Stanford University, located in Stanford, California (very creative) is one of the most competitive and sought-after universities in the country. You probably knew that, though. Stanford famously does not post their acceptance rates, but they do put out a Common Data Set, so we know that last year the acceptance rate dropped to 3.86%. Less than 4%! With a super competitive acceptance rate like that, you don’t just need perfect grades, scores, and impressive extracurriculars. You also need supplements that stand out from the crowd.
Since Stanford is so challenging to get into, our main recommendation for these questions is to have fun with them. Yes, you heard us right. Get a lil silly with it, if you want! Look, these are the only places Stanford gets to see who you are as a person, and each essay should tell them something new. A fun essay is a standout essay, in our opinion. Don’t just regurgitate what they already know, and don’t take yourself too seriously. They have five short answer questions (50 words each) and three longer essays (250 words), so let’s jump right in.
Short Questions (50 words each)
What is the most significant challenge that society faces today?
What a massive question with such a short word limit! They’re also asking about “society” writ large (ok, Joker) so you need to think bigger than your neighborhood. However, we don’t think some large societal ill like “environment” is enough here. Get specific. Maybe you’re concerned about oil leaks in pipelines across Native American reservations, or the national debate about voter ID laws, or the anti-trans laws that are sweeping the nation. Specific!!
How did you spend your last two summers?
If you write about what you did just last summer, and not the summer before, they’re gonna throw your application out. So be direct! It’s not a lot of space, so get specific and be as straightforward as possible. Something like “In 2022, I interned at Businessington and Businessington and coached a youth basketball camp. In 2023, I conducted research with Dr. Professor at College University on Big Science Idea.” That one is only 29 words, see, you could do so much more!
What historical moment or event do you wish you could have witnessed?
GET SPECIFIC!! We’re gonna say this a lot, so get used to it. Don’t be cliche here. You and everyone else would have liked to see the signing of the Declaration of Independence. For example, one of our counselors who was accepted to Stanford (and is writing this post) wrote about a very niche event, the Waco Siege, that was connected with the niche thing they wanted to study within their major. Specific! Also, this is one you can get silly on. Wouldn’t it have been cool to see ice cream invented for the first time, or be there for the time Fabio got hit by a goose on a rollercoaster?
Briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities, a job you hold, or responsibilities you have for your family.
We love that they included family responsibilities! So many students take care of siblings, help care for grandparents, or are otherwise deeply involved in their family dynamic, and most schools don’t allow for a space to talk about it. We recommend talking about an activity or responsibility that you couldn’t fit on your Common App activities section or that has special importance to you and you couldn’t fully describe it. Remember, you want each thing to show a new side so maybe don’t use this to brag about something you’ve already bragged about.
List five things that are important to you
These aren’t the most important things, they’re just important. This is another one to get silly on!! Idk about you, but we find coffee to be a very important part of our lives. Maybe playing with your dog is important to you. Or the weekly tradition you have with your friends. Or maybe it’s your favorite pair of shoes or a band or literally anything. We don’t recommend taking this one super seriously, like it’s cool if you put a serious thing or two, but again, this is a space for you to reveal personality!!
Short Essays (250 words each)
The Stanford community is deeply curious and driven to learn in and out of the classroom. Reflect on an idea or experience that makes you genuinely excited about learning.
This is a question colleges like to ask, and we also want you to keep in mind that learning has more applications outside of the classroom or academia. This essay should not be geared towards your stated major – instead, focus on something else you got excited about learning about. Maybe you went on an insanely deep Wikipedia rabbit hole last week because you just had to learn more about the Fatimid dynasty. Perhaps you taught yourself how to code, or fix cars, or bake your grandmother’s brownies. This should be told in a story format, beginning, middle, and end. Describe the process of learning, or even better, drop us into a particular moment in time where you were doing the thing, drawing upon the knowledge you gathered yourself.
Virtually all of Stanford's undergraduates live on campus. Write a note to your future roommate that reveals something about you or that will help your roommate – and us – get to know you better.
This is also one to have fun with! Your roommate is not going to be a very serious old man in a bowtie, but rather someone exactly your age. Like, they’ve watched TikToks, so make sure your tone is approachable and not overly formal. Describe the decor theme you’re thinking for the room, describe your hobbies, if you have any ideas for roommate bonding (Smash Bros tournament, cook each other your favorite meal, go find a cool new spot to get a snack once a week, etc), and just give us a lil flavor of who you are. Be yourself! But also don’t write something like “I am sooo messy and unorganized” bc no one likes to hear that.
Please describe what aspects of your life experiences, interests and character would help you make a distinctive contribution as an undergraduate to Stanford University.
This is the question schools have added, across the board, to combat the Affirmative Action decision. We advise approaching it like a community essay. Think of a community you are a part of, which can be anything from an organized unit like a club or place of worship, or something more nebulous like your family or neighbors. Tell us a story about this community and your place in it. Maybe you rallied the troops and convinced your neighbors to go to city council over the pothole in the street, or you and your friends have a tradition of driving to Sonic late at night and talking about big world problems. Whatever it is, tell it as a story and bring us into the moment with you.
And that’s the Stanford app! With an acceptance rate under 4%, we encourage you to have fun with these essays. Stanford is a reach for everyone, and the more sincerely “you” you are, the better.
If you need help with your Stanford supplements or your Common App essay, reach out to us today.