We’re nearing the end of the road in our Official Common App Essay Guide this year, folks! That means you’re very close to being fully informed on your options when it comes to writing the personal statement for your college applications. If you need a quick reminder on why this is such a big deal, it’s because this essay is the bedrock of your application. With these 650 words, you need to introduce yourself, leave a memorable impression, and, most importantly, connect with admissions officers on a human level. The best test scores, grades, and extracurriculars in the world won’t matter if you sound like an AI agent or a walking red flag.
We’re not trying to fearmonger; we just want you to understand your goal here and why it’s so important that you get it right! You’re not trying to brag or sound intimidating; you’re trying to come across as an interesting, thoughtful individual with real, relatable feelings. In this essay, you should be genuine, and you should be yourself.
That’s why we actually like Prompt #6 quite a bit! We’ve shouted our love for Prompt #7 from the rooftops (and it is our favorite), but this option is a close second. Prompt #7 allows for the ultimate freedom to dance to the beat of your own drum, but it’s not right for everybody, and if you crave a bit more structure, Prompt #6 might be just the thing for providing some parameters while still giving you leeway to get creative. So that’s enough preamble, we think — what is Prompt #6?
Common App Prompt #6
Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Our Assessment
In our opinion, this is a fun one! It sets an upbeat tone by giving you a chance to talk about something that really excites you, and that kind of energy is contagious. You can be authentic, personal, passionate, and even entertaining in an essay like this! There’s one major caveat, though: you should write about something unexpected.
By unexpected, we don’t mean a new branch of quantum physics no one has ever heard of before; obviously that’s a ridiculous standard. What we do mean, however, is that the subject of your essay should introduce new information and show a side of you that doesn’t appear elsewhere on the Common App. TL;DR: do not write about your future major.
This advice surprises some people, but the logic behind this rule is actually pretty straightforward. Focusing on your primary academic interest in the personal statement is at best a bit obvious and repetitive, and at worst it can appear unimaginative or calculated.
How so? Isn’t it good to seem ambitious and intellectually driven? Well, sure. BUT.
You’ll have a chance in individual school supplements to elaborate on your intended major — how you discovered your passion for the field and what you’d like to use your college education in that academic track to achieve. Your grades and activities will also testify to your prior involvement with and aptitude for this area of study, so writing about this particular interest in your Common App essay has two disadvantages.
The first is that you’re wasting space by telling admissions officers what they already know from the other materials in your application. The second is that you ’t even get as specific in the personal statement as you can in supplements, which allow you to weave in details demonstrating why a particular university or program would be a great fit for you. Your Common App essay goes to every school you apply to through the platform, which is why it has to work on a general level and should focus on personality and character above all.
And, on that note, you want to come off as somebody your reader would like to know. We promise, your transcript does the work of proving you’re “impressive.” Doubling down on your achievements or main academic pursuits here can appear robotic, as if you’re presenting what you think colleges want to see rather than who you really are. But your readers are real people, and they aren’t likely to get emotionally invested in an applicant who writes as if they came out of the womb in a cap and gown ready to give their valedictory speech. Branching out into new territory reveals who you are beyond a piece of paper — someone unique, believable, and personable that readers can really cheer on and advocate for.
How to Do It Right
So, that’s the one thing you ’t write about. Luckily, that leaves every other topic under the sun. We’re so serious. The world is your freaking oyster!!!
The best way to approach Prompt #6 (or any Common App essay topic) is by telling a story. That allows you to ground your statement with a beginning, middle, and end; you will have concrete details for the reader to hold onto in the plot that will deepen the emotional impact of your overall message rather than veering into philosophical or explanatory writing. This prompt can tempt you to get abstract by focusing on “a topic, idea, or concept,” but remember that ultimately that your writing should be personal and interesting (not cerebral, dry, or informative).
If you’re not quite sure how to go about picking this story, think about the personality trait you’d like to get across that might not otherwise come up in your application. What is something you like about yourself or that seems central to your relationships with friends and family? Maybe you’d like to study aerospace engineering and you’ve realized that most people have preconceptions that you’re serious and competitive because your aspirational career quite literally is rocket science. Well, this essay would be a great way to set the record straight that you’re actually goofy a lot of the time and spend your free time binging the early stand-up sets of now-famous comedians.
That’s the kind of contrast that gives your profile depth, and that’s really all we mean by unexpected. If you’re not sure what your personal version of the NASA vs. SNL dichotomy is, walk through these questions to kick off your brainstorming process:
Do you have any favorite things or fascinations that might seem “off-brand” to other people? Why do you think that is? What do you like about it?
Do you have a hobby that you pursue just for yourself? Not for any achievement or recognition, but just because you enjoy it? What makes it so enjoyable? What value does it bring to your life in the absence of ambition?
Have you ever learned a surprising piece of information or a fun fact that sent you down a complete rabbit hole? What did you find strange or captivating about it? Why did you want to know more?
Explore your memories, jot down notes on what comes to mind, and pay attention to when you get carried away by something that interests you or feel that you’ve got a lot more you could say. At that point, you’ve found your topic!
Getting to Your First Draft
If you’re the kind of person who works from a roadmap and has no problem getting started, you can complete an outline and turn it into a first draft. If you’re still unsure where to start, we recommend starting right in the middle of the action to hook your readers with immediate stakes and sensory details. Take us to the moment you were struck by lightning as you encountered this idea or activity for the first time, or set the scene by describing the sights, sounds, and smells you remember from where you were on that day. Alternately, can you start by writing the middle of your story and come back to the introduction when you know more about the body of your essay and what exactly it is you want to introduce.
Anything goes for getting it onto the page! When you’ve finished a rough draft, take some space from it. Take a breath, take a walk, maybe even take a day or two before returning to it with fresh eyes. Read it for yourself and make notes of any major revisions you think your personal statement needs. Does the story make sense, or do you need to clarify with an additional paragraph or smoother transitions? Do you have a paragraph that provides unnecessary information or distracts from the throughline? Do you need to make your conclusion more coherent and emotionally resonant? Wonderful — go through your list and start tackling those structural and thematic edits. If your essay is too long, make cuts to bring it down to the word count at this stage.
Once you’ve done that, you’re on to polishing — looking out for grammar, voice, and style. Read your essay aloud to hear if there are awkward passages, if phrasing sounds off anywhere, if your pace drags, or if you lack sentence-length variation. You’ll go through a few rounds like this to make corrections on the sentence level and smooth everything out.
And you’re nearly there! You should show your statement to a trusted editor — two people, max — to get an outside perspective without soliciting too many differing opinions. Once you’ve made final adjustments, you’ve got your Common App essay down, and you’re ready to roll. See? That wasn’t so hard!
When it comes to Prompt #6, you ’t go wrong if you remember these instructions: have fun with your response, avoid subjects that show up in your other application materials, and make sure to tell a story that reveals something new and unique about yourself. We won’t say “easy peasy lemon squeezey,” because we know you’ve got a lot at stake in this, but we will say “doable doable you are strong and capable and you can do this.” Period!
Not sure where to start with the Common App essay? Reach out to us today for professional guidance with proven results.