Published August 01, 2024
Announcing the 2024-2025 Common Application for NYU
Billy Sichel
Assistant Vice President of Undergraduate Admissions
It’s August 1st and that means the application at NYU has officially opened. This year, we’ve made some pretty big changes to NYU’s Common Application to simplify the process for our applicants, and to help us learn a little more about you!
When you start NYU’s member questions on the Common App, you’ll see 6 sections that you’ll need to complete. We give you a little bit of a head start by checking off the “Writing” section. This section is optional – but also new and exciting! More on that later.
The General Information Section
In the “General” section, you’ll be asked a few questions about how you want us to handle your application – Early Decision I, Early Decision II, or Regular Decision? – and which campus you want to apply to. As you (hopefully!) already know, NYU has three degree-granting campuses: in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai. Our Common App will let you apply to any combination of our campuses.
Once you make your campus selections, an additional set of questions will show up that are specific to your campus(es) of interest. Nothing too tricky here! You’ll be able to tell us about your academic area of interest for each campus, and a few other quick-and-easy questions about program eligibility, housing preferences, etc. so that we’re ready for you if you are ultimately admitted.
The Academics Section
Once you have those sections squared away, you’ll move on to the Academics section. This section will walk you through the information we’ll need you to submit outside of the Common App itself. Nothing to do here, except confirm that you’re clear on the next steps and additional requirements.
The Optional Supplemental Question
Now, the moment you’ve been waiting for: The optional, pre-checked-off Writing section. Last year, we made the decision to update our supplemental question. However, what we heard from our applicants was that people really wanted to tell us more! But the thing is…we already know why NYU is a great place to spend your 4 years, so we thought: if you want to tell us more about your passion for NYU, let’s make the question about you .
The new writing question says:
“In a world where disconnection seems to often prevail, we are looking for students who embody the qualities of bridge builders—students who can connect people, groups, and ideas to span divides, foster understanding, and promote collaboration within a dynamic, interconnected, and vibrant global academic community. We are eager to understand how your experiences have prepared you to build the bridges of the future. Please consider one or more of the following questions in your essay :
What personal experiences or challenges have shaped you as a bridge builder?
How have you been a bridge builder in your school, community, or personal life?
What specific actions have you taken to build bridges between diverse groups, ideas, or cultures?
How do you envision being a bridge builder during your time at our university and beyond?”
So, if it feels right for you to tell us a little more about yourself in the application, we want to know where you will turn to for inspiration, and what experiences have shaped you and resonate with you. Four years at NYU will propel you into a future you might not even be able to imagine yet, but take a minute (if you want – it really is optional!) to tell us about the ideas that have gotten you to this point, and those that might shape you into the person you’re about to become.
These are just a few of the changes we have made this year, so make sure to carefully read each question carefully before you answer them. If you ever have any questions for us about our questions, we are always here to help . We wish you the best of luck this application season, and can’t wait to learn more about you!
More from Billy:
How to Approach the Common Application
There’s no wrong way to approach the Common Application, but here’s two different strategies you might want to choose from when you apply to NYU.
Submitting a Transfer Application to NYU
Everything you need and everything you need to know about the transfer process.
Why You Should Start Your Common Application Early
There are many benefits to getting an early start on your Common Application to NYU.
NYU Essay Examples (And Why They Worked)
The following essay examples were written by authors who were admitted to New York University and are intended to provide examples of successful NYU application essays. All names have been redacted for anonymity. Please note that other CollegeAdvisor.com has shared these essays with admissions officers at NYU in order to deter potential plagiarism.
For more help with your NYU supplemental essays, check out our 2020-2021 New York University Essay Guide ! For more guidance on personal essays and the college application process in general, sign up for a monthly plan to work with an admissions coach 1-on-1.
We would like to know more about your interest in NYU. What motivated you to apply to NYU? Why have you applied or expressed interest in a particular campus, school, college, program, and or area of study? If you have applied to more than one, please also tell us why you are interested in these additional areas of study or campuses. We want to understand – Why NYU? (400 word maximum)
I always had a keen interest in numbers, probability, and finance. Early on, I could run numbers quickly: calculating sales tax, analyzing probabilities, and visualizing complex mathematical models in my head. After taking AP classes in economics and statistics, I became intrigued with the mathematical representations of economic markets and statistical models, sparking my desire to pursue a career in that field. I set my sights on becoming an actuary since risk management intrigues me and allows me to use my talents in quantitative analysis. However, few schools offer a comprehensive study in that field, which makes Stern the perfect fit for me as the curriculum combines my interests and career goals.
At Stern, I will have the privilege of studying actuarial science, while also obtaining a business degree. The ability to tailor my education with the actuarial science concentration allows me to develop skills in statistical analysis. Through the intense rigor of the concentration requirements STAT-UB 21 “Introduction to Stochastic Processes” and STAT-UB 15 “Statistical Inference and Regression Analysis,” I will be given a stepping stone into quantifying social situations while stimulating my mathematical intrigue through advanced fields like stochastic calculus. I am eager to pursue this course of study to enhance my career development.
The Bachelor of Science in Business Program excites me, as it entails a well rounded yet intensive study in core business disciplines. However, what draws me to Stern is the emphasis on gaining a global perspective, which is crucial in today’s rapidly changing world economy. Through the International Business Exchange Program, I will be able to gain a first-hand cultural experience that will mold me into a global citizen and business leader. Not only will I be taking courses in the most prestigious business schools across the globe, but I will also have new doors opened for me to network with alumni.
Why this NYU essay worked: From an ex-admissions officer
This is an extremely compelling essay. It is clear that the student’s declared interests are, in fact, in line with both the student’s background and experiences, as well as in line with what the college has to offer. These essays work best when the reader can feel the student’s conviction and enthusiasm. Admissions officers appreciate when the reader can easily see the impact the student will have on the school community. By going into detail about their passion for business, the student helps the reader clearly visualize how this passion will manifest in the classroom.
Before I began interning for the International Rescue Committee’s refugee youth acclimation program–right in the heart of the Lower East Side–I underwent weeks of training in providing trauma-informed support, reminded repeatedly that these kids have gone through more than I could possibly imagine.
When the kids did show up, however, I could barely relate the image painted for us in training to the bright, bubbly children who I was to mentor. Mahdi and I especially took to each other. He was just like any other nine-year-old kid–a fan of Roblox, pizza, basketball, funny accents, and an acute hatred for anything math-related.
Only, he wasn’t like any other kid–at least not in the eyes of the 49% of Americans who believe he has no place in this country, for no reason other than the color of his skin, his god, the status of his residency here.
There are people here who would hear his name and call him a terrorist. Kids on the playground would mock his accent rather than be amazed at how quickly he picked up basketball–a sport he’d had zero exposure to 6 months back. Adults, on both ends of the ideological spectrum, would see him as a political mascot rather than a kid, allow him to be one–he’d be forced to grow up too soon, as a result of the hatred, having his existence politicized.
To get to my internship every day, I transferred at West 4th, from the A to the M train. Once in a while, I’d take the chance to climb up and walk around Washington Square Park.
Clad in lavender shirts, NYU students were camped out in the center of the park, asking people to write out on little post-its what social justice meant to them. Fire burning in the pit of my stomach, I wrote, “Allowing Mahdi to just be a kid.”
And NYU can help me make that happen–there is groundbreaking research happening on campus regarding racial bias and inequality at CASSR that I can’t wait to contribute to. Pursuing a major of public health policy, I can take fascinating, relevant classes such as Social Policy in Modern Societies and Race and Ethnicity. What’s more, I can join student organizations–like the one handing out the post-its that day in Washington Square–and work with my peers, with NYU, with New York City as a whole, towards social justice from a health perspective, towards allowing Mahdi to just be a kid.
This essay begins with a student who is searching for answers. She has trained to help her community, applied her training to her environment, and then expands on her findings. In her volunteering endeavors, she finds her purpose. She continues with a personal story with Mahdi, and successfully brings us into her world. We are engaged. She is now frustrated because she can’t help enough, and with a bit of karma, she is approached by an NYU student, and at this moment NYU becomes her answer. She then cites why NYU is her solution, which major she will pursue, which classes she will take, and which student organizations will help to accent her goals. This essay succeeds because we see this student as community oriented and ambitious. As readers, we know that she will be a great and focused addition to the campus. This is a student with purpose, and she makes it clear that NYU will propel her to reach her goals.
These essay examples were compiled by the advising team at CollegeAdvisor.com . If you want to get help writing your NYU application essays from CollegeAdvisor.com Admissions Experts , register with CollegeAdvisor.com today.
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First-Year Applicants
Your guide to applying.
On this page you’ll find step-by-step application instructions on applying to all three of NYU's degree-granting campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai. If one of the following applies to you, follow the instructions below to apply as a first-year student:
- Currently in high school, even if taking college courses.
- Participating in a dual-enrollment program, even if you’re earning enough credits for an associate’s degree. (Dual-enrollment means that you are in high school and also in a college-level program.)
- Graduated with a GED or high school diploma equivalency test and have not enrolled in a degree-seeking program.
How do I apply?
Step 1: start and complete the common application online.
The Common Application is required for students applying to any or all of NYU's three degree-granting campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, or Shanghai. You'll be able to choose your campus(es) and program(s) of interest on the NYU-specific page of the Common Application.
You’ll need:
- A personal email address that you check regularly. Please do not use a school email address as you may miss important information about your application and admissions decision.
- Contact information for the counselor or other school representative who will complete your Common Application School Report, where they are able to submit your high school transcript and optional letter of recommendation.
- Contact information for one person (or, optionally, up to three maximum) who will complete a letter of recommendation. NYU requires one letter of recommendation from a teacher, counselor, coach, supervisor, or anyone else in a position of authority. If your recommender is unable to submit their letter through the Common Application, they can email it directly to [email protected] . Please have them include either your date of birth or Common App ID.
- Nonrefundable $85.00 application fee. Students who are unable to pay the application fee can request a fee waiver .
Are you ready? Start the application now.
Step 2: Gather and Submit Necessary Documents
Depending on your educational background and the program you are applying to, you will need to provide the following:
- Standardized test scores (see NYU’s standardized testing requirements ). Standardized testing is optional for the upcoming application term.
- A Self Reported Academic Record (SRAR). All applicants will be invited to complete this after submitting their application.
- Steinhardt requires an audition or portfolio for all applicants to the Music Department and a portfolio for those applying to Studio Art.
- Tisch requires an audition or portfolio for applicants to all programs.
- For programs that require an audition or portfolio, we strongly recommend you submit your application one month in advance to ensure ample time to prepare your audition or portfolio.
- English language testing if you have not completed at least 3 years of study where English is the sole language of instruction at the time of application submission and English is not your first language.
- Records of all college work that you have received academic credit for and does not appear on your high school transcript.
- The Common Application Mid Year Report with updated academic record if mid-year grades are available. This should show your first semester senior year grades.
When should I apply?
Follow the key dates and deadlines below. Learn more about early decision .
For programs that require an audition or portfolio, we strongly recommend you submit your Common Application one month in advance to ensure ample time to prepare your audition or portfolio.
*The cut-off time for applications is 11:59 pm in your local time zone.
Sending Documents
NYU will accept official or unofficial transcripts and test scores for the purposes of our application review process. Students can send unofficial documents by email to [email protected] or upload them through their applicant portal, which they will gain access to after submitting the Common App.
Include an official English translation if the document isn't in English. A school official or a translation agency accredited in the country of the educational institution can issue the translation. NYU will only make exceptions for documents in Mandarin Chinese submitted to NYU Shanghai.
Documents not submitted through the Common Application can be mailed to:
New York University Office of Undergraduate Admissions 400 Lafayette Street 4th Floor New York, NY 10003 USA
Or sent via email to: [email protected]
Remember To ...
Use your name exactly as it appears on your passport or birth certificate on your application and supporting documents.