nobu

"Take as a model the students who inspired Options 1 and 2 as you pose and respond to an uncommon prompt of your own. If your prompt is original and thoughtful, then you should have little trouble writing a great essay. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, sensible woman or man, citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk and have fun."

Do you think we can choose an essay from years past?

http://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu/level3.asp?id=329

Or are those not "uncommon" enough. I fear that my own question won''t meet their "uncommon" criterion.

bigjake587

do whatever you want

fortune4260

In my honest opinion, I would not take one of their old prompts. The 5th one asks YOU to be creative, so taking others would not help you, and might even hurt you.

However, maybe by looking the essays of the past as models instead of just 1 or 2, you may be able to create a better prompt.

avanex20

Exactly, As fortune4260 pointed out, option five is if you have an ORIGINAL prompt, not one from past years. However, I do believe that if you write a stellar essay one of the old prompts, they might even like it.

nobu

Yeah I realized the ORIGINAL part. But it seems they are just looking for essays that aren't dull.