Wellesley College is one of the best colleges in the country, boasting trailblazing alumni like Hillary Clinton and Madeleine Albright. Its academically rigorous environment is complemented by an emphasis on collaboration and discourse among the strong, independent, driven, female-identifying students populating its campus. If this tight-knit and self-driven sisterhood appeals to you, we have some tips on how to approach Wellesley’s supplemental essay prompt.
But before we dive into the prompt, check out Wellesley’s website to get a better sense of what it’s looking for. You’ll find an extensive, by-the-numbers look at Wellesley’s offerings, from enrollment and tuition statistics to student life and financial aid information, on its Common Data Set. For insights into its values, read its mission statement to learn more about how the school envisions its role and how it wants to grow and evolve.
What is the Wellesley College supplemental essay prompt?
Wellesley College Supplemental Essay Prompt #1
Wellesley students actively seek ways to build bridges and to change the world for the better. Tell us about an experience working with and alongside people of different backgrounds and/or perspectives from your own. Why was this important to you, and what lessons from this will you bring with you to Wellesley? (250-400 words)
How to Write the Supplemental Essay Prompt for Wellesley College
how to write Wellesley Supplemental Essay Prompt #1
Wellesley students actively seek ways to build bridges and to change the world for the better. Tell us about an experience working with and alongside people of different backgrounds and/or perspectives from your own. Why was this important to you, and what lessons from this will you bring with you to Wellesley? (250-400 words)
This prompt can be a great chance to talk about whichever extracurricular activity or community service project you’ve been most involved in, but notice that the prompt specifies things like “different backgrounds and/or perspectives” (and points pretty directly to “collaboration”).
Because of that, you’ll want to make sure whatever experiences/actions you discuss allow you to directly discuss collaboration (with people from diverse backgrounds) and how that collaboration allowed you to directly contribute (probably to your community), while also expanding your understanding.
One approach is to build a “communities” chart (see this full guide to “community” essays for an example), and see what communities you belong to could allow you to talk about collaborating with others from diverse backgrounds)
Another way to brainstorm ideas for this prompt is to check this step-by-step guide to extracurricular activity essays we put together for this one based on two strategies we recommend: the uncommon connections technique and the Powerwall structure.
Give either or both a read and see if you can:
a) Come up with 1-2 ideas that may work (again, making sure to look for community contributions that involved collaborating with others from diverse backgrounds).
b) Pick which structure might work better—montage or narrative.
Here’s an example written for a similar prompt for a different school that can show you how to approach these prompts.
Example essay:
I was in 4th grade when I saw Syrian refugees on the side of the highway in Istanbul. There was heavy traffic as usual, so I was able to really take in the scene. There were generations of them: babies held tightly by mothers, siblings holding hands, and elders taking one step at a time along the highway. I could tell they had gone through hardships, but I was too young to understand the complexities of it.
Over time, I’ve learned that the refugee situation is getting worse throughout the Middle East. But I’ve also realized that there is a lack of knowledge about what is really going on. So many people correlate the Middle East with terrorism, but most people forget the impact that terrorism has on civilians.
In order to combat this, I started the Middle Eastern Student Association at my predominantly white high school, where Middle Easterners are the smallest percentage of the population. We don’t only educate people on the refugee crisis, but also Middle Eastern culture, and more specific human rights violations like the detaining of Iranian environmentalists. I am now also the co-head of my school’s Senior Diversity Committee, so I can focus my efforts on a wide range of issues as I address our senior class. This will strengthen our class’s understanding of equity and inclusion, ranging from socioeconomic status to diversity in thought, and improve civil discourse.
At UVA, I plan to continue my work with this community by joining Middle Eastern Leadership Council under Turkish Student Association. I’d love to take it even further and start a Queer Middle Eastern Club to provide a space to talk about the complexity of how the culture that we celebrate can clash with being true to ourselves.
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Tips + Analysis
Make sure to clearly identify your background and/or perspective. You might choose to focus on your racial background, your educational background, your socioeconomic background—don’t feel limited here. Maybe you’re going to write from the perspective of being a woman, or being part of the LGTBQ+ community. Whatever it is, just make sure it is clear for your readers. This student clearly identifies themselves as Middle Eastern, so readers know right off the bat that it is this background that will serve as the focus of this essay.
Make the differences clear. The prompt directly asks you to share how you have engaged with people of different backgrounds/perspectives. This essay covers that directly in the third paragraph, discussing how the author engaged with other students at their predominantly white high school, to try to build bridges of understanding between different people/groups. The essay could have added even more in this direction—specific actions + impact to build those bridges, illustrating how they’ve collaborated with others who are different, would strengthen the essay further. (And considering the essay is 100ish words below the word count, there’s plenty of room to add those details for Wellesley.)
Show your contribution. Link your experiences to specific opportunities at the school that will allow you to engage with and contribute to the community. Like UVA (and pretty much every college), Wellesley values diverse perspectives—help them see how yours adds to the college through specific ways you want to continue sharing your world view.
And here’s an example written for Vanderbilt that could easily be adapted to work for Wellesley’s prompt.
Example:
Nothing has taught me more about patience than working at RAD Camp last summer, where I was paired with a 12-year-old with Down's Syndrome, Talon.
I learned to maintain a balance between being firm and decisive in my demeanor and remaining fair. Once, Talon refused to get out of the pool after everyone had left. Running short on options, I promised to let him watch monster trucks if he complied, and he finally acquiesced. We bottle-flipped and watched monster trucks for 2 hours. I discovered how to maintain boundaries while being kind.
I also discovered how to divide my responsibilities between the larger group and Talon. Although I was solely responsible for him, I also had to ensure that group activities ran smoothly, so I would ask an adult to watch him while I was away. I realized that the adult staffers quickly resorted to using physical force to get him to comply, but I was determined to find a better way. In an effort to connect with him and build trust, I began to bring him to my camp jobs and took care of him while leading group activities.
I also became more composed in the face of frustrating situations. At night, Talon refused to sleep. He'd run around opening doors, turning on lights, and spitting in the faces of unsuspecting victims. After he spit directly in my face for the fifth time, I breathed deeply and calmly worked with him until he fell asleep underneath my arm. Each night, I laid across the doorway to keep him from running outside and getting lost in the woods.
I'm grateful to Talon for helping me realize the importance in maintaining a balance in my actions and striving to embrace my best qualities.
At Vanderbilt, I could further my passion for helping kids with special needs. I’m amazed at Vanderbilt’s engineering students, who spent three sleepless days designing inventions, such as guitar pick holders and custom fishing equipment, to benefit children with special needs. This project was part of Vanderbilt’s TOM Makeathon, and as a student who seeks to create devices that enhances my community, I could be a critical member of this program. Seeing the smiles on the kids' faces as they explore beyond their boundaries reminds me of the good that comes from taking action. As an enterprising student, I know that I’m a perfect fit for Vanderbilt. (399 words)
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Tips + Analysis
Be vulnerable. It can be hard to talk about the situations you’ve been in that helped you build personal strength because it requires you to be vulnerable. But a little bit of vulnerability can be a great element to weave into your response. This student does an amazing job of reflecting on their mistakes and the learning process they had to go through, which in turn shows readers their strengths (resilience, compassion, humility, open-mindedness). You don’t have to share anything that makes you really uncomfortable, but the more personal you can be, the better.
Remember that it isn’t JUST about you. Yes, a lot of your essay should be, but it’s really important to make sure you’re addressing every point the prompt raises. This student gives very specific details about how they will use the insight they’ve gained to continue to help children with special needs. Instead of just saying, “I want to help kids,” the writer lets us know they hope to do so by designing devices adapted to the needs of these children.
Show them you know them. The prompt lets you know that Wellesley’s essay readers want to know how you will engage with your community at THEIR school, so show them you’ve done your homework. This student references a specific program and then explains how they hope to be part of it, showing their thoughtfulness about why they would be a good fit at THIS school. Whenever you have the chance to show readers you’ve done the work of really learning about their school culture and offerings, grab it.
Luci is an audiophile and storyteller with a love of all things radio and writing. In the wild, you might catch her struggling through a NY Times crossword puzzle, snuggling her abnormally fluffy dog Oreo, or saying her favorite expression “cool beans.” Crosswords, cute dogs, cool beans. What more could you ask for?
Top values: Interpersonal connections | humor | openness to new experience
