Common App Essay Prompts

The Common App is designed to help students introduce themselves to colleges and universities. We’d like to hear from you about how well the current prompts serve your students.

As applicants are informed by the instructions for their 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?

Every few years, Common App solicits feedback from counselors, members, and students on the effectiveness of our essay prompts. We want to make sure that the essay prompts remain a helpful vehicle for students to tell their unique stories.

This survey should take approximately 5 minutes of your time and will be available through Friday, December 20. Please note that the survey is designed to accommodate feedback from anyone, so we invite you to share it widely within your school community and professional network

As always, thank you so much for your feedback. We are so grateful for all the work you do year-round to help students succeed.