Claremont McKenna College is a small, private liberal arts college located in Claremont, California. It is a part of a consortium called the Claremont Colleges that shares resources with seven other colleges in Claremont. Each school specializes in something different, and Claremont McKenna is mainly focused on degrees in the social sciences, like government and economics. CMC has roughly 1,300 undergraduates and has a 10.3% acceptance rate.
We’ve covered CMC before, but have some updated advice to help you best conquer these supplements. Let’s get started.
Why do you want to attend CMC? (150-250)
This is the classic “Why *our* School?” essay, and we have a pretty solid strategy to tackle this. This is a little bit shorter, so you’ll have to pack a lot of info into a brief spot. First, head on over to CMC’s website to get a feel for the academic programs you’re interested in. You want to identify what you want to study, and work that backwards into the “why.” Your origin story is important to the narrative, so if you want to study economics, maybe it’s because you commandeered your neighbor’s lemonade stand because she wasn’t using a proper pricing model. You’ll briefly tell this story and end with what you want to study.
Next, research an upper-level class that is only offered at CMC. Intro to Econ is available at every school, so take some time to find something that connects to one of your interests or something you’ve already explored in high school. Maybe you’re interested in ECON107 CM - Neuroeconomics, because you think understanding the why of economic decisions is interesting. After that, you’ll want to identify a professor whose research or lab is exciting to you -- like Professor Heather Antecol, whose research into labor economics is just so cool. Connect it back to what you’re interested in and make it clear that CMC is where you need to be to study your major.
Finally, you’ll want to identify some extracurriculars you’d like to be a part of at CMC. Since they are part of the Claremont Colleges, you should pick something that is based at CMC, not at one of the other schools. If student government is your jam, or you want to write for the school newspaper, or both, talk about how that fits into your CMC experience.
This one can be tough to fit into 250 words, so write a first draft and then edit it down to size.
Next up is a very long, very convoluted prompt -- but it actually ends in a simple question. Sorry for the following wall of text, you can take it up with CMC.
One of the hallmarks of a CMC education is the first-year humanities program that all students take in their first year at the College. The program has two components: the Freshman Humanities Seminar (FHS) and the Freshman Writing Seminar (FWS). While each FHS and FWS seminar has a distinctive approach in terms of texts and topics, their pairing gives first-year students a shared academic experience in small, writing-intensive courses that foster critical thinking about a wide range of important issues.
FHS introduces first-year students to some of the crucial questions that human beings face with relation to society and the world. Individual sections are taught by faculty from a range of departments. Past and current topics include:
1. Democracy and Leadership
2. Women in Science
3. Unconventional Thinking
FWS, taught by faculty from the literature department, develops students’ abilities in written and oral communication at the college level. Past and current topics include:
1. Art of the Personal Essay
2. Blackness in American Cinema
3. Post-Apocalyptic Humanity
For the purpose of this essay prompt, pick one FHS or FWS seminar topic to study at CMC. What part of your personal experience—or your desire to know more about an area outside of your experience—best explains your seminar choice? View the full list of FHS and FWS seminar topics here.
Phew. Okay. So, basically they just want to know what seminar you want to take your freshman year. It would have been cooler if they’d let you design your own seminar for this prompt, but we will take it. The key here is to write something that makes sense with your application, but isn’t too similar to what you already stated you’re interested in. You want to pick a seminar that’s out of your comfort zone, or one that connects with a lived experience. So, if you want to study econ, don’t pick “Civic Leadership and Ethics in Business, Politics, and the Economy,” because that’s a little too on-brand. But maybe you want to take “Drug Development, Policy, and Innovation,” because you are frustrated with why your friend’s insulin costs so much and don’t understand why.
It’s okay with this essay to highlight what you don’t already know -- CMC wants you to highlight a gap in your knowledge with this question, but at the same time identify what kind of curious student you’ll be on campus. Write about why this topic interests you, or even pull from the syllabus offerings a few of the readings and talk about why those, in particular, drew your attention.
CMC’s supplements can look daunting to begin with, but they’re mostly interested in learning about your passions and side interests. Once you’ve done your research and have an idea of what you want to write about, you’ll be able to knock it out of the park.
Supplemental essays and even the Common App itself can be extremely challenging. If you find yourself struggling and need one-on-one help, contact TKG here.