How to Write the Purdue University Essays 2023-2024

Purdue University, home of the Boilermakers, the “world’s largest drum,” and an expert-approved writing lab, remains today one of the most innovative schools in the country. Located in West Lafayette, Indiana, Purdue has come a long way since its founding in 1869.

Admission to the university is highly coveted among high schoolers across the nation and writing strong essays will certainly help you stand out. The Purdue supplemental essays give you a chance to explore your interests and activities, so you can show admissions officers what you care about and why.

Read these Purdue essay examples written by real students to get some inspiration. 

Purdue University Supplemental Essay Prompts

The primary purpose of this prompt is for you to pinpoint specific programs at Purdue and explain why they will further your interests and goals. At its core, this essay is the typical “Why This College” essay. 

First, consider your interests and your goals for college. These could be academic, like an interest in British literature or a goal of becoming a prominent Alzheimer’s researcher. They could be cultural—maybe you are particularly interested in finding a Latinx community on campus. Your interests and goals could even be social, like wanting to find a tight-knit group of friends, or more specific to your person, like knowing the importance of guidance for yourself and hoping to find a strong faculty mentor.

After you’ve identified what is important to you, research Purdue and find the unique programs, opportunities, and resources that will help you pursue your specific interests and goals. By connecting your interests to your desire to attend Purdue, you will do two important things: tell admissions officers about yourself and convince them that Purdue is the right place for you.

The offerings that you reference should be unique Purdue and should not be able to be copied and pasted for any other university. Some examples could include:

• A student from a small town in rural California mentioning the appeal of Purdue’s emphasis on traditions and camaraderie by referencing the “Hello Walk,” where everyone is encouraged to greet each other with a smile
• An engineering student discussing how their childhood obsession with Neil Armstrong developed into a passion for all things aerospace, then transitioning to discuss the resources at Purdue’s i2i Learning Laboratory
• A political science student who spearheaded their high school’s mock trial team discussing the Butler Center for Leadership Excellence

Connecting your interests in general to your interest in Purdue will also help you avoid the common mistake of focusing too much on either one of these two facets. 

In terms of structure, here is a general outline: 

Introduction (1-2 sentences)

You most likely won’t need much space to introduce your response here. An example of a good introductory sentence would be “My friends call me a political junkie.” This is a concise statement that allows the writer to pick out different programs at Purdue University that relate to politics and explain their value.

Don’t do this: “Purdue is a great school with a plethora of organizations I want to join.” This sentence is 14 words long, but it adds nothing to the response following it.

Body (7-10 sentences)

The sentence count here isn’t exact since it largely depends on how long your sentences are. In this section, you need to answer the question point-blank. One useful strategy here is to couple specific programs with descriptions of how they relate to your interests. Strive to alternate between the two. Here are some examples:

• “I’ve made a lot of friends in my school choir and want to form new bonds through music in college, so I hope to join Purdue Soundtracks.”

• “I want to study the effects of pesticides on crops under Professor Adrian. This will enable me to pursue a career as an organic agricultural specialist.” (Side note: Don’t mention a specific professor for the sake of name-dropping them; only do so if you are very familiar with their work)

• “I want to join the Honors College so that I can be surrounded by like-minded peers while I pursue my Scholarly Project—writing a full-form novel.”

You can divide the body into multiple paragraphs here, with each paragraph focusing on a different aspect of your goals and how the school can support them. In 250 words, you’ll likely be able to talk about 3-4 goals/resources, centered around 1-2 themes.

For example, the political junkie student might be passionate about the environment and using policy to enact change. They may want to major in Political Science with a minor in Environmental Policy and Politics. They can also take advantage of the department’s Job-Ready Awards, which provide funding for low-paid or unpaid internships, so they can intern with a local environmental nonprofit. Outside of the classroom, they may want to join the Richard Petticrew Forum to enhance their public speaking and debate skills, particularly in policy debate. It will also help them find community in a new place, as they grew really close to their debate teammates in high school. They also look forward to joining the Environmental Science Club, where they can participate in local conservationism and outdoor activities, staying true to their rural roots.

Conclusion (1 sentence) 

The conclusion is the most skippable part of this supplement. Only make a closing remark if it is powerful and gives the essay a greater sense of overall cohesion. Don’t bother with it if you maximized your word count and are having a lot of trouble cutting your essay down to fit in a concluding sentence.

Good example: “Purdue’s ample interdisciplinary resources will help me grow as a politically-active conservationist.”

Don’t do this: “All of these programs will make my Purdue experience truly one of a kind.” This is a sweet sentiment, but it’s just adding extra words. Instead, begin the last interest/program pairing with a transition like “finally” to signal the end of the essay. 

This is the classic “Why This Major?” question. The goal with this prompt is multifold—you must explain what compelled your choice of major and demonstrate that you understand what your major involves moving forward, while also helping the admissions officer learn about who you are and what you value.

Multiple experiences probably culminated in you selecting your major, but because of this prompt’s word limit, you won’t be able to give the full history. Instead, focus on what motivated you most directly. It is often helpful to frame your major selection within the context of one or two activities, classes, or experiences. Additionally, describing specific turning points in your education (both in and out of class) can lead to a concise and engaging essay.

Here are some examples:

• You had a medical internship where you witnessed a surgeon conduct heart surgery. Watching the surgery inspired your long-term goal of attending medical school and saving lives. Thus, you want to major in biology with a pre-med concentration. 

• You always hated math until you got to AP Calculus. You couldn’t believe it at first, but when you caught yourself thinking about velocity graphs while driving, you knew you had discovered your true passion. 

• Growing up, you were a huge tennis fan. You loved playing and idolized the pros, but it broke your heart whenever any of them would get injuries. That’s why you want to major in sports medicine and eventually work alongside them at the ATP World Tour. 

• You felt so inspired by your first Model UN conference that you just knew you had to go into diplomacy and international relations. You began reading official UN resolutions in your spare time. 

If you write about a turning point, make sure you use it to characterize yourself (to show the readers that you are a real-life human). The student who wants to go to medical school might mention that they are super compassionate because they have three younger siblings who they take care of. The student who loves math might explain how they identify as a logical thinker in all aspects of life. The IR student might explain that they always got in trouble for arguing as a kid, but over time learned to communicate effectively and it changed their life. 

The ultimate goal of college essays is to tell admissions officers something about you—your values, your personality, what gets you excited, why you are the way you are. The more in touch with yourself, the better. It is not enough to simply mention your involvement in something. Depth is better than breadth.

You have more room to be creative with the formatting of this response. If your essay truly has two distinct sections that focus on different ideas/parts of an idea, it’s okay to break it into two smaller chunks. For instance, the first part might be an anecdote, while the second is a declaration of how you plan to act accordingly. It is also okay to weave your reflection and anecdote together.

Before starting an honors essay, it is important to do some research on the program. Of course, all honors programs look for students with top marks and demonstrated passion for their studies, but each program is also looking for a specific type of student, who thinks in a specific way. Purdue describes their ideal student as committed to the Honors College’s four pillars: leadership development, undergraduate research, community and global experiences, and interdisciplinary academics. 

First things first, don’t get overwhelmed by this heightened word count. Having more words will give you more opportunities to expand on your thoughts. That being said, be wary. If you don’t use your words wisely, you run the risk of writing a boring essay. To avoid this, try incorporating examples, anecdotes, and a unique voice into your writing.

If you simply divide your 500 words between the four pillars (125 words/pillar, 1 experience/pillar), your essay will not be very engaging. Consider identifying one vision, idea, or goal for your honors experience, then using imagery and creativity to show that vision, and connecting the four pillars of the Honors College back to that image. Your image could emphasize 1) how the four pillars guided you in the past or 2) how the four pillars will guide you in the future—just make sure you tie it back to Purdue!

Looking Back

Because the prompt does ask about Purdue, if you are going to use an anecdote from the past, it should be used as an avenue to predict the future. Your outline would be something like:

1. An engaging introduction or “hook”
2. Your anecdote from the past, which shows your commitment to the four pillars
3. Reflection on how the past anecdote shows your values and their alignment with the four pillars
4. A prediction of how your values would play out in the Purdue Honors College

Examples of high school experiences that align with the four pillars:

• You founded a club at your high school for international students and domestic students to come together after seeing that the foreign exchange students were having trouble finding a community and also noticing that they had unique thoughts and values that could help domestic students.
• You took AP Capstone Research and had an unofficial leadership role on your team. Your team researched the interactions between sociocultural factors and the outputs of job prediction quizzes and algorithms.
• You wrote a science fiction short story that incorporated your knowledge of physics and your passion for literature, then started a group for science fiction writers at your local library.

Looking Forward

If you don’t have a strong high school anecdote, you can simply create a vivid image of the future. Get creative! You can imagine specific scenarios, with you in specific locations on campus. You can even make up dialogue or predict potential struggles you might have.

Examples of experiences you could anticipate that align with the four pillars:

• Forging friendships with students from different cultures and backgrounds as a leader in an organization on campus like the Beta Psi Omega or the Native American Educational and Cultural Center
• Researching in a lab that incorporates cultural factors into AI development and building a strong relationship with your professor
• Studying abroad in Bhutan to work with Bhutanese college students to explore overlaps between animal rights, environmental and agricultural concerns, and biology when dealing with the Big Cats of the Himalayas
• Volunteering at a community center in West Lafayette to install current water purifying technology, then staying after and teaching the children about the fundamentals of chemical engineering and sustainability

No matter the approach you choose, make sure this essay stays engaging and demonstrates your personal alignment with the values of the Purdue Honors College. If you do both those things, you should be set!