

Begin by reflecting on pivotal moments in your life .

Was there a significant challenge you overcame or an event that reshaped your perspective?
Perhaps a seemingly small realization had profound implications for your worldview.
While you can choose any event, ensure it's a story that hasn't been extensively covered in other parts of your application.

Depth Over Breadth

While the event or accomplishment is the starting point, delve deeper into its implications.

How did this experience reshape your values, beliefs, or aspirations?
What lessons did you derive, and how have they influenced your subsequent actions or decisions?
Remember, it's not about having all the answers but about showcasing your ability to introspect and grow from experiences.

Navigating the Grey Areas

Life is complex, and personal growth often stems from navigating its intricacies.

Avoid painting a picture of having achieved complete clarity or understanding.
Emphasize the ongoing nature of personal growth and the continuous journey of understanding.

Prompt 5 offers a unique opportunity to discuss the transformative power of experiences, accomplishments, or realizations . While the event itself is the catalyst, the focus should be on your journey of introspection, the lessons learned, and how it has influenced your perspective and actions.

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 6?

"Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

Prompt 6 focuses on topics or ideas that captivate you to the point that you lose track of time — perhaps as evidence of what kind of topics and lines of inquiry and thought align with your passions, are most natural and compelling for you personally.

Selecting the Right Passion

Begin by reflecting on what genuinely excites you.

Is it an ideology that resonates with your core beliefs?
An academic topic that you've delved deep into?
A fascination with a particular artist, book, or historical event? Ensure that your chosen topic is something you're truly passionate about, allowing your genuine enthusiasm to shine through.

Authenticity Over Pretense

Avoid the trap of selecting a topic merely because it sounds impressive. Admissions officers can discern genuine passion from pretense. The essay should be a reflection of your true interests , not a showcase of academic prowess.

Delving into Personal Experiences

Discuss how your chosen topic has influenced various facets of your life.

How has it shaped your daily routines, conversations, or even dreams?
Have you taken specific actions or initiatives to further explore this interest?
How has this passion influenced your personal growth or future aspirations?

Prompt 6 offers a unique opportunity to discuss what genuinely captivates you . While the topic itself is the starting point, the emphasis should be on your personal connection to it, the experiences it has given you, and how it has influenced your perspective and aspirations.

5 Common App Personal Essay Red Flags

How Do You Answer Common App Essay Prompt 7?

"Prompt 7: Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Prompt 7 is the most open-ended of all, allowing you to venture into any topic of your choice, making it both an exciting and challenging option.

Embracing the Freedom

This prompt offers unparalleled freedom, but with that comes the responsibility of selecting a topic that is both engaging and meaningful .

Reflect on experiences or ideas that have profoundly impacted you.
Consider moments of personal growth, challenges overcome, or unique perspectives you hold.

While the temptation might be to cover a broad topic, focus on specific moments or ideas . Dive deep into introspection, exploring how these moments have shaped your worldview and aspirations.

Engaging Your Personal Voice

Your unique voice is your most potent tool here.

Ensure your narrative is genuine and resonates with your personal experiences and beliefs.
Avoid trying to fit into a mold or writing what you think admissions officers want to hear.

The Journey of Growth

Colleges value growth and potential. Reflect on:

How your chosen topic or experience has influenced your personal growth.
The lessons you've derived and how they've shaped your aspirations and future endeavors.

Prompt 7 offers a unique opportunity to venture into any topic of your choice . While the freedom is exhilarating, ensure your essay remains focused, personal, and reflective of your growth and unique perspective.

General Guidelines for Answering Common App Essay Questions

Word Count : The Common App essay has a word limit of 650 words. It's essential to stay within this limit to ensure your essay is read in its entirety. While brevity is key, make sure you provide enough depth and insight into your chosen topic.
Be Authentic : Admissions officers read thousands of essays. What stands out is authenticity. Write in your voice and be true to your experiences. Avoid trying to write what you think they want to hear.
Proofread : Spelling and grammar mistakes can detract from the content of your essay. Always proofread your work, and consider having a teacher, mentor, or trusted individual review it.
Avoid Repetition : Your essay should provide new information or insights that aren't found in other parts of your application. It's an opportunity to showcase a different side of you.
Stay Focused : While it might be tempting to cover multiple topics, it's better to focus on a single story or idea and delve deep into it. This provides clarity and depth to your narrative.
Reflect : The best essays not only narrate an event or idea but also reflect on its significance. Discussing how it influenced your beliefs, values, or future aspirations adds depth to your essay.
Draft and Revise : Rarely is the first draft the best version. Write multiple drafts, refining your story and message with each iteration.
Avoid Controversial Topics : While it's essential to be genuine, be cautious about discussing highly controversial topics unless you can approach them with sensitivity and depth.
Answer the Prompt : It might seem obvious, but ensure your essay answers the prompt. Admissions officers want to see that you can follow instructions while also showcasing your unique perspective.
Start Early : Don't wait until the last minute. Starting early gives you time to think, draft, and revise, ensuring your essay is the best representation of you.

Final Thoughts

The college application process is a unique opportunity to showcase who you are beyond grades and test scores. The Common App essay is a testament to your journey, passions, and the experiences that have molded you.

Everyone has a distinct story; this platform is your chance to narrate yours. Approach it with authenticity, introspection, and a genuine desire to convey your essence.

Not sure if your essay captures your essence? Want to ensure it stands out in a sea of applications? Get your essay reviewed by our team of experts to ensure it resonates with admissions officers.

And if you're at the beginning stages of your college application journey, consider booking a free consultation with our seasoned college counselors.

We're here to guide you in building a holistic application that amplifies your chances of acceptance at top-tier universities. Your dream college is within reach; let us help you get there.

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How to Answer the 2023-2024 Common App Essay Prompts

Writing your college essay isn’t the easiest thing in the world, but it helps to have a variety of prompts to choose from. Fortunately, there’s seven Common App essay prompts available during the 2023-2024 cycle. In this guide, we’ll discuss each prompt and give you some tips on how to respond.

Related: College essay primer: show, don’t tell

Before we begin…

Before browsing the following Common App essay prompts, it’s a good idea to first think about the story you’re most eager to tell. Consider the most important experiences you’ve had in your life and how you could shape them into a meaningful essay. Only then should you check out the following prompts to find one that fits your story. Since most of the prompts are intentionally broad and open-ended, chances are you won’t have any trouble finding one that suits your particular story. Let’s get started on your Common App essay prompts!

Also see: Common App vs. Coalition App: What are the differences?

“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.”

This is your chance to talk about the people, places, and experiences that have shaped you as a person. The great thing about this prompt is that it’s very broad in scope and can be molded to fit nearly any story. Think about the most important moments in your life and their impact. What parts of your upbringing or personality are essential to who you are as a person? If you’re having trouble, try completing the following sentence: “I wouldn’t be who I am today without…”

Questions to consider:

What sets you apart from others?
Do you have any hobbies, interests, or talents that your life revolves around?
What experiences or people have impacted the way you view the world?

“The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?”

Failure facilitates growth. The hardest moments in our lives are often the ones in which we develop the most as people. Think back to some of the major turning points in your life – the moments when you adapted to a new environment, coped with loss, or tried a new activity. Chances are these moments weren’t exactly easy. But in spite of the adversity you faced, you came out the other side new and improved. Think about these difficult moments, how you overcame them, and what you learned from the experience. As you’re writing, remember to focus on the positive side of things instead of lingering on the negative.

Have you ever moved to a new town, grieved the loss of a family member, or struggled in school?
How have you responded to challenges in your life?
What have you learned about yourself in the process?

Related: Should you submit the FAFSA before or after acceptance?

“Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?”

Admissions officers love to see candidates who are independent thinkers. If you’re passionate about certain ideas that don’t exactly align with popular beliefs, this is your chance to share them. Maybe your essay pushes back against beliefs instilled in you from an early age, or perhaps you’d like to point out injustices you see in society. Whatever the case may be, try to shape your story in a positive and productive fashion. Steer clear of coming across as preachy, angry, or arrogant. Rather, you should aim to strike a humble, yet confident tone. This can be a tricky prompt, but if done well it can demonstrate your ability to stand up for what you believe in.

Question to consider:

When have you had an unpopular belief?
At what times in life have you had to defend your point of view?
What beliefs do you consider essential to who you are as a person?

“Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?”

Oftentimes, we obsess over the problems in our lives and forget to be thankful for the good things. In this new prompt recently added to the Common App’s selection, students are asked to write about a time they felt grateful. The key here is to discuss an event that opened your eyes to a new perspective. Maybe it was the kindness of a stranger, or perhaps it was the action of a friend or family member. Talk about how you felt prior to the event, then discuss how the event changed your point of view. Did you gain a newfound sense of hope or appreciation? Given the uncertainty and anxiety many people have felt as a result of the pandemic, this timely prompt is an excellent chance for students to look on the bright side.

What makes you step back and appreciate the good things in your life?
How do you express gratitude?
What are some of your favorite acts of kindness you’ve witnessed?

“Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.”

Similar to the other prompts, this one asks students to describe something they learned from a specific event. Just as you would for prompt #2, think back to the major turning points in your life as you’re brainstorming for this question. What accomplishments are you most proud of? What events transformed you as a person? If you’re having trouble, keep in mind that your particular event doesn’t have to be something as big as winning an award or moving to a new town. It could be something as small as making a new friend or helping your parents complete a task. The event or accomplishment itself doesn’t matter too much. What’s important is the realization it sparked and the period of personal growth that followed.

Questions to consider:

How have you changed as a person over time?
What moments or events sparked that change?
Have you ever had a “lightbulb moment” during which you came to an important realization?

“Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?”

Now’s your chance to talk about the ideas and topics that excite you most in this world. It’s also a great opportunity to connect your intended area of study to your personal passions. For instance, let’s say you plan on majoring in film. Use this prompt to discuss your interest in cinematography and how you’re eager to produce your own short films once you enroll in school. Whatever you choose to write about, just make sure it’s something you’re genuinely passionate about. If it’s something you truly love, you should have no trouble writing an entire essay about it.

What’s a topic or idea that you never get bored of?
What are the things that make you most excited?
When you’re interested in something, how do you typically seek more information about it?

“Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.”

If none of the other prompts are to your liking, there’s always the handy create-your-own option. This prompt gives students the enormous freedom to write about literally anything. While this may seem exciting to some students, it can be daunting to others. If you choose to pursue this prompt, there’s a few things you should keep in mind. First of all, you should find a focus and stick with it. Avoid letting your essay become too broad and freewheeling. Rather, write about one or two specific moments in your life and how they relate to your topic. And although you can write about anything, it’s best to discuss something that relates to your own personal growth, what you’ve learned in life, or what you hope to accomplish in the future.

What should admissions committees know about you that they wouldn’t learn about from the rest of your application?
Are there any stories from your past that provide insight into who you are as a person?
If you had to give an elevator pitch describing yourself, what would you talk about?

Next steps for completing the Common App

After you’ve completed the Common App essay prompts, your work is not yet done! There are other sections to the Common App, and there is a special art to filling out each of them. We have guides to help you through the activities section , the honors section , and the additional information section . To help you stay on schedule, you can check out our guide to application deadlines and a description of rolling admissions .

We’ve also got some guides to help you rock your essays: check out our guides to writing a 250 word essay , a 500 word essay , and to writing essays about yourself . We can also help you decide how many colleges to apply to , and how to pick safety, reach, and match schools .

Finally, if you’re working on your Common App, that means it’ll soon be time to apply to scholarships! We have a list of scholarships for high school seniors that will be a great help. You can also sign up for the Scholarships360 platform , which grants you access to a customized scholarship database full of vetted opportunities.

Good luck with your Common App and make sure to check back with us for other opportunities!

Also see: Can you use the same essay for multiple colleges?

Frequently asked questions about how to answer the Common App essay prompts

How many common app essay prompts do i need to respond to, when should i start working on my common app essay, can i get help with my common app essay, can i use the same essay to apply to different schools, what is the most important thing to keep in mind when writing the common app essay, scholarships360 recommended.

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2023-2024 Common App Essay Prompts

March 1, 2023

The folks at the Common Application have officially announced that the Common App essay prompt menu for the upcoming 2023-24 admissions cycle will remain exactly the same as it was the previous year. In the opinion of the College Transitions staff, the decision to stay the course was a wise one. A quick look at the data shows that the prompts, as presently constituted, received rave reviews across the board—more than 95% of admissions officers, guidance counselors, parents, and students rated the selections positively.

In this blog we will review:

What’s new in 2023-24?
The COVID-19 essay
The Common App essay word limit
A look at all 2023-24 Common App essay prompts
Links to supplemental essay prompts for 50+ colleges
The most popular Common App prompts that students choose
Advice on brainstorming/writing your Common App essay

What’s New for 2023-24?

Absolutely nothing! Again, this is a good thing. The Common App seems to have found an array of topics with something to offer just about everyone. Last year, they altered prompt number four, to include an invitation to talk about gratitude, a welcome addition in this crazy pandemic-impacted world in which we find ourselves.

The COVID-19 Optional Essay

The optional COVID-19 question will remain within the Additional Information section. For tips on whether to/how to best utilize this space, check out our blog on the topic — How to Answer the COVID-19 Question on the Common App.

Common App Essay Word Limit

The Common App essay word limit remains at 650 words. There is also a minimum floor of 250 words.

All 2023-24 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. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Which prompts are most popular?

In the most recent cycle reported by the Common App, the most frequently selected topic was #7, the “topic of your choice” essay. This prompt was chosen by 24.1% of applicants. Prompt #5, the “discuss an accomplishment” essay was a close second, attracting 23.7% of seniors. The bronze medal went to prompt #2, the “challenge, setback, or failure” themed essay, which netted 21.1% of Common App filers. Overall, the three most popular prompts accounted for 68.9% of applicants.

Looking for Supplemental Essay Prompts and Advice?

The Essay Section of our blog has you covered with the latest prompts and tips for 50+ top colleges.

Common App Essay Prompts – Advice on brainstorming/writing your essay

The basic rules for writing a stellar college essay vary little from the general guidelines for producing any strong piece of written work: be authentic, tell a story that is personal and compelling, and diligently edit, revise, and polish your product.

Writing an essay that is compelling doesn’t mean that you need to have wrestled a puma, grown up in a cult, or discovered a new galaxy at age seven. A great college essay can take place on a grand stage but it can just as effectively take place in everyday life. There is a ready supply of drama, tension, and conflict in a typical day. Over the course of your life, you have undoubtedly had experiences that constitute worthy essay topics. Think it over. Talk to family and friends. Your compelling story will emerge.

We also invite you to review the following resources to help with your college essay writing:

Advice on what to do is useful, but tips on what not to do are of equal importance. Check out our Five Essay Topics to Avoid to discover what topics admissions officers are sure to find unappealing, off-putting, or downright gross.
If you are a real go-getter, you may also wish to get a start on the most prevalent Common App supplement required by colleges—the “Why this College?” essay. Reference our guide for mastering the “Why this College?” essay .
If you are also applying to a school in the University of California system, you’ll also need tips on answering the UC Personal Insight Questions .
Are you a transfer applicant? Don’t worry, we have advice for you too in our blog entitled How to Write a Winning Transfer 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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How to Answer the 2023/24 Common App Essay Prompts

How to make your Common App essays stand out!

How to answer the 2023/24 common app essay prompts.

Common App essay prompts for the 2023-24 admissions cycle are now available - learn how to select the correct essay and to write original, authentic, beautiful essays that reflect your talents and abilities. See personalised advice for selecting and answering each of the seven 2023-24 Common App essay prompts.

What is the Common App essay?

The Common Application is the portal through which you submit college admissions essays to more than 900 US and Canadian colleges. The Common App essay is an up to 650 word essay or personal statement.

Is the common application the only essay needed?

No. Besides choosing one of the seven Common App essay prompts, you will also need to answer supplemental essays and questions required by the individual US colleges to which you choose to apply.

How should I decide which Common App essay prompt to answer?

The short answer is: whichever question you believe will allow you to bring your story to life - to share your narrative, vision, talents, story and plans with admissions committees. To explain why you deserve to be admitted above other candidates and to explain what makes your application unique. We’re all different: the Common App is one of the spaces within the college application to really shine and show a dimension of yourself beyond statistics such as grades and standardised tests. Choose a topic that is meaningful and relevant to you and don’t try to think up the ideal answer or story you think admissions committees want to read. You’ll always stand out more if you’re authentic and natural!

How should I start writing the Common App essay?

Different prompts allow you to prioritise aspects of your story and focus the narrative in different ways. Remember, though, they’re only springboards: you’re in charge of the narrative here and of how to lay out your case! Begin almost without thinking, running through each of the prompts and scribbling bullets you might use to answer them. Pay particular attention to if one particular prompt jumps out at you, or you feel inspired to focus on that one.

See our personalised tips for each prompt below, as well as the seven prompts to choose from.

The Common App Essay Prompts for 2023/24

You must choose one of the following seven essay prompts. here are j&j education's best tips for answering each common app personal essay prompt., prompt 1: 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., how do you answer common app personal essay prompt 1.

J&J’s top tips:

1) Here’s your chance to think through your upbringing and background and understand the pivotal moments or themes in your life. If a friend asked you what matters most to you/what has most shaped you, what’s the immediate, instinctive answer that comes to mind? This could be a clue of where to focus!

2) Consider any topics, people, books or places that matter to you greatly. Those could be a great place to begin - a springboard from which to move to the next layer of this essay: why whatever it is has shaped you/is central to your identity.

Prompt 2: The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

How do you answer common app personal essay prompt 2.

1) Adverse events - things not going our way, rejections, setbacks, losses - can scar us deeply and may be unwanted. But they also contain the seeds for deep personal transformations: changes in how we think, what we value, what we want out of life, who we are.

2) Start this essay prompt by reflecting for yourself, genuinely, on how setbacks have impacted you and have a clear sense of the dynamics before trying to construct the narrative and put this into essay form.

Prompt 3: Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

How do you answer common app personal essay prompt 3.

1) Consider the tension between your own values - what you consider to be valuable, of meaning, right - and those of other people and institutions. Have you experienced a clash between these two? What did that feel like? How did you navigate that? Dare to be vulnerable and controversial - there’s no correct answer here; the only wrong approaches are those that aren’t sufficiently meaningful.

2) One way to think about this essay prompt is that admissions officers want to understand how your views and aspirations have been shaped and to know that you’re both a self-reflective person (you understand and question what matters and your own biases and impulses) or, also, perhaps someone who has strong values and ideas about what matters in the world - about how to make our societies and communities better and fairer.

Prompt 4: Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

How do you answer common app personal essay prompt 4.

1) US admissions officers want to select a student class that is not only academically promising but also diverse - with students who will contribute to the campus and the world.

2) This question is a deceivingly complex one that requires us to reflect on deeper psychological dynamics: do we notice what’s good in the world in our lives? How do we relate to other people? What do we value? Why are particular acts surprising and how do we wish to relate to others?

Prompt 5: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

How do you answer common app personal essay prompt 5.

1) This essay prompt may use similar material to Common App Personal Essay Prompt 2 (on overcoming challenges and setbacks). But it’s not necessarily limited to what we might view as adverse events. The essay invites us to consider how we respond to events - how our views are shaped, how and why we grow. But through the prism of our own personal, concrete experience, not in the abstract/as an intellectual exercise.

2) The specific events are much less important than the ‘deeper internal narrative’ - the story of your responses. You could think of the question in this way: how have you come to be shaped and what has made you the person you currently are, with a certain set of views, ideas, hopes etc.? Can you tell this story through one particular turning point or event?

Prompt 6: Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more.

How do you answer common app personal essay prompt 6.

1) Don’t fall into the trap of pontificating, or of thinking about this as an intellectual question. This isn’t an opportunity to ponder concepts or ideas in an analytical way but reflect on what brings you alive and why? It might be helpful to think of this question emotionally (when do you feel most alive/doing what) and to convey your engagement with the subject in the narrative.

2) Make this essay unique to you - how do you think about this topic, idea or concept and what is your engagement with it that would stand out. And the best way to answer this is to write honestly - the engaging narrative will then flow naturally.

Prompt 7: Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

How do you answer common app personal essay prompt 7.

1) Make sure to structure this essay like you would the others - and to set yourself an equivalent mental prompt for focusing. This essay is your opportunity to go wild and bring in any area you like, but make sure to be disciplined if you’re choosing it.

2) What all of the essays have in common is a desire to understand you beyond your grades; to get to know you, what you care about and how you engage with others, yourself and the world. Keep this ‘psychological’ focus in mind while drafting if you choose this more flexible prompt.

Final J&J tip for all Common App essays

Be honest! Don’t make your whole focus on crafting the kind of essay you think admissions officers would like to read; they wish to know you and what makes you different from other applicants. The art is to bring yourself to life in a natural way and shine through.

Book your free Common App consultation with J&J Education today. Learn more about working with our world-leading writers with experience working on the admissions process at top US universities including UPenn, Harvard, Yale and more.

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COMMENTS

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According to the The Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue, a good essay is focused, organized, supported and packaged. Keywords should also be identified within the question around which the answer is constructed.
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Answers to performance review questions are ways for both a supervisor and an employee to asses an employee’s strengths and weaknesses over the course of the last review period, according to About Money.
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An example of a question from the OSHA 30 test is how often should vehicles being used on a work site be inspected. The answer is they should be inspected daily at the beginning of the shift.
What are the 2023-24 Common App essay prompts?
The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or
Popular College Application Essay Topics (and How to Answer Them)
Popular College Application Essay Topics (and How to Answer Them) · Prompt #2: Learning from obstacles. · Prompt #3: Challenging a belief. · Prompt #4:
How To Answer the 2023-24 Common ...
Did your parents let your older brother choose your name? What was his inspiration? (Please tell us your name is Gaston.) What does your name represent for you?
How to Answer the Common App Essay Prompts for 2023-2024
Some key questions to think about: · What engages you generally? · What exact steps have you taken to acquire new information about or
The 2023-2024 Common App Prompts (7 Example Essays & Analysis)
How do you choose the best college essay prompt? Learn how to choose the best Common App essay prompt for writing your personal statement
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Delving into Your Roots · Where is your family from, and where did you grow up? · Were there cultural elements that played a significant role in
How to Answer the 2023-2024 Common App Essay Prompts
Prompt #1 · What sets you apart from others? · Do you have any hobbies, interests, or talents that your life revolves around? · What experiences or people have
2023-2024 Common App Essay Prompts
The folks at the Common Application have officially announced that the Common App essay prompt menu for the upcoming 2023-24 admissions
How to Answer the 2023/24 Common App Essay Prompts
1) Consider the tension between your own values - what you consider to be valuable, of meaning, right - and those of other people and
How to Answer Each Common App Prompt
1. Create your application portals. · 2. Be original. · 3. Experiment with your topic. · 4. Use your own voice. · 5. Know when your essay is finalized.
21 Stellar Common App Essay Examples to Inspire Your College
These Common App essay examples demonstrate a strong writing ability and answer the prompt in a way that shows admissions officers something

What are the 2023-24 Common App essay prompts?

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2023–24 Common App Essays

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Tackling the Common App Essay Prompts

Prompt #2: Learning from obstacles.

Prompt #3: Challenging a belief.

Prompt #4: Reflecting on gratitude.

Prompt #5: Personal growth.

Prompt #6: What captivates you?

Prompt #7: Topic of your choice.

More College Essay Topics

Describe a person you admire.

Why do you want to attend this school?

What is a book you love?

What is an extracurricular activity that has been meaningful to you?

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How To Answer the 2023-24 Common App Essay Prompts

How To Write Common App Prompt #1: The Background Essay

PROMPT #1: 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.

How To Write Common App Prompt #2: The Setback Essay

PROMPT #2: The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

How To Write Common App Prompt #3: The Challenge Essay

PROMPT #3: Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

How To Write Common App Prompt #4: The Gratitude Essay

PROMPT #4: Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

How To Write Common App Prompt #5: The Accomplishment Essay

PROMPT #5: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

How To Write Common App Prompt #6: The Passion Essay

PROMPT #6: Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

How To Write Common App Prompt #7: Topic of Your Choice

PROMPT #7: Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

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How to Answer the Common App Essay Prompts for 2023-2024

Which Common Application Essay prompt is best to choose?

Common App Essay Prompts for 202 3-2024

How To Write Common App Prompt #1: Background, Identity, Interest, or Talent

Questions to ask yourself for Prompt #1:

Examples to consider for Prompt #1:

How To Write Common App Prompt #2: The Setback Essay

Questions to consider for Prompt #2:

A few examples for your reference:

How To Write Common App Prompt #3: Challenging a Belief or Idea

Questions to consider while brainstorming:

Some examples to get you started:

How To Write Common App Prompt #4: Showing Gratitude

Consider these questions for Prompt #4:

Examples to use as guidance:

How To Write Common App Prompt #5: The Accomplishment Essay

Some other things to consider:

Some example topics for this prompt:

How To Write Common App Prompt #6: an Engaging Topic, Idea, or Concept

Some key questions to think about:

And a few examples to get those wheels turning:

How To Write Common App Prompt #7: Topic of Your Choice

More brainstorming questions to consider:

Some examples of potential subjects and their related prompts:

A Detailed Plan for Writing the 2023-2024 Common App Essay Prompts

1. Brainstorming your Common App essay topics

2. Choosing a Common App essay prompt that best fits you

Remember to show who you are in your essay!

3. Organizing your essay’s story

4. Write a Common App essay that is clear and focused

Final Thoughts on the Common App Essay Prompts and Answers

The 2023-2024 Common App Prompts (7 Example Essays & Analysis)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Which Common App Essay Prompt is Best?

What are the Common App Essay Prompts?

1. Background Essay

2. Challenge Essay

3. Belief Essay

4. Gratitude Essay

5. Accomplishment Essay