CollegeVine College Essay Team August 18, 2025 16 Essay Guides 2025-26,Stanford University

How to Write the Stanford University Essays 2025-2026

Stanford University was founded in 1885 by California Senator Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane, in memory of their son Leland Stanford Junior. It’s a private institution located in the heart of the California Bay Area. The exciting buzz of start-up opportunities and entrepreneurial spirit permeates student life on campus, with an impressive offering of excellent STEM and humanities majors. 

It is home to a vibrant community of over 17,000 degree-seeking students across bachelor’s, master’s, professional, and doctoral programs. Stanford is the second-largest campus in the world, spanning over 8,000 acres, and ranks as one of the best colleges in the nation and the world.

Stanford’s freshman application asks students to respond to 5 different short questions and 3 relatively longer essay questions as part of their admissions process. CollegeVine is here to provide detailed tips and examples to help you approach Stanford’s supplemental essays.

Read these Stanford essay examples to inspire your writing.

How to Write the Stanford University Supplemental Essays

Before we dive into the specifics of how to answer each of these short prompts, remember that limiting your responses to only 50 words requires straightforward writing answers. Be honest with what you write, but also think critically about the different aspects of your personality you are highlighting with each answer. Try to vary the responses so that they don’t all cluster around only one or two activities or themes.

While these answers won’t make your application, they could break it if you use any inappropriate content; be mindful of your audience by choosing tasteful responses. However, overanalyzing what you think the admissions officers want you to write misses the point of showcasing your individuality.

Let’s discuss each question individually.

For this significant challenge question, you might decide to go with a traditional answer but still put a creative spin on it. Avoid picking an obscure or arbitrary topic that is not a significant challenge, and also be wary of writing about an issue in overly vague terms. You could write about topics like gender parity, aging populations, skills development, or climate change, but be careful since those topics have the potential to become trite depending on how you address them.

Writing simply about the fact that the challenge exists is also less interesting than if you wrote something referencing momentum in terms of future change, or possibly even past decline. For example, in addressing a topic like pollution, you could talk about how your view is that you believe the greatest challenge will be spreading actionable awareness of the issue to overcome our current apathy, maybe with a brief suggestion on how that could be attained. Doing so would make your answer stand out more than just speaking too generally.

Writing about how you spent your last two summers should be pretty direct­­­ — anything you have been involved in is fair game, and showing a variety of interests is again advisable. For example, you could write out a list of the disparate activities like:

This mix of activities allows them to see that you participated in some resume boosters, but also had fun and didn’t just completely restate your activities list section. You could also choose to hone in on just a couple of activities and give them each a bit more explanation instead of solely listing activities. For example:

This conveys some of the same ideas with a slightly more narrative structure.

Try not to waste space with a lead-in sentence like, “For the last two summers, I have mainly spent my time doing…” because that already uses up 12 of your precious 50 allotted words.

If no historical events come to mind after thinking about this prompt for a few minutes, and you’re starting to question whether you learned anything at all in your high school history classes, doing a quick Google search of the top 100 historical moments is not a terrible idea. However, since many of your peers will likely employ the same strategy to identify their historical event, you should strive to select one that makes sense considering your unique profile and current interests.

For example, if you want to indicate your interest in the techy Silicon Valley, you could write about witnessing the process Hewlett and Packard went through starting their business from their garage because you loved tinkering with your projects throughout high school. Or if you are interested in history or politics, this is a good place to easily select one of the thousands of moments to tie into your interest. For instance, you could write about the time when Washington rallied his troops and convinced them not to abandon the Continental Army late in 1776, even when things looked just about as bleak as they could get.

Here are two examples of how you can incorporate a potential major interest in engineering while going for something out of the box:

You don’t need to directly connect it to a personal reason or specific explanation like these examples did, but noting why you picked this moment allows your response to ultimately feel more memorable.

This prompt gives you a little more space to discuss one of your most meaningful extracurriculars from your activities list.

To pick an activity, think about the one that taught you the most, changed your perspective, or is most unique. If there’s something you haven’t been able to express in other parts of your application, this is your space.

Keep in mind that trying to write about multiple aspects of the activity will be difficult with only 50 words, and it can result in simply reiterating what will already be on your activities list. Pick just one aspect that was most important to you, and highlight that. 

Be careful not to repeat anything from your activities section. If you’ve already told the admissions officers you raised $5,000 for your grade as class president, don’t waste your precious space restating that. Instead, elaborate on the planning sessions before the fundraiser or maybe the speech you gave to your school and community before the fundraiser began. Also, don’t forget to briefly address what you gleaned from the activity as opposed to simply describing what it was.

This short response question is asking you to reflect on things that are most important in your life. Keep in mind that these things can be a physical object (like your phone) or a concept or idea (like family or friendship). It’s also important that the items you list relate to ideas that have been represented in the rest of your application to provide a cohesive message across all your application elements. If you were applying for an arts major at Stanford, perhaps you wouldn’t say an important item to you is your model rocketship in your room unless you have previously suggested that your artwork is inspired by space travel and celestial bodies. 

Some questions to help you brainstorm for this prompt include asking yourself: What things from my childhood or daily life bring me joy or purpose? If this thing were missing from my life, would I notice? Why is this thing important to me? What purpose does this thing serve in my life?

You should list out the things that are important to you from 1 to 5. When listing these items that are important to you, you can use any additional word space to briefly describe why the thing is important to you. For example, if you gave your faith as an important thing in your life, you could write “1. My faith: It gives me hope and strength in the face of adversity.”

You don’t necessarily have to pick things that fall into the same category, although that is certainly an option as well. For example, a student interested in studying law could list out her favorite cases to demonstrate her interest in law. However, she could also convey that interest by choosing one court case, a memoir by a Supreme Court Justice, the gavel her mock trial team’s president wields, the concept of “liberty and justice for all”, and her blazer she wore to court during an internship.

Here are some additional tips for writing this essay:

• Be specific. Don’t just say that faith is important to you. Explain what makes your faith so special and why it is so important to you.
• Be genuine. Don’t try to be someone you’re not. The admissions committee will be able to tell if you’re being fake.
• Be concise. This is a short essay, so you need to get your point across quickly and effectively.

As you approach this first longer prompt, think back on all the hours you spent during class, after school, during activities, or at home studying. Try to select an experience where you seriously felt that love of learning. Just writing about this idea or realization should make you feel like an extremely happy nerd (you are applying to Nerd Nation after all!). Whether you are someone who approaches standardized testing like it is a thrilling game or someone who feels so excited after getting through a test that you poured countless hours into studying for, you can highlight your drive and intellect through this prompt.

For example, you could write some sort of introduction about deciding to self-study for the AP Physics C tests, then add some analysis like:

This response shows an authentic passion for learning without overloading on narrative. Another solid example that takes a more creative response could look something like this:

This response from a student majoring in International Relations demonstrates a thirst for learning without overtly stating it, especially with the inclusion of a childhood anecdote as an excellent hook.

As you approach your essay, avoid using basic statements like “This made me excited because…” or “An idea that made me genuinely excited about learning was…” since your writing style is extremely important throughout this essay and should be more descriptive and vivid than this to stand out. You can see the difference in writing styles with the two examples above. If you examine them syntactically, you will notice essays become more engaging with the style of “show, not tell” displayed in the latter example.

As with all college essays, do not forget that the emphasis is on teaching the admissions officers something about you and why the idea or experience made you so excited; avoid spending too much time explaining the logistics or trying to use excessively flowery language.

This is one of the classic essay prompts Stanford asks students to write year over year. The point of this essay is to invoke the casual nature of roommate relationships and invite students to take a more relaxed approach to writing about themselves. It brings the application to life by asking you to write only about your personality, which feels more open than other essays that ask you to answer a specific question like “Describe your community” or “Talk about a mentor who got you through a difficult time.” While answering both of those prompts still offers insight into who the author is, they are fundamentally centered around another person or topic, which is why Stanford cuts straight to the chase with this prompt to get to know you better.

Stanford is looking for an extremely authentic 250-word portrayal of your character that could distinctly identify you from a crowd of essays. If you got to meet your admissions officer in person, and only had 60 seconds to pitch yourself without using anything from your activities or awards, what would you say first? If you were legitimately writing a letter to your roommate at Stanford, what would you want them to know about the prospect of living with you? If you imagine how your Stanford alumni interview might play out, what topics do you hope to discuss?

This prompt can arguably be one of the most entertaining to write and read of all college supplemental essays because of the opportunity to present the admissions office with an amalgamation of weird topics. Don’t shy away from your quirky side! This is the place to highlight unique hobbies or interesting personality oddities.

Don’t sweat too much over the exact way to put the essay in letter format. Starting with something like “Hi! I am ridiculously stoked to meet you!” or any other straightforward greeting that doesn’t sound too cheesy is fine. If you decide to, you can essentially make a bullet list of “fun me facts” if you want to include the maximum amount of content. Remember that this essay should be fun!

Since it is usually hard to come up with good material about your diverse personality while staring at a blank computer screen, try keeping a note on your phone and adding to it gradually as you think of things throughout the day. Think about what you enjoy and jot down notes like:

You can see by how long this section got just how easy it can be to talk about yourself once you get started…

Try to intersperse some facts that relate to activities you could do together or things that would be important for an actual roommate to know to stay true to the prompt. That being said, you might not feel like juxtaposing random facts fits your personal style, and that’s okay too. Putting together just a few key aspects of your personality and typical habits with more coherent elaboration on each, and topping it off with a “Love, your future roomie,” holds the potential to become an engaging essay as well.

Here is another example that shows a ton of personality and utilizes a list format:

While this is just one essay (and remember that there are many, many directions you can choose to take your essay), you can see from this example that showcasing a variety of passions can highlight how multifaceted and genuinely interesting you are. A year from now, you might find yourself cracking up over how weird you sound while exchanging what you wrote with your actual roomie to procrastinate working on your p-sets or essays. We know we did!

This is a classic example of the Diversity Essay. Your response should focus on your background and how your life experiences or cultural traditions provide you with a unique perspective that has influenced your interests and character. Stanford is looking for what makes you unique and how you will share that uniqueness with their community.

Your response should directly answer the question at hand; however, remember to “show, not tell.” A personal narrative is one way to successfully highlight your potential individual contributions to Stanford’s community.

For example, instead of simply saying that you are hardworking and persistent despite obstacles, describe a time when you displayed this skill. Perhaps you grew up in the central US, where there are seasonal tornadoes and property damage. You could share a story about how you help rebuild neighbors’ homes every year after the storms and how you have learned about the value of lending a helping hand to strangers. 

Or, if you want to discuss your deep connection and commitment to your culture, describe a particular event or custom that has meaning to you that most other applicants would not be aware of. Or maybe you have a strong commitment to sustainability—you could discuss a time you created an initiative to reduce food and plastic waste in your school cafeteria.

Beware that this question is similar to some Common Application prompts. Since the Stanford application is on the Common App, you should use this supplement as a means to communicate something new about yourself to the admissions committee, and avoid discussing topics that you’ve already covered. For example, if your Common Application focused on your analytical mind, consider using this prompt to discuss your compassion for others.

In the remaining space you have in the essay, tie your unique identity back to how you will contribute to Stanford’s campus. If you have a deep connection to your Native American culture, mention how you are excited to be involved with the American Indian Organization at Stanford, for instance. 

All in all, make sure that the life experience, interest, and/or character trait you are sharing in this essay is unique to you and provide evidence to support the unique self that you will bring to campus.

Final Tips

If you create incentives for yourself to work on your Stanford University essays early and choose topics that you genuinely care about, then you will end up devoting much more time to them, resulting in more polished essays. Since Stanford admissions are so extremely selective, it places a good deal of pressure on both the content and execution of all eight essays.

While Stanford has a reputation for being pretty relaxed and laid back, you shouldn’t try to exude that attitude throughout all your essays. Remember that it is the admissions office’s job to read through over 50,000 of these essays each year and discern whether you would be a good fit, so avoid topics that are even vaguely cliché and be brutally honest with yourself about whether you would enjoy the essay you’ve written from an outsider’s perspective.

Overall, do your best to put in the effort on ideas that you feel are unique, personal, and truly meaningful. Good luck!

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