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Common App Personal Statement Prompts

Common App Personal Statement Prompts

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Ivies Plus© — Volume of Applications — From 2016 to 2026

Annual Volume Applications 2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
Brown
50,649
46,568
36,793
38,674
35,438
32,724
32,390
30,397
30,432
28,919
28,742
Columbia
60,377
60,551
40,084
42,569
40,203
37,389
36,292
36,250
32,952
33,531
31,851
Cornell
71,000
67,380
51,500
49,118
51,328
47,038
44,965
41,907
43,041
40,006
37,812
Dartmouth
28,336
28,356
21,392
23,650
22,033
20,034
20,675
20,505
19,296
22,416
23,110
Harvard
61,220
57,435
40,248
43,330
42,749
39,506
39,041
37,305
34,295
35,023
34,303
MIT
33,976
33,240
20,075
21,312
21,706
20,247
19,020
18,306
18,357
18,989
18,109
Penn
55,000
56,332
42,205
44,960
44,482
40,413
38,918
37,267
35,868
31,280
31,217
Princeton
NA
37,601
32,835
32,804
35,370
31,056
29,303
27,290
26,641
26,498
26,664
Stanford
NA
55,471
45,227
47,498
47,452
44,073
43,997
42,487
42,167
38,829
36,631
Yale
50,015
47,240
35,220
36,843
35,306
32,900
31,455
30,237
30,932
29,610
28,974

College Application Essays

Common App Personal Statement Prompts

  • 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.

New optional 250-word question under Additional Information.

Community disruptions such as COVID-19 and natural disasters can have deep and long-lasting impacts. If you need it, this space is yours to describe those impacts. Colleges care about the effects on your health and well-being, safety, family circumstances, future plans, and education, including access to reliable technology and quiet study spaces

  • Do you wish to share anything on this topic? Y/N
  • Please use this space to describe how these events have impacted you.

Coalition App Essay Prompts

Tell a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it.

  • What interests or excites you? How does it shape who you are now or who you might become in the future?
  • Describe a time when you had a positive impact on others. What were the challenges? What were the rewards?
  • Has there been a time when an idea or belief of yours was questioned?
  • Has there been a time when an idea or belief of yours was questioned? How did you respond? What did you learn?
  • Submit an essay on a topic of your choice.

Colleges Without Supplemental Essays

Check out this sample of colleges and universities that do not require any additional supplemental essays.

Liberal Arts Colleges that Don’t Require Supplemental Essays

National Universities That Don’t Require Supplemental Essays