The post What Are the Common App Essay Prompts first appeared on Great College Advice.

How do I preview my Common App before submitting?

The Common Application includes a built-in preview feature that every applicant should use before submitting. To access it, log into your Common App account, navigate to your application for a specific college, and look for the “Preview” or “Print” option. This generates a complete PDF document showing exactly what admissions officers will see when they review your application.

This PDF preview is invaluable because it allows multiple review options. You can sit with a parent and go through the application side-by-side, or you can share the PDF with your college counselor for their professional review. This flexibility means you maintain control of your application while still benefiting from fresh eyes catching potential issues.

The PDF format also makes it easier to spot formatting problems, text that got cut off due to character limits, or sections that look incomplete when viewed as a whole document rather than screen by screen.

What common mistakes should I look for when reviewing my Common App?

Your application review should cover several categories of potential errors, ranging from simple typos to strategic missteps.

Biographical and Family Information: Double-check your graduation year, parent education details, and financial aid status. These factual errors are easy to make when filling out forms quickly but can create confusion or administrative issues for admissions offices.

Activities Section Strategy: The Common App provides space for only ten activities with strict character limits. What matters most is not filling every slot, but ensuring the activities you do list accurately represent your involvement. The number of activities is less important than the depth of commitment—students need not fill all ten spaces, but what counts is what information goes into those spaces. Use strong, action-oriented verbs to describe your accomplishments.

Essay Alignment: One of the most common mistakes students make is writing essays that don’t actually answer the prompts. As veteran college admissions expert Jamie Berger explains, students often try to squeeze unrelated accomplishments into supplemental essays rather than directly addressing what colleges are asking. He notes that the essay that simply reiterates accomplishments already listed elsewhere is the worst possible approach—admissions officers want to understand who you actually are beyond your data.

School-Specific Requirements: Verify that you’ve selected the correct application deadlines and completed any honors program or scholarship applications that may have separate due dates. One parent in the Great College Advice community shared their experience discovering too late that USC Honors College essays were due November 15th, not December 1st as they had assumed—a costly oversight that proper preview would have prevented.

When should I start reviewing my application before the deadline?

Starting your review process early is essential for submitting your strongest possible application. Great College Advice recommends having your application ready to submit four weeks before each college’s official deadline.

As part of this, final drafts of all essays should be completed one month before the application deadline for that college. This means if your Early Decision deadline is November 1st, your essays should be finalized by October 1st. For January 1 Regular Decision deadlines, essays should be complete by December 1.

This timeline serves two important purposes beyond simply avoiding last-minute stress. First, it’s practical—if you’re rejected from early applications, you’ll have only about two weeks to complete remaining Regular Decision applications if you haven’t already finished them. Leaving all this work to the last minute means running the risk of submitting poorly crafted applications.

Second, the timeline is emotional. If a student is rejected by their first-choice college, the psychological energy needed to complete subsequent applications is significant. That disappointment can negatively impact the quality of remaining applications if they’re not already substantially complete.

Should I have someone else review my Common App before submitting?

Having another person review your application before submission is strongly recommended, though different reviewers serve different purposes.

Parents: Parents should proofread the general information sections to check for small errors like graduation year or financial aid status. Parents know family details that students might misremember or enter incorrectly. There are several ways to facilitate this review—sharing your login information, sitting together to review side-by-side, or sharing the PDF printout for independent review.

Professional Counselors: Working with an experienced college counselor provides strategic review beyond basic proofreading. Great College Advice’s packages include detailed instructions about how to complete the application platform and line-by-line review to ensure every field is filled out correctly and strategically. This includes guidance on which activities to list and how to meaningfully describe them within character constraints.

Important Boundaries: While others can help catch errors and offer feedback, the Great College Advice Family Handbook emphasizes a critical boundary—the application content, especially essays, must genuinely represent your voice and experiences. Do not complete the applications yourself as a parent, and more importantly, do not write the essay. Your student’s application needs to be a reflection of them and therefore needs to be their work.

What sections of the Common App need the most attention during review?

Not all sections of your Common Application require the same level of scrutiny. Focus your review time strategically on these high-priority areas.

Activities Section: This section deserves careful attention because of its strict limitations and strategic importance. Jamie Berger emphasizes that demonstrating an ongoing, in-depth commitment to an activity matters more than the activity itself. Students should be “well-lopsided” with superior talents in one or two areas rather than appearing to flit from one activity to the next without real commitment. During review, ensure your activity descriptions maximize the limited character count and clearly convey your level of involvement and impact.

Personal Statement: Your main essay should reveal something about you that isn’t captured elsewhere in your application. As Jamie Berger explains from his years helping students gain admission to highly selective schools, admissions officers already have all your data—they don’t want to hear more about your accomplishments. They want to get a feel for who you actually are. Review your essay to confirm it shares genuine insight into your personality, values, or perspective.

Supplemental Essays: These require particularly careful review because each college asks specific questions for specific reasons. Verify that each supplemental essay directly answers what’s being asked. Students often fall into the trap of trying to squeeze in more achievements rather than thoughtfully addressing the prompt.

Academic Information: Confirm that your course listings, GPA, and test scores match your official records. Any discrepancies between your application and your transcript can raise red flags.

How do I make sure my essays answer the prompts correctly?

Essay alignment is one of the most critical aspects of your application review, yet it’s where many students stumble.

For your main Personal Statement, the approach is relatively flexible. The seven Common App prompts are broad enough that your answer just needs to fit vaguely into one of them. This gives you creative freedom to share the story that best represents who you are.

Supplemental essays, however, require precision. Jamie Berger, drawing on his extensive experience as a highly acclaimed college admissions counselor, explains that when colleges ask supplemental questions, they’re asking very specific questions that they want you to answer in very few words. He notes that students often veer far from the questions trying to force in additional achievements. You cannot veer off and give an anecdote about a discovery you made in a job if it doesn’t answer the question about why you want to attend that specific school.

During your review, read each prompt carefully and then read your response. Ask yourself honestly: Does this essay directly answer what they asked, or am I using this space to talk about something else I wanted to include? The best supplemental essays demonstrate genuine research into and enthusiasm for each specific college while directly addressing the prompt.

As Jamie Berger emphasizes, the students who succeed have shed the mindset of trying to figure out what admissions officers want to hear. Instead, they approach essays authentically—not trying to game the system, but genuinely reflecting on who they are and what they want from their college experience.

What happens if I submit my Common App with errors?

Understanding the consequences of submission errors underscores why thorough preview is so important—once you submit your Common Application to a specific college, you cannot make changes to that submission.

Minor Errors: A small typo or grammatical error typically won’t derail an otherwise strong application. Admissions officers understand that students are human and review thousands of applications with minor imperfections.

Significant Errors: More serious mistakes—incorrect graduation year, wrong school names, copy-pasted essays with another college’s name, or missing information—can create genuinely negative impressions. These errors suggest carelessness or lack of genuine interest in that particular school.

Deadline Confusion: Some of the most costly errors involve misunderstanding deadlines. One parent in the Great College Advice community shared how their family applied to USC Honors College by the November 15th deadline but thought supplemental essays were due December 1st. In reality, the essays were due November 15th with the main application—the field to input essays had disappeared because the deadline had passed. This misunderstanding meant missing the honors college opportunity entirely.

Administrative Consequences: Some colleges may penalize incomplete or problematic applications administratively. For example, students might be moved from Early Action consideration to Regular Decision if materials don’t arrive by the deadline. This is particularly true for official test score reports, since students have more control over ordering those than over their high school’s transcript-sending process.

The lesson is clear: prevention through thorough preview is always better than hoping admissions officers overlook errors or that deadlines are more flexible than stated. Take the time to review before you submit.

Ready to Submit a Flawless Application? We Can Help.

Don’t leave your college future to chance. Our team of experienced admissions counselors provides comprehensive line-by-line application review to ensure every field is filled out correctly and strategically. From essay development to activities descriptions to deadline management, we’ll help you present your strongest possible application.

Book Your Free Consultation Today and discover how Great College Advice can help you navigate the college application process with confidence.

About Great College Advice: Great College Advice is a boutique college admissions consulting firm with over 100 years of combined experience helping students navigate the college application process. Our counselors provide personalized guidance including strategic college list development, essay support, and comprehensive application review.

The post Why Proofread Your Common App first appeared on Great College Advice.

This short paragraph can be an essential component of your entire presentation as an applicant.  In just a few sentences, you must convey something personal, meaningful, and interesting about yourself.

Seems impossible, right?  “How can I sum up my experience in my favorite extracurricular activities in 150 words or less?”

Well, it’s time to tackle the impossible. These tips may help you decide which activity to focus on, and how to write a well-structured paragraph that gives the reader a deeper understanding of your motivations and your priorities.

Choose the Right Activity

Don’t necessarily pick the activity that looms largest on your resume or activity list. If you are a star tennis player and a possible recruit for a college team, that fact will be clear on your activity list. If you are the best clarinetist in the city, then your activity list should reflect that fact.  Remember, the prompt asks you to “elaborate” on the activity. It doesn’t say you have to choose the one that takes up the most time, nor does it say that it must be the one that is your primary extracurricular focus.

More specifically, it may be that the activity in which you have achieved or excelled the most is not the activity that will be the best to elaborate upon in this short essay. Consider the other activities that may help to round out your application and present another view of what motivates and interests you.

Consider which activities carry the most personal meaning to you. Look back over your resume or activities list and ask yourself, “Which of these would I miss the most if I could no longer do it?” Perhaps it’s that annual scouting trip, or the weekends skiing with your family. Or maybe it’s that concert you organize at the nursing home twice a year that brings you particular joy. Choosing the right activity is the first step as you write your extracurricular activity essay.

Your “Hidden” Activities

Consider elaborating on an activity that is not on the activities list or resume. For example, perhaps your extended family shares Sunday dinner together regularly, and this ritual has had a big influence on you and helped to shape your feelings about family. Maybe you actually enjoy mowing your lawn every week, making it look nice by paying attention to details. Perhaps you ride your bike to school every morning, and you use that time to notice details on your route and get your head together before and after your workday.

Not Necessarily Your “Best” Activities

Consider taking one of your activities and giving it greater specificity and detail. As you know, the space on the application in which to elaborate on your activities is very, very limited.  So use this short paragraph to pull out some details. For example, perhaps you mention on your activity sheet that you have done volunteer work at a hospital, and that you have several responsibilities. But perhaps there is one responsibility, in particular, that you most enjoy. That one responsibility could be the focus of your extracurricular.

To take another example, perhaps you are a guitar player, and your activity list indicates that you’re fairly good, but not great. However, there I some particular aspects of playing the guitar that you enjoy. Perhaps you don’t mind playing scales over and over in order to improve your technique.

Or maybe you go to a music store on Saturdays where a bunch of bluegrass players get together and jam, and you join in, despite the fact you aren’t the best player; or you are a huge fan of Andre Segovia and have listened to every piece he has ever recorded. These sorts of details can say a lot about the depth of your interest in an activity, even if it is not where your greatest accomplishments lie.

The Focus: “Why?”

Your activity list or resume should address the questions of “What, When, and Where?” (the “who” should be apparent:  you!). This list explains your accomplishments and the range of your commitments. But it doesn’t explain your motivations or your priorities. This short essay-ette gives you an opportunity to do some explaining.

As with your primary college essay and with the supplements, the aim here is to give the admissions officer reading your file a bit more information about yourself.  What you convey in this short paragraph is something that they won’t find in the essays, and that they won’t really know from reading your activity list. This is another opportunity for you to present another interesting and important facet of your personality. All the essays give your application depth and dimension. Don’t throw away this opportunity to tell the reader more about yourself.

Tips for Writing the College Extracurricular Activity Essay

Start with a list of reasons you participate in this activity:

• What do you get out of it?
• Why do you enjoy it?
• Why would you miss it if you suddenly were unable to do it anymore?

Remember that not every aspect of your participation may be enjoyable. Are there reasons you participate in this activity that actually help you accomplish something else that is, in fact, even more enjoyable? For example, weight training may not always be fun, but it can make you stronger. Practicing the flute may be enjoyable in some respects, and not so much in others—but practicing makes you a better player.

Once your list of reasons why you participate in this activity, pick the top three. Write your essay in 5 sentences. One to introduce the activity, three to explain why you do it, and 1 to spare, either as a conclusion or as an elaboration on your introduction.

Some Prompts to Get You Going

If you are having trouble, try completing these sentence prompts to get you going.

• When I participate in this activity, I feel ___________.
• I originally got involved in this activity because ____________.  And now I continue this activity because ____________.
• My favorite aspect of this activity is ____________.
• My friends think this activity is ___________.
• I take the most pride in this aspect of the activity: ___________.

The College Extracurricular Activity Essay – Final Notes

For most of us–adults as well as teens–our activities are good reflections of our priorities, talents, and motivations. We often demonstrate excellence through the things we do outside of school (or outside our jobs or professions).

The supplemental extracurricular activity essay is a great way for you to share more about who you are as a person. If you focus on WHY you engage in these activities, you’ll be able to convey those motivations and priorities.

You have fun engaging in your extracurricular activities. Now enjoy writing about one that is especially important to you.

Need Help With Your College Extracurricular Activity Essay?

If you are having trouble putting together your college essays, including your college extracurricular essay for the Common App, then you might want to consider reaching out to Great College Advice. We help students with every aspect of the college admissions process, and we would love to guide your toward your educational objectives.  If you’d like to learn more about what we do, contact us.  We’ll be happy to chat with you!

Great College Advice Guide to Supplemental Essays

• See our guide to why supplemental essays are important;
• See our post with tips on the college supplemental essay about your academic interests;
• See our recommendations on the ‘community’ supplemental essay;
•  See our guide to writing a great ‘Why This College?’ supplemental essay.

Since 2007, the expert team of college admissions consultants at Great College Advice has provided comprehensive guidance to thousands of students from across the United States and over 45 countries across the world. Great College Advice has offices in Colorado, New Jersey, Chicago, North Carolina and Massachusetts.

In addition to our one-on-one counseling, Great College Advice extends its support through one of the most active and resource-rich Facebook Groups for college-bound students and their families: College Admissions Experts. With nearly 100,000 members—students, parents, and experienced counselors—this vibrant forum offers peer support and expert advice like no other.

The post The College Extracurricular Activity Essay first appeared on Great College Advice.

• Think carefully about your choice of major and/or academic interest;
• See this as an opportunity to reveal more about yourself;
• Relate this to the college
• Show, don’t tell

The importance of the college essay about academic interests

Colleges are academic institutions. They are places where the library occupies the central location on the campus. Academic buildings surround the quad, and the most important staff members are professors ready to share their knowledge and cultivate knowledge and understanding in their students.  

Colleges are places where you will study. You’ll take tests and write papers. Perhaps you’ll attend labs and discuss important books and research.  

And colleges want to know about your own academic life. They want to get a glimpse of your intellectual orientation, your curiosity, and your zest for learning. 

This college essay about academic interests is an important way to demonstrate that you belong on a university campus.

A few recent examples of the prompts eliciting a college essay about academic interests include:

• Please explain why you wish to study in the academic areas you selected. 150 word limit.. (150-word limit, Rice University)
• Expand on your academic interest (250-word limit, USC)
• University of Michigan: Describe the unique qualities that attract you to the specific undergraduate college or school to which you are applying at the University of Michigan. How would that curriculum support your interests? (550 word maximum.)
• Yale: Students at Yale have time to explore their academic interests before committing to one or more major fields of study. Many students either modify their original academic direction or change their minds entirely. As of this moment, what academic areas seem to fit your interests or goals most comfortably? 

The dos and don’ts of the college essay about academic Interests

To help you write a terrific college essay about your academic interests, just follow these basic guidelines.  

DO: 

Think carefully about your choice of academic interest

Many students don’t know what they want to study yet. And while admissions officers know that undergraduates change their major an average of at least once, and you may be completely undecided at this point, you still need to craft an answer to this prompt with more than “I’m undecided.” You need to have some direction in which you are headed.

Even if you don’t have a specific direction, you might have a general one. For example, you may realize (perhaps through the assessments you have already completed) that you gravitate more toward a general academic area: humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences. You may have some inkling of subjects you really do not like. You may have researched different majors that may interest you, but with which you are still unfamiliar. For instance, few students have taken much in the way of anthropology, geology, or linguistics in high school. The point is to narrow your direction just a bit in ways that will help you craft a response to this essay.

The other challenge is that your academic interest should make sense with the rest of your application. What we mean by this is that when an admissions officer reads your application, the choice of your major, future plans and academic interest essay should make sense in the context of your class choices, extracurricular activities and life experiences.  See more below.

See this as an opportunity to reveal more about yourself

What is the evidence in your life that would support this area of interest? Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help you develop a strong answer:

• Have any classes or teachers inspired this interest?  How?
• Are there life experiences that you have had that have spurred your interest?
• Family involvements
• Personal anecdotes
• What experiences have helped expand your understanding of this interest?
• Club or extracurricular
• Job or internship
• Reading: a specific book or publication that impacted your thinking
• Mentors or other influencers
• Is there a connection to your future plans that you can envision?

Relate this to the college

This is also an opportunity to show that you’ve done your research. You can provide reasons why this school is a good match for you. Is there a special program, professor, or class that shows why you want to pursue your academic interest at this particular school?  

Because some schools ask both about your academic interests and why their school, think about how you will answer both. You do not want to waste precious word count with any repetition of the same information or ideas.

Show, don’t tell

You are going to hear this again and again. Give the specifics that show how this academic interest has developed for you. As with your primary personal statement, you want to give evidence of your interest. Sometimes anecdotes can be very helpful in showing your interests. Avoid sweeping, vague statements.

DON’T

Worry that your answer is a commitment to what you will study

Some institutions will ask applicants to apply to the major or school in which they want to study. If accepted, these applicants will be enrolled directly in that major or school. Happily, at the majority of schools, you are likely to have a great deal of flexibility to change your major later. Even with institutions that are less flexible, your response to this prompt is unlikely to lock you into a major. 

Note that a small handful of schools are particularly strict with regard to you studying what you indicate on your application (e.g., Cal Poly – SLO). If you have questions about this as you fill in your application, be sure to ask your counselor. 

Sweat that your answer is not very specific

Perhaps you have not settled on a major just yet. Perhaps one of the reasons you have chosen this school is that you’ll have the chance to explore and make decisions later about your major.  

It’s perfectly okay to be undecided at a lot of colleges (and presumably, if you are undecided, you’ve chosen to apply to colleges that embrace your “multi-interested” character).  

However, it’s likely that you have academic preferences as well as academic strengths. For example, maybe you’re super strong in science, and you anticipate exploring scientific disciplines in ways you haven’t yet in high school. You might even be able to say that it’s likely you’ll major in the sciences. You can point to the other ways in which your love for sciences shines beyond school.  

For example, maybe you are a nature freak: you hike in the woods, you have had a fishing license since you were 10, and you have volunteered on trail crews every summer. Or maybe you’ve worked on a bird-banding team during migration season. Or maybe you’ve read every popular book and article and watched every video by Neil deGrasse Tyson. All these things indicate that you enjoy science and provide evidence that are likely to pursue science in college. 

Provide a confusing answer

While there are many right ways to write this essay, there is one major pitfall to avoid. Don’t choose to write about an academic interest that you can’t support with any evidence revealed elsewhere in your application. This creates a confusing image of you to your application reader and could send your application to the recycling bin.  

Academic interest essay examples

You might have suddenly decided that you want to study international relations. But your choices might not support the decision. For example, perhaps you stopped taking a foreign language after two years. Or maybe you haven’t chosen any relevant electives, such as human geography, world religions, or international relations. Do you follow international news? If not, then you probably shouldn’t select this academic interest unless you have some other compelling story that proves this major makes sense.

To give another example, let’s say you tend to excel in humanities classes, especially literature. You’ve taken a couple of extra English courses, and you attended a “Great Books” program over the summer. The recommendation letter from your English teacher oozes with compliments about your penchant for literary criticism and remarks how many times you have come into her office to discuss this poem or that novella. And then you write your college essay about an academic interest on how excited you are to be a math major. While it may be true that you do like math, the reader of your essay is likely to be confused about which interest represents your true priorities as you enter college.  

The point is that your answer to this question has to be backed up with some sort of evidence that this academic interest is not an invention. You need to provide a clear and convincing case for how you got interested in this area or discipline, the ways in which you have explored this interest so far, and how you plan to continue this interest in the future.

Your college essay about academic interests – a summary

Colleges are schools. They like scholars. They serve up academic inquiry. This supplemental essay about academic interests is a place for you to demonstrate your academic credentials. It’s also a place to explain how your interests have developed over time and the ways in which you will pursue these interests in the future.

Give the college a picture of who you are intellectually. Demonstrate that you are ready to explore your interests, and to navigate the world of academia as a college student.

Great College Advice Guide to Supplemental Essays

• See our guide to why supplemental essays are important;
• See our guide to the ‘Why this College?’ supplemental essay;
• See our recommendations on the ‘community’ supplemental essay;
• See our guide to the ‘Extracurricular or Activity’ supplemental essay.

Need Help with your college essays?  

Need some help writing a great college essay for the Common App? Having difficulty finding a good Common App essay topic? Please contact us for a free consultation. At Great College Advice, we provide personalized college consulting focused on helping make the process of preparing, selecting, and applying to college more successful, less stressful, and more fun. 

Since 2007, the expert team of college admissions consultants at Great College Advice has provided comprehensive guidance to thousands of students from across the United States and over 45 countries across the world. Great College Advice has offices in Colorado, New Jersey, Chicago, North Carolina and Massachusetts.

In addition to our one-on-one counseling, Great College Advice extends its support through one of the most active and resource-rich Facebook Groups for college-bound students and their families: College Admissions Experts. With nearly 100,000 members—students, parents, and experienced counselors—this vibrant forum offers peer support and expert advice like no other.

The post College Essay About Academic Interests first appeared on Great College Advice.

What is in the Common App?

The Common App is the standardized application platform that many colleges and universities are a part of so students can apply to multiple schools without having to fill out the same information for each college.

The Common App consists of a series of different sections for you to complete:

• Profile: Basic personal info (name, contact, demographics, language).
• Family: Details about parents, guardians, siblings, and family education history.
• Education: High school information including awards, honors, and future aspirations.
• Testing: Self-reported scores from standardized tests (SAT, ACT, AP, IB, etc.).
• Activities: Your top 10 extracurriculars where you list the time commitment and highlight leadership roles.
• Writing: Your Common App personal statement (up to 650 words) and an optional “Additional Information” section for unique circumstances or challenges.
• Courses & Grades: A recreation of your high school transcript that is required by some colleges). 

The next few months are a great opportunity for rising high school seniors to register for a Common App account before August 1 to familiarize themselves with the platform – to understand the application, the information that is required, the format, and how it is used.

What can you start doing today?

• Ask your parents to list where they went to college and graduate school;
• Get a hold of your high school transcript so you have your courses and grades handy;
• Know how to access your standardized test scores;
• Make a list of your awards, honors and activities and focus on those that show leadership, impact and growth;
• Brainstorm your Common App personal statement;
• Finalize that college list.

You can hop on to the Common App website where you can watch a video that hits the highlights of the Common App to help you prepare.

Great College Advice

The post Preview the Common App first appeared on Great College Advice.

Common App Essay Prompt 1 reads like this: , “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.”

Essay Questions on the Common App

How will you decide whether this is the right prompt for you to address on your Common Application essay?

As high school seniors prepare to apply to college, they’re faced with the daunting task of writing an essay that will capture the attention of admissions officers and set them apart from the thousands of other applicants. Crafting a compelling narrative around their background story can be a powerful tool for students to showcase their individuality and leave a lasting impression on the admissions committee. The first prompt on the Common Application asks students to reflect on a various aspects of who they are as a person.

Actually, the prompt asks you to reflect on one of four different aspects of what makes you special: your background, your identity, and interest, or a talent.

As a reminder, here’s how Common App Prompt 1 reads:

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. 

To help you better understand how to address this prompt, I’ve highlighted the most important words in these two short sentences.  I’m going to address each below—not in the order of their appearance—but in order of their importance.

Defining Key Terms in Common App Essay Prompt 1

Background

College admissions people know that some people have an interesting background that is the source of their identity. When discussing your background in your college application essay, it’s important to keep in mind that this is a part of your humanity that you may not have chosen or may not be able to change. This background can be cultural, ethnic, familial, medical, physical, economic, or any other circumstances that affect their lives. There may be elements of this personal background or history that have shaped who you are today and can be acknowledged in your essay.

When writing about your background in response to the Common Application Essay, it’s important to consider how these experiences have shaped you as a person. Also, recognize that not everyone has the same experiences and opportunities. Your background may have presented you with unique challenges or obstacles to overcome, and this can demonstrate your resilience and adaptability. Sharing your background will provide insight into your personality, your values, and your goals.

By reflecting on your experiences, you may discover strengths or skills that you didn’t realize you had, or recognize areas where you still have room for growth. Ultimately, your background is a part of who you are, and by embracing and sharing it, you can show the admissions committee how you have been shaped by your unique background and what you can bring to their campus.

Identity

Your identity may be related to your background.  However, your identity is different from your circumstances or history.  Rather, your identity is how you define yourself.  Certainly your background may be important, and may be one aspect of your identity.  But if you want to focus on your identity for this prompt, you need to think about how you present yourself to the world. Perhaps your identity is something completely different from your background or history.  We define our own identity, but our background can be how others see us.

So, if you want to focus on your identity for this prompt, ask yourself some questions. Who are you?  What are you?  What motivates you and drives you forward in life? How do you see yourself in the world? Your answers to these questions can reveal a lot about your character and the things that are most important to you. Take the time to reflect on what makes you who you are and use that understanding to craft a compelling and authentic essay that showcases your individuality.

To take it further, how does your identity demonstrate or determine other aspects of you as a person.

How does your identity reflect your values and beliefs? How does your identity guide your decisions and actions? By deepening your description of how your identity is important, you can take full advantage of this prompt and communicate who you are in a clear and compelling way.  

Interest

An interest is something that captures your attention and holds your focus. It could be a hobby, a passion, a cause, or even an academic subject that you find fascinating. Your interest can show how you spend your free time, what you care about, and even how you approach challenges and opportunities. This is your chance to showcase your personality and individuality in a way your background, identity, or talent may not. 

Even if your interest is not particularly unique, what’s important is that you are able to demonstrate how this interest has shaped you as a person and contributed to your growth and development. Think about what your interests say about you. Often, pursuing an interest requires dedication, commitment, and practice. By consistently engaging in an activity you’re passionate about, maybe you’ve learned discipline and time management. 

Use this as an opportunity to reveal your personality and individuality beyond what may be listed on your resume. It’s important to keep in mind that your Common App Essay should add something new and unique to your application. You want to provide insight into your passions that aren’t already indicated on your application.  Instead, consider writing about an interest that most people would not know you have. Demonstrate how this interest has shaped you as a person and provides insight into your unique character.

Talent

A talent is a natural ability or skill you possess in a certain area. This is similar to an interest, but it usually entails developing some sort of expertise or ability. It could be anything from music to math, writing to sports. 

Perhaps you have taught yourself origami or how to knit—and you have developed this into a talent that allows you tomake things for your family and  friends. Perhaps you have become excellent at woodworking or calligraphy, and have used this talent in some sort of  interesting way. Your talent is something that sets you apart and showcases your unique abilities. However, just like with interests, it’s important to remember that your Common App Essay should add something new and different to your application.

When writing about your talent you want to be sure it’s a significant part of your identity or has had a profound impact on your life. Your essay should provide insight into the unique perspective and personal qualities that have been developed through the pursuit of your talent. 

Meaningful

In choosing the focus of your essay, whether it be your background, identity, interest, or talent, it is crucial to consider its inherent meaning and significance to you. 

For instance, while your background as someone who grew up in a small town may hold certain nostalgic memories and experiences, it may not hold the same level of personal meaning as your profound interest in military aircraft or prestidigitation. These other aspects of your humanity may be better vehicles to reveal unique aspects of your character and aspirations than to describe the experiences and memories associated with growing up in a small town.

Similarly, you might possess a unique talent like wiggling your ears, which undoubtedly showcases a delightful quirkiness. However, the true depth of meaning may lie within your identity as a jazz musician. It is through music that you find solace, self-expression, and a profound connection to yourself and others. This identity as a jazz musician will encapsulate the essence of who you are profoundly more than your ear-wiggling talent.  

The key lies in identifying the specific background, identity, interest or talent  that holds the most profound meaning and impact on your life. It’s important to recognize the intrinsic importance and significance of the chosen focus. By selecting the most meaningful element, you lay the foundation for an essay that resonates with true authenticity and leaves a lasting impression on the admissions officer.

Story

When it comes to crafting a compelling Common Application Essay, the importance of storytelling cannot be overstated. Note that the last word of the prompt requests that you share a story. So even in identifying the  background, identity, interest, or talent that helps your reader to understand the “real you,” your  essay will be considerably strengthened if you are able to relay an anecdote or short vignette that  illustrates this key attribute about yourself.  

The story you share in your essay is important, but it’s important to remember that it’s only the jumping off point. It’s the springboard for the reflection that comes next. While this prompt asks for the story at the end, it’s likely that you’ll tell the story at the beginning of your essay. However, it’s the reflection on that story that will truly make your essay stand out.

Your story acts as a starting point in the essay, helping to shed light on the core significance of the chosen background, identity, interest, or talent. It allows the reader to understand why this aspect of your life is important and why they should be interested in learning more about it. The story serves as a catalyst, moving the essay forward and creating a foundation for a deeper exploration of how the chosen item has influenced your personal growth, values, or aspirations.

Your story doesn’t have to be dramatic or life-changing to be effective. It can be a small moment that had a big impact on you, or a series of events that taught you an important lesson. What matters is that it is personal to you and highlights something meaningful about who you are. 

When brainstorming for your essay, take some time to reflect on your life experiences and think about the stories that stand out to you. Remember that it should have a clear beginning, middle, and end, allowing you to craft a cohesive narrative. By incorporating a well-structured story into your essay, you can illuminate the significance and impact of your chosen background, identity, interest, or talent. This understanding fosters a deeper appreciation for your unique perspective and cultivates a meaningful connection with your essay.

Incomplete Without it

Incomplete. This word carries significant weight in the context of your application. If your background or story does not truly contribute to shaping who you are, then perhaps your application can be considered “complete” without this particular narrative. In such cases, you should then be looking at other prompts for inspiration. If your background or story does not really help to shape your humanity, then perhaps your application is “complete” without this story.  You should then be looking at other prompts for inspiration. 

Similarly, this prompt offers you an opportunity to tell a story about yourself that is not related to your academic record or your primary extracurricular accomplishments.  If you find that your response to this prompt is a restating or an amplification of something that is already found on your application, consider writing about something else.

For example, if you are an American attending a high school in Norway, your admissions officer will see that you are an American citizen, that you lived 12 years in the US before moving to Norway, and that you attended a Norwegian secondary school.  If you want to write about growing up in Norway, be sure that you are providing information that captures your background or identity in a way that goes beyond your passport, visa status, and the location of your high school.

Similarly, if you have been captain of the debate team and won numerous tournaments, then you might not want to highlight your “interest” in debate in your essay. Instead, tell admissions something meaningful about yourself that they cannot see from reading the activity section of your application (and, perhaps, the recommendation letter from your debate coach).

The purpose of this essay prompt is to provide an opportunity for you to bring forth something fresh and distinctive to your application. You want to use your essay to bring something new to your application—something that  is not already evident in the other elements (transcript, recommendations, honors, activities, and  the like). The focus of this essay, then, should be something that is meaningful to you but that is not obvious. 

Application forms often capture details such as ethnicity, hometown, and important activities, so it is crucial to go beyond these surface-level facts and reflect on what truly allows an admissions officer to authentically “KNOW” you. What sets you apart goes beyond these surface-level facts. What is the “hidden” information that admissions wouldn’t see unless you addressed it? 

This prompt serves as an invitation to unveil the hidden layers of your humanity, illuminating the experiences, insights, and introspection that cannot be captured through your demographic information or checklist of achievements. The pivot of the essay should be something that reveals something personal or unusual about you that helps the reader put you in a new perspective, or that brings to light a hidden truth about you that will give context to the rest of your application. 

Common App Essay Prompt 1 Overview

In choosing the focus of this prompt, whether it be your background, identity, interest, or talent, it is paramount to consider its inherent meaning and significance to you. This will ensure that your essay delves deep into the core aspects that define your unique journey and experiences. 

Your essay should showcase your unique perspectives, values, and beliefs that have made you who you are today, in a clear and understandable way. Use your story as a jumping off point for your reflection.

As you embark on this writing endeavor, keep in mind that the goal of this essay is to bring something new and meaningful to your application, something that helps the reader understand you better and highlights your individuality. Your application is incomplete without this aspect—whether it’s your background, identity, interest, or talent—that contributes significantly to shaping who you are.

In our next post, we’ll be discussing the second prompt which explores a topic that many of us try to avoid but inevitably encounter: failure.

Essay Ideas About A Background, Identity, Interest, or Talent That Worked 

Through our extensive experience working with countless students, we have seen many captivating essays. These narratives showcase the profound impact of personal experiences, offering a deeper understanding of their perspective. The essays below exemplify how individuals skillfully incorporate their background, identity, interests, or talent to create compelling narratives.

• A student whose long-time hobby was doing magic, despite the fact that his friends thought it was nerdy and weird. He presented the essay with some dialogue in it in which friends admitted they thought he was pretty good at it, even though they didn’t think it was as cool as he did. 
  • This example exemplifies a student’s profound interest in magic, crafting a story of resilience and self-acceptance. Their essay reveals how their passion for magic is an integral part of their identity, making their application feel incomplete without sharing this significant aspect of their life. The student demonstrates the significance of embracing personal passions and finding fulfillment in activities that may be deemed unconventional or uncool by societal standards.

• A student with a profound love for reading and exploring various mythologies, discovered significant parallels between the myths and mythical characters he encountered and his own life experiences. His essay reflected his love of reading, his love of family, his competitive spirit, and his determination – all while relating it to mythology.
  • This student’s essay showcases his deep interest in mythology, while creating a captivating story that reflects his identity and personal growth. It demonstrates his ability to craft a captivating story that reveals his unique spirit and personal growth but also highlights the invaluable insight that admissions would not have otherwise known.

Dos and Don’ts for Common App Essay Prompt 1

Don’t write about your interest or talent in football if your Common App activities already indicate you are captain of the team and won the state championship:  your interest is fully indicated in the activities section of the application.

Don’t write about the fact that you are Chinese if your name is Wong or about being Latino if your name is Gonzalez.  Our ethnicity is a fact of our existence.  It is a statement of our genetic code and ancestry.  And it can be very important—or not important at all, depending on the circumstances or context. For instance, it could be important to write about being Chinese if your family is the only Asian family in your small town in Montana. Being “Latino” is not as specific as being a refugee from Venezuela or the child of a Mexican businessman who grew up in Singapore.  The point is our ethnicity is not really all that interesting by itself. If you are writing about your “background,” try to get much more specific and more focused on your individuality. 

Do write about the fact that you spend hours and hours perfecting your juggling or yoyo talents–especially if that is not listed as an activity on your application. 

Do write about your interest in fishing if it is something you do a lot but more as a hobby–and is not a part of your resume.

Do write about your life growing up in a particular place or neighborhood that has helped to define your values, your priorities, your ambitions, or academic plan.

The point is to ADD to your application by providing new and different information that helps round you out as a person.  The application tends to be fairly two-dimensional, so this essay (and any responding to a different prompt, frankly) is meant to provide context to the rest of your resume.

Need Help With Your Common App Essay Prompt 1?

Yes, you can certainly get help with your Common App essay! Writing a strong college essay can be a challenging and intimidating process, and it’s perfectly normal to seek guidance and support along the way.

At Great College Advice, we offer a wide range of services designed to help students with every aspect of the college application process, including writing and revising their Common App essay. Our team of experienced counselors and writing coaches can provide personalized feedback, guidance, and support to help you craft an essay that is compelling, authentic, and effective.

Whether you need help generating ideas, organizing your thoughts, or polishing your final draft, we are here to help. We offer a variety of service packages to fit your specific needs and budget, including comprehensive application counseling, essay coaching, and hourly consultations.

Additional Resources for Common App Essay Prompt 1

• In this informative video, we provide valuable insights and guidance on how to approach the Common App essay prompt 1. We take you through the entire writing process and give tips on how to clearly communicate your individuality and showcase your unique perspectives, talents, and interests.

For additional writing help, check out our Common App Essay Series for in-depth guidance on various topics. Our expert tips and insights will help you showcase your unique experiences and perspectives in a compelling way. Whether you’re just starting your essay or simply refining it, our series is designed to help you every step of the writing process. Make your Common App Essay stand out!

• Common Application Essays: What are they?
• Writing about Background Story
• Writing About Failure
• Writing about Questioning Beliefs and Ideas
• Writing about a Period of Personal Growth

• Additional Essay Help:
  • • Supplemental Essays

The post Common App Prompt 1: Background, Identity, Talent first appeared on Great College Advice.

Here is how the prompt reads:

Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.
Once again, let’s dissect the vocabulary of this prompt to help guide you in your writing. We’ll look at the words in the order of their importance, rather than in the order of their appearance.

Transition

This is the pivot. The prompt is asking you to talk about a change from one state of being to another. Thus like most of the other prompts, you are fixing your essay in time. You are identifying something that marks the moment in which that change occurred.

Childhood to adulthood

The entire process of going off to college marks your entry to adulthood, in some sense. But colleges are not looking to admit emotional toddlers. They want to populate their campus with young adults. Thus they are assuming that you already have made the transition to adulthood, at least in many important respects. So in what ways are you now an adult? Conversely, in what ways are you no longer a child?

Accomplishment or event

In some ways, these two words go together, but in some ways, they are quite different. An accomplishment is some feat that you performed that would mark the transition. An event might be something that just happened to you, without any particular action or agency on your part. Either way, you are being asked to describe and discuss the “thing” that marked your transition. What was the catalyst that moved you from one state of being to the other?

Culture, community, or family

This part of the prompt asks you to further elaborate on the ways in which others now consider you to be an adult. In whose eyes are you now no longer a child? Who expects more from you, now that you have made this transition to adulthood? The reality is that some people probably still see you as a child. Heck, you might also still see yourself as a child sometimes. But in the context of this prompt, we assume that you have made strides toward adulthood. Who now regards you as and adult, and why?

Because it is fixed on a transition that takes place in time, you are being asked to relate a story. You want to recount this accomplishment or event that marks the transition, so you must construct a compelling narrative with a beginning, middle, and end.

However, it is not enough to tell the story. This prompt (like all the rest) asks you to analyze and evaluate that experience, that event, and that accomplishment in light of the definitions of childhood and adulthood.
As the writer, you have the opportunity to provide your reader with your own definitions. And as a young adult, you have the opportunity to demonstrate your maturity and to show your reader how you arrived at it.

VIEW THE COMPLETE SERIES OF POSTS ANALYZING THE COMMON APPLICATION PROMPTS

Writing About Failure
Writing About A Belief or Idea
Writing About A Place or Environment
Writing About the Transition to Adulthood
Writing About Your Background Story

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Option A: Exposure to the entire range of human knowledge will provide you with valuable perspectives as you define your personal and professional identity over a lifetime. Study of the liberal arts provides our students with the range of abilities required to adapt to the rapidly changing global culture and economy. To build those perspectives, Clark students often weave seemingly different disciplines into their educational experiences in imaginative ways. How might you want to compliment your primary academic interest with other fields of study so that you benefit from the possibilities offered by a liberal arts education?

Don’t worry if you didn’t pick up on it.  It’s a commonly confused word.  The word “compliment” is used incorrectly. Read that part again.  You don’t want to say nice things to your primary academic interest!  Well, maybe you do, but that’s not really what Clark University wants to know.  They want to know how other fields of study will round out your educational experience.  The question should have read:  “How might you want to complement your primary academic interest with other fields of study…..”
 
Most students reading this question would understand what Clark was going for and answer it appropriately. So, no harm done.  But, the irony is definitely there!   An institution of higher learning that is going to be evaluating students’ SAT verbal abilities and judging their essays is the one that is making the linguistic blunder.
 
What should we make of this? Probably not too much.  We know that Clark is a wonderful institution that offers students an excellent education and terrific overall college experience.  Somehow, a mistake was made on their on-line Common App Supplement, but that doesn’t change the kind of a place that the school is.  Certainly, we all get tripped up sometimes.  Now, we know that even colleges and universities aren’t perfect.  And that’s OK.  We all make mistakes.  We can only hope that admissions offices say the same thing when they review student applications!
 
***UPDATE:  We contacted Clark University to let them know about the little word usage “oops” on their Common App Supplement.  Don Honeman, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Clark University, acknowledged the error and thanked us for bringing it to his attention.  The question on the Supplement is now fixed and reads properly.
 
Andrea Aronson
Educational Consultant in Westfield, New Jersey
 
 
 
 

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