BREAKING DOWN THE 7 COMMON APPLICATION PROMPTS

With seven prompts to choose from, writing your Common Application personal statement can seem like a daunting task. Where do I start? What do I talk about? How do I make sure I use the right prompt? We’ll address these questions and take a look at the Common Application essay prompts, one by one. 

Let’s start with the basics. There are seven prompts, and you only have to write one Common Application personal statement. The essay has a limit of 650 words, which may seem like a lot, but it is shorter than you think. Usually this essay is a little less than a page long. You may have read our blog about the UC essays and how you should aim to answer the questions in a succinct manner highlighting specific achievements. With the Common Application, readers will generally be spending more time on your essays, and since the word limit is not as restrictive, you can use this essay to show more personality and build a narrative structure. 

Therefore, this essay will seem more like a creative piece when compared to the other essays you’ll have to write during the admissions process. And really, this essay should give insight into who’s behind the resume and documents that you will submit. In the end, you want this essay to be a centerpiece of your application that gives the reader a deeper and more vulnerable look at who you are.

Honestly, we recommend that students go through a Core Memory reflection first instead of looking at the prompts. With the Common Application main essay, oftentimes we will select the student’s best example or story, start drafting how that was unique and impactful for them, and then consider which prompt it falls under. 

That said, some students like to start with the actual prompts, so let’s breakdown the choices below: 

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, please share your story.

Remember, the point of this essay is for the reader to get a deeper, more personal look at who is behind the application. For this prompt, some topics that can provide a deeper look include a meaningful talent, life event, or interest you have. Highlighting something that made a dramatic change or shift in your perspective is best here, but a vivid memory that stands out can also work for this 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?

This is the typical “challenge” essay prompt: describe how you overcame a challenge. The nature of this prompt is wide and encompasses many potential topics, but some potential topics include:

• A personal fear you faced

• A time you struggled and worked through mental health issues

• A new perspective that you gained from an accomplishment

• A time you asked for help even though it was hard

Again, the personal details of the story is what is important, not necessarily the challenge itself. The reader will want to know how you got through it and what you learned, so when writing drafts, consider if you can highlight more details through internalized thoughts or vivid descriptions. 

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

This prompt is great for highlighting conflict resolution, disagreements within organizations, times you had to apologize, or or situations that required your problem-solving skills. You can also use this prompt to highlight a personal transformation or how you helped an organization change. Again, internalized thoughts or monologues in this essay will be helpful in explaining your thought process and what prompted your actions, regardless of a good or bad outcome. 

4. Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma — anything of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

This prompt is very similar to prompt 3; many essays that we classified as an answer to prompt 3 can also be applied to prompt 4. Prompt 4 is more related to problem solving, while prompt 3 is more related to conflict resolution, but oftentimes these stories can be intertwined. It’s not as important that you pick the “correct prompt” here than it is that you have the right story that will provide a unique perspective to the reader and highlight nuance.

Some specific examples that may fit under prompt 4 include:

• Using your imagination or intuition to solve a problem

• Challenging a status quo in your community

• A time you achieved something cool or interesting

• A time you had a good idea for a group

Again, many essays can fit under prompt 3 and 4. If you need more help dissecting the difference here, feel free to schedule a free consultation to go over this nuance. 

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

This prompt is related to personal growth; whereas prompts 3 and 4 highlighted how you responded to an external issue, here you should speak to a personal accomplishment or change. Examples of topics answering this prompt include challenging personal beliefs, changing a core characteristic about yourself, or changing your perspective on others. This prompt can also include essays on getting over fears or learning new ways to do things. 

The key part here is to remember to consider the impact of the change. For example, getting over a fear of public speaking is great, but hopefully there was an additional impact that you made because of this change, such as performing in the lead role for a musical or giving a speech on climate change to the city council. Remember that reflecting on where you ended up after that initial accomplishment or realization is critical.

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?

This prompt is a great option for an essay focusing on academics, a unique hobby, or an activity you spent a lot of time on. An activity so engaging you lose track of time can relate to the concept of flow, or how someone is “in the zone” for a particular pursuit. Some topic ideas to consider:

• A topic you could talk someone’s ear off about

• A passion that you’ve learned about and researched in depth

• A news story or current event that was so riveting that you spent all your time researching it

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 really meant as a catch-all in case there was not an exact prompt for the topic you wanted to write about. We don’t recommend that students try and write a brand new essay specifically for prompt 7, but perhaps after the Core Memory exercise, the topic doesn’t quite fit in the other prompts. In that situation, you should use prompt 7. 

We realize the college essay process is different than traditional high school writing. If you’re looking for more support, check out our college essay boot camp or book a free consultation today!