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.

Above the marketplace, I spotted the lanterns. They were floating into the night sky, flickering in the breeze. Amid the darkness, they held the light. I was walking through the marketplace with my f

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Why Yale?

Yale embraces connections. With the interdisciplinary concentration, I’ll be able to study the economies and sociologies of particular developing countries, which will inform specific improvements I c

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.What inspires you?

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You are teaching a Yale course. What is it called?

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Yale’s residential colleges regularly host conversations with guests representing a wide range of experiences and accomplishments. What person, past or present, would you invite to speak and what would you ask them to discuss?

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Yale students embrace the concept of ‘and’ rather than ‘or’, pursuing arts and sciences, tradition and innovation, defined goals and surprising detours. What is an example of an “and” that you embrace?

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Yale’s extensive course offerings and vibrant conversations beyond the classroom encourage students to follow their developing intellectual interests wherever they lead. Tell us about your engagement with a topic or idea that excites you. Why are you drawn to it?

The knight scaling the tower for the princess. The shy high school girl getting a makeover and winning the heart of her crush. The quirky yet endearing guy proving himself worthy of the serious, accom

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Chosen Essay: A. Reflect on a community to which you feel connected. Why is it meaningful to you? You may define community however you like.

The leaves crunched beneath my boots as I ascended the stone steps. Above me, squirrels zipped through the trees. Hiking through Bach Ma National Park with my World Wildlife Federation group, I search

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Extracurricular Activity and Work Experience Briefly elaborate on an activity, organization, work experience, or hobby that has been particularly meaningful to you. (Please respond in about 150 words)

“You always argue the most minuscule details. Why not tackle things that actually matter?”  Motivated—perhaps out of spite—by what my family said, I signed up to do public speaking and debate during

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Your Voice Please respond to each question in an essay of about 250 words. At Princeton, we value diverse perspectives and the ability to have respectful dialogue about difficult issues. Share a time when you had a conversation with a person or a group of people about a difficult topic. What insight did you gain, and how would you incorporate that knowledge into your thinking in the future?

The images from earlier that day were seared into my brain. Refugees swarming the tarmac of the Kabul Airport, clinging to the sides of planes out of sheer desperation to flee.  This was more than a

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Princeton has a longstanding commitment to service and civic engagement. Tell us how your story intersects (or will intersect) with these ideals.

The leaves crunched beneath my boots as I ascended the stone steps. Above me, squirrels zipped through the trees. I was hiking through Bach Ma National Park with my World Wildlife Federation group in

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More About You Please respond to each question in 50 words or fewer. There are no right or wrong answers. Be yourself! What is a new skill you would like to learn in college?

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What brings you joy?

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What song represents the soundtrack of your life at this moment?

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As a research institution that also prides itself on its liberal arts curriculum, Princeton allows students to explore areas across the humanities and the arts, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. What academic areas most pique your curiosity, and how do the programs offered at Princeton suit your particular interests? (Please respond in about 250 words)

"Have they still not freed Mother Mushroom yet?” My relatives were whispering, but the question caught my ears. I typed “Me Nam" (the Vietnamese equivalent) into the search bar and learned of an ind

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List the titles of the required readings from academic courses that you enjoyed most during secondary/high school.

Lord of the Flies,  Animal Farm, Myers’ Psychology, DSM-V,  Music in Theory and Practice, Frankenstein,  The Kite Runner,  Lazarillo de Tormes, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Dougl

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We’re interested in learning about some of the ways that you explore your interests. List some resources and outlets that you enjoy, including but not limited to websites, publications,  journals, podcasts, social media accounts, lectures, museums, movies, music, or other content with which you regularly engage.

Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Al Jazeera, Financial Times, VNExpress, Council on Foreign Relations, St. Louis Fed Data, TLDR News, Voice of North Korea by Yeonmi Park, Economics Explained, 12Tone, VS

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A hallmark of the Columbia experience is being able to learn and live in a community with a wide range of perspectives. How do you or would you learn from and contribute to diverse, collaborative communities?

“There’s no new post scheduled,” the social media manager said. “But we need to address the negative comments.” I scanned the BLM [Place Redacted] page, reading comment after comment saying the same

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For applicants to Columbia College, please tell us what from your current and past experiences (either academic or personal) attracts you specifically to the areas of study that you previously noted in the application.

The pungent smell of dead fish wafted past my nose as I passed West Lake. Fishermen watched helplessly as the fish stock bobbed lifeless to the surface of the toxic water. When a blogger named ‘Mother

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Penn Main Essay 1

"Have they still not freed Mother Mushroom yet?” My relatives were whispering, but the question caught my ears. I typed “M? N?m" (the Vietnamese equivalent of “Mother Mushroom”) into the search bar

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Penn Main Essay 2

The wind caresses my hair as I walk the Schuylkill River Trail. Reflected trees and spots of sunlight dance in the depths of the water, beckoning me to join this new world. I dive in. I swim past

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Extracurricular Activities

“You always argue the most minuscule details. Why not tackle things that actually matter?”  Motivated—perhaps out of spite—by what my family said, I signed up to do public speaking and debate during

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Please describe how you have familiarized yourself with Washington and Lee University and what aspects of W&L's community are most exciting to you.

A list of colleges with merit scholarships available for international students. An online information session after dinner. A night of perusing link after link, page after page on the university’s we

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Please describe an aspect of your life outside of school that is important to you, such as an extracurricular activity, a job or a family responsibility. How does your involvement impact you and those around you?

“You always argue the most minuscule details. Why not tackle things that actually matter?”  Motivated—perhaps out of spite—by what my family said, I signed up to do public speaking and debate the su

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Johnson Essay

The knight scaling the tower for the princess. The shy high school girl getting a makeover and finally winning the heart of her long-time crush. The quirky yet endearing guy finally proving himself wo

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Short Answer Essay

As an up-and-coming policymaker, I understand that real change needs to build up gradually. The Core component of Social Analysis would help me grasp complex relationships between my country and other

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Short Response Essay

I joined BLM [Place Redacted] to help provide a platform for Vietnamese people to work through our nation’s long-standing misconceptions about race.  While my job was writing and translating posts,

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Research Project

As part of a team of five, I built an adaptive system that detects and classifies animal sounds. I converted audio samples into images that our deep learning algorithm could process with high accuracy

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Significant Activity or Work

“You always argue the most minuscule details. Why not tackle things that actually matter?” Motivated—perhaps out of spite—by what my family said, I signed up to do public speaking and debate during

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When choosing a college community, you are choosing an intellectual community and a place where you believe that you can live, learn, and flourish. We know that there are more than 100 reasons to choose Wellesley, but it’s a good place to start. Visit the Wellesley 100 and select two items that attract, inspire, or energize you. Have fun with this and use this opportunity to reflect personally on what items appeal to you most and why. Please limit your response to the Wellesley College essay to two well- developed paragraphs (minimum 250 words, maximum 400 words).

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Supplemental Essay

“Look at me!” the squirrels seemed to say as they zipped across the trees. Canopies of banyan leaves whispered some archaic song in the wind. Hiking through Bach Ma National Park with my World Wildlif

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There are just under 4,000 4-year colleges and universities in the United States. Being as specific as possible, what interests you most about Davidson College?

“And that’s why it was in the best interest of the Sudanese protesters to resist military encroachment through the power sharing deal.” I bowed behind the podium. As I packed up to leave the debate

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Davidson encourages students to explore curiosities in and out of the classroom. What is a topic, activity or idea that excites you? Tell us why. Examples may include hobbies, books, interactions, music, podcasts, movies, etc. (250-300 words)

“They’re like unicorns that came to life,” my mentor’s eyes lit up. “You can’t miss that majestic horn and those striking white streaks.” My World Wide Fund for Nature group huddled underneath the s

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EC Essay

“You always argue minuscule details. Why not tackle things that actually matter?” Motivated by my mother’s exhortation, I signed up for debate club during the summer before my freshman year. While g

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What specific plan do you have, if any, for using the education you hope to receive?

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Most significant challenge society faces

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Last two summers

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Historical moment or event

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Briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities, a job you hold, or responsibilities you have for your family.

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One thing you are looking forward to at Stanford

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Reflect on an idea or experience that makes you excited about learning

“They’re waiting for you upstairs.” Clutching a basket of fruit plushies, I climbed to the classroom with the rest of my [Organization Redacted] project group and began writing the day’s vocabulary

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Note to future roommate

Salutations, future roommate, I was just starting to wish the walls talked back—I’m glad to know I’ll be in a room with a real-life person again soon! I must warn you: when I get excited, I cycle

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Something meaningful to you and why

My parents have always believed in honoring our ancestors and following Vietnamese traditions. Whenever they’re embarking on a new challenge, they seek refuge in prayer. “What’s meant to be will be. I

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In 150 to 250 words, please write a short response on the topic selected. You can type directly into the box, or you can paste text from another source.

My parents have always believed in honoring our ancestors and following Vietnamese traditions. Whenever they’re embarking on a new challenge, they seek refuge in prayer. “What’s meant to be will be. I

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Academic Interest Statement

“They’re like unicorns that came to life, with that majestic horn and striking white streaks.” My WWF group huddled as my mentor reminisced about how she used to roam the forests, waiting for the el

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Essay response:

I joined BLM [Place Redacted] to help provide a platform for Vietnamese people to question our nation’s long-standing misconceptions about race.  While my job was to write and translate posts, I cou

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Essay 2

Several years ago, the pungent smell of rotting fish permeated [Place Redacted]’s ‘West Lake’ region. Local fishermen watched helplessly as the source of their livelihood bobbed dead on the surface of

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Identity Question: We fully acknowledge application forms like this often require people to categorize their race, ethnicity, gender, and/or other identities by checking boxes. Two of Macalester's four values are Multiculturalism and Internationalism and one way we try to live these values is providing students space to express their identities "beyond a check box." You may use this space to help us better understand the importance of one or more identities in your life and how they might shape your worldview.

One, two, three. With my hands clasped, I bowed in front of the altar, bowed to the framed photos of smiling black- and-white faces. The book of prayers laid open on the page for recitations during th

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Background Essay: Macalester is one of few highly selective liberal arts colleges located in the middle of a metropolitan area. Students benefit from the strong sense of community on campus and opportunities to engage in academic, social, and civic engagement options in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Have you thought about how Macalester's location might impact your experience? If so, in what ways?

The wind caresses my hair as I walk the Mendota Bridge, overlooking the junction of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. Reflected trees and spots of sunlight dance in the depths of the water, beckon

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Why Duke?

“What do you want to do in the future?” The professor beside me surprised me with that question.  I hesitated. “Change the world… somehow.” “Nothing wrong with ambition!” she laughed. “I really

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Share a Perspective Response

My parents have always believed in honoring our ancestors and following Vietnamese traditions. Whenever they’re embarking on a new challenge, they seek refuge in prayer. “What’s meant to be will be. I

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