Adrianne is a Senior Admissions Counselor and TV/film director, producer, writer, and actress currently based in LA. She uses her experience in multiple disciplines to help students achieve their personal and academic goals.
From “What inspires you?” to describing your own Yale course, we’ve got you covered when it comes to answering the Yale supplemental essays this year.
Welcome to the Yale supplemental essay prompts for the 2025-2026 application cycle! Here’s everything you need to know. You can refer to the Yale University website if you want to see how exactly they’re presenting their essay prompts for this year.
Short Answer Questions
Students at Yale have time to explore their academic interests before committing to one or more major fields of study. Many students either modify their original academic direction or change their minds entirely. As of this moment, what academic areas seem to fit your interests or goals most comfortably? Please indicate up to three from the list provided.
Tell us about a topic or idea that excites you and is related to one or more academic areas you selected above. Why are you drawn to it? (200 words or fewer)
It’s funny that Yale goes out of its way to acknowledge that many kids change direction in college… and then they ask you to speculate on a potential major and justify your choice in your Yale supplemental essay.
So you need to give them something. Pick what makes the most sense—what “fits most comfortably.” Discuss your qualifications. Normally, I would say that you need to make it clear how the school you’re applying to—Yale, in this case—fits your interests, but don’t spend too much time on Yale, since another question is going to ask you: “Why Yale?” You don’t want to repeat yourself.
Even if you’re not completely sure about the major you’d like to study, use specifics from your research to flesh out your Yale supplemental essay, whether it’s about why you’re interested in a certain topic or your experience.
Reflect on how your interests, values, and/or experiences have drawn you to Yale. (125 words or fewer)
You know the drill—this is the fairly standard “Why College?” essay. Your first priority is to do your research. Be specific and mention professors you’d like to work with, classes you’d like to take, clubs you’d like to join, etc. As always, don’t waste any time talking about the beautiful knave in Sterling Memorial Library—get straight to the point, and straight to specifics.
With highly, highly selective colleges, like Yale, it’s more important than ever to avoid trite expressions like, “I am impressed by the excellent economics faculty.” They know how great they are—they’ve got dozens of Nobel Prizes for Pete’s sake.
Since this is your Yale supplemental essay, focus on the specifics that matter most to you (rather than to The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences). Focus on how Yale is uniquely suited to encourage you as you continue to pursue your ambitious goals both in and outside the classroom. (Remember, you’ve already discussed your major: don’t repeat yourself. The last question was about you. This one is about Yale.)
Applicants submitting the Coalition Application or Common Application will also respond to the following short answer questions, in no more than 200 characters (approximately 35 words):
First off—35 words! You’ve got to get straight to the point here. No fluff. Plan these four questions out in advance. As I always say, supplemental essays are about providing as complete and coherent a picture of yourself as possible. Make sure these short responses provide meaningful information about your unique qualities and quirks. Make sure your answers are complimentary, but that there’s no overlap. (So, for the first question, don’t say that what inspires you is animal rights, and then for the third question say that you’d teach a class called “Animal Rights.” See what I mean?)
What inspires you?
It’s always a good idea to avoid sounding predictable. Even though it’s a very short response, spend some good time thinking about this. Don’t say “the prospect of world peace” (this isn’t Miss America), and don’t say “long walks on the beach.” Also, not a good idea to list your prospective major (“literature,” “physics,” etc.) since you’ve already talked about that. If possible, come up with something that inspires you that probably doesn’t inspire many other people out there. Fulgurites? Fly fishing? Stir-fries? Frampton Comes Alive? Get creative.
If you could teach any college course, write a book, or create an original piece of art of any kind, what would it be?
See above: don’t repeat yourself. Say something new. You probably wouldn’t do this anyway, but don’t say you want to teach a class that Yale already offers or make a piece of art that already exists. So have fun! If you choose a class, come up with a creative title for your class, book, or art piece that nods to your interests while showing off your personality.
Other than a family member, who is someone who has had a significant influence on you? What has been the impact of their influence?
This prompt was likely modeled after Princeton’s, which usually reads “Tell us about a person who has influenced you in a significant way.” This one is more specific, asking just how this person has impacted. Honestly, I don’t like prompts like this that ask you to write about others. It’s great to acknowledge the role your parents, teachers, friends, and others had in your success, but too many students get caught up and make the other person the sole focus of the essay. See our previous advice regarding How to Write about Someone Else in supplemental essays.
Otherwise, the best advice I can provide is to be conscious of how your writing reflects on you. Spending too much time listing nonspecific praise for someone says little about you other than how much you like them. You don’t have much space, so be efficient!
What is something about you that is not included anywhere else in your application?
This nice, open-ended (but brief) short answer allows you to elaborate on something that doesn’t fit elsewhere in your application, like a cool hobby or a neat project you worked on in science class. You can take a more formal approach or continue with a more tongue-in-cheek attitude, depending on which fits your authentic voice more. Just don’t repeat yourself and use this space to your advantage!
Essays
Applicants submitting the Coalition Application or Common Application will respond to one of the following prompts in 400 words or fewer.
1. Reflect on a time you discussed an issue important to you with someone holding an opposing view. Why did you find the experience meaningful?
It’s no secret that some contentious issues are happening in the world right now, so Yale is looking for students who are open to listening to others and engaging in productive debate. But this is still a question that could potentially bring up touchy subjects, and you never know who’s reading your application.
So, instead of nodding to political affiliations or taking a staunch side on political issues (although there’s no need to lie about these things for the sake of your application), focus on the inner growth you experienced as a result of the conflict or discussion you had. Frame it as a learning experience—maybe it improved your communication skills or, more likely, gave you a perspective you hadn’t previously considered. How will you use that in discussions in the future (possibly in a Yale seminar)?
2. Reflect on your membership in a community to which you feel connected. Why is this community meaningful to you? You may define community however you like.
Yale is all about community, which you’ll already know if you’ve spent any time researching (which you should for many of your other essays!). From residential colleges to cultural houses, there is no shortage of communities across campus, so it’s no surprise that it’s a big part of the application.
Communities come in all shapes and sizes—families, sports teams, friends, castmates, bandmates, and much, much more. Maybe you’ve found a small community with the people you sit next to at lunch or on the bus home. Or maybe you’ve found a sense of community with your native culture via your family. Think outside the box when it comes to “community,” then reflect on the ways that it has impacted you. You might’ve learned something surprising about yourself from a member of that community, or it might’ve changed your professional or personal desires.
3. Reflect on an element of your personal experience that you feel will enrich your college. How has it shaped you?
This is, obviously, another open-ended prompt. “Your personal experience” could refer to really anything that has happened in your life thus far, so choose wisely. As is the case with many of the other questions above, think about new perspectives you can offer about yourself. Then, apply it to that future self you imagine on Yale’s campus.
For instance, maybe your experience helping your younger sibling navigate problems will make you a great mentor to younger students in the future. Give Yale’s mission statement and values another read, and see if you have a personal experience that aligns well with those. But, as always, don’t repeat yourself!
As always, we’re here to help. Schedule a free consultation with one of our expert college admissions consultants today to make sure your Yale supplemental essays are as polished as possible.
