If you are a STEM lover, you probably have already heard about Harvey Mudd. The small private college in Claremont, California, offers 10 engineering, science, and mathematics-based majors and a core humanities curriculum. While Harvey Mudd might have limited majors and just under 1000 undergrads, they are part of the Claremont Colleges consortium. Meaning Harvey Mudd students can take classes and more at Pomona College, Scripps College, Claremont McKenna College, and Pitzer College. For the class of 2026, they had about a 13% acceptance rate.
The Harvey Mudd Supplement is only 2 questions and an optional upload. Let’s break it down. Be warned; the first question is incredibly wordy.
Harvey Mudd College seeks to educate engineers, scientists, and mathematicians well versed in all of these areas and in the humanities, social sciences, and the arts so that they may assume leadership in their fields with a clear understanding of the impact of their work on society. - HMC Mission Statement
“Scientific research is a human endeavor. The choices of topics that we research are based on our biases, our beliefs, and what we bring: our cultures and our families. The kinds of problems that people put their talents to solving depends on their values.'' - Dr. Clifton Poodry
HMC’s collaborative community is guided by our mission statement. Through an intentional interdisciplinary curriculum our students seek to build a skillset adaptable to society’s needs. How has your own background influenced the types of problems you want to solve, the people you want to work with, and the impact you hope your work can have?* 500
You can disregard the quotes before this question. They are ok context, but you should really only focus on the prompt. This question has a long word count, and your answer will feel long and unfocused if you don’t have a strong backbone. The trap that most students fall into when answering this question is that they fill their answer with “ifs” and “in the future-s.” Too many maybes here will leave the reader in doubt. Instead, you need to tell a good story about your background and what it has taught you.
Sometimes when students hear the word “background,” they get nervous. They start to search for diversity buzzwords in their own lives. Don’t get us wrong; if you want to write about your ethnicity, sexuality, or religion here, that is fine. But you don’t need to. Background can mean anything here. For example, being on the math team, caring for a sick relative, living in the South, or doing environmental research are all “backgrounds.” Choose something important to you and write a story about how it has influenced and impacted you. You need to connect it to the problems you want to solve, the people you solve them with, AND the impact. Make sure you answer all the parts of this question.
Take being on the math team. You could tell a story about trying to solve a difficult proof and how your team helped and rallied around you. You can expand this story to writing about your love of math and your hope to work in a collaborative environment. Round it out with what you hope to do with this love, and connect it closely to what you have already done.
Many students choose Harvey Mudd because they don’t want to give up their interests in the Humanities, Social Sciences and the Arts – or HSA as we call it at HMC. Briefly (in 100 words or less) describe what you'd like to learn about in your dream HSA class. Your class can either be one chosen from existing classes at HMC, or you are welcome to create your own.* 100
The first step here is CAREFULLY to read the HSA page on Harvey Mudd’s website. You want to understand what this program is and why they champion it. If they offer a class that is perfect for you, you can choose to write about that existing class. However, it's a little more fun and creative to create your own.
In either case, the name of the game is specificity. You want your class to be specific. Every school has psych 101; if you are choosing a course that already exists, make sure it feels like a class unique to the Claremont Colleges. If you are making your own, the rule still stands. “English” is far too general. What do you like about English? “Contemporary literature?” Getting closer. “Russsian Literature Post Tsar?” Great. Now it’s time to explain why that is the perfect class for you, given your interests.
Optional: You may include examples of work that you would like to share, including additional math and science endeavors, research abstracts, or creative projects. Please limit your submission to two pages.
While this is optional, it’s a great opportunity to show off. Do you have a project that you are passionate about and proud of? Especially one that connects to what you hope to study at Harvey Mudd? Add it here. If you are wracking your brain to come up with something that might fit here, it’s ok to skip it.
They don’t want to see your A+ chemistry test here. Try to stick with research, passion projects, or anything that you have really dedicated time and work to. If you are unsure if your project fits these parameters, email us. We would love to help.
Harvey Mudd is selective. You want to do your best on this supplement. This means both your content and writing should be impressive. That can take time. Start early, and don’t be afraid to edit.
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