penn state personal statement optional

2023-24 Penn State Supplemental Essay – Prompt and Tips

September 6, 2023

With an acceptance rate still above 50%, it would be easy to misjudge how challenging the Penn State admissions landscape truly is. In fact, those entering the famed University Park campus sport mid-50 SATs of 1270-1450. They also boast an unweighted GPA range of 3.59-3.93 . Additionally, successful applicants in 2023-24 should prepare to write a strong Penn State supplemental essay.

(Want to learn more about How to Get Into Penn State? Visit our blog entitled:  How to Get Into Penn State University: Admissions Data and Strategies  for all of the most recent admissions data as well as tips for gaining acceptance.)

In a competitive admissions environment, every piece of the Penn State application takes on a high level of importance. Therefore, it is vital that all Nittany Lion applicants dedicate a significant amount of time to this optional essay. Below is the lone PSU supplemental prompt for the 2023-24 admissions cycle along with our advice for composing a winning essay.

Penn State Supplemental Essay Prompt #1 (Optional)

Please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at penn state. this is your opportunity to tell us something about yourself that is not already reflected in your application or academic records. we suggest a limit of 500 words or fewer..

This essay is technically “optional” but all serious applicants should view it as mandatory. Unlike many “optional” essays that may or may not apply to you (e.g. COVID impact, gap in education, gender identity etc.), just about every applicant has at least one extracurricular or experience worth elaborating on.

The activity/experience angle

With this prompt, Penn State is not necessarily asking you to write about the activity where you earned the most prestigious awards. Nor are they looking for the one where you held the highest position of leadership. The university is going to see all of your activities in that section of the Common App. As such, you want to ask yourself which of your entries is crying out for more explanation and detail. Which one is closest to your heart and most representative of your unique passions? Pick the option that will allow you to deliver additional detail that may be memorable to the admissions reader. For example, you may be a volunteer EMT and have compelling, drama-filled experiences to share.

Alternatively, you may have worked in local restaurant and learned more about the lives of your undocumented coworkers. Start this process by asking, “What is the most interesting and consequential moment I have experienced in my extracurricular activities?”

If you can identify one clear-cut moment, that is likely the activity worth sharing with the Penn State admissions staff.

The more broad “about you” angle

Of course, this prompt has a wider scope than just an activity. You can also take this opportunity to share something personal. After completing your Common App, is there anything that you have yet to share that is absolutely elemental to who you are as a person/student? Without the benefit of an in-person interview, it may feel like you never fully had a chance to connect intimately with a PSU admissions officer. Perhaps you have not communicated the full you, your true essence, your je ne sais quoi. If you feel something important about yourself has yet to be communicated elsewhere in the application, then this essay is about to become your best friend.

Consider that the admissions reader is already familiar with your academic history, activities, and awards. What don’t they know, or, what could they understand on a deeper level. This could be a particular skill or talent or something about your character or personality. On the other hand, you may wish to speak more about your passions, hobbies, ideas, or beliefs. Any of those options are perfectly fine!

This one is intentionally open-ended so use this space to share your most cherished accomplishments or most winning attributes. The university itself is, in essence, inviting you to make a “closing argument” at the end of this admissions trial.

How important is the Penn State supplemental essay?

The essays (the Common App essay and supplemental essay) are not among the most important factors to the admissions committee. GPA and the rigor of one’s courses are at the top of the list. However, the essays can help borderline applicants push themselves over the edge toward an acceptance.

Want Personalized Essay Assistance?

Lastly, if you are interested in working with one of College Transitions’ experienced and knowledgeable essay coaches as you craft your Penn State supplemental essay, we encourage you to  get a quote  today.

• College Essay

Andrew Belasco

A licensed counselor and published researcher, Andrew's experience in the field of college admissions and transition spans two decades. He has previously served as a high school counselor, consultant and author for Kaplan Test Prep, and advisor to U.S. Congress, reporting on issues related to college admissions and financial aid.

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Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) Supplemental Essays Guide: 2021-2022

Not sure how to approach the Penn State essay prompts? With tips from a Penn State graduate, CollegeAdvisor.com’s guide to the Penn State supplemental essays will show you how to write engaging Penn State essays and maximize your chances of admission.

Penn State Essay Guide Quick Facts: 

• Penn State has an acceptance rate of 54%— U.S. News ranks Penn State as a more selective school. 
• We recommend answering all Penn State supplemental essays—optional Penn State essay prompts included— comprehensively and thoughtfully.

What is Penn State known for?

Founded in 1855 as an agricultural college, Penn State University is now a top-ranking research university located in Centre County, Pennsylvania. It ranks among the top 25 U.S. research universities, with 18 of its disciplines listed among the top ten research expenditures nationally. These disciplines include materials science, mechanical engineering, psychology, and electrical engineering. 

Penn State University operates with a multi-campus system, boasting 20 undergraduate campuses spread across Pennsylvania. The University’s mission is one of teaching, research, and public service. The school has a large student body, with approximately 40,000 undergraduate students. In-state tuition comes in at just under $20,000 per year, while out-of-state tuition is just over $35,000 per year. 

You can apply to Penn State through the MyPennState application or through the Common App . Students will also submit their Penn State essays either through MyPennState or through the Common App. 

Does Penn State require any supplemental essays?

In short, no. The Penn State application includes one optional essay. It’s essentially a personal statement, much like the CommonApp essay. While this Penn State supplemental essay is optional, we highly recommend responding to the Penn State essay prompt. Students’ Penn State essays can make a major difference in the admissions process. 

You should complete each part of every college application thoroughly, optional or not. The only exception to this rule, however, is if the part of the application does not apply to you. For example, you need not include a letter from a varsity coach if you did not play on a varsity team in high school. You also shouldn’t feel pressured to submit additional information about your grades or scores unless you faced any mitigating circumstances. 

How many essays does Penn State require?

There are no required Penn State application essays beyond the Common App essay. However, completing the optional Penn State supplemental essay will help you submit a well-rounded application. Students who submit strong Penn State essays will have a better chance of acceptance, so you should write the optional Penn State essay. 

Apart from your interview, your Penn State application essay is your only chance to speak directly to Penn State admissions about why you are a good fit for the university. Keep in mind that the admissions team will review thousands of Penn State application essays, so you should do all you can to help yours stand out. The best Penn State essays will use specific details to show why a student would succeed at Penn State. 

What are Penn State’s essays?

The Penn State supplemental essay is essentially a personal statement. It is designed to give Penn State admissions a sense of who you are beyond your grades and test scores. Once again, students who write strong Penn State essays will have a better chance of getting admitted. After all, well-written Penn State essays can help the admissions team learn more about what makes you special. 

As you approach your Penn State application essay, think about your identity. What is important to you? How do you want to impact the world? Finally, how will you enrich Penn State’s campus? The best Penn State application essays will answer some or all of these questions. 

Your response to the Penn State essay prompt should transform a two-dimensional application consisting of grades and test scores into a 3D representation of who you are as a student, learner, and community member. The best Penn State essays will give the admissions committee a vivid picture of who a student would be on campus. 

How do I write Penn State’s supplemental essays?

We have provided the Penn State essay prompt below. We’ve also included a full breakdown of how to approach this Penn State supplemental essay. 

The Penn State application essay is a chance to present your application narrative—that is, the story that your application tells to Penn State admissions. Your application narrative should give your readers a clear sense of who you are and what matters to you. This narrative should also remain cohesive throughout your application. For example, if you chose to take AP French because you want to be a diplomat in your family’s country of origin Cameroon, you might expand on this dream in your Penn State supplemental essay.

If you are having trouble constructing your application narrative in your Penn State application essay, then check out our article, “A Deep Dive into the Personal Narrative.”  

Penn State Supplemental Essay (Optional):

Please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at Penn State. This is your opportunity to tell us something about yourself that is not already reflected in your application or academic records. We suggest a limit of 500 words or fewer.

This Penn State supplemental essay asks why you would be a good fit at Penn State. It also asks you to tell a story about yourself that isn’t clear from the rest of your application. 

What makes you special? More importantly, what is something that makes you special and also makes you a good fit for Penn State? Strong Penn State application essays will answer these questions by telling a clear, specific, and compelling story. 

Let’s break down this Penn State essay prompt. First, why do you think you would succeed at Penn State? A list may be helpful here. Is it your innovative mind, your knack for scientific research, your skills on the football field? Additionally, your answer to this Penn State essay prompt should be specific to Penn State.

Do some research

To find specific details to use in your Penn State essay, do some research. Strong Penn State application essays will cite specific details about Penn State. You should learn about each college on your list and have a strong reason for applying; don’t just choose colleges based on prestige, location, or tuition cost. The best Penn State essays will discuss specific programs, courses, and student groups only available at Penn State. Want to learn more about student life at Penn State? Check out our article, “Student Life at Penn State.”

Once you’ve done some research, spend time with your list of reasons why you’d succeed at Penn State. As you refine this list, try to connect your skills to programs and resources that Penn State offers. The more specific you can be, the better!

Now that you have outlined why you are a good fit for Penn State, look at each skill you listed. How did you develop that skill? Did it come from your high school mock trial team? Or, did you learn it from a particular community? Did you change your perspective after a major life event? What’s the story behind each skill on your list?

Strong Penn State application essays can come from anywhere, so don’t limit yourself as you brainstorm. Look at these stories and choose the one that most shows why you would succeed at Penn State. Of course, make sure this story doesn’t already appear in your application. Remember, the best Penn State application essays will show your reader something new.

Start writing

Now that you have a topic for this Penn State supplemental essay, it’s time to start writing. Remember that you are telling a story, not writing a research paper. The strongest Penn State application essays will be the most organic, so don’t be afraid to let your voice shine through. If you are a funny and lighthearted person, let your humor seep into this Penn State supplemental essay. If your story is somber and at times painful, don’t be afraid to describe that pain in your Penn State application essay. Your Penn State essay is your chance to make your application three-dimensional, so let your humanity shine through. Use your essay to breathe life into your Penn State application. 

This Penn State supplemental essay has a recommended maximum of 500 words. Don’t go over the word limit. Keeping your Penn State application essay under the limit will not only show that you carefully read the Penn State essay prompt, but also that you are a clear and concise writer. 

Penn State application essays significantly under 500 words are technically fine. However, if your draft is coming in short, ask yourself if you have responded to both parts of the prompt. The first half of your Penn State supplemental essay should tell a story that shows why you’d succeed at Penn State; the second half of your Penn State essay should explain why your story makes you a good fit for the university. Both parts of your Penn State application essay should come in at around 250 words. So, if your Penn State essay is much shorter than 500 words, make sure your story is robust and your reasoning sound.

Now that you have your Penn State supplemental essay topic, how do you start writing?

Writing the first words of your Penn State supplemental essay can be the hardest part of the process. Sometimes, the easiest way to combat writer’s block is to just write without fear or expectation. Try an automatic writing exercise to begin drafting the story you have chosen for this Penn State supplemental essay. Simply fill in the first sentence of the prompt, “An experience or activity that would reflect on my ability to succeed at Penn State is….” Then, see where your Penn State essay takes you. 

While you will not use this draft as your final Penn State essay (and you certainly won’t use that cookie-cutter first sentence) this exercise is a great way to get your ideas flowing. After you have written for 5-10 minutes, look over your work. What stands out to you from this first pass? Often, the crux of a story reveals itself in a free write. Maybe there’s a sentence near the end of your writing that would actually make the perfect introduction. Maybe there’s another that connects two crucial ideas. Mine your writing for the core structure of your Penn state supplemental essay. Then, highlight those key structural sections, use them as your outline, and take a second pass at this Penn State essay. 

Talk it out

If free-writing isn’t your speed, don’t worry! For many writers, oral storytelling can be helpful when it comes to crafting a narrative. Perhaps it is easiest to tell your Penn State essay aloud, either to a family member or into a voice recorder. Then, transcribe your recording and mine its contents for the key points of your Penn State application essay. For more writing exercise ideas, check out our article, “Determining a College Essay Topic: Reflection Exercises to Try.”

Once you have your draft, the next step is to revise. As the structure of your Penn State supplemental essay emerges, revise and refine it. Then, come back to the Penn State essay prompt—are you telling your story compellingly and succinctly? Do you discuss a skill you have that will help you succeed at Penn State? Do you allow yourself enough time to connect the skill you describe to how it will help you succeed at Penn State? Does this essay round out the narrative present in the rest of your application? If the answer to each of these questions is a resounding yes, then your essay is likely almost complete. You might then hand this Penn State supplemental essay draft to another reader who can catch any lingering grammatical or spelling errors. 

Essay Draft Key Questions

• Does your Penn State essay tell a compelling story?
• Do you discuss details not present in the rest of your application?
• Does your essay show why you’d be a good fit at Penn State?
• Do you show that you’ve done your research on Penn State and its offerings? 

Additional tips for the Penn State essay

• Start early: Though your Penn State essay will be relatively short, that doesn’t make it easy to write. The Penn State essay prompt requires you to think critically about yourself as an applicant. Ideally, you should begin outlining and drafting your Penn State supplemental essay the summer before your application is due. If you are having trouble preparing all of your application materials, check out our article, “Preparing Your Senior Fall Checklist.”
• Essay Checklist: Write out each step required to complete this Penn State supplemental essay. Use the guide above. If you choose to make lists for each step—why you are a good fit for Penn State, what experiences or activities helped you develop those skills, et cetera—then completing those lists should also be on the checklist. Your checklist should also include answering both parts of the prompt—your story and why that story makes you a good fit for Penn State. If you follow a detailed checklist, you’ll be sure to write a strong Penn State supplemental essay.
• Edits: It is always a good idea to have a second pair of eyes on your writing. Choose someone you trust who understands the goals of your Penn State application essay and respects your voice and vision. If you are an oral thinker, you might talk your initial Penn State essay ideas through with this person. However, make sure they will only help you further your own thinking rather than impose their own. No matter where you bring an outside reader into the process, they should definitely read your final Penn State application essay to check for spelling, punctuation, and grammar. You might also hand them your essay checklist and ask whether they think you completed each step. 

Penn State Supplemental Essay: Final Thoughts

Do not be discouraged by the Penn State supplemental essay! Though it may seem like a tall task, breaking your Penn State essay into smaller, manageable chunks will make it less daunting. 

Ultimately, writing the Penn State essay will only help you. The skills this essay helps you develop in narrative building and constructing your literary voice will be crucial throughout the application cycle and in your college years. Finally, remember to have fun! You are being asked to envision yourself on Penn State’s campus and imagine how you may succeed there. This is an opportunity to be imaginative and creative. Make the most of it! 

This 2021-2022 essay guide on Penn State was written by Saphia Suarez. Want more help responding to the Penn State University essay prompt? Click here to create your free CollegeAdvisor.com account or schedule a free advising assessment with an Admissions Expert by calling (844) 343-6272.

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How to Respond to the 2023-2024 Penn State Supplemental Essay Prompts

Varonika Ware is a content writer at Scholarships360. Varonika earned her undergraduate degree in Mass Communications at Louisiana State University. During her time at LSU, she worked with the Center of Academic Success to create the weekly Success Sunday newsletter. Varonika also interned at the Louisiana Department of Insurance in the Public Affairs office with some of her graphics appearing in local news articles.

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Cari Schultz is an Educational Review Board Advisor at Scholarships360, where she reviews content featured on the site. For over 20 years, Cari has worked in college admissions (Baldwin Wallace University, The Ohio State University, University of Kentucky) and as a college counselor (Columbus School for Girls).

Pennsylvania State University , commonly known as Penn State, is a public land-grant research university located in State College, Pennsylvania. It is widely known for its high ranking athletics and undergraduate degree programs. We are here to help you respond to the Penn State supplemental essays , so keep reading!

The Penn State prompts

The Penn State supplemental essays might be optional for all applicants, but going the extra mile shows your interest in the university and showcases your talents. Your story is important, and Penn State wants to hear about it. This is why they also include a supplemental essay for potential students that have taken time off before applying to college. 

“ Optional : Please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at Penn State. This is your opportunity to tell us something about yourself that is not already reflected in your application or academic records. We suggest a limit of 500 words or fewer.”

This prompt is the classic “who are you beyond academics?” question. Penn State and many other colleges want to get to know their applicants to determine if it’s the right fit. It’s important for your personality to shine through in this essay, and being authentic is a necessary component.

Make your Penn State supplemental essay specific to you and your journey. Start by figuring out a main topic for your essay that isn’t so general that it could apply to any of the other applicants.

However, the story you share with the admissions office should relate to what you hope to accomplish or contribute to the Penn State community. This includes hobbies that might have inspired you to choose your major as well as ways you contributed to your current community in a way that you hope to make a similar impact at Penn State. You might also want to mention a course that Penn State exclusively offers that relates to an interest you have. 

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Questions to consider.

• What is the story I want to tell Penn State?
• What are some notable experiences, interests, or hobbies that I have?
• Why did I choose to apply to Penn State?

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Remember: This prompt is only for applicants who are sending in their application sometime other than their senior year of high school.

“ Please use this space to explain any time that has elapsed between your high school graduation and your anticipated enrollment at Penn State. Please provide a summary of why that gap occurred. If you attended another college or university during that time, please note it below and ensure that you have entered the information in the Academic History section of this application . ( 500 words ) ”

Everyone’s college journey is different, with some not enrolling in college the fall after graduating high school. Whether you took a gap period to travel or to prepare for university, this is your opportunity to share your experience with Penn State. 

You might’ve taken the time to travel, recoup from years in school, or start an entirely new adventure. You might have taken the time to seek experience and save money by working. Whatever your reasons, this supplemental essay prompt allows you to emphasize the importance of your gap period and how it has shaped you.

When writing your essay, try to include why you want to attend Penn State after your time off. Make them a part of your story, and explain how you hope to further develop once you attend. 

Be aware of the word count, it’s a bit more fixed than the other supplemental essay prompt. It might be hard to hit the exact limit, so go back and proofread before adding any additional sentences. A couple words here and there are quick to stack up!

Also see: What is a gap year? Everything you need to know

• Why did I want to take a gap year?
• What did I accomplish during my gap year?
• How did taking this time shape me as a person?
• In what ways do I feel more prepared to start college now (specifically at Penn State)?

Don’t miss: Top reasons to take a break from college

Next steps for students

As you go through the college application process, mark your calendar with important deadlines! By doing this, you can accurately plan and get things done in advance. You could circle the date for admission notifications or schedule a campus tour.

Penn State has multiple campuses for applicants to choose from, and they also offer virtual tours, so you can get a quick look before visiting in person. The website even gives brief overviews of each location in Pennsylvania along with degrees, housing, and extracurriculars offered there. 

Remember to check Penn State’s social media pages to stay updated on important events and dates. You’ll also be able to get a glimpse of what Penn State is like and how you might fit in there. Good luck on your path toward success!

Additional resources 

Now you know how to ace the Penn State supplemental essays. But the work is not done! You can never be too prepared for college, so here’s a couple resources to make the transition smoother: 

• Figure out the major that’s right for you
• Decide on applying early decision or early action
• Choose different types of scholarships to apply to
• How to write an essay about yourself

Other colleges to consider

• University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)
• University of Illinois (Urbana-Campaign, IL)
• Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN)

Frequently asked questions about the Penn State supplemental essays

Can i apply to penn state through the common app, is the penn state optional supplemental essay worth writing, how long should the penn state supplemental personal essay be, scholarships360 recommended.

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College Essays

If you want to go to Penn State , then the Penn State essay is one of your big chances to show how you’re different from other students in your application for admission . In order to really make this component of the application work to your advantage, you’ll need a solid strategy for writing a concise, unique, and persuasive Penn State essay!

Writing your Penn State admissions essay might seem intimidating at first, but we’re here to guide you through the process. This article will help you write a stellar Penn State essay by: 

• Explaining purpose of the Penn State Essay
• Outlining the three steps to writing a solid Penn State Essay
• Providing a breakdown of Penn State essay examples
• Giving you three practical tips for writing an exceptional essay

Let’s dive in!

The Penn State essay is an important part of your Penn State application because it can make you stand out from other applicants!

What’s the Penn State Essay?

The Penn State essay, sometimes also called the Penn State supplemental essay, is a 500 word written response included in the Penn State application for admission . 

The prompt for this essay invites applicants to tell the admissions committee about themselves. Here’s the prompt you’ll have to answer:

Please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at Penn State. This is your opportunity to tell us something about yourself that is not already reflected in your application or academic records. We suggest a limit of 500 words or fewer. 

This essay prompt is essentially asking applicants to write a response that is very similar to what is known as a personal statement. College admissions typically use an applicant’s personal statement to better understand who the applicant is as a person and what strengths they will bring to the university. 

In other words, the Penn State Essay response is an applicant’s chance to show what makes them unique in the admissions process. 

3 Steps to Answering The Penn State Essay Prompt

If we break down the pieces of what the Penn State prompt is asking, we can identify three main tasks that you need to complete in order to write a killer essay . These tasks are as follows: 

• Identify something about yourself (e.g. a skill, ability, character trait), one of your experiences, or an activity you have been involved in, and 
• Explain the meaning or significance of that aspect of yourself in order to
• Prove that you embody what it means to be a Penn State student. 

While whipping out a 500 word essay response that covers these topics may sound easy, it’s a bit trickier in practice. It’s important that you think carefully about your strategy and come up with a clear plan for your essay response. Remember: your essay is an important part of your admissions application, so you want to spend time getting it right. 

Now, we’re going to walk you through how to address each of these three major points in your essay in order to make admissions counselors sit up and take notice. 

Step 1: Select a Topic to Write About

To begin the process of drafting your Penn State essay, you need to select a meaningful attribute, experience, or activity that makes a positive case for your ability to succeed at Penn State . You need to identify these meaningful experiences or attributes because of the first part of the Penn State essay prompt, which states: 

Please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at Penn State. 

To do this, start by taking inventory of the character traits, experiences, or involvement in activities that you’re most proud of, passionate about, or are the most meaningful to you. We recommend you start by writing a list of the things that come to mind. If you want, you can divide it into categories based on character traits/abilities, experiences, and activities. As you put together this list, don’t worry about whether the things you’re coming up with are “good” or not — you’re just brainstorming ideas at this point!  

If you’re stuck and have no idea where to start, that’s okay, too. Try asking yourself these questions to get you started: 

• What is my favorite memory? And why? 
• What’s my favorite thing to do in the whole world? Why do I love it? 
• If my friends had to describe me in one word, what would they say?

Once you start jotting down ideas, you’ll probably find that you’re able to come up with quite a few. The traits, experiences, and activities that you list out can vary widely and come from different areas of your life, including experiences with friends and family, academic pursuits, extracurricular activities, work with community organizations and volunteerism, political activism, travels, strong memories from childhood, or challenges you’ve faced in life. The possibilities aren’t limited to the ones we just mentioned; this list is simply meant to give you a jump start for brainstorming. 

Once you’ve listed out all the meaningful traits/abilities, experiences, and activities that you can think of, evaluate them in order to select one item from the list that you will address in your Penn State essay. To narrow it down to one item, consider asking yourself the following questions: 

• Which of these items do I feel the strongest positive emotional connection to? 
• Which of these items am I the most proud of? 
• Which of these items could I tell a story about? 
• Which of these items makes me unique or different from other people? 

You don’t necessarily have to use these questions to select your essay topic, but if you find that you answer several of these questions with the same experience or activity, that might be a good clue that you should choose that item as the topic of your Penn State essay. 

Once you pick a topic, it's time to figure out what it says about you as a person. This essay is designed to help admissions counselors get to know you. 

Step 2: Think About What Your Topic Says About You 

Once you’ve selected a single character trait/ability, experience, or activity from your list, the second step of responding to the Penn State essay prompt is to tell a compelling story. 

You want to engage your reader while explaining what the trait/activity/characteristic you’ve chosen says about you as a person. 

To get started on this step, it’s a good idea to do some freewriting or brainstorming. Try to identify the ways in which the experience or activity you chose showcased a talent, skill, or ability you possess in a meaningful or valuable way. It’s important to be able to explain your perception of how this experience or activity shaped you into a person who will bring something positive to Penn State.

Here’s what we mean: say Katerina has decided that she wants to write about making the varsity squad for her school’s soccer team. In her freewrite, she writes about how the accomplishment makes her feel (proud, excited, enthusiastic), and she also writes a bit about the hard work it took for her to get there. Not only does she jot down ideas about going to the State tournament and making a game-winning goal, she also writes about how she missed making the squad in 9th grade, but instead of quitting, she got up an hour early every day over the summer to fit in extra practice. 

In this example, Katerina is trying to get a better understanding of why her topic is important to her, and what kind of story she can tell the admissions committee to help them understand her better. In this case, Katerina may decide to focus on how she didn’t give up and put in extra work to make her dreams come true...and it ended up paying off in a big way! 

Keep in mind that it doesn’t matter if the item you choose to write about is the most prestigious accomplishment from your résumé — you have the rest of your Penn State application to account for those accomplishments. Rather, the Penn State Essay is your time to tell the story of the real person behind your long list of accolades. If you can tailor this story to focus on a specific, detailed experience, activity, or positive attribute you possess, your essay will be more impactful.

Step 3: Tie Your Story Back to Penn State

After you’ve nailed down the way that you want to describe your uniqueness as an applicant, you need to define your understanding of what success at Penn State means to you . 

Why do you need to do this? Because of the instructions in the first sentence of the Penn State essay prompt, which states: 

Please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at Penn State . 

Penn State Admissions wants you to make a clear connection between your reflections on the experience you choose to write about and the opportunities for success that Penn State offers to its students. In order to make this connection effectively in your essay response, you need to explain how your story shows that you’re a perfect fit for Penn State. 

To get started, do your research on the culture, identity, and opportunities provided for students at Penn State . Use any information you may have gathered from visits to Penn State’s campus, attending admissions events, talking with current students or alumni, or perusing Penn State’s website to help you construct a complete picture of the culture of Penn State and what the school has to offer. 

Also, dig into specific opportunities you want to take advantage of while you’re attending Penn State. What does Penn State offer you that no other college can give you? Maybe that’s a specific degree plan, unique courses, or even a specific professor you want to work with. The more specific you are about how you’ll fit into the Penn State community, the better. 

So let’s go back to Katerina. Katerina wants to be an engineer, and in her research, she learned that Penn State’s BEST Center is working on improving battery technology. Since Katerina wants to work in the tech field, the BEST Center will help her prepare for her future career. 

So now Katerina needs to use her story about her soccer experience to explain how she’ll succeed as an engineering student at Penn State . One way she might do that is by saying that engineering is a demanding degree, and the persistence she learned on the soccer field will set her up for doing well as a Penn State engineering student. She could even take it a step further and explain that the creative problem solving she developed in her soccer training will help her succeed as she researches new battery technology as a part of the BEST Center, too.

This definition of “success” should inform how you tell the story of yourself in your Penn State essay. The admissions committee doesn’t expect every applicant to define success in the same way. In fact, Penn State admissions wants to see that you’ve really thought through your potential to be a good fit as a student at Penn State based on a thorough understanding of what Penn State has to offer a student with your past experiences and vision for the future. You should be able to define your path to success and explain how Penn State will help you get there.  

If you're still not sure what your Penn State essay should look like, take a look at our example essay below.

A Penn State Essay Example

There are many different ways that a Penn State essay can be successful but, in general, excellent essays talk about a specific experience, tell a memorable story, and connect the story of that experience to your definition of success at Penn State. 

To help you understand what these moves can look like in practice, let’s check out Penn State essay examples: 

Every morning during the spring of my junior year of high school, my alarm went off at 4:45 a.m. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many people in my hometown were laid off from their jobs struggling to make ends meet. My family owns a farm, and we grow many different types of vegetables and have laying hens, too. So when my morning chores were completed, I would jump in the truck with my dad and my sister to drive into town and deliver free vegetables and eggs to families in need. 

My family could help others because of our farm. That made me think: what if other people could grow their own food and then share what they had with others? That’s why I started an online, community-based agriculture program at my school. I wanted to help others learn how to grow their own food, then share that food with others in their community. 

While the group started out small with just a few students, within three weeks, 40 of my classmates joined in. Together, we organized a seed, plant, and garden tool drive that helped give 70 families in our town enough supplies to start their own small gardens. And many of my classmates have committed to growing gardens of their own! This experience taught me how important agriculture is, but also how agriculture can directly impact the well-being of those around me. 

As a major in community, environment, and development at Penn State, I would have the opportunity to learn about and envision strategies for helping consumers in local communities become aware of and educated about the social and economic benefits to supporting their local farmers. By taking supplemental courses in computer programming, I would prepare myself to create user-friendly online spaces that are dedicated to sharing information about local food systems with consumers in local communities. Ultimately, I believe that Penn State will help me achieve my dream of starting a nationwide, online program to help people in undeserved communities start community agriculture programs of their own. 

Now, let’s break down what this example essay does well. In this essay, the writer provides a clear definition of what success at Penn State will look like for them as a student. This essay emphasizes the student’s personal goals, knowledge of the opportunities Penn State has to offer, and commitment to investing in the Penn State community and society at large . That will definitely make an impact with admissions counselors! 

This student also helps admissions counselors get to know them by telling a story that includes specific details and vivid imagery from an experience that other applicants may not have . The essay helps the reader get a better sense of who this person is, their background, and the things they care about by telling the short story about delivering homegrown care packages to people in the community. This story will help the admissions committee remember the applicant and will set them apart from other applicants as well. 

But most essays aren’t perfect, and this one isn’t, either. One thing this essay response can improve upon is the way in which it connects the student’s idea of success to Penn State . In the last paragraph, the student should focus more on how specific opportunities provided by Penn State’s agriculture department, like its collaborative research into sustainable agriculture , will help the student achieve their goals. 

All in all, t his Penn State essay provides a good example of how to address all aspects of the essay prompt , be clear and concise in your writing, and reveal important aspects of who you are as a person that your other application materials may not show. 

3 Tips for Writing an Excellent Penn State Essay

You want your Penn State essay to persuade admissions that you’ll be a fantastic addition to Penn State’s incoming class. To help you present yourself in a way that Penn State admissions will remember, check out our three tips for writing an outstanding Penn State essay to help you stand out from the crowd. 

Tip 1: Be Specific

If you want your Penn State essay to be memorable, you need to be specific . Throwing out a bunch of abstract character traits or claims as to why you’ll be successful at Penn State won’t help your essay stand out. Instead, give your essay a coherent focus by selecting one or two related character traits, experiences, or activities that show your ability to be successful at Penn State. 

The point of the Penn State essay is to shoot for depth, not breadth. You already showcase your grades, coursework, and awards through other parts of your Penn State application. The essay is the time to reveal more about who you are and what you will bring to Penn State by showing how you’ve been successful in a past situation. Choosing a specific experience and diving into the details of it will show that you’re more than just a list of achievements on a résumé—you’re a real human being. 

Tip 2: Give Concrete Examples

When writing your Penn State essay, examples are a crucial form of support. When you select one or two specific elements  to focus on in your essay, you need to be able to elaborate on those things through specific and engaging examples. 

For instance, you don’t want to simply say, “My adaptability to a range of situations predicts my potential for success as a student at Penn State.” An admissions committee may read that sentence and ask, What makes you so adaptable? What activities or experiences demonstrate evidence of your adaptability? What has your adaptability helped you achieve or accomplish? 

Instead of making a vague, abstract claim like the one in the paragraph above, you need to be more specific, which you can do by providing an example . 

Here’s how a writer could elaborate on their adaptability in their essay: 

Starting your senior year of high school at a new school probably sounds daunting, but after moving seven times in seven years, I was prepared for the ins and outs of being the new kid on my last first day of school. Moving so many times due to my father’s work in the military has given me the opportunity to experience different cultures, learn new languages, and cultivate the ability to make meaningful connections with new people who are very different from me in a matter of minutes. During my senior year at a new school, I used these skills to mobilize my fellow students for a school wide walkout in support of DACA. 

Do you see the difference? The example above gives specific details of what life experience led this student to become adaptable rather than simply making an unsupported claim .

This example is also memorable because it uses vivid language. When you read it, you can imagine the student traveling the world, confidently stepping foot into a new school, and building connections with fellow students for social action. 

In your Penn State essay, examples like this one can be used to make meaningful connections between your vision for your life as a student and a clear definition of success . Using examples in this way will make your essay memorable and unique. 

Tip 3: Don’t Rehash Your Résumé

It’s tempting to rehash the list of accomplishments on your résumé in your Penn State essay, especially if your résumé is packed full of prestigious awards and experiences. However, keep in mind that there are other areas of the Penn State application that explicitly ask for this information. 

When the admissions committee sits down to read your essay response, they’re looking to learn something new about you—something that your résumé can’t tell them . So, instead of listing off accomplishments or stating the facts of what you’ve achieved, pick an aspect of who you are that might not be super apparent. That can include personality traits (maybe you’re really funny), unique experiences you’ve had (maybe you rescued kittens one summer!), or something else that makes you uniquely you. 

Just remember: your essay is a chance for you to make a powerful impression on your readers, so don’t waste it! 

Next Steps 

If you’re applying to Penn State, you need to make sure you’re meeting some of the school’s other admissions requirements . Here’s a guide to the Penn State admissions process to get you started . You can also learn more about the Penn State ACT and Penn State SAT standards , too. 

Are you looking for more college essay tips and tricks? Don’t worry: we’ve got 13 more for you! 

If you’re applying to other schools besides Penn State, y ou may find that you have to write “Why This College?” essays . If you’re not sure what those are, be sure to check out this article.

Ashley Sufflé Robinson has a Ph.D. in 19th Century English Literature. As a content writer for PrepScholar, Ashley is passionate about giving college-bound students the in-depth information they need to get into the school of their dreams.

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How to Write the Penn State Supplemental Essays 2021-2022

Penn State University has one optional essay for all applicants. Applicants to the Schreyer Honors College are required to submit two additional essays, and BS-MBA applicants must submit eight additional short essays.

Admissions officers can have a hard time distinguishing between applicants when thousands of students send in the same test scores and GPAs. Essays are highly valued in the decision process since they allow admissions officers to see your character and values. In this post, we’ll share how you can write essays that will be sure to impress the admissions officers at Penn State.

Want to know your chances at Penn State? Calculate your chances for free right now.

Penn State Supplemental Essay Prompts

All applicants (optional), please tell us something about yourself, your experiences, or activities that you believe would reflect positively on your ability to succeed at penn state. this is your opportunity to tell us something about yourself that is not already reflected in your application or academic records. (500 words), schreyer honors college applicants (required).

Prompt 1 : What would you like to do for the next few years if you didn’t go to college? (800 words)

Prompt 2 : How will our society be remembered in 100 years? (800 words)

BS-MBA Applicants (Required)

Prompt 1: Why do you want to attend Penn State? (150 words)

Prompt 2: Select the scientific discipline above [below] that is MOST interesting to you. Why do you want to devote 4 years of college studying it? (200 words)

• Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• Biotechnology
• Mathematics
• Microbiology

Prompt 3: Inclusiveness and Diversity: In an increasingly global community, it is essential that students gain cultural competency. In what way have you demonstrated a commitment to this mission? (200 words)

Prompt 4: Goals: Discuss your career aspirations. How would the Science BS/MBA program help you reach those goals? (200 words)

Prompt 5: Leadership: Please discuss your leadership and collaboration skills. Give recent examples of how they have been demonstrated. (200 words)

Prompt 6: Resiliency: Transitioning to college can be a challenge. Discuss the adjustments you believe you will need to make in order to be successful as you transition from high school to a college environment. (200 words)

Prompt 7: Describe your biggest commitment. (150 words)

Prompt 8: Describe a time when you helped someone else succeed. (150 words)

All Applicants (optional)

While this essay is technically optional, we still strongly encourage all applicants to complete it. Writing an optional essay provides admissions officers with more information about you, helps your application stand out, and further expresses your interest in the college you are applying to. 

One of your main objectives in all college essays should be to depict yourself as a strong addition to a specific college’s community. A good response will contain a reflection on your experiences to demonstrate a specific personal quality that you think will set you up for success at Penn State. To brainstorm, ask yourself: What do I need to succeed at Penn State? What are my strengths? 

You’ll need to think of examples that demonstrate the traits that will set you up for college success. Though the prompt says that you can pick “something about yourself, your experiences, or activities,” your choice should be something that you can show through a story or anecdote.

Almost any poor topic can be strengthened if you make it more specific:

Don’t pick something too broad, like “I have formed many friendships in different settings.” However, you could write a detailed account of a specific friendship or friend group you formed after switching high schools, explaining how you developed the skills to not only survive, but thrive in a new social community. Then, you can discuss how, at any college, but especially a big school like Penn State, forming a social network is crucial for academics (study groups, peers to help with homework, collaborators for group projects, etc.) and for making the most of your college experience.

Avoid focusing on an experience that virtually all applicants will share. “I made it through high school” is not a strong response. However, you could write about an illness you faced that almost jeopardized your ability to succeed in school. Through detailed storytelling, you could show the reader that you developed time-management skills and perseverance, which, as you can guess, are absolutely crucial for college success.

Great responses to this prompt can be quite personal since more formal academic and extracurricular activities might already be covered in your application. For example, you could relate difficult family or friendship situations you’ve negotiated to your ability to navigate a diverse and complex college community.

Regardless of which aspect of your identity, experience, or activity you pick, be absolutely sure to avoid generalizing. Many students write a 500 word essay that never uses specific examples. While these essays might sound smooth, they are almost entirely composed of clichés and generalizations. Here’s an example so you can get a better idea of what we’re talking about.

A student could write something like: 

“I have volunteered for over five years at my local food pantry. This experience has made me more appreciative of what I have, and more determined to give back. I know I’ll take these values with me to Penn State.”

Note that these sentences do not refer to a specific instance or give concrete examples. They give a general description of one activity and then make generic, high-level assertions about the results of that activity.

A strong essay will push beyond this level of resolution:

• Describe what you did at the food pantry.
• Show the perspective this has given you by giving an example of how you changed your daily activities or interactions with others as a result of this experience.
• Link these changes to success in college by discussing how you’ll dive into volunteer opportunities and community organizations. Use specific examples of clubs or organizations at Penn State, such as the Lion’s Pantry, which is dedicated to addressing student hunger.

A few words of caution: Some students will have too many things they want to squeeze into this essay. While you may feel like you’ve just left so many crucial details out of your application, you should resist the temptation to use this essay as a “catch-all” for everything “not already reflected in your application.” Note that the prompt asks you to share “something” not already included—not everything! This essay should be focused and cohesive, telling a story that proves you can succeed in college.

If you truly feel that important information has been left out of your application, try to incorporate it into your activities section, other essays, or, if all else fails, the “additional information” section of the Common App.

Schreyer Honors College Applicants , Prompt 1

What would you like to do for the next few years if you didn’t go to college (800 words).

This might be a future you never considered for yourself if you always imagined going to college, or perhaps you’ve always wanted to stray from the “traditional” path. Either way, the purpose of this question is to see what else intrigues you and how you would choose to contribute to society if you weren’t getting an education. You are given 800 words to elaborate, so this should be a detailed and well thought out response.

Admissions officers don’t want to hear that you would play video games in the basement for the next four years. They are looking for engaged students who will enrich their community, so your essay should highlight these qualities in yourself. There are many different ways you could spend your time, but you need to have a strong connection and explanation as to why you want to devote the next few years to whatever you have chosen. 

Let’s look at a few sample essays:

• A student who loves his Spanish class could write about how he wants to spend the next few years travelling around Spanish speaking countries to become fluent in the language and experience the culture first-hand. He might discuss how he plans to start in Spain and work at a restaurant in Madrid because the cuisine looked so good when he researched it for a project. Then he might go to Costa Rica and camp in rainforests with wildlife. His last country might be Argentina, where he would get a full-time job to gain experience working in a large city.
• A student who has always dreamed of being a music producer would explain how she would fly to LA with a suitcase, her guitar, and a dream. She would share the battle between excitement and fear inside of her as she applies for jobs at record labels and gets to sit in on her first recording session. While she knows that it’s a difficult career path, her passion will help her persevere. She would be vulnerable about her aspirations and dreams, but her interest in music production would shine through.
• A student who values his family more than anything else might discuss how he would stay home and work for his family’s business. He could talk about the expectations his family always had for him to work alongside his dad, uncle, and cousins. Maybe he would describe what a typical day would look like if he stayed at home: his little sister waking him up in the morning, driving to the store with his dad, catching up with customers, learning how to manage the company’s finances from his uncle, and heading home to enjoy dinner with his whole family after a long day at work.

What do all of these examples do well? They have personal reasons for why they have chosen what to pursue. The first student wants to travel (his what ) because he loved learning about Spanish language and culture (his why ). These essays also have strong emotional attachments which makes the reader care more about what the student does. For example, the second student includes what she would think and feel as she tries something new, providing evidence to her passion and determination. Finally, by including detailed descriptions about how the student will spend their time, it is clear they are committed and driven individuals. The daily routine the third student describes not only shows what he plans to do, but also his values, such as his family. Remember, you have 800 words so you shouldn’t be afraid to use them all!

Schreyer Honors College Applicants, Prompt 2

How will our society be remembered in 100 years (800 words).

This prompt isn’t just asking you to look into the future and write a history textbook. By identifying how you think society will be remembered, you are actually sharing what values you think are most prevalent in our society—whether you agree with them or not. Again, you are given a sizable amount of space, so take some time to consider your answer.

A successful response will include three things:

• What values you believe will be remembered 
• What specific events exemplify these values
• How your generation (or you) will impact how society is remembered

Let’s break each of these down a bit more.

First, you want to consider some values that you feel best capture the current state of the world. Asking yourself a few questions might help inspire some ideas:

• What issues do you hear about in the news all the time? 
• Are there certain events from the past decade that stick out in your mind? 
• What emotions do you feel when you hear about current events? 

These questions should help you come up with a list of issues, events, and emotions you can find similarities amongst. If you write about gun control, school shootings, and feelings of terror or hopelessness, you could talk about how society values personal independence over securing the future. If you have vaccines, the pandemic, and resilience, you might believe society values innovation and technology. By the end of this little exercise, you should have two or three values you think best represent our current society.

Don’t feel like you have to address every aspect of society. In fact, since you are only focusing on two or three values, you will need some specific events that epitomize the values you are trying to convey. For instance, if you believe society will be remembered for loving material goods and needing instant gratification, you might cite the rise of fast fashion over the past decade, with specific stores and brands that have led the way, and how the quality is sacrificed for an increase in quantity. Perhaps you feel society will be remembered for destroying the planet because people value themselves more than the environment. In that case, you could talk about the increasing frequency of climate disasters like the Australian wildfires, hurricanes destroying islands, and the California drought. You want to make sure you provide some concrete examples to support why you think the values you chose are prevalent enough to be remembered 100 years from now. To further strengthen your essay, you can include personal connections and your emotional response to the events you discuss. 

The last thing you should include is the impact your generation will have on the way society is remembered. For example, maybe you believe that since past generations were selfish and greedy we will be remembered by these values. However, as part of a generation that has grown up seeing the consequences of immense greed, you and your peers will work to level the playing field and lift up those in poverty. After your generation gets a chance to repair the work of your predecessors, you think society will be remembered for showing kindness when it mattered most. Including the role you will play—either you specifically, or as a member of the younger generation—shows admissions officers that you are motivated and inspired to try, even when faced with monumental challenges. Penn State wants Honors students who will change the world. If your essay can prove how you hope to be a part of positively impacting the world, you will show you are a good candidate for the Honors college.

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 1

Why do you want to attend penn state (150 words).

This essay prompt is common across many colleges, as it’s used to differentiate candidates based on their level of interest in the school. Due to the small word count, you will need to express interest in Penn State with room for naming only 2-3 major things that you like about it. As this prompt is given through the BS-MBA program, you should definitely focus on that at some point in the response. 

Because of the limited space, it is not enough to respond to this prompt with generic sentiments about Penn State, such as location or its strong sports culture. To start addressing this prompt, you may have to do some research (the school’s site is a great starting point). Specifically, Penn State’s BS/MBA program has Student Profile videos on YouTube. These are a great place to start to gain a better understanding of the reality of being a student in this program.

While researching Penn State, dig into programs and extracurriculars that pique your interest, as well as your major’s departmental offerings and available concentrations. If anything catches your eye, explore it further until you feel confident speaking about the opportunity in detail, and how it helps you achieve your goals. 

Here’s a good and bad example:

Bad: Penn State’s amazing BS/MBA program appeals to me because the business models around curing diseases such as pediatric cancer have always fascinated me.

Good: I am really intrigued by the BS/MBA program because I am heavily invested in raising global awareness of pediatric cancer via a sustainable business model. I plan to pursue my passion for this both in and out of the classroom, researching cell malfunctions in labs while helping organize events such as Penn State’s annual Thon. I look forward to dancing during Thon weekend to help bring awareness to and raise money for a cause I care so deeply about. I plan to continue organizing events and initiatives that address this issue after college as well, by organizing non-profit concerts and corporate presentations. With both a science background and a business-oriented skill set, I will amass the tools I need to continue bringing awareness to pediatric cancer cures and research.

The former response is vague, and the resource mentioned can be found at almost any school. This latter response demonstrates a genuine interest in a unique opportunity at Penn State and links it to personal aspirations.

A commonly forgotten component of the “Why School” essays are extracurriculars and social life. College isn’t only about academics, but also what you do outside of the classroom. You should also look into extracurriculars or clubs that you want to join, and tie them into your current interests. 

For example, you could say something along the lines of: “As someone who is very environmentally conscious, I started a month-long educational initiative through the Eco Club at my high school, in which the rest of the board and I hosted workshops on how to live more sustainably. Some of my favorite topics were slow travel and how to reduce waste while eating out. At Penn State, I look forward to joining the Bridge Initiative; becoming a volunteer consultant will allow me to continue educating others on how to reduce our environmental impact.”

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 2

Select the scientific discipline above [below] that is most interesting to you. why do you want to devote 4 years of college studying it (200 words).

This essay calls for your to narrow down your interest in the BS-MBA program to the specific discipline that you plan to pursue during the program. Although you can pick up to three from the selection provided, you can only write about one – so choose carefully. Research the different divisions on Penn State’s site and then make an informed decision about the discipline that most appeals to you.

When discussing why you are passionate about a subject, it is important to show, rather than tell readers why you feel that way about it. Be sure to use vivid imagery and specific details to describe experiences you’ve had with the subject and how you want to pursue it in college. You can talk about the curriculum, such as specific classes you want to take, or research projects you want to join. And you can bring in other factors relating to the subject as well, such as clubs or extracurriculars. Below are good and bad examples:

Bad: “I’ve always been interested in the nutritional content of the food I eat. In high school, I gravitated towards the sciences but was most passionate about AP Chemistry. In college, I wish to bring my two interests together to pursue my ultimate goal – a career in the food science industry.”

Good: “I love food. But even more than that, I love exploring the science behind my favorite meals. As soon as I learned how to read, I pored over the nutrition label on the packaged foods in our pantry. I longed for answers to questions that no one around me seemed to care about, such as what riboflavin was, how my Cheetos were always the perfect shade of neon orange, and why bread could become toast but not vice versa. At Penn State, I hope to finally find the answers to my copious chemistry-related questions and use my findings to gain a new perspective on the molecules I consume for energy. In addition to the chemistry discipline, I plan to join extracurriculars such as the Food Chemistry Club, where I can immerse myself in the world of food processing at a deeper, scientific level.”

Bad: “I love probability and chance, so naturally, I became interested in statistics as a potential discipline during my time at Penn State. I plan on joining an existing research project or even starting my own project to create a project, applying what I learn from Penn State’s renowned statistics department outside of the classroom.”

Good: “Why do people fear airplane rides more than their daily commute when they are statistically more likely to die on the road than in the air? How do we predict which team will win a championship while factoring in nationwide attitudes towards them? I constantly juggle predicaments of probability in my mind; by choosing the statistics discipline within Penn State’s BS/MBA program, I hope to find an outlet for my myriad of inquiries. I plan to use the strategies from my coursework to embark on my own research project, creating a machine that can juxtapose statistical improbabilities with public perception. I can flesh out this idea at HackPSU, teaming up with my peers to make a machine that can measure people’s attitudes while calculating statistical probabilities in the real world. I can further develop my project via Invent Penn State, where I will take advantage of the company connections at my disposal to ensure my lifelong passion becomes tangible.”

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 3

Inclusiveness and diversity: in an increasingly global community, it is essential that students gain cultural competency. in what way have you demonstrated a commitment to this mission (200 words).

“Cultural competency” is defined as the ability to appreciate and accurately interpret other cultural traditions and the actions and words of people from other cultures.

This might lead you to ask: what counts as another culture? There are some obvious cases, such as someone who actually comes from a different country, or from a radically different part of this country. However, there are often many cultural divisions within a single community. Your school might include students from a variety of racial, ethnic, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

A word of caution: This prompt does not ask about a time when you talked with someone who was different from you—it asks about your “commitment to this mission.” Your goal should really be twofold:

• To show that you understand what “cultural competency” means.
• To show that you have been and will continue to be committed to it.

To accomplish these goals, you need to describe significant , lasting interactions with people who are different from you. Furthermore, The best responses will go above and beyond: they will show how you have tried to help others gain cultural competency, too.

Great responses could involve describing just a single, big effort you’ve made. Some answers are really obvious fits: maybe you’re involved in a club that focuses on race relations at your school; maybe you’ve done mission trips with your church that have required you to respect and interact with the locals and their culture. In these cases, you can describe actual interactions with specific individuals that show your interest in understanding and working with people from different backgrounds.

If you don’t have one “big” example, then choose a few smaller ones. You could discuss choosing to do a history presentation on the history of immigration to the US, anti-racist political activism you’ve been involved in outside of school, and efforts you’ve made at your summer food service job to communicate better with foreign tourists who speak limited English. Try to thread these different experiences together to depict an interest in cultural inclusiveness that cuts across different features of your life.

Bonus points: because this essay is for the BS/MBA program, it’s even better if you can tie cultural competency to success in science or business. If applicable, you could discuss your research on the differential health outcomes for people of different ethnic backgrounds in your city, or your internship with a transnational business that has required you to expand your cultural skills.

However, if there’s no real link between your cultural experiences and business/science, don’t force it. Your first priority here is to demonstrate that you’re committed to cultural competency.

Regardless of whether you focus on just one experience or several, be very mindful of avoiding clichés and vagueness. It’s incredibly easy to write a 200-word essay on a topic like this that never really gets into the specifics of your experience. A vague essay might show that you know what cultural competency is, but it won’t tell the reader anything about your real-life commitment to it. Avoid general, cliché phrases like “I have interacted with many people who are different from me,” or “I have learned so much from…” Instead, show that these things are true through specific examples.

Another risk is stereotyping or making over-generalizations about cultural groups. The last thing you want to do is to end up sounding culturally insensitive as you respond to a prompt about cultural competency. You can avoid this danger by focusing on your own experience, goals, motivations, and growth. What strategies have you developed to interact with those who are different from you? What have you learned about yourself? How have these experiences shown you the importance of multicultural acceptance? If possible, have a parent, teacher, or other third party review your essay to be sure it doesn’t include any accidentally offensive material.

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 4

Goals: discuss your career aspirations. how would the science bs/mba program help you reach those goals (200 words).

Remember that one significant admissions factor for combined degree programs is whether the admissions committee thinks you’re really committed to this path. The admissions committee doesn’t want to give a coveted spot to someone who will change their mind about following through on the MBA after a year or two of college. This means that you need to show both specific long-term goals that fit with the program and deeper motivations that will carry you through 5-6 years of rigorous education.

To get started, dig down and describe your career goals in as much detail as you can—while still conveying a broad, bold vision for your future.

Some students focus on something like achieving a particular rank in a certain company by a certain age. However, this type of career aspiration isn’t the best choice: it is too arbitrary and too specific and doesn’t convey a lot about your underlying values.

Instead, think about a particular problem you’d like to solve or a legacy you’d like to leave. Perhaps you want to bring truly affordable solar cells to a mass market. Or, perhaps your goal is multi-tiered: you want to forge a path for minority women in biotech startups in the short term, and in the long term you want to move to the public sector, using your entrepreneurial experience to address inequality in healthcare outcomes.

Even if your goals are currently quite vague, you can still make them sound clear and worthwhile. For example, maybe you know that you want to do something at the intersection of chemistry and entrepreneurship, but you’re just not sure about the specifics yet. That’s fine! If your goals are still unclear, you’ll just have a little more work to do in the other sections of your response.

Once you determine your career aspirations, spend a little bit of time reflecting on why you hold these aspirations. While the prompt doesn’t explicitly state that you need to explain the reasons behind your career choice, the best answers will at least allude to your deeper motivations. If you show what drives you, then you provide additional assurance to the admissions committee that you’re really committed to completing the BS/MBA program.

Since you don’t have very many words, you’ll probably need to integrate this explanation of “why” with your explanation of the goal itself. This might mean sharing a short anecdote about your first-hand experience of rising sea levels and then connecting that experience to your desire to work on solar power to cut carbon emissions. Or, you might briefly describe a personal medical experience which gave rise to your desire to improve medical technologies.

Once you’ve established what your aspirations are and why you hold them, it’s time to focus on Penn State’s BS/MBA program. This means doing more than just talking about the basics of the program (the fact that it allows you guaranteed admission, or that it could potentially shorten your time in school).

Visit Penn State’s BS/MBA website and carefully scour it for details that fit your goals. Pick just a few specific features of the program and talk about them in your response. These can include a particular course, a professional training resource, a research program, an interdisciplinary opportunity, or even a particular professor (but be careful not to just name-drop–explain the professor’s work and its relation to your interests in detail). For example, instead of saying “I plan to join Penn State’s BS/MBA program to get a deeper understanding of both science and business,” say “I plan on taking advantage of the BS/MBA’s hands-on professional development initiatives. I plan to network with pharmaceutical companies during the career-oriented field trip, discussing the business model behind products from companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer.”

Link the skills, competencies, or background that these resources provide to the attainment of your career goals. This means getting a little technical. Do you need to learn a certain management strategy to succeed as the founder of a biotech startup? Great! Talk about that specific strategy and how you’ll learn about it in a given course offered through Penn State’s BS/MBA.

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 5

Leadership: please discuss your leadership and collaboration skills. give recent examples of how they have been demonstrated. (200 words).

Penn State’s BS/MBA sees itself as a training ground for future leaders on the frontiers of both science and business. They want to admit students who can work with and lead others.

“Leadership” and “collaboration,” the words used in the prompt, have become overused buzzwords in college applications. This means that one of the keys to a successful response to this prompt is to avoid just repeating these words and various synonyms. Instead, you focus on the “examples of how they have been demonstrated.” Show, don’t tell comes heavily into play here – it’s possible to write an exceptional response to this prompt without ever actually using the word “leadership” or “leader.”

Before you choose your examples, note that the prompt asks for a “recent” example. Ideally, this means in the last two years. You should definitely not go further back than your freshman year of high school. Additionally, try not to repeat activities or experiences you’ve discussed in detail elsewhere in your application.

You can pick more than one example, but keep in mind that this essay is very short . Offering a quality, detailed depiction of your leadership in just one situation is definitely preferable to just listing every leadership role you can think of.

If you hold formal leadership roles, this is definitely a great place to discuss them. However, don’t just list off and briefly describe your titles. Instead, describe what your leadership role involves. If you’re the president of a club, you could describe a “day in your life”—use vivid language to bring your responsibilities and skills to life. If you’re on student council, pick a particular initiative and use a detailed depiction of that situation to exemplify the leadership and collaboration skills that you’ve developed.

If there are no obvious formal leadership roles for you to cite, or if you’ve already discussed them in your Common App essay or other supplemental responses, then you should think outside the box.

Effective but unconventional responses can include:

• A depiction of how you’ve worked with peers on group projects.
• A leadership role you’ve taken on in your family.
• An instance when you took charge in extreme situations (getting lost on a hike, for example).

Once you’ve chosen your example(s), double check to make sure that these examples are conveying skills –this is, after all, the point of the essay.

If you choose just one example, your essay should focus on depicting a “moment” in that experience that demonstrates the skill that you are claiming you possess . An example of this:

• You could depict a moment of conflict (and how you resolved it) in your local church choir, which you chair.
• Demonstrate how you used your interpersonal skills to calm the situation, your strategic thinking skills to propose a solution, and your organizational skills to execute that solution.

A strong version of this essay wouldn’t just state what you did. Instead, it would set up the moment with detailed descriptions of what you felt, said and did.

If you choose to use more than just one example, here are a few ways to organize those examples. You can:

Use complementing experiences to show different facets of your leadership and collaboration. 

Perhaps you’ve been class president (requiring clear communication as a leader), worked in a restaurant as a member of the waitstaff (requiring a lot of collaboration), and interned with a local politician (where you found yourself leading other unruly interns by setting a good example). You can unite these examples under the thesis that you are a good verbal and non-verbal communicator who knows when to give directions and when to collaborate with others.

Emphasize a common thesis about your leadership.

Maybe in all your leadership experiences, you’ve found yourself in the position where you have to hold others accountable for their mistakes. You could give several examples of different instances (different roles) where you’ve developed the skills to do so.

Find a unifying theme of your leadership.

You could choose several examples of your experience leading in a high-pressure office setting. Here, the uniting theme is where the examples actually take place.

If a lot of your experience has been with biology research, you could choose several examples of times when you’ve collaborated or taken on a leadership role in a laboratory setting.

If you choose to thematize something like this, be sure that you’re still highlighting skills that you’ve gained, not just the setting or shared content of your experience.

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 6

Resiliency: transitioning to college can be a challenge. discuss the adjustments you believe you will need to make in order to be successful as you transition from high school to a college environment. (200 words).

To start out, brainstorm the major differences between your life as a high school student and the experiences you expect you’ll have in college. If you really don’t know what to expect, try to talk to friends or acquaintances who have already transitioned to college, or peruse some articles on the topic.

Here are a few of the major differences between high school and college for most students. Use this list as a jumping off point to consider what changes will be the most challenging for you.

• Moving away from home
• Having a less structured schedule and more freedom
• Larger class sizes, at least in introductory courses (this will definitely be true at a large school like Penn State)
• Acclimating to a completely new social environment
• Establishing healthy habits on your own
• Picking your classes and your major
• Communicating with professors
• Navigating a massive campus
• Managing your own finances

However, these are all general challenges that will affect most students – so you should also keep in mind any extenuating circumstances you might personally have that could foster more challenges specific to your situation. Noting these will add dimension to your essay as it will set you apart from others and keep your response sounding specific and genuine.

Once you’ve identified the differences between high school and college that matter the most to you, you’ll need to frame these as “adjustments.” How will you need to change in order to succeed at college?

• If you’re really close to your family members, you’ll need to develop patterns for staying in touch with them, and also find a new support system at college.
• If you are used to a super-structured school day, followed by extracurriculars, you’ll need to develop time management skills to make good use of the time between classes that is almost inevitable in college.  

Your goal here isn’t to argue that you already are prepared for college. Rather, it’s to show that you know what you need to do to succeed in college. The admissions committee wants to see that you have a strategy.

Of course, ideally, you can also show that you have the basic tools to implement this strategy. For example, if you focus on adjusting socially, you might talk about strategies you used to adjust socially to your high school and discuss how you plan to scale those strategies up for your transition to college.

In such a short response, your goal should not be to exhaustively list all the adjustments you’ll need to make to successfully transition to college. Instead, pick 2-3 and use personal examples to show that you’ve thought through this question carefully and have a solid plan to manage your transition.

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 7

Describe your biggest commitment. (150 words).

The prompt’s phrasing (“your biggest commitment”) dictates that you choose just one commitment—and it needs to be one that is obviously substantial. If it’s not the sort of thing that a reader would automatically think of as “big,” you need to be able to convincingly argue that it is, in fact, a sign of substantial responsibility in 150 words or less.

Strong options include:

• Family or interpersonal commitments.
• Significant leadership roles that you’ve taken on, or even academic commitments (a heavy course load, for example).
• Outside-the-box choices could also work here. For example, maybe you’re an avid rider; in that case, you could discuss the weighty commitment of ensuring the health and happiness of your horse.

It’s also possible to choose more abstract commitments. Perhaps you’ve committed to interacting with friends and family with absolute honesty. Or, maybe you’ve made some sort of religious or spiritual commitment. If you want to discuss a spiritual commitment, be sure to depict the role of that commitment in your everyday life—for example, through prayer, community service, or scriptural readings. If you’re not able to give these sorts of concrete depictions of what an “abstract” commitment in your life means, then it might be best to stick with a more straightforward topic for this essay.

As you’ll notice, the general supplemental questions ask about your activities and experiences, as do other questions in the BS/MBA-specific part of the supplement. This means that you will have already covered a lot of ground, and likely already discussed a number of things in your life that qualify as commitments. Though it might seem difficult, try not to double up on anything you’ve already discussed in detail (it’s fine if you’ve mentioned it in passing).

Once you’ve chosen a topic, it’s time to begin writing. Though there are many ways to go about filling your 150-word limit, the best responses will include specific depictions that show why this commitment is the “biggest” in your life. It’s easy to use up to 150 words with generalizations. Instead, try to depict a “moment” that exemplifies the weight of your commitment. If you’re talking about your commitment to caring for an ailing parent, this could mean describing in detail a moment of crisis when you were there for them, such as when you had to take them to the hospital. If your topic is academic, this could mean putting the reader into your head at a moment when you were stretched to your limits by your courses, such as the night before a big test.

If no single “moment” can convey the significance of your commitment, you can take a higher-level approach. If you’re writing about a leadership role you hold, this might mean describing the broader pool of people who depend on you, or what the consequences would be if you fail to fulfill your responsibilities. Though this approach is slightly more “zoomed out,” you still should use specific examples and vivid details whenever possible.

While your goal is to convey that you are comfortable taking on responsibilities and have a track record of following through, you don’t want to make yourself sound too overburdened. Use caution especially if you talk about a family or personal commitment. The admissions committee should not discriminate against applicants with personal or familial struggles, but there is a chance that they might subconsciously worry that you have too many burdens to succeed in an intensely rigorous academic program.

You don’t need to explicitly address this concern ( don’t say something like “I am committed to taking care of my mother, but this won’t detract from my ability to do well in college”). Instead, try and show that this commitment is not an obstacle by subtly emphasizing how you’ve already balanced it with myriad other responsibilities. For example, you could briefly describe how you’ve managed to help care for your ill mother while succeeding in high school and at multiple extracurriculars.

Overall, try to sound passionate and enthusiastic despite the weight the commitment holds in your life. Focus on the good parts to show your resilient and committed character, showing what you get out of the experience rather than just what you put into it. For instance, if you took piano lessons every day for 12 years, you could talk about how you have conquered a really difficult piece or composed your own piece. If you care for an ailing parent, talk about how this has strengthened your relationship with them, and how you are more capable and independent as a result of helping them out. Admissions officers want to see that you are able to handle a rigorous program, and showing examples of your optimistic attitude in the face of challenge can offset some of their worry about if you will fare well in the program.

BS-MBA Applicants, Prompt 8

Describe a time when you helped someone else succeed. (150 words).

College admission essay prompts are designed so that admissions officers can learn more about you – this prompt, however, is asking you to speak about yourself through the lens of helping someone else. You need to show rather than tell admissions officers about a time you helped someone succeed. You must also strike a balance between relaying their story with your own narrative within a small word count.

Typical examples of helping someone can happen within volunteer organizations, a tutoring role, sports coaching, or your family. Think about these situations and about the people who depend on you. Ruminate on how helping them succeed has personally affected and changed you. Did helping your younger brother with his math homework ignite your passion for teaching? Did helping a senior at your local senior center spark a friendship that crossed generations? Has coaching a student with learning disabilities inspired you to campaign for more inclusivity in sports and the world at large?

Your setup for this prompt should roughly follow the following format: A specific, vivid scene with you and the subject of your response and then a smooth transition into a bit of background as to what you did for them and how they succeeded. Then, discuss how the experience affected you and wrap it up with a sentence or two on how you plan to take the lessons you learned with you to the BS/MBA program, Penn State, your future career, or your greater approach to life in general. 

Where to Get Your Penn State Essays Edited for Free

Do you want feedback on your Penn State essays? After reading your essays over and over, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. Since they don’t know you personally, they can be a more objective judge of whether your personality shines through, and whether you’ve fully answered the prompt. 

You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. We highly recommend giving this tool a try!

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

Penn State will extend its offer acceptance deadline from May 1 to May 15, 2024, for incoming first-year students enrolling in the summer or fall 2024 terms. Penn State News Release

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Are there additional documents or application requirements that need to be submitted if a student is applying without SAT or ACT exam scores?

No additional documents or supplemental application materials are required for students applying to Penn State without SAT or ACT scores. We do strongly encourage applicants to complete the personal statement as part of their application submission.

Do I need to complete the Personal Statement for the Penn State application?

Aug 12, 2022 • knowledge, information.

The Personal Statement is not required. However, we highly encourage you to complete th is section. This information will provide the Undergraduate Admissions Office with additional materials to support the review of your application.

• FRONT MATTER
• TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents

• Chapter 1: The Realities of Graduate Study
• Chapter 2: Generating Detail for Personal Statements
• Chapter 3: Style for Personal Statements
• Chapter 4: Sample Personal Statements and Application Essays
• Chapter 5: Personal Statements and Application Essays for National Scholarships

Advice on Conquering the Personal Statement

By Rebecca Marcum, Penn State World Campus admissions counselor and graduate student

Writing a personal statement is a very important part of the graduate program application process, but it can be the most intimidating part as well.

Trust me — I know.

I’ve been there, too.

Before applying to Penn State World Campus’s higher education master’s degree program (where I’m slowly but surely making progress toward my M.Ed.), I took a year to write my personal statement.

I won’t shower you with details, but that year was littered with personal upheavals and professional transitions. I wrote in fits and bursts, often stopping and walking away for weeks or months at a time. I had to re-think my priorities, my goals, and my future.

With all of these changes occurring, I found many reasons to procrastinate. “I’m just going to wait until things quiet down,” I kept telling myself, breathing a sigh of relief that I had managed to push the personal statement off a little further.

But then the morning came when I realized that I couldn’t let myself keep making excuses. In the months and months that I had been working on my personal statement, it had somehow mutated into this big, hulking monster, constantly looming in the back of my mind. It was time to sit down and confront the beast – all 2 double-spaced pages of it.

I am now here to tell you that it is possible to face the personal statement and emerge victorious! Here are a few tips that I discovered can help to ease the stress of writing a personal statement; I now also use these tips when I speak with prospective World Campus graduate students in my position as an admissions counselor:

Take a deep breath

Be clear, relevant, concise, and precise

Make sure you answer all the questions the prompt asks in succinct, to-the-point language. Most statements of purpose limit you to 1 to 2 typed pages or 500 words. This doesn’t allow much room for lengthy reflections about your educational philosophy, nor does it give you time to discuss your love of French cooking or how you were the captain of your college’s ultimate Frisbee team. Each word you write must be essential and serve to aid your argument and give your statement a feeling of cohesion. Lastly – and most importantly — make sure you proofread everything!

Don’t forget to be yourself

You are your biggest advocate, so don’t sell yourself short by trying to be someone you’re not. Your personality, your experiences, and your thoughts (yes, including your doubts!) make you a unique person and an intriguing applicant. Being succinct doesn’t mean erasing your personality from the statement.

Ask for help

Have a question about the prompt or about the program? Don’t be afraid to contact the academic department to ask for clarification. Doing this will show the program that you have put time and thought into what you are preparing to say, and that you are interested and invested enough to do some additional digging.

Find a second opinion

Ask someone you trust and respect to read over your statement, once you have a working rough draft. Not only will this person catch any typos or grammatical errors you might have made, he or she will also give you a new perspective. Are you really answering the program’s questions to the best of your ability? Is your statement well written and well argued, or is there room for improvement?

Just remember that, in the end, this is your statement; don’t let it become someone else’s words written in your name!

Proofread once more…or twice more…or…

Just as you wouldn’t want to submit a cover letter or résumé to your dream job only to discover you misspelled the hiring manager’s name, you shouldn’t submit a personal statement that contains careless mistakes. This is a time to slow down, turn on spellcheck, pull out your dictionary and thesaurus, uncap your red pen, call in a second pair of eyes (if you haven’t already). Be prepared to look over your essay multiple times with a critical eye and a fine-toothed comb before you hit “Submit”!

In the end, don’t forget that each program is different and so each statement of purpose is different as well. And if you transform the personal statement into a fearsome, loathsome beast (like I did), remember this: you are more scared of it than it is of you. If you follow the tips above, however, you should be well equipped to face the personal statement – and win!

Happy writing!

Now it’s your turn.  What comments or questions do you have? And for those of you who have successfully written your own statements of purpose, what other tips can you provide to eager grad-students-to-be?

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Application Tips

Tips for perfecting your law school application.

Applying to law school can be a daunting task! What should a personal statement look like? Who are the best people to choose to write letters of recommendation? What makes an application stand out? Here are some tips for submitting a strong application. Keep in mind that each individual law school may have its own set of requirements, so always read instructions carefully.

• The personal statement is your chance to share your story. In many cases, this is your interview to law school. Rather than outlining your résumé in paragraph form, use this portion of the application to demonstrate your writing ability, life experience, and personality. An authentic essay from the heart is going to read better than an essay trying to fit itself into a perceived perfect mold of a “good” personal statement. Don’t forget to proofread carefully and ask for feedback from several trusted sources prior to finalizing.
• Speaking of your résumé , don’t fret if you do not have legal experience. Recent undergraduates should use this piece to showcase their activities and involvement in college. Be sure to include those retail, serving, and barista jobs as they highlight dedication, hard work, and the ability to deal with conflict in the form of angry customers!
• Choose the authors of your letters of recommendation carefully and according to the requirements of each school. Recommenders should be very familiar with your abilities, specifically those that apply to predicting your success in law school such as critical thinking, analysis, and work ethic. It is highly preferable to choose a recommender who knows you well rather than one who has an impressive title but cannot give a substantial, first-hand assessment of your skills. Meet with your recommender to discuss your goals, to remind them of your achievements, and most importantly, to ensure that they are comfortable speaking positively on your behalf.
• Optional essays are a great way to expound upon your personal experience, passions, and specific interest in a school. Give these essays the same care to quality writing as the personal statement. While optional essays can be a great supplement to your application, if the topic does not speak to you, it may be better to skip one or more of these.
• If an important area of your application, such as grades, LSAT score, or gaps in undergraduate education need further explanation, consider submitting an addendum . If you have a character and fitness issue, this is often mandatory. An addendum is an opportunity to provide context to the answers you provided on your application and give evidence that these items will not inhibit your ability to succeed in law school.

Dickinson Law wishes you the best as you begin the law school application process! If we can be of any assistance please do not hesitate to contact us or plan a visit !