CollegeVine College Essay Team September 4, 2025 9 Essay Guides 2025-26

How to Write the Lehigh University Essays 2025-2026

Lehigh University is a private research institution in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania with a long history of combining technical innovation with a liberal arts foundation. The university consists of five colleges: P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business, the College of Education, and the College of Health.

For the 2025-2026 application cycle, all applicants are required to submit three supplemental essays. In this post, you’ll find information about how to set your essay apart from other applicants. Keep reading to boost your chances of acceptance!

Lehigh University Supplemental Essay Prompts

This prompt probably doesn’t need much interpreting—it’s a straightforward “Why This College?” essay. This essay wants to know what prompted you to apply to Lehigh and how you first learned about their institution. You’ll notice that the word count here is pretty short, at only 200 words. That’s not a lot of space at all, so make sure to be concise and get straight to the point.

The most common mistake that people make with “Why This College” essays is that they’re too general. They write an essay that any applicant could write because they list the aspects of Lehigh that anybody, and everybody, is excited about. This sends the message that the applicant didn’t do much research beyond a quick Google search. For this reason, admissions officers end up reading hundreds of practically identical essays. 

Instead of rattling off generalities, you want to make your essay unique and interesting!

So how do you find a unique aspect of Lehigh to talk about? Research! You can find a full list of ways to research for the “why this college” essay, but we’ll give you a quick breakdown now as well. 

• Start by making a list of all the reasons that you want to go to Lehigh. You might realize looking at this list that it’s full of generic answers such as “great location,” “good price,” and “my test scores are in the competitive range.” It’s okay! Use those answers to guide your research. 

• Look for more specific information about what Lehigh has to offer—like unique courses, an internship program, a club you’re interested in, or research projects. Now is a great time to head over to the university or department website or visit student social media groups. Or, even better, ask your guidance counselor to connect you to a current student to talk to! The more specific the information you include as your “why Lehigh,” the more you’ll stand out.

You may think that admissions officers are looking for a specific answer, but the truth is that they really just want to get to know you better. There are no wrong answers, and trying to give a “correct” answer is boring and overdone! Find something you’re genuinely passionate about and run with it.

You may find yourself getting so caught up in the “why Lehigh” part of the question that you totally forget to answer the part about how you first heard about Lehigh. Don’t fall into that trap! No matter how good your essay is, skipping part of the prompt will make you appear careless, and you certainly do not want that. Think back to the first time Lehigh was on your radar. Did a friend mention it to you? Do you live nearby? Maybe a character in your favorite TV show went there or you read about it in a book.

A mistake a lot of students make with essays like this—especially with such low word counts—is that they spend too much time writing about all the amazing things about the college. I know what you’re thinking: But isn’t the prompt asking me to talk about what I like about Lehigh? Well, yes and no. Admissions officers want to know what you like about Lehigh, but frankly, they already know that it’s an incredible institution and they don’t need you to remind them. They’re much more interested in what parts of you match up with their values.

Think of it this way: let’s say you’re interested in Lehigh because of Professor Christopher Burke’s social psychology research on dealing with stress through partner support. Prof. Burke isn’t applying to Lehigh and the admissions committee already knows all about him, so spending 100 words talking about how great he is would be a waste of your words. 

Instead, introduce your interest in his research, and then frame it around your own research experience on the effect of marital status on hypertension. Also, discuss how this resource is related to your professional goals; maybe this student wants to become a marriage counselor and this research will help him better understand the science behind the therapies, and even come up with new ones. 

If you’re still stuck, try checking out these “why this college” essay examples. Just remember to make it your own and stay true to yourself!

This prompt can be classified as a personal reflection prompt. It’s asking for a snapshot of your current life; something specific, joyful, and currently meaningful, rather than a deep life story. When thinking about this prompt, you want to focus on a positive, uplifting, or motivating event, accomplishment, or experience.

A good starting point is thinking about recent life experiences:

• What’s a small but meaningful win you’ve experienced recently? For example, a student who recently got to perform her first solo at a local senior center, might write about seeing residents sing along and smile in recognition.

• Is there a project, skill, or activity you’re currently immersed in that excites you? An example could be a student who has discovered a love for gardening and started a gardening club at their school, learning about leadership and teamwork through the process.

• Have you recently reached a goal you’ve been working toward for a long time? Consider this story of a student who just finished programming his team’s robot arm to pick up irregular objects for a competition; he’s thrilled by the breakthrough after weeks of failed trials.

• Is there something in your life that’s brought unexpected joy? An example could be a student who found old mementos while reorganizing their room, sparking memories of past meaningful connections.

• What has made you feel especially proud, energized, or connected to others this month? For example, a student who got accepted to a summer research internship; the first in his family to do so, giving him a sense of momentum toward his career goals.

You want to make sure that you are being specific and vivid by providing sensory details or a short story so the moment comes alive for the admissions officers reading your essay. Also, remember to write in the present tense, since this prompt is asking about “right now”.

Don’t forget that you’re telling a story with this essay, so you don’t want to make it sound too much like a resume by listing multiple achievements you’re proud of without including personal reflection. It’s a better idea to only focus on one specific thing so you can really delve into the details and provide more personal insight.

Consider these two examples:

This first example works because it uses a concrete scene, has vivid sensory detail, and gives the reader a clear emotional takeaway. On top of that, it also shows us the student’s voice through the inclusion of some humor.

Now take a look at this excerpt:

This essay falls short because it is vague and it doesn’t display any storytelling. It could also be written by just about any student, and because of that, it lacks personal significance.

This supplement is another classic archetype: the “Why this Major” essay, which wants you to explain why you’re applying to the program you’ve chosen specifically, and how you see it helping you achieve your goals. Like the first prompt, this is a great chance to show off the research you’ve conducted into Lehigh’s offerings, and how deeply you’ve thought about your own future. 

Once again, 200 words isn’t the most generous word count to work with, so your essay will need to be well thought out so you can clearly and concisely convey your thoughts. Here are some brainstorming questions to help you develop a strong response: 

• What is your chosen major or program, and why do you want to pursue it? How did you develop this interest in the first place?
• Why did you choose Lehigh over similar universities? What is unique about Lehigh, especially their program in this field, and how will the school’s resources and culture influence your academic journey?
• What are your long-term goals? Why are you passionate about them? What at Lehigh will help you achieve these goals?

The best responses will clearly link your goals and choices to Lehigh’s offerings, to help admissions officers understand both why you’re choosing their school (as opposed to any of the other 4,000 colleges and universities in the United States alone), and why they should choose you back. 

Mentioning specific aspects of Lehigh that appeal to you proves you know your stuff, but you want to do more than just name drop–demonstrate you’ve gone beyond simply researching, and you’ve thought about how what you know about the school will help enhance your college experience.

For this essay, as for all essays, you’ll want to avoid using vague or generic phrases that will make you forgettable and less compelling as an applicant. Writing an essay that any other student could have written can signal to the admissions team that you haven’t spent much time looking at Lehigh, and you don’t really care whether you get in. 

Consider the following two excerpts from application essays to get a sense of what we mean here:

While this excerpt sounds good at first blush, on closer examination, a lot of this student’s plans are vague. While Lehigh does have a great finance program, many other schools do as well, and having merely heard that it’s a good program does not demonstrate this applicant has made any effort to research why it’s good. Similarly, building community and relationships can happen at any school, so the essay fails to show how Lehigh specifically will help this student grow. 

Now compare that essay with the following selection from a potential essay. 

This essay is immediately more compelling, and while being longer helps, it’s not just the higher word count that makes a difference. By referencing particular campus resources, programs, and professors, this student makes it clear that they’re familiar with what makes Lehigh great. They connect their own specific passions to the environment at Lehigh, its philosophical approach to learning, and their values of sustainability and bettering the world through business.

Where to Get Your Lehigh University Essays Edited For Free

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