CollegeVine College Essay Team December 5, 2024 10 Essay Breakdowns,Essay Guides 2023-24

How to Write the University of Tulsa Essays 2024-2025

The University of Tulsa has five optional supplemental essays. Though these essays are optional, we recommend that you respond to them, so the admissions team at UTulsa can get to know you better, and see that you’re taking your application seriously.

University of Tulsa Essay Prompts

All Applicants, Optional

This prompt falls under the Extracurricular archetype, which asks you to describe one of the activities or experiences that’s meaningful to you. The goal is to showcase your role, contribution, growth, and what the experience means to you. The admissions committee is interested in how your involvement in this activity reflects your character, values, or passions, and how it has shaped your personal development.

You’ll want to avoid simply summarizing your engagement with a given extracurricular. Instead, go deep into what that activity means to you and how it may have influenced your journey or you as a person. As you think about what activity to write about, consider these questions. 

• Which extracurricular has had the biggest impact on you? 
• What roles have you played in your activities? Are there any where you’ve taken a particularly big or unusual role?
• What moments or stories stand out when you think about your activities? 
• What skills, lessons, or values have you taken from your extracurriculars?
• Do any of your experiences connect particularly strongly to your future goals?

As you consider these questions, think about what activity is the most important to you, what’s the most unique, and what casts you in the best possible light. Each of these considerations is important when selecting something to write about – you want your authentic passion to shine through, you want to stand out from the crowd, and you want to come across as an excellent future student. Being able to connect to University of Tulsa is a great bonus, but make sure you have thought about these three considerations first. 

This prompt is an example of the “Why This College” archetype, which helps the admissions committee get to know you as a future UTulsa student. Your response should focus on the academic, social, and extracurricular opportunities that align with your interests, goals, and values. The key here is specificity—UTulsa wants to see that you’ve done your research and know why their unique resources make them the right fit for you. Let’s talk about some ways to demonstrate that specificity. 

First, you’ll want to do some research, and some reflection. Research on the University of Tulsa will help you get familiar with it as a school, so you can write with authority on what draws you to the school. Doing this research shows UTulsa that you’re committed to the school as you’ve spent time learning about it and considered how its offerings can contribute to your life and your academic journey. 

During and after doing your research, think about what you hope to gain from your college education. Being able to name specific opportunities on the UTulsa campus is one thing, but being able to describe why these opportunities are perfect for you will make your essay so much more powerful. Envisioning yourself and how you’ll show up on University of Tulsa’s campus will help the admissions team visualize you there, too. 

Let’s look at some effective hypothetical student examples. 

• A STEM student with a focus on sustainability: This student has a deep interest in environmental engineering and wants to research renewable energy. They are drawn to UTulsa because of the university’s interdisciplinary approach in the College of Engineering and their work in energy sustainability. They are particularly interested in collaborating with the Tulsa Institute for Sustainable Energy to develop innovative solutions for sustainable power.
• Pre-law student interested in social justice: This student has volunteered with local nonprofits advocating for criminal justice reform. They are excited by UTulsa’s strong pre-law advising and the unique Public Policy and Law minor. They plan to participate in the TU Law’s Immersion Program to get hands-on experience and gain insight into legal careers, and they appreciate the university’s commitment to civic engagement.
• Business student passionate about entrepreneurship: This student has started a small business in high school and is eager to grow their entrepreneurial skills. UTulsa’s NOVA Fellowship, which provides mentorship and funding to student entrepreneurs, excites them because it offers a hands-on approach to business. They also look forward to joining the Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization (CEO) to network with like-minded peers.

These examples all have different focuses, but each emphasizes specific academic connections, extracurricular engagement, and how the student will contribute to the campus. This helps highlight the personal fit between UTulsa and the applicant, as well as demonstrating that not only will the future student benefit from life at UTulsa, but the school will benefit from having them there, too. 

This is another take on the Extracurricular essay, but offers a much broader perspective. The University of Tulsa wants to get a sense of how you use your free time and what passions or interests you pursue outside of the classroom. Admissions officers are looking for insights into your personality, values, and how you engage with the world beyond academics.

The greater freedom in this prompt is meant to reflect all those ways that you might spend your time that do not count as extracurriculars. Maybe you work, care for family, or donate plasma every two weeks. While none of these can be comfortably described as an extracurricular, they are important to who you are, and provide crucial insight for the admissions committee. This essay is your chance to share any nonstandard activities, responsibilities, or other time commitments that might show UTulsa more about you. 

Since there is another option to describe more traditional extracurriculars, this essay is best used for something unstructured, self-led, or in other ways nonstandard. You also might choose to use an unusual essay structure or angle into an activity – perhaps the activity itself is a standard extracurricular, like a book club, but what you want to write about is how you’re on the hunt for the great American novel of our time. If you’re answering this prompt, it’s worth taking some time to reflect on why you’re drawn to this version, and not the first prompt which is more directly about extracurriculars. 

If you don’t have a specific idea already, you’ll want to consider a few factors as you choose what to write about for this prompt. As always, you’ll want to cast yourself in the best possible light, so if there’s something you can write about here that really shows off your strongest qualities, that should be a strong contender. You’ll want to select a topic that’s meaningful, so while memorizing ninety digits of pi is impressive and demonstrates your dedication and sharp memory, it may not feel as significant to the admissions team as something less remarkable. Finally, you’ll want to avoid listing activities without demonstrating your capacity to reflect on them. Including more than one activity is fine, but you should take the time to explain why these activities are significant, and what they might show about you. 

Consider the following example of a student response to this prompt. 

Much of my time outside of school is spent running my  small online jewelry business, which has become both a creative outlet and an entrepreneurial venture. I design each piece by hand, drawing inspiration from nature and the vibrant colors of my Punjabi heritage. Managing the business has taught me valuable skills like marketing, budgeting, and customer service. I’ve had to learn how to promote my products through social media, communicate with customers, and manage inventory. While I enjoy the artistry behind creating jewelry, the business aspect has challenged me to think strategically and balance my passion with practicality.

When I’m not designing and selling jewelry, I’m running off all my extra energy on the soccer field. Soccer has taught me discipline, teamwork, and resilience in the ten years I’ve been playing, which I apply to all aspects of my life. I even coach my sister’s youth soccer team, which has given me the chance to develop leadership skills and mentor younger players, as well as spending more time with my sister. While creating jewelry and playing soccer may not look similar on the surface, both allow me to channel my creativity, develop new skills, and contribute to my community.

This student uses this prompt to describe two different activities that are important to her, and uses this essay to create an unexpected link between the two. She describes specific qualities and skills she’s gained from each, giving us insight into the kind of person she is in these different settings, as well as what remains the same across both. 

This prompt asks you to reflect on how you’ll contribute to the campus community at UTulsa. The admissions team wants to know how you plan to contribute to their campus community, both academically and socially. This essay is an opportunity to showcase how your experiences, skills, and values will enrich the university and positively impact your peers.

A good place to start is by thinking about how you’re already active in your community. Not only will this likely give you an idea of what your best qualities are, but it’ll be that much more convincing when you tell University of Tulsa how you plan to contribute – you’re already contributing in that way somewhere else. Reflect on what your strengths are, what you’re proudest of, and where your most impressive accomplishments lie. None of these are necessarily the single best idea on their own – consider what story you might tell in your essay, and how relevant the contribution or qualities are to the college environment. 

As you develop your idea, remember to focus on specific, demonstrable skills, qualities, or experiences that will help you stand out from the crowd. You don’t want to just list off accomplishments, which risks coming off as arrogant and lacking in self-reflection. 

Another good thing to keep in mind is balancing academics and extracurriculars, to show the admissions team that you’re an individual with different interests and passions. The best essays will go on to connect each of these interests and passions to UTulsa. You don’t have to show up in the exact same way on a college campus that you did at your high school, but consider how the same passions or strengths might manifest in this new environment. 

You’ll want to avoid overpromising – though leading student government, being a team captain, double majoring, and starting four new clubs sounds cool, the admissions team is likely to regard such lofty ambitions with skepticism. Stay grounded and realistic, and focus on a few things you’re truly passionate about, that you can show both a history with, and a future in. These are the kinds of contributions that admissions officers will feel most confident reading about. 

Let’s consider two essay excerpts, one of which considers the advice here, and one of which does not. 

At TU, I’m excited to contribute to GreenTU by leading initiatives aimed at reducing campus waste. I’ve been active in environmental advocacy for years, organizing campaigns at my high school to increase recycling efforts and raise awareness about climate change. I look forward to bringing this passion to TU and collaborating with the Tulsa Institute for Sustainable Energy on projects exploring renewable energy solutions. Additionally, I hope to foster community through service work by joining the True Blue Neighbors program. I love volunteering at local shelters, and I’m excited to extend this work in the greater Tulsa community.

This student highlights specific contributions based on past experiences and links them to TU’s programs. They balance both academic and social engagement, showing a clear commitment to making an impact.

Now consider this example.

In high school, I was president of the Debate Club and led our team to two regional championships. I’m passionate about public speaking and have given presentations on various topics, from climate change to social justice. I also helped organize school events like fundraisers and awareness campaigns. Outside of school, I’ve volunteered at local shelters and tutored middle school students in math and science. I enjoy being involved in my community and making a difference.

While this example lists specific achievements and activities, it doesn’t explain how these experiences will translate into contributions at TU. The student talks about past accomplishments without connecting them to TU’s clubs, initiatives, or programs. There’s no mention of how they’ll get involved on TU’s campus or apply their skills to benefit the university community. Without this connection, the essay misses the mark.

This prompt is as broad as it gets, offering you the chance to write about anything that doesn’t fit into any other prompt categories. One way that many students use this prompt is to take the time to explain something in their academic or extracurricular history that may not look great to colleges. If your grades took a dive at a certain time in school, if you have a disciplinary record, or if there’s a reason you didn’t engage in many extracurriculars, this is a good place to put those things in context. 

There also might be something in your application you’d like to explore more fully, or something that just doesn’t fit into any other categories. This is a great place to explore those topics. What you should not use this space for is to write an extracurricular essay, a “Why This College” essay, or anything that would slot easily into any of the other prompt categories. This will only be confusing to admissions officers, and may give the impression that you’re not really paying attention. 

Primarily, this supplement should be used to provide context where context is needed. If a drop in grades or change of schools was due to difficult personal circumstances, this is a good place to mention that. If the same drop in grades was due to slacking off, you may also write about how you disengaged with school, but refocused later on, and what you learned from this period. 

For this supplement, try not to invent excuses where none exist, or describe extraordinary circumstances as affecting you when they did not. Writing about how a local wildfire prevented you from getting straight As when you got mostly A minuses and B pluses may sound a bit trivial. Of course, you can always frame this differently – you could write about how the wildfire affected you and your family and what you learned from it, and through this provide context without the predictive quality that often comes across poorly. 

If you’re stuck on whether to respond to this prompt or not, consider the following questions to help you make your decision. 

• Are there any gaps or declines in your academic or extracurricular record? Can you provide context, either in terms of outside factors, or lessons you might have learned or ways you may have addressed these declines?
• Have you faced any challenges or hardships that impacted your academic or extracurricular record, or that influenced you personally?
• Do you have any significant commitments or responsibilities that shed light on you as a person and the components of your application?
• Are there any unique aspects of your background, culture, or experiences that haven’t been addressed elsewhere in your application?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, consider responding to this prompt. The more information the admissions committee has about you, the better decisions they can make about how you’ll fit in on the UT campus.

Where to Get Your University of Tulsa Essays Edited For Free

Want feedback on your University of Tulsa essays to improve your chances at admission? When you’ve proofread your essay a dozen times, it can be hard to even spot where there’s room for improvement. That’s why we’ve created our free Peer Essay Review tool, where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also sharpen your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays!

Need feedback faster? Get a free, nearly-instantaneous essay review from Sage, our AI tutor and advisor. Sage will rate your essay, give you suggestions for improvement, and summarize what admissions officers would take away from your writing. Use these tools to improve your chances of acceptance to your dream school!