One of the most frequent application essay prompts that perplexes students is: “Why do you want to attend this university?” Whether you have fantasised about attending a particular university for years or have only recently found out about a program.
There are several difficulties with the “Why Us?” essay. How can you respond to this question without repeating information that the admissions officer has already read in your application? How do you display passion without trying to flatter? You must draft a response about the school and how you’ll fit in. This is a difficult balance to achieve, mainly because an admissions officer will read hundreds of essays that are identical over a few months.
This blog will cover crucial tactics for highlighting your admiration of a particular university and the distinctive contributions you’ll make to its community. Remember that something (or multiple things) distinguishes the college you are writing for from every other college for a student with your specific experience and interests. This is why you are applying to that college instead of hundreds of other schools.
To answer this question, we will list every distinctive quality of the particular college that appeals to you. This list will serve as an excellent beginning point for your article.
You should focus on these four critical areas in your essay:
- Major/study path
- Extra-curriculars
- Strengthening the school community
- Campus Culture
Major/Study Path
What components of the academic curriculum of the college you will investigate should be evident to you. Note: You should have some sense of what you want to study, even if you are still determining what your major will be. Instead of choosing a specific major, list a few areas you’d like to investigate.
You should first conduct thorough research into the courses and specialised programmes that your preferred college department offers before claiming that you are interested in them. You must be knowledgeable of the department’s current faculty members and the unique opportunities for student engagement.
Extra-curriculars
College X must know that you will only spend some of your free time in your dorm watching Netflix. You must demonstrate that you are a student who will not just see life as a constant academic marathon but instead take initiative outside of the classroom to become involved on campus and participate in student organisations in some capacity.
Let the admissions committee know if you’re interested in continuing your high school extracurricular activities in college. Once more, it would help if you took advantage of this question to do some background research and learn more about the college’s extracurricular activities and amenities that might keep you occupied and content. Research this online, as most schools provide a list of recognised student clubs. If the college’s website has such lists, get the information by speaking with a current student.
Strengthening the school community
Your friends will teach you more than any of your courses, professors, or texts in college. Students that genuinely want to give back to their communities are valued by universities.
The admissions committee needs to know that you’ll give back in addition to receiving stuff from it (education, housing, food, a degree, etc.). You must show how your admission would improve the college because the primary goal of every college is to improve.
There are a plethora of ways to support the larger school community. One method is to get involved in student clubs (as described above). Another fantastic way to improve the college campus or the neighbourhood is by performing community service. Find ways to incorporate your expertise and abilities into an activity or group of service, whether through service trips or business initiatives that aim to include previously underrepresented individuals.
Campus culture
Every school has a distinctive culture. The only part of your application where an admissions officer can ask you directly if you understand the culture on campus and how you might fit in is in this essay.
Reading through the college’s mission statement can be helpful before addressing this issue (to gain a feel of the leadership’s goals for the institution). If you have the opportunity, I also speak with current students about their experiences (to get a true sense of how students view the school and each other).
Essays with Rostrum
You should be able to create an effective, comprehensive response to the question “Why us?” by methodically structuring your essay and conducting the necessary background research for each subject. An answer that shows you’ve given it some serious thought, both in terms of how your interests align with what the school offers and why you’re a particularly excellent fit for it given the contributions you’ll make to campus life. Get in touch with one of our certified mentors to find out how we can offer 1-on-1 mentoring for your applications if you need more guidance on your college essays or more individualised help with your writing process.
