how to write university of san diego supplemental essays

Get Started

Navigating the University of San Diego Supplemental Essays: A Comprehensive Guide

The University of San Diego (USD) has just unveiled its new set of essay prompts for the 2024 application cycle, offering students the chance to showcase their unique experiences and perspectives. With a word limit of 350 for each prompt, applicants have the opportunity to dive deep into what makes them stand out. Let’s breakdown each prompt and provide specific advice on how to approach them effectively.

Understanding the Prompts

Prompt Overview: The first essay invites students to explore the academic opportunities at USD, reflecting on the institution’s dedication to the liberal arts and how its Core Curriculum and Learning Communities foster a meaningful educational journey. The aim is to connect these opportunities to your personal excitement and aspirations.

Prompt: For over 75 years, the liberal arts have been the cornerstone of the educational experience at USD. They help students explore the world, past and present, and lay the foundation for building inspired and meaningful lives. They also provide the skills and experiences students need to be successful in an increasingly changing and challenging world. Throughout the first year and beyond, we engage students in this exploration through our Core Curriculum and Learning Communities, connecting them with faculty who will guide them as they become global citizens. What excites you about the academic opportunities at USD? You can learn more about our Core Curriculum and Learning Community programs by clicking on the respective links.

The next set of options asks you to choose one of three specific prompts:

Here at USD , we value the fact that our students come from all walks of life, have experienced different realities, and bring with them an array of unique perspectives, including some that have often been underrepresented and underserved by higher education. Our Horizon Project is a call to action, ensuring that we are dedicating the time, energy, and resources necessary to build an ever more diverse, inclusive, and equitable campus community. What contribution have you made to your current school and/or local community that best exemplifies your awareness of and commitment to these ideals?

As a proud Changemaker Campus , the USD experience emphasizes changemaking through care for our common home, social justice efforts, civic engagement, social innovation, creativity, and a global perspective. Write about one of the challenges facing humanity today. Why does it matter to you? What experiences or insights have you had that speak to the urgency of this issue?

Share some of your ideas about the role of faith or spirituality in your life or the life of someone you know. As a contemporary Catholic university, we welcome and celebrate students from every background and faith tradition, including those who do not identify with a faith tradition. We devote great time and energy to ensuring all students feel connected to the vibrant USD community, including opportunities to grow in their relationship with God while considering who they are, what they believe, and who they are called to become.

Approaching the Supplemental Essays

Writing a stellar supplemental essay for USD requires a strategic approach. Here are some insights to get you started:

1. Reflect on Personal Experiences

For the first prompt on the academic opportunities at USD, pinpoint specific programs, courses, or faculty members that align with your interests. Mention how these elements excite you and how they would play a crucial role in your academic journey. Using Sups AI to brainstorm and gather initial thoughts can further enrich your responses and make sure they're detailed and specific.

2. Highlight Your Contributions and Values

The second prompt about diversity and the Horizon Project calls for a deep reflection on your community engagements. Have you been a part of any initiatives that speak to inclusivity and equity? Detail these experiences, emphasizing how they reflect your commitment to these values. Use Sups AI to get feedback and refine your narrative.

3. Address Global Challenges You Care About

The third prompt centers on global challenges. Choose an issue that you’re passionate about and explain its significance to you. Discuss any relevant experiences that demonstrate your engagement with this issue. Sups AI can help ensure that your story is both compelling and impactful.

4. Explore Faith and Spirituality

For the fourth prompt on faith or spirituality, discuss what role these elements play in your life. Reflect on your personal journey, beliefs, and how USD’s inclusive environment would help you grow further. Sups AI can be particularly useful here, helping you brainstorm ideas and articulate your thoughts clearly.

In summary, USD’s essay prompts are an excellent way to express your individuality and alignment with the university’s values. Don’t hesitate to take advantage of platforms like Sups AI to brainstorm, get feedback, and chat with current students. Sups AI has already assisted over 10,000 students in getting admitted to top universities, making it a valuable resource for your application journey.

© WWW.SUPS.AI

[email protected]

• Search All Scholarships
• Exclusive Scholarships
• Easy Scholarships to Apply For
• No Essay Scholarships
• Scholarships for HS Juniors
• Scholarships for HS Seniors
• Scholarships for College Students
• Scholarships for Grad Students
• Scholarships for Women
• Scholarships for Black Students
• Scholarships
• Student Loans
• College Admissions
• Financial Aid
• Scholarship Winners
• Scholarship Providers

Student-centric advice and objective recommendations

Higher education has never been more confusing or expensive. Our goal is to help you navigate the very big decisions related to higher ed with objective information and expert advice. Each piece of content on the site is original, based on extensive research, and reviewed by multiple editors, including a subject matter expert. This ensures that all of our content is up-to-date, useful, accurate, and thorough.

Our reviews and recommendations are based on extensive research, testing, and feedback. We may receive commission from links on our website, but that doesn’t affect our editors’ opinions. Our marketing partners don’t review, approve or endorse our editorial content. It’s accurate to the best of our knowledge when posted. You can find a complete list of our partners here .

How to Ace the 2024-2025 USD Supplemental Essays

Prior to coming to Scholarships360 for her first internship in 2022, Savannah utilized her campus publications by joining various fashion publications that are offered at Ohio University. One of those publications is Thread Magazine, where Savannah has had the opportunity to work on articles related to world-wide related fashion news and events, as well as articles closer to home, such as a fashion piece on Athens hometown-hero Joe Burrow. This year, Savannah also had the opportunity to be a content writing intern for Aiken House, as well as a section editor for Southeast Ohio Magazine. In 2023, Savannah served as the Chapter President of her sorority, Alpha Gamma Delta. These collective experiences, as well as her experience currently working for Ohio University’s Undergraduate Admissions, has led her to Scholarships360 and aided in her passion for helping students better understand the college admissions process and financial aid. In her free time, Savannah enjoys horseback riding, watching Formula One races, traveling, and spending time with her friends and family. Savannah will graduate from Ohio University in May 2024 with a degree in Journalism News and Information and a certificate in Italian Studies.

Learn about our editorial policies

Bill Jack has over a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. Since 2008, he has worked at Colby College, Wesleyan University, University of Maine at Farmington, and Bates College.

Maria Geiger is Director of Content at Scholarships360. She is a former online educational technology instructor and adjunct writing instructor. In addition to education reform, Maria’s interests include viewpoint diversity, blended/flipped learning, digital communication, and integrating media/web tools into the curriculum to better facilitate student engagement. Maria earned both a B.A. and an M.A. in English Literature from Monmouth University, an M. Ed. in Education from Monmouth University, and a Virtual Online Teaching Certificate (VOLT) from the University of Pennsylvania.

The University of San Diego is a private, Roman-Catholic university located in beautiful San Diego, California. Through the USD supplemental essay, students have a chance to show the admissions professionals who they are as a person. Let’s dive into what the USD supplemental essays are all about!

Mandatory USD first-year supplemental essay

For over 75 years, the liberal arts have been the cornerstone of the educational experience at USD. They help students explore the world, past and present, and lay the foundation for building inspired and meaningful lives. They also provide the skills and experiences students need to be successful in an increasingly changing and challenging world. Throughout the first year and beyond, we engage students in this exploration through our Core Curriculum and Learning Communities, connecting them with faculty who will guide them as they become global citizens. What excites you about the academic opportunities at USD? You can learn more about our Core Curriculum and Learning Community programs by clicking on the respective links. (350 words max) 

Although this is a wordy question, it is quite simply asking you “ Why USD ?” specifically “Why USD academics?” In order to answer this question, you will need to do extensive research on USD as a campus as well as its academic programs. This includes majors, academic clubs, and faculty. It is critical that you click on the hyper-links and become familiar with USD’s core curriculum and learning community programs to demonstrate your interest in USD and your familiarity with their academics.

You should begin your response by detailing your intended academic program and then describe how USD’s specific programs will benefit you. It is important to be as specific as possible to emphasize your commitment to USD. For example, instead of saying you are excited to major in biology at USD, share your excitement about the opportunity to join the pre-undergraduate research experience (PURE), the summer research program for students interested in biology. The second example demonstrates your interest in an USD academic program and reveals how USD specifically aligns with your academic interests. 

Questions to consider:

• Why do you want to pursue the major you selected at USD? 
• What makes USD a top-choice program for you? What opportunities do you hope to gain from attending USD? 
• What part of USD’s core curriculum and learning community programs excites you? 

Also see: 10 tips for successful college applications

Mandatory USD supplemental essay for transfer students

“How will USD help enhance your educational and professional goals beyond what your current institution offers?” (350 words max) 

If you are choosing to transfer , it is likely that you already know the answer to this question. Think about the reason that you are deciding to leave your previous institution, and without putting that school down, talk about the things that you are looking forward to that San Diego offers. Beyond that, what are you hoping to do after you graduate college that San Diego can help you with? Whatever your future goal is, think about the alumni network, classes, and professors that USD can offer you as an undergraduate and incorporate them into your response here. 

• What are your educational and professional goals?
• What does USD have that your previous institution did not?
• Why is USD the ideal school for you?

Also see: How to write a transfer essay

First year and transfer student optional prompts

First year students are also required to choose one of the three prompts below to write along with their mandatory essay. Each of these prompts can also be written in 350 words or less . Offering  students the opportunity to choose which prompt they would like to write shows that USD wants to get to know you!

Here at USD, we value the fact that our students come from all walks of life, have experienced different realities and bring with them an array of unique perspectives, including some that have often been underrepresented and underserved by higher education. Our Horizon Project is a call to action, ensuring that we are dedicating the time, energy and resources necessary to build an ever more diverse, inclusive and equitable campus community. What contribution have you made to your current school and/or local community that best exemplifies your awareness of and commitment to these ideals? (350 words max) 

Everyone has a unique background and perspective that they can bring to their school environment, especially through clubs or extracurricular activities. If you have any experience working on a team to improve diversity and equity within your community or school, then this is your opportunity to showcase it! Try and think of any examples of a time in which you have contributed, whether big or small, to a school or local community. Some examples could include being a part of a minor club at your high school or starting a bake sale in your community in which the profits go directly to a cause important to you! Ultimately, you should be responding to this prompt if you are very involved in your communities and have causes you are passionate about. 

• Did you participate in any clubs, community service opportunities or local events in your community? 
• What issues are you passionate about? How have you made an impact on these causes? 
• How does your unique perspective and life experiences influence your position in your community? 

As a proud Changemaker Campus , the USD experience emphasizes changemaking through care for our common home, social justice efforts, civic engagement, social innovation, creativity and a global perspective. Write about one of the challenges facing humanity today. Why does it matter to you? What experiences or insights have you had that speak to the urgency of this issue. (350 words max) 

This is a very deep question that will take some time to answer fully. As you can imagine, there are so many different topics that you could choose to write about here. The best thing that you can do here is write freely about something that you are passionate about or something that you want to change in the world.  After you are done with that, go back and edit your work into more cohesive thoughts. Be sure to link back to the Changemaker website to show that you did your research! Also, ensure that you are describing how this challenge affects you and how your personal and unique situation has allowed you to view this challenge in a new way. 

• What are you passionate about?
• What experiences have you had that made you passionate about this topic?
• What do you feel are the world’s most pressing issues–what needs to change?

Share some of your ideas about the role of faith or spirituality in your life or the life of someone you know. As a contemporary Catholic university, we welcome and celebrate students from every background and faith tradition, including those who do not identify with a faith tradition. We devote great time and energy to ensuring all students feel connected to the vibrant USD community, including opportunities to grow in their relationship with God while considering who they are, what they believe and who they are called to become. (350 words max) 

Since the University of San Diego is a Catholic university, faith is something that is important to them. Remember, this is an optional prompt, so you do not necessarily need to write this essay. But, if you are a spiritual person and this is something you are passionate about, this essay can tell a lot about the kind of person you– especially if you choose to write about your admiration for someone else’s faith. This shows that you are observant and that you have respect for other people, two things that many colleges look for in a student. 

• Who in your life has influenced your faith?
• Regardless of what religion they practice, who in your life has a faith that you admire?
• How has your faith influenced your education?

Final thoughts for students

There are a nice variety of essays to choose from for your USD supplemental essay. Each of these are pretty straightforward essay options, but just make sure that you are focusing on what makes San Diego the best place for you . Make sure USD learns why you would make a great addition to their community. Overall, if you are open and honest in each of your responses, they will want you as a student!

Also see: What is the difference between a college and university?

Additional resources

Once you’ve finished your USD supplemental essays, give yourself a pat on the back! You’re one step closer to finishing your college admissions. But once you’re ready to get back into the process, remember we are here to help every step of the way. With guides on when to apply to college , how many schools to apply to , and how to choose a safety school , we can help you with all your decision-making.

We can also help you decipher your financial aid award letter , write a financial aid appeal , and choose your college . Good luck, and remember, apply to all the scholarships you are eligible for! 

Start your scholarship search

• Vetted scholarships custom-matched to your profile
• Access exclusive scholarships only available to Scholarships360 members

Additional schools to consider

• University of San Francisco
• Fordham University 
• Santa Clara University

Frequently asked questions about the University of San Diego essays

Does the university of san diego require an essay, am i able to submit my usd essays through the common application, how important is the usd supplemental essay, scholarships360 recommended.

10 Tips for Successful College Applications

Coalition vs. Common App: What is the difference?

College Application Deadlines 2024-2025: What You Need to Know

Trending now.

How to Convert Your GPA to a 4.0 Scale

PSAT to SAT Score Conversion: Predict Your Score

What are Public Ivy League Schools?

3 reasons to join scholarships360.

• Automatic entry to our $10,000 No-Essay Scholarship
• Personalized matching to thousands of vetted scholarships
• Quick apply for scholarships exclusive to our platform

By the way...Scholarships360 is 100% free!

How to Write the University of San Diego Supplemental Essays

Reviewed by:

Former Admissions Committee Member, Columbia University

Reviewed: 5/29/24

If you're looking for a guide on how to ace the University of San Diego supplemental essays, you are in the right place .

Each year, many students try to get into the University of California, San Diego. Of every 100 applicants, 30 are admitted, indicating a 30% acceptance rate. As you prepare to meet UCSD's SAT/ACT and GPA requirements, you should also make adequate preparations for acing its supplemental essays. 

UC San Diego is known for training students in science and technology research programs. As a student, aside from your major coursework, you learn critical skills for the future. 

Graduates from UCSD are leaders in business, nonprofits, and government organizations across the globe. With a well-crafted supplemental essay, you are on your way to becoming the best of the best. 

The secret to writing a compelling supplemental essay is understanding the question. All your preparations, including reading this blog, will help you explain and provide winning answers to each prompt. This blog maps out all the tips for crafting outstanding supplemental essays for your application to UCSD.

University of San Diego Personal Insight Questions 2023-2024

How many USCD essay prompts must you write for the University of San Diego ? UCSD provides eight Personal Insight Questions. From these eight, you will need to answer four questions. Here are the eight questions to choose from:

“ Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time.”

“Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem-solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistic, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.”

“ What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?”

“ Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.”

“ Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?”

“ Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom.”

“ What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?”

“ Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you stand out as a strong candidate for admission to the University of California?”

How to Write Each Essay Prompt For the University of San Diego

After reading these questions, they may seem difficult. Do not worry; you can have the best answers among all applicants. Here’s how to write UCSD supplemental essays directly, captivatingly, and compellingly.

How to Write University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #1 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #1:

The first question asks you to describe your leadership experience. They want you to focus on that role where you made the most impact and not just make a list of all your previous experiences.  

A leader has influence, strong values, and the ability to mentor, correct, and assist people needing help. Being a leader could be being the chairman of a committee or mentoring a student in junior year. Whether you have actively taken up a leadership role, here are tips on answering question #1. 

1. Pick a Role : We believe every student has had a leadership role at one point or the other. So, write up a list of each role, from the role of a president to the role of a group leader. Then, pick a role that allows you to tell an engaging story.

2. Be Authentic : Think deeply before answering this question. If you took up a role, consider the impacts you made there. Think about how people keep referring to your role as a leader. It could be that you were able to set up a reading club, or you helped a junior study to pass a course. 

3. Be Detailed : Take your time to tell this story in a way that catches your attention. You can mention the name of the book club or the junior you helped. Start by describing your thoughts about the idea and the steps you took until a delivery point. Admissions officers' interest lies in why you took up the role and the lessons learned. 

How to Write the University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #2 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #2:

This question aims to bring out your creativity. To write a stellar essay , ask yourself these questions. Do I have a creative skill that I cherish? UCSD explores your creative side. In your essay, you will describe your creativity and how you use this skill to solve problems.

1. Know That You Have a Creative Side : This UCSD essay prompt needs you to be creative, so you should have creative skills. They need to know that this applicant is not only academia-oriented. So, think about your singing, painting, sewing, baking, or ballet skills. Note that this can boost your chances at the admission office, especially if your academic requirements are not strong enough.

2. Be Creative : Prompt #2 does not just ask you to discuss your creative side. It seeks to know how original and artistic your skill is and how it can be problem-solving. Being creative here involves writing about how you started baking every Sunday to keep the family together. Or how you go sculpting to let your emotions out. 

3. Bring your creativity into your major: If your major is engineering, you can describe how you choose to paint during your leisure time. Go further by describing how your classmates joined you in painting as a time away from academics. This way, you have revealed more about yourself besides your grades. 

How to Write the University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #3 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #3: The keywords here are talent/skill, develop and demonstrate. There's a chance for you to explain the places you've been to as a result of your talent. If you are an athlete, a songwriter, a performer, or a teacher, you can let your talent shine in this essay. How do you go about it?

1. Think About your Strengths : If you have any of the talents listed above, pick one of them for this question. But if you don't, there's no cause for fear. One who isn't an athlete can be a good organizer. Review your experience or ask family and friends to assess your strengths and skills. 

2. Share your Skill Development : Begin your essay as a story describing the training that helped hone your talent. You can talk about the different clubs you joined as a junior, your consistent role as a teacher in church, or how you always made your sibling laugh while growing up. 

And if you are a strong member of the debate club, describe how your skills began as an outspoken child of the family.

3. Share your Skill Demonstration : Now, you can explain your many awards in the award section. Your skill as the best winger made your soccer team the reigning champion for years. Or how you organized several events as a junior in high school and the many awards you bagged for the debate club.

How to Write the University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #4 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #4: A significant educational opportunity is not just the high schools you attended. It is an educational platform that increases your experience as a student. Opportunities like advanced courses, a summer enrichment program, a debate club, and an unpaid internship with a physician, to name a few. 

Then, what were the barriers during these programs? It could be inadequate resources or physical or health challenges. How do you answer this question?

1. Showcase a Challenge not on Your UC Application : A student who previously had a learning disability will shine in this prompt. Remember that you have overcome this challenge, so you didn't indicate it in your personal data.

2. Be Vulnerable : It may sound unnecessary, but it will increase your chances. Explain how this challenge hindered your progress at the start of the educational opportunity. For example, your program may have been extended due to this barrier. 

3. Describe Your Success : Delve into how you overcame the challenge. Did you have to see a counselor? Did you join small study groups? Write about the specific events that led to your successful completion of such a program and how they helped shape who you are today.

How to Write University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #5 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #5: If you are familiar with supplemental essays , you will realize that most schools want to see your ability to handle challenges. The admission office wants to see this challenge and your approach to solving it. Here are tips for writing prompt #5 in the best way possible.

1. Be Real : To make a point, don't conjure a challenge you didn't go through. Choose the most significant challenge you experienced, even if it seems too minute. Every student will go through unexpected challenges. So, show UCSD that you will not run in the face of challenges.

2. Be Direct : While you may want to stick to multiple challenges, ensure you stick to one. Then, explain the one as much as you can. Describe how it affected you, given specific examples. 

3. Show Your Growth : You may lose some points if you fail to include your growth process during this challenge. Write about how you were able to come out of the situation stronger. Your answer should prove that if you come to any challenge, you will be ready to face it head-on and overcome it.

How to Write University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #6 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #6: This question begins with the keyword "academic" subject. This means you must not write about the novels you read during your leisure or the movies you discover. You may write about the textile creation course that inspired you as a medical student. 

The next step is to write about how you took the course and expanded your knowledge. Here's how to write this essay.

1. Show your Decision-making Ability : Many students can desire to pursue an interest, but it stays and remains an idea for a long time. But for you, you can show UCSD that you can decide to pursue your interests via this answer. By joining the literature summer class, you can pursue your literary interest as a maths student. 

2. Share the Lessons Learnt: Explain how your interest in this subject broadens your thinking process. For example, reading a book on history during a literature class informs you about things you were not privy to before. You can also talk about how this subject will spur you to join the creative writing club at UCSD. 

3. Use Specific Examples: Don’t overshare in one short UCSD essay prompt. If you pursue more than one academic subject, stick to one. You can showcase your decisiveness experience with one point. Pick one point and explain, staying within the word limit.

How to Write University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #7 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #7: This prompt seeks to discover how you contribute to your environment. Your interaction with your present school, home, or community shows what kind of future community member you’ll be. The admission officers expect to see your thoughtfulness, abilities, and impact during your contributions. So here are tips before you write.

1. Don't Exaggerate Your Role : While this prompt asks you to define your contributions, avoid bragging about it. Admission officers want to know about your workability. However, they also want to see that you are humble while working for the people. So, be sure to give a sincere description in this essay.

2. Describe your Inspiration : What spurred you to contribute? Was it a lingering problem in the street? Or a call for volunteers? This description shows that you have high emotional intelligence, boosting your chances of getting into UCSD. Also, you can write about how your inspiration increased your exposure to different areas in society.

3. Show your Team Spirit : This prompt is an opportunity to showcase your ability as a string team member, especially if you collaborated with others. For example, if you joined your school sanitation team to clean the dining weekly, that displays teamwork. 

How to Write the University of San Diego Supplemental Essay #8 + Analysis and Tips

Analysis of Prompt #8: This prompt is an open question that requires any kind of answer. Hold on for a second. Think about it. What could be missing in the previous seven prompts? 

You can go ahead if you realize you have something to share that isn't covered in previous questions. Aim to answer the question, 'What makes you an excellent choice for UCSD?'

1. Share What Makes You Stand Out: This question is not an avenue to write about other extracurricular activities or events that are not significant to the school. It should focus on exceptional attributes and events. You can talk about a business you started during the holidays. 

2. Be Honest : The prompt is another opportunity to sell yourself. However, if you have done this in the previous questions, you need not answer prompt #8. So, don't be tempted to include information that isn't yours. 

Some ideas include writing about how you develop the ability to work under pressure, even as a student, or your ability to stay focused despite distractions in some study settings. 

Examples of the University of San Diego Supplemental Essays that Worked

After extensive explanations, the best next thing is to investigate practice examples of these essays. These essay samples were written by successful applicants at the University of San Diego. Let's go!

Sample Essay #1

Prompt : " Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time ."

Take a look at this sample.

"It was her fourth honor council. I sat on the committee for her third, which granted her one last chance. It was mid-April–just weeks before graduation, and she would walk across the stage with her diploma. The third honor council debated for hours about the best course of action. 

No student had ever been given four chances without separation from the school. One attendee argued for her future in retaining her college admission, while another suggested her negative impacts on the school community. After hours of debate, the honor council was split. It was left up to just a few of her peers to decide her fate. 

We reviewed her previous violation, and it appeared: “Any future violations of school rules will result in separation from the school”. I believe strongly in seeking to understand a person’s circumstances before drawing judgment, and I think there is great value in the second chance. Unfortunately, this student could not take responsibility after failing on multiple counts, and we eventually decided it would be best for the community if she separated from the school. She was allowed to receive her diploma with successful completion of online classes.

Hard decisions like these have been a driving factor in shaping my character and values caring for the greater good of the community. I faced discrimination as a person with learning differences, which prompted me to solve issues of inequity through leadership positions. I give back to the community by leading school discussions about acts of hate and aggression that happen on and off campus, and I strive to create diversity and inclusion by attracting new people to Norwich. 

I attempt to create a well-rounded incoming class of freshmen that will better the community and help to solve issues of discrimination and a lack of diversity on campus. Together, my roles have heavily aligned with my values of creating diversity and solving a wide range of issues on campus."

Why Essay #1 Worked

The first paragraph shows the author's role as a council member. This essay works because the author demonstrates their leadership skills and highlights an event expressing their qualities and characteristics.

Sample Essay #2

Prompt : " Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem-solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistic, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side."

An example of how you can showcase your creativity goes thus:

"I believe in the strength of words because I know the power that just one can hold. Most of the time, it begins like that: I hear a word in a song that isn’t there, and an idea blooms. That word gives the sentence new meaning and great potential blossoms. So, I use that new phrase to write a new song.

Sometimes, the title of a book or a phrase in it takes me to the same place of raw creativity and expressive fervor. Something specific - a certain je ne sais quoi in my frontal cortex, which has long been dubbed creativity’s hub - ignites a thought in me that allows me to transform a creative piece of work into one of my own, something original, something new. 

The main way I’m able to explore this creative metamorphosis is through the transportability I experience with books. I write poems for the strength of Briseis and compose songs for the endless halls Piranesi roams, not to mention for the nostalgic memories of Tsukuru Tasaki. All these characters, and more, inspire me with their stories. I can write based on things I may never face as well as ubiquitously occurring feelings I haven’t yet felt because I can relate to them by reading about them in books written by others who have experienced those things (well, most of them).

It’s as if someone has created a cover-to-cover world and allowed me to enter it, a world which once I finish its final page, belongs once again to the author or musician - to his or her own experiences and feelings - but a world that I, too, can create, one that feels like home to me. I can write as if I’ve lived under the sea and dive into a wide range of themes in a limitless, fantasy-like way. 

Being able to write in this fashion gives me complete freedom on the angle I wish to explore with each theme and gives each of these themes a sense of universality and relatability to the reader or at least that’s the goal."

Why Essay # 2 Worked

You can see this author's creativity in creating lyrics from different inspirations, including a book title. They can create original, unique poems and songs from everything and anything in this diverse world. It also describes their problem-solving skill, as the original music will solve another musician's problem.

Sample Essay #3

Prompt : " What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?"

This author carefully explains their greatest skill in the sample below.

"When it comes to rooms, I’m a “reader”. I find reading books helps me improve my ability to read rooms because books help me understand events and individuals outside of my day-to-day experiences. Yet, this skill can also be problematic. For example, when I got my wisdom teeth pulled, I read “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”. 

With my face all puffy, I predicted two of the twist endings by pages 100-120 and found myself thoroughly disappointed (and somewhat proud) that they came to fruition simultaneously. Sometimes, it sucks to be right with this superpower.

Another activity that has augmented my talent for reading a room is traveling. Traveling improves my worldliness, which undoubtedly plays a key role in reading different people and situations. While living in Columbia, I found reading rooms initially difficult and thus felt vulnerable, as if my semi-psychic superpowers had been stripped away. But over time, I sensed my ability returning and even broadening as I ventured further outside my comfort bubble. 

Traveling within and outside Latin America has exposed me to multifarious cultures and peoples, which have each, in their own way, bolstered my ability to read the rooms around me into an even more potent superpower of being able to read rooms around the world.

Not only did I travel to others around the world to expand my horizons, but they also “traveled” to me via the Elders Support Initiative, a volunteer group directed toward helping senior citizens digitally during coronavirus. Conversing at length with such seasoned seniors helped grant me the perspective to understand them despite our differing worldviews from disparate epochs. Time allowed me to eventually read them and the (Zoom) room just the same, which made leading and organizing activities they’d like far easier and more successful.

Last but certainly not least, especially in today’s sociopolitical climate, reading rooms allow me to resolve conflicts and mediate problems between parties. However, my favorite part of being a “reader” is being the one to whom my friends always vent and with whom they share exciting news because they feel heard and understood by me."(351 words)

Why Essay #3 Worked

This essay works because of the engaging story about a room reading skill. It embodies communication skills, conflict mediation, and of course, reading skills. This author displays the development and three practical instances where this skill was useful. Any admission officer will read and connect with the author before the end. 

Sample Essay #4

Prompt : " Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced."

Check out this author's essay sample.

"The test covered L’Hopital’s Rule and Related Rates – something I knew I’d need extra time to complete. But there I was. Waiting in the classroom patiently with everyone else for Dr Robert to hand out the Honors Precalculus exam. I had been given a written contract for accommodations, but he didn’t care. 

This was the third time this had happened. I spoke to him about the extended time that I was entitled to the test before, yet here I was- again- in the same room as everyone else without any accommodations. Then he handed me my paper. I scribbled down my name as fast as possible to give myself enough time to maybe get two-thirds into the test without him grabbing it from my hands. 

I flew through L’Hopital’s rule through the constant sneezing, sniffing, and occasional cough from my neighbors. Did the person sitting next to me have COVID? It didn’t matter. What mattered was getting through as much math as possible within the time I was allowed. After finishing the first half, I looked over to my left– only to see the student next to me flipping to the last page of the test. 

Just as I started on the second half, I heard the disappointing “5 Minutes Left”. I quickly jotted down anything that came to mind for the remaining few minutes. I wrote as fast as possible until he came around and grabbed the test from underneath my pencil. I stood up and left the class full of frustration and anger. I found my friends, who had finished theirs 30 minutes early. I listened in frustration as they exclaimed, “That was the easiest test I’ve ever taken!”. 

I ran furiously to swim practice, thinking about the injustice I had faced – just like every test before. The next day in class, he handed back our tests. “What did you get?” “How did you do?” “98 – easiest test ever” “96 – I didn’t even study!”. Then he handed mine back. It was face down. I stared in agony at the back page with a large red “X” on the unattempted problems. 

I flipped it over, which only made it worse: “78%”. Nearly everything I had attempted on the test was correct. The remaining 22% were all unattempted problems. This happened many more times – “86”, “79”, “80”, “Did you attempt this problem?”, “Why didn’t you try this one?”. 

The end of the semester eventually came, and grades were finalized. “B+”. Nearly every problem I attempted on any quiz or test was mathematically correct, but I had run out of time on almost every assessment. It didn’t matter how good I truly was at Precalculus. What mattered to the teacher was what was down on the paper – an incomplete test. 

The frustration over the discrimination I faced in the classroom got so intense that I decided to write Dr. Robert one final email to let him know just how much his injustice in the classroom affected me. Knowing there was nothing I could do to help my grade, I furiously typed out every article about the ADA he violated and how unfair this truly was to me. My advocacy not only for myself, but for all students with learning differences made a big difference in the classroom, and in the second semester, I faced much less discrimination." (555 words)

Why Essay #4 Worked

In this sample, the author describes a challenge quite common among students in the university. After stating the barrier, they describe the pain, shame, and discrimination this barrier had caused. It works because it shows their ability to persist till there's a solution in the face of challenges.

Sample Essay #6

Prompt : " Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom."

Here's what this author has to say about pursuing an academic interest. 

"The assignment was to scrape and organize many DNA sequences from a database. It was late on a Sunday night, and I hadn’t started the assignment. I opened my laptop and saw the article I had been reading earlier that day. “Coronavirus has now killed 250 thousand people in the United States”. I moved it aside to start the project that was due the next morning. 

After spending hours finding creative ways to scrape the data I desired, I began debugging. I spent another hour tirelessly fixing problems that wouldn't allow my code to run. I turned back to the web to see if Stack Overflow had the answers to my questions. Then I saw it again: “Coronavirus has now killed 250 thousand people in the United States”. 

I put it aside but pondered how I could apply web scraping to a real-world crisis like COVID-19. I began debugging but was overtaken by my curiosity. I diverged from my school project and began writing code to scrape a COVID database and organize it into data frames. Eventually, after scraping tons of data, I glanced at the clock: 4 AM, and I still had not finished my assignment. 

It was time to get to work. I drudged through another hour of debugging and eventually finished. I glanced outside my window and saw bright beams of sunlight poking through the dense fog on the mountains, so I quickly grabbed my things and ran out the door for school.

 I was energized by the real-world application of what I was learning in my directed study, “Using Python for Research.” It inspired me to continue taking courses in addition to those offered at my school, such as “Analyzing Data with R” and “Multivariable Calculus.”

Why Essay #6 Worked off

Most schools offer different courses outside your major course. In this essay, the author, a medical student studying DNA sequences, chose to pursue an interest in programming languages. This essay sample works because the author learned and used her newly acquired knowledge to solve a problem.

Sample Essay #7

Prompt : " What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?"

Here's how to write UCSD essay Prompt #7.

"Whatever your expectations of my musical talents are, just throw them on the ground,” said my brother as he prepared to play the bagpipes for Treasure Talent Hunt, our school’s talent competition. Although I admit my brother’s bagpipe playing wasn’t entirely musical, hearing him make the entire student body laugh was music to my ears after two and a half years without social activities. 

For me, school is more than didactic education. It’s a community, and my goal is always to increase camaraderie and boost our collective spirit.  Last year, we returned to in-person classes, but the only social event we held was the prom. My disappointment in the lack of extracurricular events moved me to make a change. 

As student body vice president, my mission has been to increase the number of programs my school sponsors. I enjoy gathering feedback and ideas from my schoolmates and bringing them to the council to discuss, but generating ideas is only part of the fun. Last year was chaotic, as everyone on the student council performed the same task regardless of their position. To offer more events, I felt it was important for the student council members to have clearly defined roles and responsibilities, so I set expectations. 

In planning the Treasure Talent Hunt. I delegated to the spirit coordinators the registration of participants and the organization of the events, and to the class representatives the purchase of the drinks and snacks, which the treasurer reimbursed. The whole school turned out for the event and cheered on their performing classmates. Everybody cheered for the eight students performing at Treasure Talent Hunt.

In my first few months leading the student council, I also organized seven new social events, including homecoming festivities and spirit week, which were met with equal enthusiasm from the student population. I slowly noticed a palpable change in the camaraderie among my schoolmates, as they now have more opportunities to reconnect with each other. While my brother might not expect much from his music, I expect to rebuild our school community one event at a time.

Why Essay #7 Worked

The author discusses her participation in bringing back a talent competition, an extracurricular activity. They define how the enthusiasm and cheering spirit was brought back to school via her initiative. The admissions officers reading this essay will likely stand for this student before the university.

Get More Sample Essays Here!

These sample essays have helped broaden your thoughts, no doubt. If you want more of these, check out our extensive essay database.

FAQs: How to Write the University of San Diego Supplemental Essays 

Perhaps we couldn't answer all your questions, here are some common questions regarding the University of San Diego supplemental essays.

1. How Important Are Essays For the University of San Diego? 

Essays are very important in the University of San Diego's application process. They allow you to showcase your personality, experiences, and skills, helping the admissions committee understand you beyond your academic achievements.

2. How Many Essays Does UCSD Require?

You need to write four UCSD essays. Generally, UCSD provides eight personal insight essays as part of the University of California application.

3. Which UC Essay Should I Write?

Choose the questions that allow you to provide unique answers best. Your essay should resonate with your story and provide a comprehensive picture of yourself.

4. How Long Should University of San Diego Essays Be?

Your University of San Diego essay should not exceed 350 words. Remember to adhere to each limit, as adhering demonstrates your ability to follow instructions and effectively communicate your ideas.

Final Thoughts

When you started reading this guide, the prompts may have seemed daunting. By now, you should see each essay prompt as an opportunity to demonstrate your personality beyond your grades and test scores.

Take your time to craft, edit, and write compelling University of San Diego supplemental essays today. 

Get A Free Consultation

You may also like.

When Do ACT Scores Come Out in 2024: Key Dates

Princeton Interview Questions: Expert Tips & Sample Answers

How To Tackle The Weirdest Supplemental Essay Prompts For This Application Cycle

• Share to Facebook
• Share to Twitter
• Share to Linkedin

Writing the college essay

How do you write a letter to a friend that shows you’re a good candidate for the University of Pennsylvania? What reading list will help the Columbia University admissions committee understand your interdisciplinary interests? How can you convey your desire to attend Yale by inventing a course description for a topic you’re interested in studying?

These are the challenges students must overcome when writing their supplemental essays . Supplemental essays are a critical component of college applications—like the personal statement, they provide students with the opportunity to showcase their authentic voice and perspective beyond the quantitative elements of their applications. However, unlike the personal essay, supplemental essays allow colleges to read students’ responses to targeted prompts and evaluate their candidacy for their specific institution. For this reason, supplemental essay prompts are often abstract, requiring students to get creative, read between the lines, and ditch the traditional essay-writing format when crafting their responses.

While many schools simply want to know “why do you want to attend our school?” others break the mold, inviting students to think outside of the box and answer prompts that are original, head-scratching, or downright weird. This year, the following five colleges pushed students to get creative—if you’re struggling to rise to the challenge, here are some tips for tackling their unique prompts:

University of Chicago

Prompt: We’re all familiar with green-eyed envy or feeling blue, but what about being “caught purple-handed”? Or “tickled orange”? Give an old color-infused expression a new hue and tell us what it represents. – Inspired by Ramsey Bottorff, Class of 2026

What Makes it Unique: No discussion of unique supplemental essay prompts would be complete without mentioning the University of Chicago, a school notorious for its puzzling and original prompts (perhaps the most well-known of these has been the recurring prompt “Find x”). This prompt challenges you to invent a new color-based expression, encouraging both linguistic creativity and a deep dive into the emotional or cultural connotations of color. It’s a prompt that allows you to play with language, think abstractly, and show off your ability to forge connections between concepts that aren’t typically linked—all qualities that likewise demonstrate your preparedness for UChicago’s unique academic environment.

Best High-Yield Savings Accounts Of 2024

Best 5% interest savings accounts of 2024.

How to Answer it: While it may be easy to get distracted by the open-ended nature of the prompt, remember that both the substance and structure of your response should give some insight into your personality, perspective, and characteristics. With this in mind, begin by considering the emotions, experiences, or ideas that most resonate with you. Then, use your imagination to consider how a specific color could represent that feeling or concept. Remember that the prompt is ultimately an opportunity to showcase your creativity and original way of looking at the world, so your explanation does not need to be unnecessarily deep or complex—if you have a playful personality, convey your playfulness in your response; if you are known for your sarcasm, consider how you can weave in your biting wit; if you are an amateur poet, consider how you might take inspiration from poetry as you write, or offer a response in the form of a poem.

The goal is to take a familiar concept and turn it into something new and meaningful through a creative lens. Use this essay to showcase your ability to think inventively and to draw surprising connections between language and life.

Harvard University

Prompt: Top 3 things your roommates might like to know about you.

What Makes it Unique: This prompt is unique in both form and substance—first, you only have 150 words to write about all 3 things. Consider using a form other than a traditional essay or short answer response, such as a bullet list or short letter. Additionally, note that the things your roommate might like to learn about you do not necessarily overlap with the things you would traditionally share with an admissions committee. The aim of the prompt is to get to know your quirks and foibles—who are you as a person and a friend? What distinguishes you outside of academics and accolades?

How to Answer it: First and foremost, feel free to get creative with your response to this prompt. While you are producing a supplemental essay and thus a professional piece of writing, the prompt invites you to share more personal qualities, and you should aim to demonstrate your unique characteristics in your own voice. Consider things such as: How would your friends describe you? What funny stories do your parents and siblings share that encapsulate your personality? Or, consider what someone might want to know about living with you: do you snore? Do you have a collection of vintage posters? Are you particularly fastidious? While these may seem like trivial things to mention, the true creativity is in how you connect these qualities to deeper truths about yourself—perhaps your sleepwalking is consistent with your reputation for being the first to raise your hand in class or speak up about a cause you’re passionate about. Perhaps your living conditions are a metaphor for how your brain works—though it looks like a mess to everyone else, you have a place for everything and know exactly where to find it. Whatever qualities you choose, embrace the opportunity to think outside of the box and showcase something that admissions officers won’t learn about anywhere else on your application.

University of Pennsylvania

Prompt: Write a short thank-you note to someone you have not yet thanked and would like to acknowledge.

What Makes it Unique: Breaking from the traditional essay format, this supplement invites you to write directly to a third party in the form of a 150-200 word long letter. The challenge in answering this distinct prompt is to remember that your letter should say as much about you, your unique qualities and what you value as it does about the recipient—all while not seeming overly boastful or contrived.

How to Answer it: As you select a recipient, consider the relationships that have been most formative in your high school experience—writing to someone who has played a large part in your story will allow the admissions committee some insight into your development and the meaningful relationships that guided you on your journey. Once you’ve identified the person, craft a thank-you note that is specific and heartfelt—unlike other essays, this prompt invites you to be sentimental and emotional, as long as doing so would authentically convey your feelings of gratitude. Describe the impact they’ve had on you, what you’ve learned from them, and how their influence has shaped your path. For example, if you’re thanking a teacher, don’t just say they helped you become a better student—explain how their encouragement gave you the confidence to pursue your passions. Keep the tone sincere and personal, avoid clichés and focus on the unique role this person has played in your life.

University of Notre Dame

Prompt: What compliment are you most proud of receiving, and why does it mean so much to you?

What Makes it Unique: This prompt is unique in that it invites students to share something about themselves by reflecting on someone else’s words in 50-100 words.

How to Answer it: The key to answering this prompt is to avoid focusing too much on the complement itself and instead focus on your response to receiving it and why it was so important to you. Note that this prompt is not an opportunity to brag about your achievements, but instead to showcase what truly matters to you. Select a compliment that truly speaks to who you are and what you value. It could be related to your character, work ethic, kindness, creativity, or any other quality that you hold in high regard. The compliment doesn’t have to be grand or come from someone with authority—it could be something small but significant that left a lasting impression on you, or it could have particular meaning for you because it came from someone you didn’t expect it to come from. Be brief in setting the stage and explaining the context of the compliment—what is most important is your reflection on its significance and how it shaped your understanding of yourself.

Stanford University

Prompt: List five things that are important to you.

What Makes it Unique: This prompt’s simplicity is what makes it so challenging. Stanford asks for a list, not an essay, which means you have very limited space (50 words) to convey something meaningful about yourself. Additionally, the prompt does not specify what these “things” must be—they could be a physical item, an idea, a concept, or even a pastime. Whatever you choose, these five items should add depth to your identity, values, and priorities.

How to Answer it: Start by brainstorming what matters most to you—these could be values, activities, people, places, or even abstract concepts. The key is to choose items or concepts that, when considered together, provide a comprehensive snapshot of who you are. For example, you might select something tangible and specific such as “an antique telescope gifted by my grandfather” alongside something conceptual such as “the willingness to admit when you’re wrong.” The beauty of this prompt is that it doesn’t require complex sentences or elaborate explanations—just a clear and honest reflection of what you hold dear. Be thoughtful in your selections, and use this prompt to showcase your creativity and core values.

While the supplemental essays should convey something meaningful about you, your values, and your unique qualifications for the university to which you are applying, the best essays are those that are playful, original, and unexpected. By starting early and taking the time to draft and revise their ideas, students can showcase their authentic personalities and distinguish themselves from other applicants through their supplemental essays.

• Editorial Standards
• Reprints & Permissions

Creative Marbles Consultancy

Education is an investment to be considered wisely., university of san diego supplement essay defined.

Photo Credit: University of San Diego

Related Posts

Tips for parents’ college application anxiety: part 2.

Tips for Parents’ College Application Anxiety: Part 1

Understanding College Tuition Discount Rates

About jill yoshikawa, ed m, partner of creative marbles consultancy.

* indicates required Email Address * First Name Last Name About Me:

University of California 2024-25 Essay Prompt Guide

Regular Decision: 

Regular Decision Deadline: Nov 30

University of California  2024-25 Application Essay Question Explanations

The Requirements: 4 out of 8 essays, 350 words each.

Supplemental Essay Type(s): Oddball , Community , Activity

The UC application sounds like a riddle. Every student must write four essays, but choose from eight prompts. The rules may be unfamiliar, but the game is the same: tell admissions something they don’t know – and then do it three more times! The instructions counsel you to “select questions that are most relevant to your experience and that best reflect your individual circumstances,” and frankly, we couldn’t agree more. A strategic applicant will choose a constellation of the UC essay prompts that highlight vastly different aspects of their lives and personalities, leaving an admissions officer with a deep and complete picture of who they are. Don’t get hung up on trying to divine the questions admissions wants you to answer. In the end, they just want to get to know the real you, plus the application swears that “there is no advantage or disadvantage to choosing certain questions over others.” So follow your heart (!) and don’t let the fatigue get to you. Avoid robotically starting every answer by restating the question and be as anecdotal as possible. With each essay, your goal isn’t just to answer the question, but to tell a very short story about yourself. So, keep reading to get expert tips on how to write your UC essays!

1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time.  

Things to consider: a leadership role can mean more than just a title. it can mean being a mentor to others, acting as the person in charge of a specific task, or taking the lead role in organizing an event or project. think about what you accomplished and what you learned from the experience. what were your responsibilities, did you lead a team how did your experience change your perspective on leading others did you help to resolve an important dispute at your school, church, in your community or an organization and your leadership role doesn’t necessarily have to be limited to school activities. for example, do you help out or take care of your family.

When answering this UC personal insight question, avoid the siren song of your resume. This question isn’t asking you for a list! Remember: it’s your job, as an applicant, to use every essay as an opportunity to reveal something new about yourself. Think of a moment when you were in a position where you worked really hard to help a group of people. Maybe you are always the one helping your younger siblings with their homework, and you struggled to find ways to engage your dyslexic younger brother with math. Maybe, as a camp counselor or church volunteer, you were in charge of choreographing and instructing a number for a group of seven-year-old hip hop dancers to perform. Perhaps, on a Habitat for Humanity school trip, you became the head cook, whipping up everything from pancakes to chicken fajitas while galvanizing a team of sous chefs to pitch in.  

The point is, try to isolate a single leadership moment, and bring it to life with vivid details. Describe where you were, what was happening around you, and what you were feeling. Discuss what challenges you faced, and what you ultimately learned from the experience. Don’t shy away from challenges or even failures, since these are exactly the sorts of character-building experiences that can demonstrate resilience and quick thinking.

2. Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.

Things to consider: what does creativity mean to you do you have a creative skill that is important to you what have you been able to do with that skill if you used creativity to solve a problem, what was your solution what are the steps you took to solve the problem, how does your creativity influence your decisions inside or outside the classroom does your creativity relate to your major or a future career.

You may think that this UC personal insight question was geared towards the artistically inclined, but take a closer look. The wording offers many potential definitions that veer away from traditional conceptions of creativity (and actually, it asks you for your personal definition!). Creativity lies in your outlook: seeing the opportunity to use one of your skills in a novel situation; looking at a problem from a new angle to find the solution that no one else could see. This question is, in reality, ideal for the more scientifically oriented to create a more well-rounded profile. Creative types, on the other hand, might want to proceed with caution since, really, every question is an opportunity to show off your talents and describe your artistic endeavors.

No matter who you are, though, remember this classic writing advice: show don’t tell. So, you claim that gardening, or Calculus, or painting is how you show your creative side. Okay. So, then immerse the reader in this activity with you . If you enjoy gardening, describe the plants, their qualities, and how you make your horticultural choices; are you drawn to the aesthetics or are you botanically inquisitive? Similarly, if your subject is Calculus, show the reader how you sat in your dad’s office for six hours straight trying to calculate Pi on a three dozen sheets of paper using red crayon.  If you love to paint, show the reader where you paint, what you paint, and why you paint, describing the colors, textures, materials—the essential process behind your art. Write descriptively so that the reader can feel as if he or she were experiencing your creative passion with you.

3. What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?  

Things to consider: if there’s a talent or skill that you’re proud of, this is the time to share it. you don’t necessarily have to be recognized or have received awards for your talent (although if you did and you want to talk about it, feel free to do so). why is this talent or skill meaningful to you, does the talent come naturally or have you worked hard to develop this skill or talent does your talent or skill allow you opportunities in or outside the classroom if so, what are they and how do they fit into your schedule.

If question 3 reminds you of question 2, you’re not alone. Often, when we talk about a talent or skill that we have honed over the course of a lifetime, we’re inclined to describe it as an art — a creative extension of who we are. So if you choose to respond to both of these UC personal insight questions, make sure to highlight distinct skills in each. 

The good news is: finding your subject should be easy! You just need to answer this question: what makes you proud? Think about the stories that your friends and family like to share about you. Think about moments when your hard work paid off. When you can zero in on an experience that makes your heart swell, you’ll be able to pinpoint your essential subject. If the memory of your first swim meet victory still makes you smile, draw us into your rigorous training schedule; describe the aspects of the sport that motivate you to wake up early and push yourself. What were your challenges? What has this experience taught you? This narrative should have a clear timeline that traces your growth from the past to the present and into the future. How do you plan to further develop your talent in college and/or after college? Show not only that you have grown, but that you will continue to grow as you take your first steps into adulthood.

4. Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.

Things to consider: an educational opportunity can be anything that has added value to your educational experience and better prepared you for college. for example, participation in an honors or academic enrichment program, or enrollment in an academy that’s geared toward an occupation or a major, or taking advanced courses that interest you — just to name a few. , if you choose to write about educational barriers you’ve faced, how did you overcome or strive to overcome them what personal characteristics or skills did you call on to overcome this challenge how did overcoming this barrier help shape who are you today.

This question is tricky because it has two parts. So first break the question down: You can write about either A.) How you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity OR B.) How you have worked to overcome an educational barrier. The “or” is key. You are not being asked to write about both parts of this question. Just write about one.

If you have participated in an afterschool program, internship, honors program, or a special class that was meaningful or inspiring to you, you will want to think about choosing option A.  Maybe it was an afterschool program for young, aspiring lawyers, or an advanced history class that you took at your local community college. This is an opportunity for you to showcase your ambition and highlight the kinds of challenges that engage and excite you. Beyond underscoring an academic interest, reflect on the personal qualities required for you to succeed. And remember to show, not tell! It will save you from accidentally humble-bragging your way through this assignment. 

Now, for option B. If you have worked to overcome a disability, struggled in school because you have a different background than your peers, suffered financial hardship, or something along those lines, you can choose to write about option B. To nail this tricky task, you will need to highlight not only the ways you struggled, but also the qualities that helped you succeed. How would you define yourself? Resilient? Hardworking? Brave? Zero in on a quality that resonates with you, and write targeted descriptions that bring it to life. (No one is going to believe you if you just write, “I am resilient,” and leave it at that.) Lastly, reflect on how this barrier shaped who you are today, and what skills you gained through facing this educational barrier.

5. Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?

Things to consider: a challenge could be personal, or something you have faced in your community or school. why was the challenge significant to you this is a good opportunity to talk about any obstacles you’ve faced and what you’ve learned from the experience. did you have support from someone else or did you handle it alone, if you’re currently working your way through a challenge, what are you doing now, and does that affect different aspects of your life for example, ask yourself, “how has my life changed at home, at my school, with my friends or with my family”.

If you skipped question 4 or chose to write about option A, this question is a gift: a second chance to showcase your resilience in the face of obstacles. On the other hand, if you chose to write about option B in question 4, this might feel redundant. You are free to write about both, but again, proceed with caution and be sure to select a totally different challenge.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: questions that ask you to describe a struggle or failure are really probing for stories about success. What pro-active steps did you take to address the problem at hand? Even if your solution didn’t work out perfectly, what did you learn? In facing this challenge, did you discover a courageous, creative, or hard-working side of yourself? Did you learn something valuable about yourself or others? Highlight the upside. How did this challenge shape who you are today? And how will the skills that you gained dealing with this challenge will help you in college and beyond?

6. Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom. 

Things to consider: many students have a passion for one specific academic subject area, something that they just can’t get enough of. if that applies to you, what have you done to further that interest discuss how your interest in the subject developed and describe any experience you have had inside and outside the classroom — such as volunteer work, internships, employment, summer programs, participation in student organizations and/or clubs — and what you have gained from your involvement., has your interest in the subject influenced you in choosing a major and/or future career have you been able to pursue coursework at a higher level in this subject (honors, ap, ib, college or university work) are you inspired to pursue this subject further at uc, and how might you do that.

If you’ve ever referred to yourself as a “nerd” or “geek”, this question is probably for you. To nail down a topic for this bad boy, you can work in two directions: (1) think about how your favorite academic subject has impacted your extracurricular pursuits, or (2) trace one of your favorite hobbies back to its origins in the classroom. Maybe your love of languages led you to take a job at a coffee shop frequented by multilingual tourists. Or perhaps your now-extensive coin collection was resurrected when you did a research project on ancient Roman currency. Whichever way you go about it, building a bridge between the scholarly and the personal lies at the heart of answering this prompt.

7. What have you done to make your school or your community a better place? 

Things to consider: think of community as a term that can encompass a group, team or a place —like your high school, hometown or home. you can define community as you see fit, just make sure you talk about your role in that community. was there a problem that you wanted to fix in your community, why were you inspired to act what did you learn from your effort how did your actions benefit others, the wider community or both did you work alone or with others to initiate change in your community.

Some backwards advice: When writing about community service, you should always start with yourself. Community service essays are cliché minefields. To avoid drifting into platitudes, you need to ground your writing in the specificity of your life. Don’t start with the action and end with what you learned. Instead, dig into your motivations. If you spent weeks petitioning your school community to raise the hourly wage for custodial staff, what prompted you to act? What assumptions did you have about income inequality and what did you learn about your community in the process? Or, maybe you weren’t too enthused about your community service. Maybe you participated in a soccer-team-mandated day of coaching a pee-wee team. What caused your skepticism? How did you turn the experience around?

Also, don’t just choose a topic that sounds impressive. “This year I acted as the co-chair of the Honors Society, presiding over twenty different cases.” If you didn’t, in fact, really enjoy Honors Society, write about a topic that means something to you instead. Think of a moment where you felt like you made a change in your local community. It can be something small; it does not have to be monumental, but it should mean a great deal to you. Describe the moment, using detail to bring it to life, and then reflect on what that experience taught you, and how you hope to continue these activities in the future.

8. Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California?

Things to consider: if there’s anything you want us to know about you, but didn’t find a question or place in the application to tell us, now’s your change. what have you not shared with us that will highlight a skill, talent, challenge or opportunity that you think will help us know you better, from your point of view, what do you feel makes you an excellent choice for uc don’t be afraid to brag a little..

This question is really just what it says it is—an open-ended, choose-your-own-adventure question.  Is there something that you really, really want to tell the UC admissions team that you feel makes you a strong and unique candidate that is not showcased in the other three personal insight questions? As with the other questions, whatever topic you choose, please use detail and description to bring this topic to life for the reader, and include thoughtful reflection on why this topic matters to you. Also, be sure to explain why your chosen topic makes you stand out as a strong candidate for the UC schools, since the question specifically asks you to do that!

We hope you enjoyed our UC application essay tips! Don’t hesitate to submit a contact form below if you’d like to work with an experienced College Essay Advisor on your drafts!

About Kat Stubing

View all posts by Kat Stubing »

We're here to help.

Frequently Asked Questions

Applicants must respond to four (4) out of the eight (8) Personal Insight Questions.

Each UC Personal Insight Question asks for a response of 350 words.

We recommend reading each prompt and jotting down a few ideas that come to mind. Next, review your notes and elaborate on each story. You’ll be able to tell rather quickly which of your stories have the most potential to transform into 350-word essays and reveal new, interesting information to admissions regarding your candidacy!

As with all application essays, admissions is hoping to read essays that help them to get to know the person behind the application data. They even say on their website , “There is no right or wrong way to answer these questions. It’s about getting to know your personality, background, interests and achievements in your own unique voice.”

No! You need to write a total of four (4) essays. These essays should have very little (if any) overlap.

The UC essays are quite important! They’re your only opportunity to speak to admissions in your own voice. The admissions committee will be reviewing dozens of applications each day, which means they are assessing a lot of data. These essays present an opportunity for you to humanize your application and stand out from the crowd.

Applicants will want to avoid silly grammar mistakes , repeating the prompt in their response, and telling rather than showing (e.g., saying you are determined without giving an example of a time you displayed determination).

Contact us for information on rates and more!

• I am a * Student Parent Potential Partner School Counselor Private College Counselor
• Name * First Last
• Phone Type Mobile Landline
• Street Address
• Address City State / Province / Region Afghanistan Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos Islands Colombia Comoros Congo Congo, Democratic Republic of the Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curaçao Cyprus Czechia Côte d'Ivoire Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island and McDonald Islands Holy See Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macao Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Macedonia Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestine, State of Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Réunion Saint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Sint Maarten Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Sweden Switzerland Syria Arab Republic Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania, the United Republic of Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Türkiye US Minor Outlying Islands Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Viet Nam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Åland Islands Country
• Which best describes you (or your child)? High school senior High school junior College student College grad Other
• How did you find CEA? Internet Search New York Times Guidance counselor/school Social Media YouTube Friend Special Event Delehey College Consulting Other
• Common App and Coalition Essays
• Supplemental Essays
• University of California Essays
• University of Texas Essays
• Resume Review
• Post-Grad Essays
• Specialized Services
• Waitlist Letters
• Private School Essays
• General College Counseling
• School list with priorities noted:
• Anything else we should know?
• Email This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

School Stats:

• Agnes Scott College
• Alvernia University
• American University
• Amherst College
• Babson College
• Bard College
• Barnard College
• Baylor University
• Bennington College
• Bentley University
• Berry College
• Bethany College
• Boston College
• Boston University (BU)
• Bowdoin College
• Brandeis University
• Brown University
• Bryn Mawr College
• Bucknell University
• Butler University
• California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
• California Lutheran University
• Capitol Technology University
• Carleton College
• Carnegie Mellon University
• Centre College
• Chapman University
• Claremont McKenna College
• Clark University
• Clemson University
• Coastal Carolina University
• College of Charleston
• College of William and Mary
• College of Wooster
• Colorado School of Mines
• Columbia University
• Cornell University
• Culver-Stockton College
• D'Youville University
• Dartmouth College
• Davidson College
• Drexel University
• Duke University
• Earlham College
• Elon University
• Emerson College
• Emory University
• Flagler College
• George Mason University
• Georgetown University
• Georgia State University
• Georgia Tech
• Gonzaga University
• Harvard University
• Harvey Mudd College
• Haverford College
• Hillsdale College
• Hofstra University
• Illinois Wesleyan University
• Ithaca College
• Johns Hopkins University
• Kalamazoo College
• Lafayette College
• Lehigh University
• Lewis and Clark College
• Linfield University
• Loyola Marymount University (LMU)
• Lynn University
• Malone University
• Manchester University
• Marist College
• Mary Baldwin University
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
• Meredith College
• Monmouth College
• Moravian University
• Morehouse College
• New York University (NYU)
• North Park University
• Northwestern University
• Occidental College
• Oklahoma City University
• Olin College of Engineering
• Pepperdine University
• Pitzer College
• Pomona College
• Princeton University
• Purdue University
• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• Rice University
• Roger Williams University
• Saint Elizabeth University
• Santa Clara University
• Scripps College
• Seattle Pacific University
• Smith College
• Southern Methodist University
• St. John’s College
• Stanford University
• Stevens Institute of Technology
• Stonehill College
• Syracuse University
• The College of Idaho
• The George Washington University
• The New School
• Trinity College
• Tufts University
• Tulane University
• University of California
• University of Central Florida (UCF)
• University of Chicago
• University of Colorado Boulder
• University of Georgia (UGA)
• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
• University of Maryland
• University of Massachusetts Amherst
• University of Miami
• University of Michigan
• University of Minnesota
• College of Mount Saint Vincent
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC)
• University of North Carolina at Charlotte
• University of North Carolina at Greensboro
• University of Notre Dame
• University of Oklahoma
• University of Oregon
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Richmond
• University of San Diego
• University of San Francisco
• University of Southern California (USC)
• University of Texas at Austin
• University of Tulsa
• University of Vermont
• University of Virginia (UVA)
• University of Washington
• University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Vanderbilt University
• Vassar College
• Villanova University
• Virginia Tech
• Wake Forest University
• Washington and Lee University
• Washington University in St. Louis
• Wellesley College
• Williams College
• Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
• Yale University

Want free stuff?

We thought so. Sign up for free instructional videos, guides, worksheets and more!

One-On-One Advising

Common App Essay Prompt Guide

Supplemental Essay Prompt Guide

• YouTube Tutorials
• Our Approach & Team
• Undergraduate Testimonials
• Postgraduate Testimonials
• Where Our Students Get In
• CEA Gives Back
• Undergraduate Admissions
• Graduate Admissions
• Private School Admissions
• International Student Admissions
• Common App Essay Guide
• Supplemental Essay Guide
• Coalition App Guide
• The CEA Podcast
• Admissions Stats
• Notification Trackers
• Deadline Databases
• College Essay Examples
• Academy and Worksheets
• Waitlist Guides
• Get Started

• Medical School Application

UCSD Secondary Essay Prompts & Examples

The University of California San Diego (UCSD) secondary essays can help you stand out among thousands of applicants to this highly competitive medical school. In our blog, we will go over UCSD secondary prompts and sample essays and give you tips for how to craft outstanding supplemental essays for your application!

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free initial consultation here <<

Listen to the blog!

Article Contents 9 min read

Medical school secondary essays  are designed to provide admissions committees with additional information on an applicant's suitability for a career in medicine. They use this information to whittle down the pile of applicants into a select number that will be invited to continue through the admission process. As students are likely to receive secondary application requests from a handful of schools in a similar timeframe, students should begin working on their applications ahead of time. 

 The University of California San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine is extremely competitive, receiving approximately 8000 applicants each year that compete for only 110 spots in the MD program. With a success rate of only 1.37%, students must ensure their UCSD secondary essays stand out. The difficult autobiographical sketch requires students to dig deep and construct an essay describing their motivations, accomplishments, and hardships in their journey to medicine. With up to 6000 characters to play with, this essay is even longer than the medical school personal statement. In this blog, you'll learn everything you need to know about the UCSD secondary application and you'll have the chance to review secondary essay prompts and examples.

The UCSD MD program's mission is to “provide cutting edge resources and education to our students so they may grow into innovative and compassionate physicians, focused on providing superior medical care to the global community.” With a new curriculum, the school aims to provide its graduates with the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes necessary to become capable and compassionate doctors.

MD PhD vs MD

The joint MD/PhD program is offered through the Medical Scientist Training Program for students who wish to pursue both research and medicine at the same time. The program's mission is to “provide students with the breadth and depth of training necessary to excel as academic physicians. The curriculum combines classroom and clinical training in the UCSD School of Medicine with research in a Graduate Department.”

Program in Medical Education – Health Equity (PRIME-HEQ)

The PRIME – HEQ program is designed to train physicians to meet the needs of underserved populations within California. The program's mission is to “develop leaders to eliminate health disparities in their communities, our nation, and the world.” Students admitted into this program will have the opportunity to identify and work with populations or communities at risk.

The GHAC's mission is to “provide medical students with the knowledge, experiences, and resources needed to prepare them for careers in Global Health by learning about complexities and challenges of global healthcare delivery, ethics of doing Global Health research, and socio-structural bases of health inequities.” Students involved in this stream have the opportunity to complete an international research experience and clinical rotation abroad. Students can apply to this track if they've been invited to complete a secondary application, however, only five students from the applicant pool will be selected.

UCSD School of Medicine (SOM) does not send out secondary applications to all applicants, instead, they use primary applications as a way to screen applicants and choose who will progress to the next stage of the admissions process. Once a secondary application invitation has been sent, students will have one month to complete and submit their application. Students enrolled in the MD-PhD programs , however, will only be given two weeks to return their completed application. Those that did not receive secondary application invitations will still be considered during a potential second round of review and invitation that occurs in January. Once students return their secondary applications, they may be invited to participate in a MMI, be put on hold for an interview, or they may not be asked to continue further. UCSD's secondary application fee is $120.

UCSD Application Timeline:

Offers of admission "}]">

UCSD Essay Prompts

While there are many medical school secondary essay examples , UCSD secondary applications contain both required and optional essays depending on an applicant's program of interest. 

1. Autobiographical Sketch

This should be a true autobiographical statement. Topics to be included are family, childhood, primary and secondary school years, undergraduate years, and, if applicable, what you’ve done since completing your bachelor’s degree. You should also discuss the motivational factors which led you to a career in medicine including any disadvantages or obstacles which might put your accomplishments into context. Looking over medical school personal statement examples may help you get some ideas, but a repeat of your AMCAS statement will not be acceptable. (6000 characters)

Please note: if you are applying to the MD/PhD program, please include why you are specifically interested in seeking MD/PhD training at UCSD.

2. Some medical school applicants are already focused on pursuing a particular career pathway in medicine. While many students will change from this pathway during medical school, knowing of your potential interests does help us to assign interviewers. Your choice below does not influence how the Admissions Committee selects students to interview.

Please select from one of the career pathways listed below. In addition to this selection, please provide a brief description of your future career goals. (400 characters)

• Academic Medicine (Working as a faculty member at a School of Medicine either as a clinician, a clinician-educator, or a clinician investigator. This could be in any field of medicine)
• Primary Care and/or work in underserved communities (Working as a general internist, a pediatrician, or a family medicine physician and/or spending the majority of your time working in a community currently underserved by the medical profession)
• Public Health, administrative leadership in medicine (Pursuing an MPH and/or working for a public health department or organization; working in health care policy; working as a hospital administrator)
• Specialist in private practice (Working in a private practice or managed care setting as a subspecialist. Examples include cardiologist, infectious disease specialist, obstetrician, orthopedic surgeon, general surgeon, anaesthesiologist, radiologist)
• Other/undecided

1. Please describe your interest in the PRIME-HEq program. Topics to include are longitudinal experiences that you’ve had with underserved communities, including the type of community that you’ve worked with and your level of involvement. Additionally, you should discuss the length of time that you’ve spent working in these communities. (OPTIONAL)

2. Global Health Academic Concentration: Please describe your interest in Global Health. The term Global Health can have many meanings; for our purposes, we find the definition provided by Koplan et. al. in their 2009 Lancet publication useful: “the area of study, research and practice that places a priority on improving health and achieving equity in health for all people worldwide”. In your essay, be sure to describe any personal or professional experiences that have shaped your interests, and how Global Health issues have influenced your decision to pursue a career in medicine. (OPTIONAL)

3. Please describe your interest in the MAS-Clinical Research program. Topics to include are your previous experience with clinical and/or translational research, your role within the research group, and what you envision for a career that includes clinical and/or translational research. A letter of recommendation from the individual supervising your previous experience is helpful but not required. (OPTIONAL)

“I can see in the dark! I can see in the dark!” screamed the formerly blind child as she ran around on a dimly lit street late at night. Watching her excitement on a video clip through tears, I could not help but feel immeasurable joy and think, “A week and a half ago, she could not see. Medicine did this.” As a current clinical research associate for the Vision Center team at Children’s Hospital of San Francisco, we provide the first-ever FDA-approved gene therapy that corrects a genetic defect of children who suffer from blindness due to Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis. I am a part of this team because of the family I come from, the values that they instilled in me, and the opportunities I pursued because of these values.

I come from three generations of immigrants. From displacement by the Armenian Genocide to resettlement in Soviet Armenia, to immigration to Los Angeles, CA, with each generation of movement came generations of stories. These stories contained pain from which I learned empathy, hope from which I learned resilience, and the pursuit of progress from which I learned perseverance. Most importantly, these stories taught me what it means to be a good listener and to be respectful. Using these anecdotes and my ethnic background as my foundation, I developed a desire to understand other cultures.

While in high school, I joined a non-profit group that aims to empower women who are in cooperatives in Tabasco, Mexico by selling their hand-made artisan goods. During my junior year, I had the opportunity to travel to Tabasco and meet with the women who made these beautiful, ornate pieces. After learning about their lives and seeing the appreciation they had towards us, I knew I needed to be in a field where I could expand my understanding of human cultures and behavior.

While majoring in physical anthropology in college, I worked as an office assistant and interpreter in an ophthalmology clinic over the summers. Because the clinic would get busy quickly and I wanted to ease the burden of the front office staff, I started organizing each week’s patient charts in advance and calling the patients to remind them of their appointments. “You’re like the Energizer Bunny!” said my coworker one day as I handed her a stack of charts. From that moment, the name stuck. My time at the office was valuable because it reinforced my ability to complete projects quickly and efficiently while reminding me of the importance of following any project through to the very end.

Wanting to gain more clinical experience after college, I became a clinical research coordinator at a medical center where I coordinated clinical trials and PI-initiated studies. I interfaced with and integrated a number of healthcare professionals to push forward numerous studies and care for a high volume of patients. One of the projects I worked on extensively required a six-hour, multifaceted consultation visit that was taxing both on the patient and clinic flow. Recognizing the inefficiency, I created a system in clinic that scheduled these visits early in the morning, prepared all forms and rooms for the optometrists and retina specialists in advance, and remained in constant communication with all clinic staff throughout the patient’s visit. Because of these improvements, we shortened the consultation visit time by half and became one of the top enrolling sites for the clinical trial. In addition to being exposed to and enjoying team-based, collaborative delivery of care, I developed a newfound interest in public health.

Following my time as a research coordinator, I pursued an MPH degree in epidemiology at the University of San Fransisco. While in graduate school, I wanted to integrate what I was learning in my classes by working in the community I was living in and by participating in epidemiological research. As a graduate research assistant, I refined my analytical and scientific inquiry and gained the confidence to develop a research project independently. I applied this confidence to my work as a Bloom mentor as I created weekly lesson plans and activities for adolescent girls around themes such as menstrual health and hygiene, bullying, obesity, diversity, and more. Encouraging the girls to participate, I saw them develop trust in the other mentors, their peers, and myself. as they shared their experiences with the difficult themes we presented. My time as a mentor taught me the importance of building rapport, being honest, and communicating clearly and effectively.

I have been exposed to diverse educational and professional opportunities that allowed me to help individuals, deepen my understanding of health and human behavior, and acquire a population-level perspective that places individuals in the context of their environment. I want to be a physician that serves pediatric populations and with a passion for epidemiologic research, I appreciate UCSD SOM’s Center for Better Beginnings which aims to promote maternal health and child development. Under the guidance of Dr. Gill Vandolis, I can build off my previous pediatric epidemiological studies while also volunteering in my future specialty of pediatrics at Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego. UC San Diego School of Medicine would allow me to gain a solid understanding of clinical concepts in a research setting, to continue to pursue epidemiologic research, and would help propel me into a future career as a physician and researcher. I aim to improve the lives of children and adolescents through the practice of compassionate medicine and interdisciplinary, innovative research.

Character count: 5601

Click here to see another response to this prompt. 

I envision integrating my future medical education with my MPH to pursue interdisciplinary research and working at a public health organization. Specifically, I want to pursue epidemiological research that informs change. I aim to translate my future research into effective policy changes and innovative, community-based initiatives.

Character count: 335

Check out our video for a recap:

Like our blog? Write for us ! >>

Have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions.

Hello, I'm not sure where the information about a 2 week turnaround time for MD-PhD students came from, but I wasn't able to find it anywhere else, including the UCSD MSTP website.

BeMo Academic Consulting

Hello Natalie! Thanks for your comment. Please follow any deadlines detailed by UCSD to submit your secondaries. 

Get Started Now

Talk to one of our admissions experts

Our site uses cookies. By using our website, you agree with our cookie policy .

Skip to Content

Other ways to search:

• Events Calendar

Want to write a college essay that sets you apart? Three tips to give you a head start

1. Keep it real. It’s normal to want to make a good impression on the school of your choice, but it’s also important to show who you really are. So just be yourself! Compelling stories might not be perfectly linear or have a happy ending, and that’s OK. It’s best to be authentic instead of telling schools what you think they want to hear.

2. Be reflective . Think about how you’ve changed during high school. How have you grown and improved? What makes you feel ready for college, and how do you hope to contribute to the campus community and society at large?

3. Look to the future. Consider your reasons for attending college. What do you hope to gain from your education? What about college excites you the most, and what would you like to do after you graduate? Answering these questions will not only give colleges insight into the kind of student you’ll be, but it will also give you the personal insight you’ll need to choose the school that’s right for you.

Have questions about college prep? We're here to help.

Written by CU Boulder Office of Admissions

• College-Prep

The University of Colorado does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, pregnancy, disability, creed, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, political affiliation, or political philosophy. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply. You may  view the list of ADA and Title IX coordinators  and  review the Regent policy .

As a student or prospective student at CU Boulder, you have a right to certain information pertaining to financial aid programs, the Clery Act, crime and safety, graduation rates, athletics and other general information such as the costs associated with attending CU Boulder. To view this information visit  colorado.edu/your-right-know .

Apply for Admission

Visit Campus

Support CU Boulder

• Safety & Health Services
• COVID-19 Information
• Campus Communications
• Emergency Alert System
• New Student & Family Programs

Getting Around

• Campus Events
• Parking & Transportation
• Visit Information

Information for

• Faculty & Staff
• Journalists

Initiatives

• Business & Industry Collaborations
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
• Free Speech
• Innovation & Entrepreneurship
• Public & Outreach Programs
• Sustainability
• Understanding Your Cost of Attendance

San Diego State University | SDSU

• Cost & scholarships
• Essay prompt

Want to see your chances of admission at San Diego State University | SDSU?

We take every aspect of your personal profile into consideration when calculating your admissions chances.

San Diego State University | SDSU’s 2023-24 Essay Prompts

Common app personal essay.

The essay demonstrates your ability to write clearly and concisely on a selected topic and helps you distinguish yourself in your own voice. What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores? Choose the option that best helps you answer that question and write an essay of no more than 650 words, using the prompt to inspire and structure your response. Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don‘t feel obligated to do so.

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 will first-time readers think of your college essay?

University of San Diego

How to write the supplemental essays.

Any examples of supplements? I don't see prompts so don't know what these essays are essays for under University of San Diego.

Sorry, this is only a short answer space.

Log In To Your GradeSaver Account

• Remember me
• Forgot your password?

Create Your GradeSaver Account

What are your chances of acceptance?

Calculate for all schools, your chance of acceptance.

Your chancing factors

Extracurriculars.

How to Write the Smith College Supplemental Essay 2024-2025

Smith College is a private liberal arts women’s college in Western Massachusetts. The school boasts small class sizes and close advising for over 50 areas of study. Smith is also part of both the Five College Consortium , which allows students to take courses and participate in extracurriculars at Amherst College, Mount Holyoke College, Hampshire College, and UMass Amherst.

Smith is pretty selective, so writing a strong essay can definitely help increase your chances of acceptance. Here’s how to respond to their supplemental essay prompt.

Smith College Supplemental Essay Prompt

What personal experiences, background or abilities would you bring to this residential environment to share with your neighbors and what would you hope your neighbors would share with you (250 words).

Smith wants to know about your individuality and worldview through your experiences, backgrounds, and abilities, and this aligns most with the Diversity archetype . Showcase how your unique perspective benefits the community and how you engage with others. As there is an emphasis on “neighbors,” make sure to prioritize community as a theme, whether that’s about embracing differences, serving the people around you, or any other variation of being a contributing member of your community. 

Essentially, you are being asked to reflect on the aspects of your identity, skills, and personality that will shape how you engage with Smith College’s residential campus community. Admissions officers want to know how you can enrich the experiences of your future neighbors, as well as what you hope to gain from living in a diverse and tight-knit environment. It’s an opportunity to highlight your ability to contribute to a communal space, while also demonstrating humility and openness to learning from others.

To brainstorm some ideas for what you’ll write about, think about the following questions:

• What personal experiences or aspects of your identity (culture, family background, hobbies, talents) would shape your role in a residential community?
• How have you contributed to your community in the past? How would that translate to a college campus or dorm environment?
• What specific values or qualities do you want your living space to reflect?
• What are you curious about learning from others who may have different backgrounds or interests than your own?
• How do you envision creating meaningful relationships with your neighbors?

Like any supplemental essay, a good response will be specific and personal. Make sure to share details about your life that impact how you interact with others; this could include any aspect of your identity, including ethnicity, race, culture, religion, socioeconomic class, gender and sexual orientation, hometown, illness or disability, and even interests and hobbies. 

How can your experiences or abilities related to one of these dimensions enrich the lives of the people around you? Think about how you contribute to your community or how you will. Then, dive into what you hope to gain from your peers to express your openness to learning from others—engagement is mutual, so don’t neglect this part of the prompt. 

Check out these examples below:

Good Example : “ I’ve always felt that food is a way to bring people together. Growing up in a Filipino household, Sunday afternoons were spent cooking lumpia and adobo with my cousins. I want to recreate this sense of warmth and familiarity in my life at Smith by hosting cooking nights where we can share our favorite family dishes. I can already imagine the smell of sizzling garlic and soy sauce filling the kitchen as we cook and talk about the comfort foods that remind us of home. But more than that, I hope my neighbors will share their own stories and traditions with me—whether it’s teaching me a new dance move, introducing me to their favorite songs, or showing me a special recipe that I can add to my collection .”

This example gives a vivid picture of how the student will contribute to the residential community by sharing memories and traditions related to their cultural background. It also balances their desire to learn from others, creating a sense of true exchange. The focus on food as a way to connect adds a personal and tangible element with elements of storytelling.

Bad Example: “ In the Smith dorms, I would bring a positive attitude and help others when needed. I’ve always been someone who people can count on, and I hope that my neighbors will see that I am trustworthy to talk to when they need help. I also hope that I will meet people from different backgrounds who can teach me about their experiences when they come to me to talk something out. It will be great to live with people who are different from me and learn from them. Creating authentic connections with my neighbors is an important way to create a community and make sure everyone feels supported. ”

This example is generic and doesn’t show any specific aspects of the student’s background or personality. While it mentions wanting to help others and learn from peers, it lacks detail on how the student plans to engage with the community. It could be written by anyone and doesn’t provide any personal reflection or depth to the writing.

Your response should be intentional and reflective when it demonstrates how your personal background and abilities will enrich your residential community at Smith. This will help show admissions officers that you’re ready to be an active, engaged, and open-minded member of the campus community who contributes to the culture of the college.

Where to Get Your Smith College Essays Edited for Free

Do you want feedback on your Smith College essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. 

Need feedback faster? Get a free, nearly-instantaneous essay review from Sage, our AI tutor and advisor. Sage will rate your essay, give you suggestions for improvement, and summarize what admissions officers would take away from your writing. Use these tools to improve your chances of acceptance to your dream school!

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

Get the Reddit app

Join the A2C Discord!

r/ApplyingToCollege is the premier forum for college admissions questions, advice, and discussions, from college essays and scholarships to college list help and application advice, career guidance, and more.

Im not sure what to write about for the University of San Diego supplements

im completely burned out because i wrote almost like 10 supplements from each different school but i stumbled upon USD's supplement and i don't know what to write about. This is 2 that i have to write about.

-The year 2024 will mark USD’s 75th anniversary. In preparation for this milestone, we as a campus community are looking to grow in meaningful and impactful ways. We are looking to set the standard for an engaged, contemporary Catholic university where innovative changemakers confront humanity’s urgent challenges. In what ways do you hope to grow by the year 2024? Where do you see yourself, and what type of impact do you hope to have on the world around you?

Catholic higher education is distinctive from other educational approaches. Grounded in the liberal arts, the Catholic approach to education emphasizes the importance of compassionate service, ethical conduct, diversity and inclusion, and social justice. It is also designed to promote the holistic formation of students, attending not only to their academic growth but also their psychological and spiritual development. Knowing this, what particular element of Catholic higher education most appeals to you, and how do you envision that element impacting your experience at USD?

obviously i know what to write about for the first one because it talks about personal growth, i just don't know what to write for the second one. Any ideas and thanks in advance

By continuing, you agree to our User Agreement and acknowledge that you understand the Privacy Policy .

Enter the 6-digit code from your authenticator app

You’ve set up two-factor authentication for this account.

Enter a 6-digit backup code

Create your username and password.

Reddit is anonymous, so your username is what you’ll go by here. Choose wisely—because once you get a name, you can’t change it.

Reset your password

Enter your email address or username and we’ll send you a link to reset your password

Check your inbox

An email with a link to reset your password was sent to the email address associated with your account

Choose a Reddit account to continue