Common App Essay Prompts 2024-25

The folks at the Common Application have officially announced that the Common App essay prompt menu for the upcoming 2024-25 admissions cycle will remain exactly the same as it was the previous year. In the opinion of the College Transitions staff, the decision to stay the course was a wise one. A quick look at the data shows that the prompts, as presently constituted, received rave reviews across the board—more than 95% of admissions officers, guidance counselors, parents, and students rated the selections positively.

Common App Essay Prompts for 2024-25

In addition to breaking down the 2024-25 Common App essay prompts, we will also take a look at:

• What’s new in 2024-25?
• The Additional Information Section & COVID-19 essay
• The Common App essay word limit
• The most popular Common App prompts
• How to choose a prompt
• Advice on brainstorming/writing your Common App essay
• Links to supplemental essay prompts for 50+ colleges

What’s new for 2024-25?

Absolutely nothing! This is a good thing. The Common App seems to have found an array of topics with something to offer just about everyone. In 2022, they altered Prompt #4 to include an invitation to talk about gratitude, a welcome addition to the crazy pandemic-impacted world in which we found ourselves for so long. Otherwise, the prompts have stayed the same for the last several years.

The Additional Information Section & COVID-19 Optional Essays

If you need space beyond the Common App personal statement to discuss extenuating circumstances or provide essential context, there are two optional spaces available to you: the Additional Information section and the COVID-19 essay, the latter of which as been slightly re-branded as the “Community Disruption” prompt.

In the Additional Information section, you have 650 words at your disposal to discuss everything from research projects to long-term illnesses to academic situations. You can learn more about how—and whether to—utilize this section in our blog: Should I Use the Common App Additional Information Section?

For the Community Disruption prompt, you have 250 words to write about COVID-19, a natural disaster, or any other external force that has impacted your health and well-being, family circumstances, safety, and education.  For tips on whether to/how to best utilize this space, check out our blog on the topic — How to Answer the COVID-19 Question on the Common App.

We want to stress that both of these spaces are completely optional and you should only utilize them if you absolutely need to.

What is the Common App essay word limit?

The Common App essay word limit remains at 650 words. There is also a minimum floor of 250 words. Wondering how much to write? We recommend shooting for between 500-650 words.

2024-25 Common App Essay Prompts

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
2. The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
4. Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
6. Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
7. Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Let’s break each of these down in turn…

Common App Essay Prompt #1

Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

Many students have a particular aspect of who they are that they feel incredibly connected to. This could be their racial or cultural background, sexual or gender identity, religious affiliation, athletic or artistic talent, or intellectual interest. If you answer this prompt, whatever you choose should be so integral to who you are that you can’t imagine writing an essay on any other topic.  In addition to describing the background, identity, interest, or talent you choose, you’ll also want to reflect on why it’s so important to you.

Common App Essay Prompt #2

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

Essentially, this prompt is asking you to discuss a time when things didn’t go according to plan. Perhaps it was a project that failed, a parent’s unexpected illness, or a personal barrier, to name a few. Note that the Common App wants you to reflect on two questions: 1) how the situation affected you and 2) what you learned. As such, you’ll want to approach this question with a solid degree of self-awareness. How have your experiences enabled you to grow?

Common App Essay Prompt #3

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

Ah, the classic “how do you handle conflict” question. The conflict you discuss can be internal or external, meaning that you can discuss a struggle within yourself or one with another person (or group of people). If you choose to discuss an internal conflict, it will be important to provide some background information (where did this belief or idea come from?) before you launch into what changed your mind and how that change ultimately impacted you. Alternatively, if you choose to discuss an external conflict, especially if its between you and another person, you’ll want to ensure that you’re being as tactful as possible when describing the ins and outs of the situation.

Common App Essay Prompt #4

Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

This prompt is the newest of the seven, and is now on its third cycle in the Common App prompt rotation. With this question, we’ve noticed that it is common to focus on the “someone” who has made you happy or thankful rather than the impact of gratitude, which is what you want to hone in on. Accordingly, what does “gratitude” mean to you? How has the gratitude you’ve gained from this particular situation changed or influenced you? What are you doing differently in your life as a result?

Common App Essay Prompt #5

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

Some key words and phrases here: “personal growth” “realization” and “new understanding.” We’ve all had experiences in life that bring significant clarity, whether in regard to ourselves or others. Perhaps you had an “a-ha” moment about a long-term struggle, enjoyed a major accomplishment that changed you in an important way, or attended an event that stirred a newfound interest. Whatever you choose, you’ll want to make sure and reflect on why your accomplishment, event, or realization of choice is so important to you.

Common App Essay Prompt #6

Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

This prompt could best be described as the “intellectual curiosity” prompt. If that’s the quality you want to make sure to showcase on college applications, this prompt could be an excellent option. Questions to consider as you brainstorm: what topics keep you up at night? What sends you down a Google or Wikipedia rabbit hole? What could you research, write, read, or talk about for hours? (You likely won’t need to think too hard about what this subject is!) Once you have your subject, think about why it interests you so much as well as how you like to learn about it. Ideally, this essay will reveal more about your intellectual passions as well as your preferred learning style.

Common App Essay Prompt #7

Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

The sky’s the limit here, as long as your topic is personal and reveals more about who you are as an applicant and prospective community member. Consequently, the only no-no would be to submit an academic, impersonal essay for this prompt.

Which prompts are most popular?

In the most recent cycle reported by the Common App, the most frequently selected topic was #7, the “topic of your choice” essay. This prompt was chosen by 24.1% of applicants. Prompt #5, the “discuss an accomplishment” essay, was a close second, attracting 23.7% of seniors. The bronze medal went to prompt #2, the “challenge, setback, or failure” themed essay, which netted 21.1% of Common App filers. Overall, the three most popular prompts accounted for 68.9% of applicants.

Which Common App essay prompt should I choose?

You should choose the prompt that enables you to write the strongest essay possible. The basic rules for writing a stellar college essay vary little from the general guidelines for producing any excellent piece of personal writing: be authentic, tell a compelling story, and diligently edit, revise, and polish your product. But where to begin?

Since the Common App essay prompts are so open-ended, many of our students start writing an essay on a topic that is important to them first and then decide on a prompt later. This is an especially helpful strategy if none of the prompts catch your attention. However, if there is a prompt that feels particularly interesting, you can absolutely tailor your writing process to that specific option.

Common App Essay Prompts 2024-25 (Continued)

Additionally, you might consider using the different prompts as a brainstorming tool. Go through the first six prompts one by one and bullet point several potential experiences that come to mind for each. Then, evaluate the topics you’ve collected. What stands out to you? Which topic are you interested in exploring further? What are you most excited to write about? Remember, there’s nothing stopping you from writing an exploratory draft for a few different topics before you make a final decision.

If “But my life isn’t interesting!” is the first thought that comes to mind, banish it! Writing a compelling essay doesn’t mean that you need to have wrestled a puma, grown up in a cult, or discovered a new galaxy at age seven. A great college essay can take place on a grand stage or take place just as effectively in everyday life.  Over the past seventeen or eighteen years, you have undoubtedly had many experiences that constitute worthy essay topics.  Think it over. Brainstorm. Brainstorm some more. Your compelling story will emerge.

I wrote an essay but I don’t know which prompt to pick. Help!

We hear this more than you might think! Our best advice? Don’t stress—just pick “topic of your choice” if you’re stuck between two options. College admissions officers don’t pay much attention to what Common App prompt you chose. They will, however, look very closely at how well your supplemental essays answer the required prompts, which brings us to our final section…

Looking for supplemental essay prompts and advice?

College admissions offices word their supplemental essay prompts very intentionally, so we’d recommend making sure you clearly understand what the prompt is asking before you begin writing. Need more help? The Essay Section of our blog has you covered with the latest prompts and tips for 50+ top colleges, including:

• Georgetown Supplemental Essays
• MIT Supplemental Essays
• Cornell Supplemental Essays
• Columbia Supplemental Essays
• Princeton Supplemental Essays
• Harvard Supplemental Essays
• Duke Supplemental Essays
• Stanford Supplemental Essays
• Caltech Supplemental Essays

We also invite you to review the following resources to help with your college essay writing:

• On the hunt for a step-by-step guide (with examples) on how to write the Common App essay? Head over to 10 Instructive Common App Essay Examples.
• Advice on what to do is useful, but tips on what not to do are of equal importance. Check out our Five Essay Topics to Avoid to discover what topics admissions officers are sure to find unappealing, off-putting, or downright gross.
• If you are a real go-getter, you may also wish to get a start on the most prevalent Common App supplement required by colleges—the “Why this College?” essay. Reference our guide for mastering the “Why this College?” essay.
• If you are also applying to a school in the University of California system, you’ll also need tips on answering the UC Personal Insight Questions.
• Are you a transfer applicant? Don’t worry, we have advice for you too in our blog entitled How to Write a Winning Transfer Essay.