How Do You Upload Creative Supplument Rochester

This guide covers how to write the University of Rochester supplemental essay prompts with exercises and essay examples to help you along the way.

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What are the University of Rochester supplemental essay prompts?
How to write each supplemental essay prompt for University of Rochester

Prompt #1: Mini "why major" essay
Prompt #2: "Why major" + "Why united states of america" essay
Prompt #three: "Meliora" essay
Prompt #4: Multiple options essay

Known for having especially strong Stalk and music programs, the University of Rochester is a great environment for interdisciplinary learning. Although the school helps y'all zoom in on a specific major (many students opt to get pre-med), you lot're given plenty of opportunities to explore outside your comfort zone with a wide variety of majors. While the academic temper is challenging, the pupil body is collaborative. The administration is too open to change and discourse, constantly working to update curriculums, classes, and community infrastructure to facilitate a better learning surround. If this emphasis on hard work in an interdisciplinary liberal arts environment appeals to y'all, we're here to guide you through the University of Rochester's supplemental essay prompts.

First, though: Want to get a better sense of what U of Rochester is looking for? You'll discover an extensive, by-the-numbers look at its offerings, from enrollment and tuition statistics to student life and financial assist information, on its Common Data Set up. For deep insights into how this private research university envisions student success (and how it wants to abound and evolve), read its strategic priorities, which volition give you a potent idea of what U of Rochester values.

What are the Academy of Rochester supplemental essay prompts?

What field/area of study are you interested in researching? (20 word limit)

For applicants to the Combined Degree Program: What relevant experiences or insight have led to your interest in this item plan? Describe how Rochester's resource: facilities, faculty, peers and research will come across your academic and personal ambitions. Describe how you see yourself contributing to the challenging field you want to enter as a Rochester graduate. (500 words)

The University of Rochester motto of Meliora – or "ever better" - securely integrates critical cadre values into all that nosotros do. These core values of equity, leadership, integrity, openness, respect and accountability ascertain not merely who we are, but also who we hope to become. Please use the space below to highlight a time, artistic idea or research feel when you lot put into action one or more of these characteristics in social club to brand yourself, your customs or the world ever better. (200 discussion limit)

Delight select 1 of the following prompts to respond to in 200 words or less:

American social reformer, abolitionist, author and statesman Frederick Douglass said, "Some know the value of education by having it. I knew its value by not having information technology." Explain ways in which educational activity has direct influenced you lot and your power to benefit in the world. How volition you use the curricular flexibility and co-curricular opportunities of the University of Rochester feel to grow and to promote positive change for yourself, your community and the world? (200 words)

Dr. Donna Strickland, University of Rochester alum and 2018 Nobel Prize winner in Physics said, "There'south no betoken in me being anything other than me." The University of Rochester encourages each student to comprehend who they are and create their own private curricular path and experience. How will you utilize the opportunities hither to fully be who you are? What unique perspectives volition you bring to our community? (200 words)

The Academy of Rochester benefactor entrepreneur, photography pioneer and philanthropist George Eastman said, "What we do during our working hours determines what we have; what we exercise in our leisure hours determines what nosotros are." Looking forward towards your college feel, what do you hope to do outside of the classroom at the University of Rochester that will heighten who y'all are as a person? How will specific academic and social opportunities here assist you grow? (200 words)

How to Write each Supplemental Essay Prompt for University of Rochester

University of Rochester supplemental essay Prompt #1

What field/surface area of written report are you interested in researching? (20 word limit)

This response is basically what nosotros call a "Why Major" essay, only a actually, actually, really tiny version of information technology. The word limit gives you just a sentence or 2 to expand on why you lot're interested in a specific field of study. What would your takeaway have been if you had more infinite? Your thesis? That'due south what this brusk answer is all most. Getting downwardly to the essence of who you are and how that connects to your major of choice. As always, you want to try and imbue your respond with at to the lowest degree 1-2 core values so your reader gets a strong sense of who you are. And don't be afraid to get artistic! Lots of people might say they desire to major in history considering they liked history classes in high school. Be more specific. What aspects of history interest you? Is at that place an obscure WWII battle that piques your curiosity? Did you travel somewhere that changed your perspective on a piece of history yous thought you knew? Practice you have a family unit connection to a particular part of history? In other words, go far specific and personal.

Here are some examples that weren't written by students but requite you a sense of what U of Rochester is looking for:

Examples:

Bioethics. What do genetically-modified "designer babies" say about intrinsic human values? I promise to acquire about the self through scientific discipline. (xx words)

— — —

Fine art History: Art is a fourth dimension capsule, -line, and machine. O'Keefe. Warhol. Wiley. In art, I can visually conceptualize lineage. (20 words)

Tips + Assay

Place your intended major. This may seem obvious, but you must identify what major y'all're actually planning on pursuing somewhere in your answer. These two examples put it right up front, which is prissy because information technology makes information technology clear what they're referring to. However, y'all tin can put yours anywhere that makes sense.
Maximize space. You literally only have 20 words to answer this prompt, so make the near of the space you accept. It's not necessary to speak in total sentences. Well-placed and -articulated sentence fragments tin be powerful. Don't waste matter all your discussion count saying something like "This upcoming school twelvemonth, I would similar to major in Fine art History." At that point, you've used up near of your discussion count and said nothing personal about yourself.
Become creative! While you may have a curt give-and-take count, using it in interesting means is a great tactic for sparking your reader's involvement in the remainder of your application. Ask dynamic questions ("What do genetically-modified 'designer babies' say about intrinsic human values?"), cite specific times/places/events/people (O'Keefe. Warhol. Wiley.), and draw on personal feel to spice things up.
Specify your interests. In both of these examples, the authors get specific on where their interest lies within the major they've called. Don't stop at the major itself. For the first example, information technology's about using biological case studies as a fashion to sympathize man nature. For the second, it'south about more than securely understanding the concept of time through art. Try to dig into that next layer in your own essay.

University of Rochester supplemental essay Prompt #2

For applicants to the Combined Degree Program: What relevant experiences or insight have led to your involvement in this particular programme? Describe how Rochester'due south resources: facilities, faculty, peers and research will meet your academic and personal ambitions. Draw how you encounter yourself contributing to the challenging field you desire to enter as a Rochester graduate. (500 words)

This is basically a combined Why Major + Why Us essay with an added question about the future across higher at the end. It asks y'all to retrieve in more depth than the first prompt nigh the major you're applying to and how the specific resource at U of Rochester would gear up you up for academic success. We find that it's helpful to think about this prompt in three parts: Why Major + Why U of Rochester + Contributions to the field. In this sense, the response is like three essays in 1 that are all connected. Here'southward a expect in more than detail at each part:

Part ane: "Why Major"

You'll find a step-by-step guide to writing this essay at this link, which we recommend reading through, but here'south the curt version:

Step #1: Imagine a mini-pic of the moments that led you to your interest and create a simple, bullet-indicate outline.
Step #2: Put your moments (aka the "scenes" of your mini-movie) in chronological lodge, as it'll assistance you see how your interests developed. It also makes it easier to write transitions.
Step #3: Decide if you want to include a specific thesis that explicitly states your central statement—in this case, what you want to study and why. This thesis can be at the beginning, middle, or end of your essay!

As you're writing, think nearly how your personal story connects to the resources at U of Rochester. Getting a sense of this will give you an easy segue into …

Part 2: "Why us?"

For this, we recommend checking out this complete guide on how to write the "Why usa?" essay and paying shut attention to the "Why Cornell" and "Why Penn" examples, which are our favorites.

Here'southward the short version of how to write the "Why us?" essay:

Spend 1 60 minutes+ researching 10+ reasons why U of Rochester might be a great fit for you (ideally three-5 of the reasons volition be unique to U of Rochester and connect back to you).
Make a copy of this nautical chart to map out your college research.
Create an outline for your essays based on either Approach ane, 2 (recommended), or three in the full guide above.

When you write about U of Rochester, try to avoid these common mistakes:

Six Common Mistakes Students Make on "Why Us?" Essays

Error #ane: Writing near U of Rochester'due south size, location, reputation, atmospheric condition, or ranking

Mistake #2: Simply using emotional language to demonstrate fit

Error #3: Screwing up the mascot, stadium, squad colors, or names of any important people or places on campus

Mistake #4: Parroting the brochures or website language

Mistake #5: Describing traditions U of Rochester is well-known for

Mistake #vi: Thinking of this as only a "why them" essay

So, after this department, you lot should have given your reader a taste of who you lot are, why you're interested in a detail subject, and what at U of Rochester facilitates that involvement in a more than meaningful mode than other places. Now all you have left is …

Role 3: Contributions to the Field

This part is more free form. Think of information technology primarily as a place to reflect on your time to come goals and the touch you'd like to make through your academic discipline. It'southward okay to dream large, but make sure you're qualifying and quantifying the kinds of things yous'd like to do so they have substance. Big ambitions are bang-up, but U of Rochester also wants to run into that you lot're thinking realistically nearly the value y'all could add to a greater community later on graduation.

Beneath is an essay written for a shorter 250-word limit version of this prompt. You'll have more space than this, merely it's still a great case of what you can exercise.

Example:

University of Rochester's commitment to data scientific discipline would be invaluable to helping me attain my goal of using information to increase public involvement in the ballot process as a data journalist. By majoring in information science, I'd accept access to world-class professors and inquiry labs, gaining comprehensive knowledge of data assay to better sympathize balloter politics. Rochester'due south programs would permit me to raise public awareness nearly how political systems piece of work and the importance of data in decision making.

Past combining statistics with political science to study voting patterns in U.S. elections as a inquiry banana in The Star Lab, I hope to examine voter education programs. After volunteering for several political candidates, I'd like to study how to reach people more efficiently and expand voting.

My interest in politics and elections was sparked by 6 years in policy contend, where I developed critical thinking and research skills, and coached new debaters. I'g eager to continue debating with Rochester's team, while also helping them develop an Urban Contend League in local high schools to mentor underserved students.

Through the Watson Eye for Conflict and Cooperation, I'd research international relations and the reasons for conflict, especially in the Heart East and Due north Africa, edifice on what I've learned through debate research. I hope to combine statistics with data science to measure the impact of economic interdependence on the probability of war, doing my part as a data journalist to make the earth "ever improve."

— — —

Tips + Analysis

Make certain your roadmap is clear—both when you outline, and when you write your typhoon. Remember that roadmap of Why Major + Why Us + Contributions to the Field y'all created for yourself before starting? You should all the same be able to see it in your essay once you've written information technology. This tin take a agglomeration of different forms, but in this piece, each component is in each paragraph. In virtually each cake of text, the writer highlights her interest in data science/journalism, revealing new aspects of how it originated and changed over time as she goes. She also explains how these interests directly connect to specific clubs, centers, or classes at U of Rochester. Final, she ends each paragraph with a note on how she'll employ what she's learned to future projects or goals. Some other way to approach this is to split each component into its own paragraph rather than have all three parts in each paragraph. There's no right or wrong way, just observe what feels near natural to you!
Include details that bring your essay to life. This author had a lot less infinite than you will when yous write your essay. That said, she all the same found spots to innovate specific details about her previous experience on ballot campaigns and in high schoolhouse debate. In your essay, you could go even deeper. Get into the visceral experience by placing your readers in your shoes. Appoint all five senses in your descriptions. Try showing, rather than just telling your reader what happened. This will assist you stand out and prove the level of intendance y'all put into your answer.
Cite specific clubs, classes, professors, etc. The peachy thing about this essay is that it's clear the pupil has washed her research. Take a close look at U of Rochester'due south class catalogue and listing of majors to see what you'd really want to accept if you ended up going at that place. Citing specific classes, professors, and areas of study is a neat mode to show your dedication to the university and how you'd make the most of what U of Rochester has to offering. This student highlights a specific major (data science), lab (The Star Lab), order (Urban Debate League/debate team), and some campus resources she'd want to make use of (Watson Center). If yous demand help brainstorming these kinds of details, bank check out our BEABIES Practice to become started (Tool #two on this post).

University of Rochester supplemental essay Prompt #3

The University of Rochester motto of Meliora – or "ever better" - securely integrates critical core values into all that we practise. These core values of equity, leadership, integrity, openness, respect and accountability define not only who nosotros are, only too who we promise to go. Please use the space below to highlight a fourth dimension, creative idea or enquiry feel when you put into action one or more of these characteristics in order to make yourself, your community or the world always better. (200 give-and-take limit)

This prompt essentially asks you to describe and reflect on a customs service feel. The possibilities for answers are wide-ranging because the values you can reflect on are so broad. Recall to think about what you got from an experience at the unlike levels Rochester specifies at the finish of the prompt: yourself, your customs, the world. There's lots of flexibility to take this in any of those directions, depending on what y'all did and what yous learned.

The essay below was originally written for a unlike, longer prompt, but it still works for this one, with some tweaks we'll share in the tips/analysis. Permit's check it out:

Example:

Inspired to reduce the hardships the Deafened customs faces during emergencies, I applied my noesis of American Sign Language (ASL) to create the Emergency Medical Sign Language booklet with my sis. I incorporated uncomplicated medical phrases in 5 sign languages around the world in hopes of mitigating the communication gap between Deaf immigrants and hearing medical professionals. Recognizing how crucial clear communication is to the Deaf community, especially during medical emergencies, I partnered with DeafCAN!, a nonprofit that works closely with Deafened immigrants. Subsequently vi months of diligent work, we distributed over 650 booklets to various health centers.

Through this projection, I was able to engage and give back to my community, and I'm eager to join those who share the same passionate drive to serve others at the University of Rochester. I'm thrilled to see that the UR Campus-Community Bridge program offers countless service opportunities. I'll undoubtedly continue giving back to my new community through numerous organizations, from the Refugee Student Alliance to Special Olympics to Health Education and Advocacy Leaders (HEAL). At UR, I would be able to bring health information and resources to the low-income population through HEAL. Just every bit HEAL strategically allocated the Community Date Challenge fund to provide costless claret force per unit area readings, I'm eager to accept full reward of UR'due south grants to expand my booklet's touch to Rochester'due south large Deaf community. At UR, I'thousand excited to work alongside passionate students like myself to go along using my noesis and resources to make a positive difference.

— — —

Tips + Analysis

Emphasize personal impact. In a prompt like this, it'south super of import to give your reader a qualitative and (if you lot can) quantitative sense of how your piece of work (creative or otherwise) had an affect. This student discusses her involvement with a non-turn a profit that works with deaf immigrants. Later on vi months of work, she helped distribute books to over 650 health centers. This conveys a sense of impact on a quantitative level. In her second paragraph, she reflects more qualitatively by thinking nigh the values this experience instilled in her and how she wants to continue this kind of work in college. However, in this second paragraph, she could take cut dorsum on stuff well-nigh UR and gotten more specific most the impact the project made and how it made the customs "ever ameliorate." Focusing on the linguistic communication of the prompt here is important—you want to make sure you're addressing the question that'due south existence asked. There's another prompt you lot can choose that's a more substantial "Why u.s.a.?" essay, and then this is your take a chance to choose a different topic and reflect on it in a way that'due south less directly almost the university's resources and more about its guiding principles.
Avoid overused and cliche words. This author relies on some words that are oftentimes overused in college essays. Words like "passionate" and excessive language similar "undoubtedly" or "full advantage" are used past many applicants every bit filler when they don't know what to say. Rather than rely on clichés, accept the time to meaningfully begin the values and sensations you associate with an consequence, moment, person, or identify. Then, when you lot're writing, you'll have a toolkit of words to help y'all articulate what you desire to say as personally and specifically every bit possible.
Provide context to your reader. Many people cull to write virtually specific research projects or volunteer organizations for a prompt like this. Only remember that your reader is probably unfamiliar with the organizations you're referencing. And even if y'all're writing about a group a lot of people know about, assume your reader doesn't! Notice that when this writer mentions working with DeafCAN!, she briefly describes what it is and how it relates to her previous work ("a non-profit that works with Deaf immigrants"). This doesn't have to have up a lot of space. Merely make sure your reader has the context they demand to appreciate the piece of work you've done. Otherwise, the impact won't mean much to them.

University of Rochester supplemental essay Prompt #4

Please select one of the following prompts to answer to
in 200 words or less:

American social reformer, abolitionist, writer and statesman Frederick Douglass said, "Some know the value of educational activity past having it. I knew its value by not having information technology." Explain ways in which didactics has directly influenced you and your power to practice expert in the world. How will you use the curricular flexibility and co-curricular opportunities of the University of Rochester experience to abound and to promote positive modify for yourself, your community and the world? (200 words

Dr. Donna Strickland, University of Rochester alum and 2018 Nobel Prize winner in Physics said, "In that location's no point in me being anything other than me." The Academy of Rochester encourages each student to embrace who they are and create their own private curricular path and experience. How will y'all use the opportunities here to fully exist who y'all are? What unique perspectives volition you bring to our community? (200 words)

The University of Rochester distributor entrepreneur, photography pioneer and philanthropist George Eastman said, "What we do during our working hours determines what nosotros accept; what we do in our leisure hours determines what we are." Looking forward towards your higher experience, what do you hope to practise outside of the classroom at the University of Rochester that volition enhance who you lot are equally a person? How will specific academic and social opportunities hither help you lot grow? (200 words)

1. American social reformer, abolitionist, writer and statesman Frederick Douglass said, "Some know the value of education by having it. I knew its value by not having it." Explicate ways in which education has straight influenced you and your ability to do good in the world. How will you lot employ the curricular flexibility and co-curricular opportunities of the Academy of Rochester feel to grow and to promote positive change for yourself, your community and the world? (200 words)

Like some of the prompts above, this is another accept on the "Why us?" essay. It too asks you to remember about the value of teaching and how you see yourself taking advantage of that through your experience at Rochester. Nevertheless, unlike some of the other essays we've seen, this 1 is a fleck more existential. It doesn't ask you to specify a specific major or ready of courses; it's more interested in the why. It asks you to grapple with instruction conceptually and recollect critically almost how it intersects with your values. Even though the prompt is broader, your reply should still draw on specific details and insights. Retrieve of this as a chance to reflect on the value of flexibility in instruction and where it might take you in a post-college setting.

This instance was written for a previous, longer version of this prompt, but still works, though information technology could be strengthened to fit better, as we'll explain in the Tips +Assay:

Example:

As someone who fell in love with programming at nine years old, I believe that applied science is good for social club. But applied science's rapid growth has created staggering risks to privacy and security—risks I desire to study, understand, and solve.

Studying Informatics at The Academy of Rochester would prepare me for this challenge. I desire to abound from finding reckoner vulnerabilities and developing security software to tackling Rochester'south advanced algorithms and cryptography courses.

I learn through iteration and persistence, and research has played an of import part in my loftier school educational activity. At Rochester, I would pursue inquiry on applying artificial intelligence to information security and aspire to piece of work on cryptography in the CS Theory lab. My goal is to graduate with the ability to create innovative ways to protect society'south data.

Solving technical issues is not enough, all the same. Developers like me need to predict how technology will exist exploited. We demand to become social scientists, not just computer scientists. I would use Rochester'south flexible curriculum to study psychology for insight on human being behavior, and pursue the unique "Ethics in Engineering science" cluster and the Social Implications of Computing form.

I love sharing my passion for figurer science. I teach advanced CS at a summer camp and mentor younger members of my robotics team. I wait forward to continuing this at Rochester, where I would organize a grouping of my classmates and start a free Python class for middle-school students in Rochester.

— — —

Tips + Analysis

Reference language from the original prompt. Notice that the author here specifically uses the word "grow" in her 2nd paragraph, mimicking the language used in the concluding part of the prompt. This is useful because information technology a) orients the reader to which part of the question you're focusing on and b) shows that you read the prompt in item.
Become specific. Although you have a limited word count, getting specific in your answer volition help differentiate you from other applicants. For instance, the author here does a nice chore of starting to accost the beginning question in the prompt (i.e., "Explicate ways in which education has directly influenced you and your power to practise practiced in the world") past proverb, "I learn through iteration and persistence, and research has played an of import office in my high school pedagogy," but doesn't elaborate further. This sentence alone could have been written by many people. It gets at some interesting ideas of iteration and persistence but doesn't follow them up with specific examples of when these ideas have been applicable (classes, projects, events, etc.). All he says is that they were important "in high school," which is probably likewise broad. Take the time to elaborate meaningfully on your answers to each part of the prompt.
Reference Rochester resources. The second role of the prompt asks yous to elaborate on how UR's "curricular flexibility and co-curricular opportunities" would facilitate further growth. This is when you tie the values you lot've gotten out of education in the past to the means you would operate on campus as a UR student. This is an important connectedness to make in your essay considering it makes your personal experience relevant to what UR has to offer. Otherwise, your essay could exist written for whatever college! Make sure you bridge that gap from past personal experience to time to come growth at the university. This author does a slap-up job of this by talking about the inquiry he'd similar to do on cryptography and applying artificial intelligence to information science. He also specifically references UR'south "flexible curriculum" in the second-to-last paragraph, mentioning his interest in understanding psychology in conjunction with computer science.'

— — —

2. Dr. Donna Strickland, University of Rochester alum and 2018 Nobel Prize winner in Physics said, "There's no point in me beingness anything other than me." The Academy of Rochester encourages each student to embrace who they are and create their own private curricular path and experience. How will you employ the opportunities here to fully be who you lot are? What unique perspectives will y'all bring to our community? (200 words)

Similar a lot of the prompt options for Rochester, this i is essentially another version of a "Why us?" essay. However, the focus here is primarily on identity and self-expression. If you're interested in talking nearly values like independence, autonomy, or a strong sense of cocky, this might be a good prompt for you lot to choose. If you're thinking near which prompt you want to respond from a content- (rather than value-) driven perspective, this might exist a skillful pick for talking about a specific aspect of your identity or a community y'all're a function of. Essentially, this is a highly personal version of a "Why us?" essay, and it'southward for people who desire to dig deeper into who they are at a fundamental level rather than actions they've taken or educational activity experiences they've had.

Hither's an example that was originally written for a longer version of the prompt but could still work with some edits that we'll explain in the tips below:

Example:

March ane, 2040

To the women of tomorrow,

I came to Rochester excited to study chemical engineering right in the centre of a revolution to close the gender equality gap. I was lucky to have Dr. Astrid Müller and Dr. Andronique Ioannidis every bit part models while I cemented a path for women in Stalk and explored the potential for the goods nosotros use to benefit to both people and the surround.

I studied applications of complex chemical systems through the lens of localized solutions, joining a team that congenital a wastewater recycling system for campus dining halls. Through projects like this and my philosophy cluster, I learned every bit much almost my responsibleness to practise ethical science every bit I did near chemical engineering. This wisdom prepared me for my life's work: against overwhelming global inequities resulting from commodification of the environment.

My Rochester engineering science principles extended to my career at The Cradle To Cradle Institute upon graduation. Its mission is to promote futurity products through expertise in chemistry and environmental. Universal product pattern absent of any sensitivity to natural and cultural diversity at the community level had become an epidemic of monoculture. Changing the industrial design agenda was my purpose then and still is to this mean solar day. As the Science and Certification Associate, I advocate for corporate accountability, partnering with manufacturers to engineer clean products and processes.

I await forrard to passing this wisdom on to you.

Warmly,

Claire

— — —

Tips + Analysis

Be inspired to become artistic. This writer gets creative with the format of her essay by turning information technology into a letter that retrospectively reflects on what she would have learned from her feel at Rochester had she already been accepted and graduated. At a general level, this is a peachy idea. Information technology'due south super smart to find new ways of presenting information about yourself in creative formats to proceed your reader engaged and demonstrate your ability to think outside the box. But this essay could have been stronger had the pupil focused more on the resource she took advantage of at Rochester, rather than experiences exterior the realm of the university. The writer gets into the specific chore and position she wants to work at after college. While this is somewhat relevant to her interests, it crowds out more than specific information about her bodily experience in college. When you're writing, it's absolutely fine (and even encouraged!) to talk about your post-college aspirations, just brand sure you're stating those within the context of resource at UR.
Describe the self through multiple lenses. In this essay, the writer primarily discusses her bookish interests and career aspirations. She doesn't spend time breaking down her values or talking most what personal experiences motivated her to pursue this specific bookish rails at UR. When the prompt asks yous to discuss "what unique perspectives you would bring" and how you lot'd utilize Rochester resources to "be who you lot fully are," it's non asking for a laundry list of classes and clubs you desire to have and join (although those might ultimately be a reflection of who you are). Define yourself outside of the parameters of the university beginning, then connect those to the institutional resources. Call up to emphasize the personal and connect that to the perspectives you would bring to campus. And then, and only if you have space, practise you need to worry virtually classes, clubs, and careers.
Emphasize your values. This is something you should be doing in every essay, but it's specially critical here because the prompt is entirely about who you are. Yous can't effectively reply what information technology means to "fully be you" without giving your reader a sense of what drives and centers you. In this essay, the author conveys the importance of values like social/ecology responsibility, justice, equity, and access. If yous're non sure exactly what your values are, effort our Values Exercise brainstorming activeness earlier yous offset writing.

— — —

3. The University of Rochester benefactor entrepreneur, photography pioneer and philanthropist George Eastman said, "What we practise during our working hours determines what we have; what nosotros do in our leisure hours determines what we are." Looking forward towards your higher experience, what practice you hope to do outside of the classroom at the University of Rochester that will heighten who you are as a person? How volition specific academic and social opportunities here aid yous grow? (200 words)

This is yet some other version of a "Why us?" essay, with a focus on extracurriculars and the community outside the classroom at Rochester. Show the admission officers how you've reflected on how yous've come to be the human you are, how UR tin can assistance yous become the human y'all want to keep growing to exist, and how y'all hope to impact others in UR's community.

Since this prompt is new, we don't have a Rochester example for yous, only the essay below could work with some tweaks that we'll address in the Tips + Assay section.

Instance:

My interests and life experiences will guide me in becoming part of the Penn community, and Penn will help bring out the best in me.

Joining LGBTQ student groups was an incredibly valuable decision I fabricated in high school. I can't expect to join the Queer Student Alliance to meet queer friends, explore the Penn LGBT Centre, and discuss feminism and gender through events at the Penn Women's Center.

My experiences in soccer and track take taught me that although studying fulfills me, I need an athletic outlet to maintain balance in my life. Ane of my favorite sports is Ultimate Frisbee, and I hope to get involved in it at Penn. I aspire to join the Venus Ultimate team to find a joyful, supportive customs.

One of my most essential interests is reading. In loftier school, I have had many opportunities to broaden my book horizons and find connection through reading and discussing, but I have never been in a formal volume society. I'm excited to join the Penn Reads Volume Club to meet like-minded peers and brand connections in a deeper way.

Community is of the utmost importance to me, and I know I volition discover mine at Penn.

— — —

Tips + Assay

Dig into the "why." This student does a nice chore of answering every component of the prompt. She tells u.s. what she likes to practice and addresses how those needs would be met past specific teams, clubs, and resources at the university to which she's applying. It could take been even stronger if the student shared more of the why behind her interest in these activities. Notice how every paragraph is kinda general in its detail. Drawing on personal anecdotes, dialogue, or sensory details will allow you to testify values like "joy" or "customs" rather than just stating them outright.
Speak to personal growth. This prompt isn't just about fulfilling your current interest and needs, but besides furthering and enhancing them in a new setting. This essay could have been stronger had the student elaborated on what she hoped to gain from the various clubs and communities she'd like to join. When you write, retrieve more expansively most how resources at Rochester could change your perspective or pb to new, heady opportunities for connection or action. UR is a space to push past what you already know yous like and search for more.
Connect some "why me" examples to "why Rochester." Notice how this student draws from her past experiences to evidence how she sees herself not just thriving in but contributing to Rochester's community. Like this: "Joining LGBTQ student groups was an incredibly valuable decision I made in high school. I tin can't wait to join the Queer Student Alliance to meet queer friends, explore the Penn LGBT Center, and discuss feminism and gender through events at the Penn Women'southward Center." It's a squeamish mode to demonstrate, in dating parlance, why yous and Rochester would make a great lucifer.

With all of these tips and examples in mind, you're now ready to start writing!

Special thank you to Luci Jones for contributing to this mail.

Luci is an audiophile and storyteller with a dear of all things radio and writing. In the wild, you might catch her struggling through a NY Times crossword puzzle, snuggling her abnormally fluffy dog Oreo, or saying her favorite expression "absurd beans." Crosswords, beautiful dogs, cool beans. What more could you enquire for?

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