Last year my 2024 graduate applied to 11 that had supplemental essays as part of of the application. She wrote more than 20 essays. Some were re-usable and only needed to be re-worked…but still, sometimes a similar topic is assigned at different schools and at one school it’s 150 words and at another it’s 300 or more so it’s like writing a whole new essay. It is SO MUCH work. Most schools that had supplementals only had one or two. But some schools she applied to had 4 or 5 supplements. I think this is crazy and wonder why schools do this.
As I start early to think about college options for my 2026 grad, I am hoping to help guide her to create a college list that takes into account the workload of all the supplements. One of her top choices has SEVEN (granted one of the 7 is just a short list but the other six require actual writing) and its a huge reach so very unlikely to get in…maybe it’s not even worth trying? But I hope she does.
Why do colleges do this? They can get a good sense of a candidate through a couple of essays…why so many? I would actually love to hear from an AO as to what the thinking is around assigning so many.
In my non-AO opinion, I think well written supplements can help with yield prediction and it also helps pare down applications to kids who really want those schools.
It’s also why I cringe when I see kids with 20+ schools on their list. My D applied to 8 and had to write 18 unique essays. It’s a ton of work!
I agree it can be a way to cut down on the number of apps (some schools have stopped requiring a supplemental essay and their app numbers increased.) It’s also a way to differentiate between applicants…meaning it can be clear who didn’t take the time to create good supplemental responses.
With that said, some schools take responses to supplemental materials in context, for example, students from under-resourced HSs aren’t expected to necessarily have top notch essays and/or short answer responses.
I get that. And I’m not entirely opposed to supplemental essays. I just can’t understand why a school would require 4,5, 6 or 7(!) supplements. Wonder which school requires the most?
BTW - I also agree that some schools use “no supplement” as a way to bump up applications and resulting selectivity. Ahem…Northeastern.
It is crazy! Even if they are just short answer responses, it’s time consuming and requires some thought and/or research.
Good question, not sure!! USC Dornsife requires 3 essays and 12 short answer responses (3 of the 12 are just one word.) Georgetown has 4 essays. I think the UC PIQs are tough, as are the U Chicago essays (2 supplementals.)
Columbia has five ranging from 100-150 words. The school at Cornell that S25 is applying to has one, but it’s a LONG one plus there is another one for all Cornell applicants. I’m not sure which is worse - a bunch of short responses or one that feels like you are writing a class paper.
Agree with all the above. Was discussing applications with a friend and she told me a broad list of which/how many schools (Ivy’s, T20, UCs, etc) to which her D25 was considering applying. My first comment was, has she looked at how many supplementals she will need to write for those schools? She looked at me with a blank stare as she obviously had no idea.
Not that I love this logic, but more essays, particularly more essays that are not of the sort easily satisfied with rewritten essays, presumably help determine even higher levels of real interest.
Since the Common App, the number of schools kids apply to has gone up to so many schools. Some even apply to 20.
Essay readers here on CC can attest to the fact that once working with a kid on an essay, we may end up helping with upwards of 10-15 essays in some instances.
One solution is to apply to fewer schools. Back in the day my kids only applied to schools they actually visited. Quaint! (We were frugal and only drove…) My kids applied to 2, 4 and 6 schools respectively and the 6 only because it included conservatories and colleges. Fifteen years or so ago. Two of them did essays on December 31. Now they start in the summer or even earlier. So much anxiety.
Another solution is to stop making such a big deal about those short answers. Honestly applicants are trying to make “unique” essays about of a simple question like “Why X College.” They research and mention classes and professors and it is just so time consuming.
In fact with my kids, if they were applying now, I would deemphasize essays in general - partly because I don’t believe most essays move the needle and partly to reduce stress.
I wish colleges would get rid of the question about overcoming challenges. Kids actually feel they are failing the essay if they haven’t suffered enough. I had one kid writing about being in a Kenyan refugee camp and one kid writing about the challenge of losing a soccer game. I am digressing…
It certainly seems that asking for numerous essays is a way of winnowing out non-serious applicants to protect yield. I still think actually visiting is a better way to show interest (and urge students to mention visits in their “Why us” essays). I believe colleges keep track.
This is because that’s what the schools tend to want and students know this from in person/virtual visits. At the school where I read apps the supplementals are important and >>>>> the common app personal statement.
Generally these essays are truly optional.
Depends on how the student covers this. Don’t talk about the beautiful campus, or gothic architecture, for example.
Separately, and IMO of course, it’s really difficult for people who aren’t current on college admissions, meaning listening/talking to admissions staff webinars/presentations and the like to give good advice on essay content. Note I am not talking about structuring essays or editing grammar. I do agree that at many schools (tend to be less selective schools that don’t even have supplementals), the common app personal statement is not that important.
Not to go off on a tangent but some of the “Why us” essays lack authenticity in my view. I would rather see something about class size, undergrad focus, outdoor or cultural activities nearby rather than how they want to work with Prof. so and so on such and such. So many do the latter and it just must seem tiresome. How refreshing it would be to read something from someone who visited and shared their impressions. Young people tend to make gut decisions. We can agree to disagree! @Mwfan1921 clearly you have a lot more experience and contacts.
I think people who get info on ultimate results from essay writers can have some idea of what works. Authenticity, likability and of course interesting.
We attended an admissions session at an elite school with several supplementals. They were clear that they prioritize their supplementals and that they read the Common App essay last, if they read it at all.
Why supplementals? While loads of applications bring down their acceptance rate, the AO really need to know if their university is a priority to the applicant. If accepted, will the student attend? Asking university specific questions lets them know how much the student knows about the institution and allows them to assess if the student will be a good fit.
Any of these can work! It’s important to give admissions what they want though…as communicated in live/virtual admissions sessions, or even a personal conversation with one’s AO. Obviously that does take time, but it allows the schools to gauge fit like @lkg4answers said, and also helps the student know if the school is a fit too (which many students just don’t care about, they only want schools with a low acceptance rate.)
She came up with a list of safety schools and eliminated all with supplemental essays. Has sent applications her 2 “no extra essay” safeties.
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Thats a good strategy IMO. One thing my daughter did to reduce her essay workload…she chose not to write the supplemental essay at two schools that SHE considered safeties.
(I considered one of them a high safety and the other a low target)
She was admitted to the high safety without even writing the supplemental essay. She was deferred at the low target. (And then withdrew that app after being admitted to her top choice).
Definitely some risk in foregoing the supplement…but if a school is truly a safety it may still work out.
The supplementals are a pretty useless anachronism IMO. By now the schools should be aware that many are written by advisors or AI anyway. For example, the general consensus is that the “why us” essay should somehow regurgitate stuff from the school’s vision…how is that useful to anyone? The schools tell you to “just be yourself” in your essays but you know that if you don’t tell them things they like to hear you could be disadvantaged…it is a strange system
