Seven prompts everyone
writes. 501 colleges
that ask for more.
The Common Application essay.
You write one of these seven, once. It goes to every Common App college on your list, so it is never about one school. 650 words, hard limit. These are the 2026-27 prompts reproduced word for word, unchanged from last cycle. Everything below this section is extra writing that individual colleges ask for on top of it.
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.
What each college asks
on top of it.
Read this before you write to one. 501 colleges are listed, and 50 of them carry the question they ask year after year, stated faithfully but not transcribed. Supplementals change every summer and most colleges post new wording between July and September, so treat this section as a planning guide, open the college's own page, and paste the exact question into your document before you commit words to it.
Adelphi University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Agnes Scott College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Albion College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Allegheny College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Alma College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →American University
supplement requiredWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Amherst College
supplement requiredAmherst asks you to respond to one of several quotations from members of its own faculty and alumni about learning, difference, and inquiry.
Appalachian State University
no supplementNo supplemental essay in recent cycles. Your Common App essay is the writing they read.
paste their prompt →Arizona State University
no supplementNo supplemental essay in recent cycles. Your Common App essay is the writing they read.
paste their prompt →ArtCenter College of Design
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Assumption University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Auburn University
no supplementNo supplemental essay in recent cycles. Your Common App essay is the writing they read.
paste their prompt →Augsburg University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Augustana College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Babson College
supplement requiredWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Ball State University
no supplementNo supplemental essay in recent cycles. Your Common App essay is the writing they read.
paste their prompt →Bard College
supplement requiredWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Barnard College
supplement requiredBarnard asks what draws you to a women's college in New York City, and how you would use both the college and the city.
Bates College
optional supplementWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Baylor University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Belmont University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Beloit College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Bennington College
supplement requiredWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Bentley University
supplement requiredWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Berea College
supplement requiredWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Berry College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Bethany College
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Bethel University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Binghamton University
optional supplementWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Bocconi University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Boise State University
no supplementNo supplemental essay in recent cycles. Your Common App essay is the writing they read.
paste their prompt →Boston College
supplement requiredBC offers a rotating set of prompts on themes of conversation across difference, moral formation, and what you want to do with your education.
Boston University
supplement requiredWhat about being a student at Boston University most excites you, and how would you take advantage of the city and the university?
Bowdoin College
supplement requiredBowdoin asks you to respond to a line from 'The Offer of the College,' its statement about what an education is for.
Bowling Green State University
no supplementNo supplemental essay in recent cycles. Your Common App essay is the writing they read.
paste their prompt →Bradley University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Brandeis University
optional supplementWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Brigham Young University
not on the Common AppThis college does not read the Common Application. Its questions live in its own system, so copy them from the link and paste them into a document.
paste their prompt →Brown University
supplement requiredBrown's Open Curriculum allows students to explore broadly while also diving deeply into their academic pursuits. Tell us about any academic interests that excite you, and how you might use the Open Curriculum to pursue them.
Students entering Brown often find that making their home on College Hill naturally invites reflection on where they came from. Share how an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you, and what unique contributions this might allow you to make to the Brown community.
Brown students care deeply about their work and the world around them. What brings you joy?
Bryant University
check their pageWe have not transcribed this college's wording, because a prompt stated from memory is worse than no prompt. Open their page, copy the question exactly, and paste it into a document.
paste their prompt →Showing 40 of 501. Search for your college, or open the rest.