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MIT Supplemental Essays 2024-25 — Prompts and Tips

September 11, 2024

When applying to MIT, a school with a 5% acceptance rate where a 1500 SAT would place you below the average enrolled student (seriously), teens should be aware that it takes a lot to separate yourself from the other 28,000+ applicants you are competing against. While trying to be among the 1 in 25 who will ultimately be accepted sounds like (and is) a rather intimidating proposition, around 1,300 individuals accomplish this epic feat every year. We’ve worked with many of these students personally and can tell you one thing they all had in common—exceptionally strong MIT supplemental essays.

(Want to learn more about How to Get Into MIT? Visit our blog entitled:  How to Get Into MIT: Admissions Data and Strategies  for all of the most recent admissions data as well as tips for gaining acceptance.)

There are few schools that offer as many essays as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. All applicants are required to respond to five prompts as they work through the MIT application. Your mission is to write compelling, standout compositions that showcase your superior writing ability and reveal more about who you are as an individual. Below are the MIT supplemental essays for the 2024-25 admissions cycle along with tips about how to address each one.

MIT Supplemental Essays – Prompt #1: 

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (150 words)

There are many different ways that you can approach this prompt, but the first step is to take MIT at their word that they are sincerely interested in what you do “simply for the pleasure of it.” While this may be something that also happens to be high-minded and/or STEM-oriented in nature, there is no expectation that this will be the case.

In essence, you want to ask yourself, what brings you great pleasure and happiness? Universal experiences of joy like family, a beautiful sunset, smiling children, or your cat or dog curled on your lap are perfectly acceptable answers here. However, you could also talk about dreams for the future, more bittersweet moments, abstract thoughts, moments of glorious introversion, or even something semi-embarrassing and vulnerable. The only “wrong” answer to this question would be an insincere one. As you enter the brainstorming phase, just make sure to turn off your “resume mode” setting. Instead, allow yourself to embrace the limitless possibilities of this essay.

Essay Prompt #2 

What field of study appeals to you the most right now? Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you. (Note: You’ll select your preferred field of study from a drop-down list.) (100 words or fewer)

Generally speaking, we all have a story of what drives us to pursue a certain academic pathway and career. How did your interest initially develop? What was the spark? How have you nurtured this passion and how has it evolved over time? If you desire to go into engineering, this is a chance to talk about everything from your childhood fascination with how things work to your participation in an award-winning robotics program at your high school. Share a compelling (and, of course, true!) narrative about how your love of your future area of study has blossomed to its present levels.

You should then tie your passions into specific academic opportunities at MIT including courses , professors , hands-on research programs , or any other aspects of your desired major that appeal most to you.

MIT Supplemental Essays – Prompt #3 

MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together. (225 words)

How you interact with your present surroundings is the strongest indicator of what kind of community member you will be in your future collegiate home. This prompt asks you to discuss how you have collaborated with others (in any setting) in order to learn from them or contribute to a particular community. This could mean how you’ve collaborated with others during a group project, internship, extracurricular opportunity, sports event, or service project, to name a few.

Some words of warning: don’t get too grandiose in explaining the positive change that you brought about. Of course, if you and your team truly brought peace to a war-torn nation or influenced climate change policy on a global scale, share away. However, nothing this high-profile is expected. Essentially, MIT wants to understand how you’ve worked with other people—in any capacity—to expand your thinking or reach a common goal.

A few potential ideas for areas where you may have worked with/alongside others include:

• Racial injustice
• Assisting those with special needs
• Climate justice/the environment
• Making outsiders in a group feel welcome
• The economically disadvantaged
• Mental health awareness
• Clean-up projects
• Tutoring peers or younger students
• Charitable work through a religious organization

This is, of course, by no means a comprehensive list of potential topics. Most importantly, your story should be personal, sincere, and revealing of your core character and developing values system.

Essay Prompt #4

While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey? (225 words)

This essay prompt is a new addition to MIT’s application for the 2024-25 cycle. As you brainstorm, we’d encourage you to work backward. First, identify what was expected of you in your educational journey, whether those expectations came from yourself, parents/guardians, teachers, or simply your school’s curriculum structure. Did your parents expect you to follow a specific pathway? Did a teacher tell you that a certain AP course would be too much for you? Have your educational or career goals been taken less seriously—or received less encouragement—because of your race, gender, or other aspect of your identity? Did you undertake an independent personal or research project? Have you gone above and beyond the required/expected curriculum at your school?

For example, perhaps you took classes over the summer during your freshman and sophomores years so that you’d have space in your schedule for dual enrollment or college courses as a junior or senior. Perhaps you wanted to attend a particular summer program or research experience, and spent the school year working part-time to save up enough money to go. Or, maybe you had to work hard to get an independent study on a special topic added to your schedule, or took an AP course not offered through your school via an alternate pathway.

Essentially, MIT wants to see how you’ve gone above and beyond what is available to or expected of you.

MIT Supplemental Essays – Prompt #5

How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it? (225 words)

Note this prompt’s new wording: How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect ? Can you think of a time when you felt surprisingly overwhelmed? When something out-of-the-ordinary occurred? When you were caught off guard? Basically, MIT is trying to discover how you deal with unforeseen setbacks, and the important thing to keep in mind is that the challenge/story itself is  less important  than what it reveals about your character and personality.

Of course, some teens have faced more challenges than others, potentially related to an illness or medical emergency, frequent moving, socioeconomic situation, natural disaster, or learning disability, to name a few. However, you don’t have to have faced a significant challenge to write a compelling essay (and even if you have faced a significant challenge, you don’t have to write about it if you’re not comfortable doing so). Writing about a common topic like getting cut from a sports team, struggling in a particular advanced course, or facing an obstacle within a group project or extracurricular activity is perfectly fine. Any story told in an emotionally compelling, honest, and connective manner can resonate with an admissions reader. The bottom line here is that there are no trite topics, only trite answers.

Given the 225-word limit, your essay needs to be extremely tight and polished. Accordingly, getting this one precisely right will involve a round or two of revision, ideally with some insight/feedback from a trusted adult or peer in the process.

Some tips to keep in mind include:

• Firstly, make sure you share what you were feeling and experiencing. This piece should demonstrate openness and vulnerability.
• Additionally, you don’t need to be a superhero in the story. You can just be an ordinary human trying their best to learn how to navigate a challenging world.
• Don’t feel boxed into one particular structure for this essay. The most common is 1) introducing the problem 2) explaining your internal and external decision-making in response to the problem 3) revealing the resolution to the problem and what you learned along the way.
• Lastly, don’t be afraid that your “problem” might sound “trite” in comparison to those of others. This essay is about you. Y our job is to make sure that your response to the problem shows your maturity and resilience in an authentic way. That matters far more than the original challenge itself.

How important are the MIT supplemental essays?

There are 8 factors that MIT considers to be “very important” to their evaluation process. They are: rigor of secondary school record, class rank, GPA, standardized test scores, recommendations, extracurricular activities, and most relevant to this blog—the MIT supplemental essays.

Moreover, character/personal qualities are the only factor that is “very important” to the MIT admissions committee. Of course, part of how they assess your character and personal qualities is through what they read in your essays.

Want personalized assistance with your MIT supplemental essays?

In conclusion, if you are interested in working with one of College Transitions’ experienced and knowledgeable essay coaches as you craft your MIT supplemental essays, we encourage you to get a quote  today.

Looking for more writing-related resources? Consider checking out the following:

• Common App Essay Prompts
• 10 Instructive Common App Essay Examples
• College Application Essay Topics to Avoid
• How to Quickly Format Your Common App Essay
• Should I Complete Optional College Essays?
• How to Brainstorm a College Essay
• 25 Inspiring College Essay Topics
• “Why This College?” Essay Examples
• How to Write the Community Essay
• College Essay

Dave Bergman

Dave has over a decade of professional experience that includes work as a teacher, high school administrator, college professor, and independent educational consultant. He is a co-author of the books The Enlightened College Applicant (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016) and Colleges Worth Your Money (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).

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Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 2024-25 Essay Prompt Guide

Early Action: Nov 1

Regular Decision Deadline: Jan 1

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 2024-25  Application Essay Question Explanations

MIT Requirements: Five essays of 100-200 words each

Supplemental Essay Type(s): Why , Community , Activity , Diversity

MIT Essay Prompts Breakdown

Rather than asking you to write one long essay, the mit application consists of several short response questions and essays designed to help us get to know you. remember that this is not a writing test. be honest, be open, be authentic—this is your opportunity to connect with us., for the 2024–2025 application, we’re asking these short answer essay questions: , what field of study appeals to you the most right now (note: applicants select from a drop-down list.) tell us more about why this field of study at mit appeals to you..

This is MIT’s version of a classic Why Essay . Even if you’re not completely sure what you want to major in yet, MIT wants to both learn about your academic interests and see how their offerings will suit your passions. If you can build a bridge between your own interests and the resources available at MIT, you’ll be well on your way to demonstrating your fit. So set aside a few hours and commit to some hardcore research on the MIT website. (Sorry, there’s no way around this, folks!) Beyond the basic departmental listings, look up information about news and research coming out of your department of interest, the kinds of courses available, and the opportunities other undergrads have had studying in your area of choice. Even if you have a wide array of interests, consider explaining how two or three departments might complement each other or foster your interest in a larger theme or cross-pollinating kind of way. Your ultimate goal is to show that your interest in MIT (just like your intellectual curiosity) runs deep!

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.

MIT is explicitly asking you to back away from the resume and forget your structured activities . It’s not about proving what you can do, but revealing what you love to do. Put another way, this prompt is about self-care: What brings a smile to your face? What helps you recharge your battery? What do you do and where do you go when you’re feeling down? When you start to think of things that feel a little silly or personal, you’re heading in the right direction. The activity you choose should be informal and unique to you. 

Although MIT invites you to be honest, we also suggest you balance your honesty with specific details and storytelling. You might want to try to come up with something a little more original than sleeping, reading, or hanging out with friends, but if these are your options, then you have to commit. If you like to spend time with your friends, what sorts of things do you do together? If you like to sleep, have you perfected the art of the power nap ? What are your favorite things to read and how do you organize your personal library? Let your personality and tastes shine through! And before you start to say, “But I really do love volunteering at the soup kitchen during my spare time,” don’t worry—there’s a community service essay a little later in this application.

While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey?

MIT seeks students who “pursue the things that interest them with energy and enthusiasm” and who “challenge themselves appropriately in the areas that are most interesting to them.” So this is your chance to show that, in your dogged pursuit of knowledge, you have taken risks and challenged yourself in unexpected ways. Think about times you made a decision against traditional advice or chose to pursue secondary interests to support your main passion. Maybe instead of a two-week internship at a local architecture firm, you spent the summer building sets at your local community theater to work on your mechanical engineering skills in a practical setting. Perhaps you took the AP Physics test in your junior year so you could take a sophomore-level physics class at your local community college this year. Take this opportunity to prove that your dedication to your education goes beyond your prescribed coursework and show why you’ll be a dynamic addition to MIT’s campus community. 

MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together.

This question asks for a specific story: a collaborative one in which you either sought to learn from others or contributed to your community together. This is a great opportunity to write about a professional experience (your first time working in the kitchen as a line cook!) or community service (tutoring refugee children in English!). Ideally, you should choose an experience that spans a decent amount of time—a few weeks or even months—so you can describe the phases of your collaboration and the end result. You should be driving at a lesson that you will be able to carry with you into the future (e.g., human connection is the same regardless of language or the power of local organizing). In other words, share a takeaway that will positively impact your collaborative contributions at MIT. 

How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?

We’ve all encountered choppy waters in our lives, and admissions wants to hear about a time when you adjusted your sails. The situation or challenge you discuss here can really run the gamut, from covering for a colleague and taking on new responsibilities at your after-school diner job to dealing with a serious injury, though you’ll want to avoid topics that may seem trite (like a pop quiz you didn’t study for). Once you explain the situation or challenge to admissions, focus on what you took away from your experience. Maybe you learned that you work well under pressure (and can hold three milkshake glasses in one hand!) or that you are more resilient than you realized and capable of the hard work required to heal and rehabilitate after surgery. Give yourself time to brainstorm for this prompt, because we’re willing to bet you have a few stories to choose from here.

Depending on the question, we’re looking for responses of approximately 100–200 words each. There is also one final, open-ended, additional-information text box where you can tell us anything else you think we really ought to know.

This is MIT’s version of the Additional Info essay, which means that, unless you have something crucial to explain to admissions, and there is absolutely NOWHERE else on the application for you to write about it, you should skip this essay. Think about it: if you were an admissions officer, would you really want to read one more essay per applicant? That being said, this essay is perfect for students who have encountered extenuating circumstances and need an opportunity to explain them. In fact, we recommend saving those details for an Additional Info essay, so that you can use the rest of your application to highlight other parts of your amazing personality. So, if something has happened that affected your academic performance, this is a great opportunity to give the 4-1-1 (that means “information” because, in the Stone Age of the late 1900s, we used our rotary phones instead of the internet). 

Common Mistakes to Avoid in MIT Essays

The most common mistakes to avoid making in your MIT drafts are repeating the prompt in your essay (don’t waste your words), trying to sound like an academic (admissions wants to hear your authentic voice!), and using cliches (they’re ineffective and—let’s face it—lazy).

Why Choose College Essay Advisors for MIT Essays

We at College Essay Advisors have been guiding students one-on-one through the essay writing process for MIT essays for over twenty years. We take a holistic approach to these essays, considering each student’s application package as a whole and identifying their strengths to highlight. Our Advisors accommodate each student’s scheduling needs to virtually brainstorm, draft, and revise winning essays. It’s incredibly important to us that each student’s voice is preserved, and we pride ourselves in helping students to write successful MIT essays that differentiate them from similarly qualified applicants. For more information, submit a contact form below or review our one-on-one advising services or list of student acceptances . 

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Frequently Asked Questions

MIT asks applicants to pen five (5) short essays for the 2024-25 application cycle. 

Each of the five (5) short essays should fall somewhere between 100-200 words.

Admissions is hoping to learn about your academic interests and how MIT’s offerings will suit your passions and career aspirations.

Write authentically about yourself while addressing all parts of each essay prompt. MIT wants to learn more about your academic interests, extracurricular activity involvement, community contributions, character traits, and more! So, be honest and forward-thinking, and don’t forget to complete some old fashioned research so you can weave information into your essays that demonstrates the amount of time and thought you’ve put into your application.  

The MIT essays are designed to help admissions get to know you and connect with you in a way that your test scores and grades can’t facilitate. They are an important way for them to consider the kinds of applicants who will complement their goal to recruit and enroll a diverse class who will contribute to the local and global community in the 21st century.

Yes! Since MIT doesn’t use the Common Application, you can feel free to recycle material from your Common App personal statement in your MIT essays. However, if it doesn’t fit any of the prompts, don’t force it!

Great question! Your goal should be to tell a story that provides depth and insight as to how your academic interests materialized. Without going too far into the weeds, you’ll want to dig into the details of how your interest started and/or gained momentum. The best way to decipher whether you’re perfecting the balancing act is to share your drafts with a trusted friend, mentor, or College Essay Advisor!

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How to Write the MIT Application Essays 2024-2025

This year, MIT has 5 required essays, and 4 optional essays. The 5 required essays cover a range of topics that you’ve likely already been thinking about throughout your college process: your intended major, a favorite hobby, an unexpected aspect of your educational journey, your collaboration skills, and managing a challenge.

The 4 optional essays concern extenuating circumstances in your school career. Although we typically advise you to respond to every prompt, even optional ones, these are truly optional–you should only write an essay if you actually have something to say.

Keep in mind that MIT does not use the Common Application, and instead uses its own system called MyMIT . So, in addition to the essays, make sure you leave yourself extra time to fill out your personal information and the other standard pieces of the application.

Read these MIT essay examples written by real students to inspire your writing!

MIT Application Essay Prompts

All applicants, required.

Prompt 1: What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list). Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you. (100 words)

Prompt 2: We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (150 words)

Prompt 3: While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey? (225 words)

Prompt 4: MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together. (200 words)

Prompt 5: How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it? (225 words)

All Applicants, Optional

Prompt 6: No application can meet the needs of every individual. If there is significant information that you were not able to include elsewhere in the application, you may include it here. (Many students will leave this section blank—and that’s okay.) (300 words)

Prompt 7: If you have additional information about your family that you think is important for us to know, please include it here. (100 words)

Prompt 8: If there is anything we should know about your school’s course offerings, extenuating circumstances regarding your coursework, or school’s grading system, please use the space below. (250 words)

Prompt 9: We understand that sometimes things outside of your control impact your ability to complete [standardized] tests to the best of your ability. If you have an extenuating circumstance, such as exam cancellations or illness, please let us know here. (150 words)

What field of study appeals to you the most right now? Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you. (100 words)

This prompt is the classic “Why This Major?” question, that asks you what you want to study and why you want to study it. Most importantly, it asks you why you want to study this major at MIT. Ultimately, the most compelling response to this essay prompt is one that:

• Demonstrates your passion for the major that you have chosen.
• Integrates your past and present studies and interests seamlessly with your future at MIT and your long-term academic and professional goals.
• Addresses specifically why MIT―the campus, resources, faculty, programs, and opportunities―is the place where you need and want to study.

Before you start brainstorming and drafting a response to this prompt, spend ample time exploring the various majors , or “courses” as MIT calls them, on MIT’s website. You should pinpoint a few courses of study that appeal to you and then dive deeper into what the curricular emphasis is of each course of study, what resources and opportunities are available, and which faculty might you be interested in studying with or whose research you find compelling. 

The key phrase in this prompt is “right now,” which many schools don’t include in their “Why This Major” essay prompt, but which all schools imply. This key phrase means that if you matriculate at MIT, you will in no way be required to major in the field of study that you write about in response to this prompt. You are free to choose and change your major, and most students change their major at least once during their college career.

For anyone who has many interests, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to choose just one major to write about. It is completely fine, and even expected, that you may be undecided , but spend time condensing your list of potential majors to one or two that you are truly interested in pursuing further. 

This straightforward prompt requires a concise response since it has only a 100-word limit. While specificity is still important, there is less space for detail than in the other 200 word prompts that MIT asks you to write. 

Once you have introduced the field of study that most appeals to you, you will need to discuss why this field appeals to you. The reasons that you give need to be authentic reasons; they should be based on pure intellectual curiosity, personal goals, and strongly held values. Avoid listing prestige, post-graduation salary, or your parents’ desires as reasons for choosing your major or MIT. The admissions committee wants to know what you are genuinely passionate about and why. 

Here are some key questions to consider before writing: 

• What past experiences of yours have influenced your decision to study this field at MIT? 
• What coursework or independent study have you pursued in this field?
• What classes are you interested in taking at MIT?
• Who are the teachers that you have had, thought leaders in this field, or other role models that inspire you to pursue this course of study?
• Who are the professors or researchers at MIT that you would want to learn from or work with? 
• Who are the people that you wish to serve, or whose lives you hope to improve, through working or doing research in this field? 
• How did you first discover this field of study? 
• How do you engage with this field of study inside and outside of the classroom?
• How do you envision yourself using this field of study in your future career?
• Why is this field of study personally meaningful to you?

With these ideas in mind, you should be able to write a concise response about why you have picked your major of choice and why MIT will be the perfect fit for you.

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (150 words)

First, remember that the prompt is asking for an activity that isn’t required of you . If you’re the captain of your school’s varsity basketball team, then don’t write about basketball (even if you do play for pleasure outside of school). MIT wants to know something about you that they can’t already find elsewhere in your application, something outside of your academic and extracurricular responsibilities. Essentially, MIT is asking you: “ What do you do in your free time? ”

A great way to approach this prompt is to construct a brief anecdote to illustrate your passions. Do you love reading because you enjoy imagining yourself in fictional worlds? Do you find peace in painting natural scenery? Now is a great time to describe these experiences.

Here are some examples:

• Photography – Sitting on the pier, you watch as the sky transitions from blue to yellow, and from yellow to orange. With your camera in hand, you capture the exact moment that the sun touches the horizon, the moment that the colors begin to fade into a gradient. Perhaps the sound of your camera’s shutter acts as an instant stress reliever. Or perhaps you love the ability to capture nature’s wonders from a different perspective. Either way, the vivid imagery here makes writing an anecdote a very powerful approach.
• Baking – Do you love the aroma of homemade baking? Do you love experimenting with new recipes and creations? Maybe you love the meticulousness of measuring out ingredients and combining them to form one cohesive unit. If this sounds like you, write an anecdote about how you use baking as an outlet for your creativity. Use sensory details to briefly go through the process of that new cupcake recipe you came up with, sharing with the reader your passion for innovative baking. You’ll definitely make the admissions officer drool a little bit with this one.
• Rubik’s Cube – You love the thrill of solving a challenging puzzle. Starting with no instructions, you figured out the secret behind solving the cube and how to move each square to the right place. After a few more tries, you can now solve it in just a few minutes, a reflection of your ability to quickly learn and master difficult puzzles. While this may be a “nerdier” example, don’t be afraid to let your inner nerd shine (this is MIT after all). 

What makes each of these examples strong is the employment of imagery and sensory details. Although the response must be brief, you want to make the admissions officer interested in what you love; appealing to the five senses is an excellent way to do so. Don’t tell them that you love photography, show them that you love it by transforming your answer into a story.

Be honest — don’t lie for the sake of sounding more impressive. While volunteering at the local homeless shelter may sound very humble, don’t write about that if it isn’t what you actually do in your free time. MIT can spot essays that try too hard and lying about humanitarian efforts is definitely one of those instances. 

While it’s important to be honest, make sure to also use good judgment when articulating your response. Generally, anything goes for this prompt and you can essentially write about anything you’re passionate about. But if your favorite activity is “looking at memes,” it might be better to choose something else.

While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey? (225 words)

This prompt asks you to reflect on a time when you deviated from the norm or went against expectations in your educational journey. MIT places a high value on creative thinking, so it’s no surprise that the admissions committee wants to see how you think independently, take initiative, or approach learning in a unique way. 

Understanding the Prompt

Taking a non-traditional approach to learning could involve a range of things, including:

• Pursuing a subject in an unconventional way.
• Going beyond your standard school curriculum to explore a passion.
• Challenging the expectations of teachers, peers, or even yourself.
• Finding an unexpected solution to an academic problem.
• Engaging in self-directed learning or projects that others wouldn’t have considered.

Brainstorming Questions

To help spark ideas, consider:

• Have you ever chosen a project or topic that was outside the scope of the assignment, simply because you were curious?
• Have you ever taken initiative in learning something independently (e.g., teaching yourself coding, designing experiments, or developing a new approach to a subject)?
• Did you ever step up to lead a class project or introduce a unique solution that others didn’t consider?
• Have you combined multiple disciplines or found new, unexpected applications for what you were learning?

What Makes a Good Response

A strong response will:

• Be specific : Focus on a single, clear example of how you did something different or unexpected.
• Highlight your initiative : Show that you took ownership of your learning and sought new ways to solve problems or explore your interests.
• Show broader growth or impact : Reflect on how this experience helped you grow intellectually, creatively, or personally.
• Avoid clichés : Focus on what makes your experience unique and how you broke away from the conventional path.

Example Response

“In my freshman year, I was assigned a project on the impact of technology on daily life, and I decided to build a working prototype of a smart home system. I had no background in coding or electronics, but the idea of creating something tangible excited me more than simply writing about it.

I spent weeks teaching myself how to code in Python and wiring sensors to detect motion and light. Through countless trials and errors, I built a system that turned lights on and off based on movement, going well beyond the project expectations. But I couldn’t help myself–the deeper I dove, the more I realized that I thrive on hands-on, self-directed learning.

This experience taught me that sometimes the most rewarding path is the one I create for myself—one that challenges me to stretch beyond what’s expected.”

This response works because it tells a specific, tangible, detailed personal story of how the student went beyond expectations. The essay also connects to the student’s growth more generally, by highlighting their curiosity, willingness to learn independently, and problem-solving skills—all qualities that align with MIT’s values.

MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together. (200 words)

For this prompt, MIT wants to see your selfless side by looking at the strategies you take to help those around you. Don’t panic if you haven’t saved hundreds of lives or discovered the cure for cancer; as the prompt suggests, helping your community can be as simple as lending a shoulder for your friend to cry on. Your community can be practically any group from family, neighbors, classmates, sports team, etc.

Whether big or small, think of a time that you made a positive impact on one or more people. Maybe you have experience volunteering at the Red Cross or at your local retirement home. Or maybe you founded a club at your school with the goal of bringing education to children in need. No matter what the cause is, show the admissions officers your generosity and willingness to make a difference in your community.

Here are a few more examples:

• Tutoring a Teammate – One of your cross country teammates said that she was struggling in her Algebra 2 class, and was worried about failing. She didn’t see the point of math and thought she was just “bad” at it. You volunteered to tutor her for free on a weekly basis. After just a month of your tutoring sessions, your teammate got her first A on a test. This sparked your interest in teaching math, as you were able to get your teammate to not only understand math concepts, but also appreciate them.
• Food Waste Campaign – You noticed your school cafeteria was generating tons of daily food waste, so you created a campaign to implement a compositing system and encourage students to reduce their waste. You gathered a team to research different composting services, contact your principal and the school board, and create educational materials on how to compost correctly. The program was successful at your school and diverted several tons of food from the landfill weekly. You’re currently working on getting the system implemented across the district.

What both of these examples succeed at doing is describing the impact that an action has on others. Whether it be putting a smile on someone’s face or preventing a child from contracting a deadly disease, remember to show the reader what the outcome of your efforts were. Tying in your personal development is another great way to heighten the magnitude of your contribution, as it gives your actions more significant personal meaning. Ask yourself: How did you grow from this experience? What changes did you see?

How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it? (200 words)

The idea of this prompt is similar to the archetypal “ Overcoming a Challenge ” prompt. Whether it is a personal situation or a challenge, MIT wants to know how you handle difficult situations that suddenly arise and what you learn from such experiences.

You want to construct an anecdote that goes through both the situation and/or challenge and your thought process. When crafting your response, start by briefly describing the situation or challenge, making sure to answer the question, “ What was so significant about this event? ” Next, go into detail about the steps you took to approach the unexpected event and how you went about this process.

Make sure to discuss the outcome of the situation and show the admissions officer how you matured from this experience, specifically identifying what you have learned from this experience. The most common mistake students make is to focus too much on the situation or challenge, rather than their thought process, emotions, and their growth.

As you brainstorm and begin drafting your response, here are some guided questions to get you thinking:

• Why was this challenge so important to you? What is the significance?
• At that moment, what was your reaction to the situation? How did it affect you (thoughts, emotions)?
• Were the steps you took to manage the situation successful? Why or why not?
• How did this challenge allow you to grow and mature as an individual?

Try to avoid “challenges” that are too trivial; although you may be upset that you got a B on that one calculus test, this is not a significant enough challenge to analyze. For this prompt, it’s important to demonstrate personal growth and maturity, as this shows your capacity to adapt to difficult environments.

You should also try to avoid challenges that are cliché , such as:

• A sports injury
• Working hard in a difficult class
• Adjusting to a new culture or school
• Facing tragedy (death, illness, abuse)
• Romantic relationships and breakups

These tend to be very common experiences that have a predictable outcome, often focus too much on the challenge instead of your growth, or are simply inappropriate topics for your essay. Of course, you can still choose to write on a common topic if you feel that you can write something especially meaningful, but it’s better to find a more original experience to share.

You can, however, “spin” a cliche topic. For example, the “sports injury” essay tends to go: you get injured, can’t play, have to go through rehab, and you eventually get back on the field and succeed. A more unique approach would be to talk about how your injury led you to start a blog while you were recovering, and that became a big passion. Or, how your injury made you realize that you actually liked the strategy of the sport more than the actual sport, which led to your interest in competitive chess.

Here are some good examples:

• You had to switch positions last-minute on your Model UN simulation of the Nuremberg Trials. You’d researched and prepared your arguments for months, but a delegate showed up late, so you needed to represent the opposite side you’d prepared for. Instead of panicking, you gather as much info as you can in a short time to argue the other perspective. When it’s your turn to speak, you blank out, however, and the Committee Director says they’ll come back to you. You take a deep breath, refocus, and re-outline your notes. When it’s time to speak again, you present a confident and articulate argument. The experience teaches you the importance of both preparation and adaptability.
• You are passionate about robotics and wanted to start a competitive robotics club at your school. You gathered a group of interested students and began the process of getting the club approved by the administration. To your disappointment, your club was rejected. Instead of accepting defeat, you and your peers petitioned the school in hopes of having the board members reconsider their decision. While you didn’t ultimately win over the school board, you discovered your talent for persuasive speaking in the process, and decided to join the Debate Team. You’ve since won several awards and even got to give a local TED Talk.

Prompt 6 (Optional)

No application can meet the needs of every individual. if there is significant information that you were not able to include elsewhere in the application, you may include it here. (many students will leave this section blank—and that’s okay.) (300 words).

This is your typical “ Additional Information ” prompt, and while we usually recommend that you fill out all optional prompts, this is an exception. As MIT says themselves, many students won’t need this space to complete their application.

However, if you have unusual circumstances or a significant experience you weren’t able to address, you should write about it here. Some potential topics include:

• Financial hardships
• Death of a loved one
• Unique extracurricular that can’t be fully explained in the Activities section

While your other essays should have a more narrative quality, your response here can be more straightforward, and you also don’t need to take up the full 300 words. 

Just avoid using this space for topics that may be deemed trivial, such as explaining that B on your transcript when you otherwise have straight A’s. Significant dips in grades for reasons out of your control are certainly fine to explain, but make sure that anything you cover here is actually a major part of your high school experience and development.

Additionally, note that MIT also has three additional optional “additional information” prompts, which are more focused. If you have some context to add about, say, your family life, you should include it in your response to Prompt 7 (although you can provide additional detail here if you aren’t able to fit everything there).

It’s important to note that in light of the Supreme Court striking down the use of affirmative action in college admissions, many colleges have added open-ended prompts that give students the opportunity to discuss their racial background. Because the ruling allows colleges to consider race on an individual basis, essays are the prime place for you to reveal your racial background and its effect on you. If you feel that your racial background has impacted you significantly, this is the place to discuss that.

Prompt 7 (Optional)

If you have additional information about your family that you think is important for us to know, please include it here. (100 words) .

This prompt is a chance to share any important context about your family that might have impacted your personal or academic life. It’s optional, so only respond if there are circumstances that significantly impacted your high school experience–most applicants will leave this section blank.

What to Include:

• Challenges or hardships: Financial struggles, health issues, or responsibilities (like caring for siblings or working to support your family).
• Cultural background: Unique traditions or family dynamics that provide context for your upbringing.
• Support or inspiration: Family values or influences that have played a significant role in your development.

What Not to Include:

• “Fun facts” about your background that you just didn’t have room for elsewhere: Going to baseball games every Sunday during the summer is a nice tradition, but that’s not the kind of thing MIT is looking for here.
• Details that aren’t relevant to understanding your candidacy for MIT: If your great-uncle is a world-renowned physicist, but you have no relationship with him, mentioning that will just come across as name-droppy.

Example Response:

“As the oldest of four siblings in a single-parent household, I’ve always had significant responsibilities at home, from helping with homework to working part-time to contribute financially. These experiences have shaped my time management and leadership skills, and showed me the importance of committing to supporting your family. Although balancing these duties with schoolwork has been challenging, it’s also fueled my motivation to succeed academically, knowing I’m setting an example for my younger siblings.”

Note that this response doesn’t just list what happened, but also highlights skills the student learned that will help them succeed at MIT. Overall, your response should be more factual than a typical supplement, but you should still give admissions officers some sense of why this story matters for understanding what kind of MIT student you’d be.

Prompt 8 (Optional)

If there is anything we should know about your school’s course offerings, extenuating circumstances regarding your coursework, or school’s grading system, please use the space below. (250 words) .

This prompt is an opportunity to provide any relevant context about your high school’s curriculum or grading system, or any challenges you’ve faced that might have impacted your academic performance. The admissions committee wants to understand your academic journey within the context of what was available or possible at your school.

Like the prompt above, only respond here if there’s something genuinely unique about your academic background. Admissions officers know that no two high schools are exactly the same, and that every high schooler hits a bump here or there. You should only use this space if something has significantly impacted your education.

Finally, do remember that your guidance counselor will be sending MIT a school report, which contains general information about your school’s academic offerings, grading system, and so on. You don’t want to waste admissions officers’ time by making them read the same thing twice, so you might want to ask your counselor to see a copy of the school report, so that you can provide them with meaningful elaboration rather than being redundant.

• Limited course offerings: If your school doesn’t offer AP/IB classes, honors courses, or electives in your area of interest.
• Extenuating circumstances: If health issues, personal challenges, or unexpected events affected your ability to take certain courses or perform your best.
• Grading system details: If your school uses a unique grading scale (e.g., no letter grades, or non-traditional GPA calculations), this is the place to explain.
• Standard “quirks”: Not using weighted GPA or assigning class rank are both very common, and thus don’t require additional explanation.
• Circumstances that are typical for high schoolers: Juggling extracurriculars and coursework is something most high schoolers do, so you don’t want to discuss that, unless there is additional detail that is truly unique to your circumstances–for example, your basketball coach being fired due to mistreating players, and the stress that placed on you impacting your performance in school, would be worth writing about.

“My high school offers a limited selection of AP courses, with only five available, and none in computer science. As a result, I wasn’t able to pursue the topic in as much depth as I would have liked. Despite these limitations, I supplemented my education by enrolling in online courses in computer science and attending local STEM workshops to explore my interests more deeply.”

Note that, like in the sample response for Prompt 7, there is also a positive element to this response. Resilience is one of the qualities admissions officers prize most, so any time you discuss an obstacle you’ve faced, you ideally want to also mention how you hurdled that obstacle, to highlight positive attributes that speak to your potential for success at MIT.

Prompt 9 (Optional)

We understand that sometimes things outside of your control impact your ability to complete [standardized] tests to the best of your ability. if you have an extenuating circumstance, such as exam cancellations or illness, please let us know here. (150 words) .

Since MIT requires all applicants to submit standardized test scores, unlike the many schools which have remained test-optional , they are giving you an opportunity to explain any extenuating circumstances that affected your ability to take or perform well on the SAT or ACT. 

Again, don’t put something here just for the sake of it, and if you do have something to share, be clear and concise in describing the situation–focus on the facts.

• Exam cancellations : If test dates were canceled due to natural disasters or other events.
• Health-related issues : If illness or another medical situation impacted your performance on the exam day.
• Personal or family circumstances : If significant personal or family challenges interfered with your ability to prepare for or take the tests.
• Challenges many students face: Nearly everyone has trouble carving out time to study while also completing their schoolwork.
• Excuses for a poor performance: You don’t want to say things like “I would have done better, but….” Take ownership of your score, and if there are legitimate, concrete reasons you didn’t do as well as you think you’re capable of, share them, but don’t aimlessly speculate.

“Several SAT test dates in my area were canceled during my junior winter due to severe weather conditions, so I had limited opportunities to take the exam. My original plan was to take the SAT once in my junior year and once in my senior year, but because of these cancellations, I was only able to take it in my senior year.”

Unlike with the prior optional prompts, you don’t necessarily need to have a positive spin here. Just list the facts that impacted your ability to do as well as you would have liked on the SAT or ACT.

Where to Get Your MIT Essays Edited For Free

Do you want feedback on your MIT essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve 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!

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How To Answer MIT's 2023/24 Application Essays: Tips & Insights

What's New in 2023/24

What Are MIT's Essay Prompts?

Short Answer Questions

General Guidelines

The MIT essays are crucial to your application, offering a window into your character and aspirations. Highlight your unique experiences, challenges faced, and lessons learned. Approach these essays with authenticity, genuine introspection, and a focus on how you align with MIT's ethos. Ensure your essays resonate with MIT's pioneering spirit, showcasing not just your academic excellence but also your potential contributions to the MIT community. Our expert review services and consultations are here to guide and support you in this journey.

What did MIT students write their college application essays about?

MIT’s 2023/24 Essay Updates: What's Changed?

Securing a place at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) , with its acceptance rate of approximately 4% , is an extraordinary feat. In the realm of elite college admissions, your essays are instrumental in illuminating your unique journey and alignment with MIT's ethos.

Each academic year, top-tier institutions like MIT meticulously refine their application process to ensure they gain a holistic understanding of their prospective students. For the 2023/24 admissions cycle, MIT has introduced several significant modifications to its essay questions .

The first notable change is the introduction of a prompt that asks applicants to select their desired field of study from a drop-down list and elaborate on why this field at MIT appeals to them. This change underscores MIT's commitment to understanding applicants' academic passions and reasons for choosing MIT as their ideal educational destination.

While the second question remains consistent, focusing on personal activities pursued for pleasure, the third question has been reworded for clarity. It now emphasizes the world the applicant hails from — its opportunities, experiences, and challenges, and its influence on their aspirations. This revision showcases MIT's interest in understanding applicants’ diverse backgrounds and experiences.

The fourth question has evolved to spotlight collaboration, not just in the context of community contributions but also in terms of mutual learning. Although rooted in understanding how applicants handle unexpected challenges, the fifth question now emphasizes the lessons derived from such experiences.

These updates reflect MIT's continuous efforts to evolve its admissions strategy, emphasizing the diverse experiences, aspirations, and values that applicants would infuse into its vibrant academic community.

What Are MIT’s Essay Prompts for 2023/24?

For the 2023/24 application cycle, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has meticulously crafted specific essay prompts to understand its applicants better. These prompts explore your academic inclinations, personal narratives, collaborative experiences, and resilience in facing challenges. Applicants will need to answer all five questions, with responses ranging from 100 to 200 words each, through the MyMIT application portal .

Short Answer Essay Questions

MIT's short answer questions provide insights into your academic interests, personal pursuits, background, and experiences.

• Field of Study : What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you.
• Pleasure Activities : We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.
• Personal Background : How has the world you come from—including your opportunities, experiences, and challenges — shaped your dreams and aspirations?
• Collaborative Experiences : MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together.
• Unexpected Challenges : How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?

With an acceptance rate of around 4% , MIT's application process is highly competitive. These prompts give applicants a golden opportunity to highlight their academic passions, personal growth, collaborative spirit, and the unique perspectives they'll introduce to the MIT community.

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How to Answer MIT’s Essay Questions?

“what field of study appeals to you the most right now (note: applicants select from a drop-down list.) tell us more about why this field of study at mit appeals to you.”, - 100 to 200 words.

MIT, at its core, is an institution that thrives on innovation, research, and pushing the boundaries of knowledge. This prompt aims to understand your academic inclinations, passions, and how they align with MIT's offerings . It's an opportunity to showcase your intellectual curiosity and eagerness to delve deep into a specific field at one of the world's premier institutions.

Choosing Your Field

Begin by reflecting on:

• Your academic interests and passions
• Courses or projects that have particularly resonated with you
• Articulating the appeal of the field of study you selected from the drop-down list
• Future aspirations and how they align with the chosen field

Once you've identified your desired field of study, delve into:

• Why this field intrigues you : Is it the challenges it presents, its potential impact on society, or personal experiences that have drawn you to it?
• MIT's Unique Offerings : Research specific courses, professors, research opportunities, or facilities at MIT that make it the ideal place to pursue this field.
• Future Aspirations : How does studying this field at MIT align with your long-term goals, be it in research, entrepreneurship, or any other endeavor?

Being Specific and Demonstrative

Avoid generic statements. Instead, demonstrate your genuine interest by mentioning specific courses, labs, professors, or projects at MIT that align with your interests. Showcase your understanding of the field and how MIT's offerings stand out.

• "As someone deeply fascinated by quantum mechanics, the research being done at MIT's Center for Theoretical Physics, especially under Prof. XYZ, aligns perfectly with my aspirations. The blend of theoretical understanding and practical applications offered by MIT's courses would provide the ideal foundation for my goal of contributing to quantum computing solutions."
• "Biomedical engineering at MIT stands out due to its interdisciplinary approach. The opportunity to work at the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES) and collaborate with experts from various fields is precisely the kind of environment I seek to develop solutions for pressing medical challenges."

MIT's first prompt is your chance to demonstrate your academic interests and your understanding of what MIT offers in your chosen field. It's about showcasing your passion for the subject, awareness of MIT's unique strengths, and a vision for your future . Approach this essay with thorough research, genuine enthusiasm, and a clear understanding of why MIT is the best place to delve deep into your chosen field.

“We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.”

MIT is keen on understanding the multifaceted nature of its applicants. Beyond academic achievements and extracurricular commitments, this prompt seeks to uncover what genuinely brings you joy, relaxation, or fulfillment . It's an opportunity to showcase a side of you that might not be evident in the rest of your application.

Identifying Your Source of Pleasure

Begin by reflecting on activities or moments that bring you genuine happiness. This could be:

• Simple joys like reading a book, cooking a new recipe, or stargazing
• Engaging in hobbies such as photography, gardening, or playing a musical instrument
• Spending quality time with family, pets, or immersing yourself in nature
• Delving into philosophical thoughts, writing poetry, or journaling

Articulating the Significance

Once you've identified your source of pleasure, delve into why it's meaningful:

• Personal Growth : Does this activity offer introspection, relaxation, or a break from routine?
• Skill Development : Perhaps it's a hobby where you've honed a particular skill or discovered a new passion.
• Emotional Connection : Maybe it's an activity that connects you to cherished memories, people, or places.

Being Authentic and Personal

Avoid reiterating activities already mentioned in your application. Focus on personal experiences, feelings, and motivations behind your chosen activity. The aim is to offer a glimpse into your personal life, values, and what truly matters to you.

• "Every Sunday, I bake bread from scratch. The rhythmic kneading, the aroma of fresh bread, and the joy of sharing it with my family transports me to my grandmother's kitchen – a haven of love and warmth."
• "Late at night, I often find myself sketching. It's not about creating a masterpiece but capturing fleeting moments, emotions, and thoughts on paper. It's therapeutic, a silent conversation between my heart and hand."

MIT's second prompt is a canvas for you to paint a picture of your joys and passions. It's about showcasing the activities or moments that offer solace, happiness, or fulfillment. Approach this essay sincerely, detailing the emotions and motivations behind your chosen activity and providing a window into your world beyond academics and obligations .

“How has the world you come from — including your opportunities, experiences, and challenges — shaped your dreams and aspirations?”

MIT seeks students who are academically driven and deeply influenced by their surroundings and experiences. This prompt aims to understand the interplay between your environment and personal growth, aspirations, and dreams . It's an opportunity to showcase how your unique experiences have molded your ambitions and how you envision channeling them at MIT.

Reflecting on Your Background

Begin by considering:

• The community or environment you grew up in
• Key experiences, opportunities, or challenges that have had a significant impact on your life
• How these factors have influenced your goals and aspirations

Narrating Your Journey

Once you've introspected on your background, focus on:

• Specific anecdotes or experiences that were turning points in your life
• The lessons you've learned from these experiences and how they've shaped your perspective
• How these experiences have influenced your academic and personal aspirations

Connecting to MIT's Environment

Reflect on how your unique background and experiences will contribute to MIT:

• How do your dreams align with MIT's mission and values?
• Are there specific programs or initiatives at MIT that resonate with your journey and aspirations?
• "Growing up in a multicultural neighborhood in NYC exposed me to many cultures and languages. This dynamic environment ignited my passion for urban planning, and I aspire to create inclusive urban spaces. At MIT, I aim to leverage the resources in the Urban Studies and Planning department to bring my vision to life."
• "Having a father who served as a firefighter instilled in me a deep respect for public service and the sacrifices it entails. This inspired my interest in chemical engineering, with a goal to develop advanced safety equipment. MIT's cutting-edge research facilities would be the ideal platform for my endeavors."

MIT's third prompt is about introspection and understanding the symbiotic relationship between your environment and aspirations. It's about showcasing the influences that have shaped you and how you plan to channel them into meaningful contributions at MIT . Approach this essay with authenticity, clarity, and a clear vision of how your unique experiences align with MIT's ethos and offerings.

“MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together.”

MIT is renowned for its collaborative ethos, where students from varied backgrounds come together to innovate and solve real-world problems. This question seeks to understand your ability to collaborate, learn from diverse perspectives, and contribute to a collective goal .

Identifying Your Collaboration

• Instances where you've worked with individuals from different backgrounds or experiences
• The dynamics of the collaboration — how did you navigate differences, and what was the shared goal?
• The outcomes and impact of this collaboration on you and the broader community

Narrating the Experience

Once you've identified a significant collaboration, delve into:

• The challenges faced and how they were overcome
• The lessons learned and how they have shaped your perspective on teamwork and diversity
• The tangible outcomes, whether it's a project, an event, or a community initiative

Consider how this experience prepares you for MIT's collaborative environment:

• Are there specific groups, clubs, or initiatives at MIT where you see yourself contributing?
• How have your past collaborations equipped you for future teamwork at MIT?
• "Collaborating with international students in my school's Model UN club, I learned the importance of understanding diverse perspectives. Together, we organized a cultural exchange event, bridging gaps and fostering a sense of unity in our community."
• "Volunteering at a local shelter, I worked alongside individuals from different socioeconomic backgrounds. This collaboration taught me the value of empathy and the power of collective effort. Together, we initiated a fundraiser that provided resources for the shelter's expansion."

MIT's fourth prompt is about understanding the power of collaboration in diverse settings. It's about showcasing how you've embraced diversity, learned from it, and contributed to collective goals. Approach this essay with authenticity, clarity, and a clear vision of how your collaborative experiences will enrich the MIT community and your future endeavors.

“How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?”

MIT is interested in your resilience, adaptability, and problem-solving skills . This question seeks to understand how you handle unexpected challenges and what insights you gain from such experiences.

Identifying Your Unexpected Challenge

Reflect on:

• A situation that caught you off-guard or was unforeseen
• The immediate emotions and thoughts you experienced
• The steps you took to address or navigate the situation

Narrating Your Response

Once you've pinpointed the challenge:

• Describe the context and the unexpected challenge succinctly.
• Detail your thought process and actions in response to the challenge.
• Highlight any external support or resources you sought or utilized.

Drawing Lessons and Growth

Conclude by reflecting on the following:

• The insights or lessons you derived from the experience
• How the challenge and your response have influenced your subsequent actions or mindset
• Any skills or perspectives you developed that will be beneficial in future endeavors, especially at MIT
• "While leading a group project on environmental conservation, a key member, responsible for the data analysis, unexpectedly dropped out a week before the deadline. I had to quickly redistribute tasks, manage team morale, and ensure the project's timely completion. This experience taught me the importance of adaptability, clear communication, and contingency planning."
• "During my junior year, I faced a sudden health challenge that required hospitalization, disrupting my academic routine. Navigating this unexpected hurdle, I reached out to teachers for extensions, prioritized my well-being, and sought peer assistance for notes. This ordeal underscored the value of seeking help, being compassionate towards oneself, and the importance of a supportive community."

MIT's fifth prompt offers a window into your character, resilience, and problem-solving abilities. You demonstrate your capacity to adapt, learn, and grow by detailing an unexpected challenge and your response to it. Approach this essay with honesty, introspection, and a focus on personal growth, showcasing how such experiences have prepared you for the rigors and unpredictability of life at MIT .

How Bobby Got Into MIT with Crimson

General Guidelines for Answering MIT's Essay Questions

• Research and Specificity : MIT's essay prompts aim to understand your fit within its innovative and diverse community. Dive deep into MIT's offerings, from courses and professors to clubs and research opportunities. Demonstrating your knowledge about MIT specifics indicates genuine interest and a proactive approach.
• Show Growth and Resilience : MIT values students who can adapt and grow from challenges. When discussing unexpected situations or your background, emphasize the events and lessons learned and how they've shaped your perspective.
• Diversity of Experience : MIT's community thrives on diverse experiences and viewpoints. Highlight how your unique background, challenges, or interests will add a fresh perspective to classroom discussions and group projects.
• Be Authentic : Authenticity is paramount. Write from the heart, focusing on genuine experiences and aspirations. Authentic narratives resonate more than manufactured stories tailored to what you think MIT wants to hear.
• Depth Over Breadth : Given the word constraints, it's essential to delve deep into a few topics rather than skimming over many. This approach offers a richer insight into your character and experiences.
• Narrative Storytelling : Engaging narratives can make your essay memorable. Whether discussing a community project or a personal challenge, a well-told story can convey your character and values effectively.
• Proofread and Revise : Ensure your essays are polished and articulate. Beyond just grammar, your essays should have a logical flow and effectively communicate your thoughts. Feedback from trusted individuals can be invaluable.
• Connect to MIT's Ethos : Always tie your responses back to how you'll contribute to MIT and how MIT's ethos and resources align with your goals. This shows a forward-thinking approach, emphasizing how you see MIT as being instrumental to your personal growth and vocational aspirations.
• Embrace the MIT Spirit : MIT is known for its innovative spirit and problem-solving approach. Use the essays to showcase how you embody these qualities through past experiences or future aspirations.
• Reflect on the Broader Impact : MIT is about improving the world through science, technology, and other fields. Ensure your essays reflect personal growth and how you aim to make a broader impact in your chosen field or community.

MIT's essays are a window into your personality, aspirations, and fit for the institution. By thoughtfully crafting your responses and showcasing your alignment with MIT's values and ethos, you can effectively convey why you'd be a valuable addition to the MIT community.

Final Thoughts

Embarking on the journey to MIT isn't solely about showcasing academic prowess; it's about weaving a narrative that aligns with MIT's pioneering spirit and the admissions committee's values. Your essays provide a unique opportunity to spotlight your character, aspirations, and the distinct contributions you'll bring to the MIT community.

Every MIT aspirant has a unique story waiting to be told. This is your moment to share yours. Approach your essays with authenticity, introspection, and a genuine passion for your narrative.

If you're unsure whether your essay truly captures your essence or stands out amidst the myriad of applications, our essay review service is here to guide you. Our seasoned experts will meticulously review and provide feedback, ensuring your essay resonates with MIT's admissions officers. Explore our  ebook , which features essays from students who secured places at elite institutions for added inspiration.

For those beginning their college application journey, consider booking a free consultation with our experienced college counselors. We're dedicated to guiding you in crafting an application that maximizes your chances of joining the ranks of MIT's innovative thinkers and doers. Your dream of becoming part of the MIT legacy is within reach, and we're here to support you every step of the way.

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• Acing your College Application Essay: 5 Expert Tips to Make it Stand Out from the Rest
• How to Tackle Every Type of Supplemental Essay
• 2023-24 Common App Essay Prompts
• What are the Most Unusual US College Supplemental Essay Prompts?

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4 Top Tips for Writing Stellar MIT Essays

College Essays

For the 2021-2022 admissions cycle, MIT admitted about 4% of applicants. If you want to be one of these lucky few, you'll need to write some killer MIT essays as part of your own Massachusetts Institute of Technology application.

In this article, we'll outline the MIT essay prompts and teach you how to write MIT supplemental essays that will help you stand out from the thousands of other applicants.

What Are the MIT Essays?

Like most major colleges and universities, MIT requires its applicants to submit essay examples as part of your application for admission.

MIT has its own application and doesn't accept the Common Application or the Coalition Application. The MIT essay prompts you'll answer aren't found on any other college's application.

There are four MIT supplemental essays, and you'll need to answer all four (approximately 200 words each) on various aspects of your life: a description of your background, what you do for fun, a way that you contribute to your community, and a challenge that you have faced in your life.

The MIT essay prompts are designed specifically to get to the heart of what makes you you . These essays help the admissions committee get a holistic picture of you as a person, beyond what they can learn from other parts of your application.

2022-2023 MIT Essay Prompts

The MIT supplemental essays are short, and each one addresses a different aspect of your identity and accomplishments.

You'll submit your essays along with an activities list and a self-reported coursework form as Part 2 of your MIT application. MIT structures its application this way because they rely on a uniform application to help them review thousands of applicants in the most straightforward and efficient way possible.

You need to respond to all five of the MIT essay prompts for your application.

Here are the 2022-2023 MIT essay prompts:

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.

Describe the world you come from (for example, your family, school, community, city, or town). How has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations?

MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds and experiences together to better the lives of others. Our students work to improve their communities in different ways, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to being a good friend. Describe one way you have collaborated with people who are different from you to contribute to your community.

Tell us about a significant challenge you’ve faced (that you feel comfortable sharing) or something that didn’t go according to plan. How did you manage the situation?

Now that we know what the prompts are, let's learn how to answer them effectively.

MIT Essays, Analyzed

In this section, we'll be looking at each of the five MIT essays in depth.

Remember, every applicant must answer every one of the MIT essay prompts , so you don't get to choose which essay you would like to write. You have to answer all five of the MIT essay prompts (and do so strongly) in order to present the best application possible.

Let's take a look at the five MIT supplemental essay questions and see what the admissions committee wants to hear from each.

MIT Essay Prompt #1

This MIT essay prompt is very broad. The structure of the prompt indicates that the committee is interested in learning about your curiosity inside and outside of the classroom, so don't feel like you have to write about your favorite parts of school.

This MIT essay is your opportunity to show a different side of your personality than the admissions committee will see on the rest of your application. This essay is your chance to show yourself as a well-rounded person who has a variety of different interests and talents.

Choose a specific activity here. You don't need to present a laundry list of activities—simply pick one thing and describe in detail why you enjoy it. You could talk about anything from your love of makeup tutorials on YouTube to the board game nights you have with your family. The key here is to pick something that you're truly passionate about.

Don't feel limited to interests relating to your potential major. MIT's second prompt is all about that, so in this first prompt forget about what the school "wants to read" and be yourself! In fact, describing your experience in or passion for a different field will better show that you're curious and open to new ideas.

MIT Prompt #2

Don't repeat information that the committee can find elsewhere on your application. Take the time to share fun, personal details about yourself.

For instance, do you make awesome, screen-accurate cosplays or have a collection of rock crystals from caving expeditions? Think about what you love to do in your spare time.

Be specific—the committee wants to get a real picture of you as a person. Don't just say that you love to play video games, say exactly which video games you love and why.

MIT wants to know about your community—the friends, family, teammates, etc. who make up your current life. All of those people have affected you in some way—this prompt is your chance to reflect on that influence and expand on it. You can talk about the deep bonds you have and how they have affected you. Showing your relationships to others gives the committee a better idea of how you will fit in on MIT's campus.

All in all, this MIT essay is a great opportunity to have some fun and show off some different aspects of your personality. Let yourself shine!

MIT Prompt #3

This MIT prompt is by far the most specific, so be specific in your answer. Pick one experience that's meaningful to you to discuss here. The prompt doesn't specify that you have to talk about something academic or personal. It can be anything that you've done where you have contributed to any community—your dance troupe, gaming friends, debate team teammates. A community can be anything; it doesn't just refer to your hometown, scholastic or religious community.

The trick to answering this prompt is to find a concrete example and stick to it.

Don't, for instance, say that you try to recycle because the environment is meaningful to you, because it won't sound sincere. Rather, you can talk about why picking up garbage in the park where you played baseball as a child has deeper meaning because you're protecting a place that you've loved for a long time. You should talk about something that is uniquely important to you, not the other thousands of students that are applying to MIT.

Pick something that is really meaningful to you. Your essay should feel sincere. Don't write what you think the committee wants to hear. They'll be more impressed by a meaningful experience that rings true than one that seems artificial or implausible.

MIT Prompt #4

This question sets you up for success: it targets your area of interest but doesn't pigeon-hole you.

This essay is where your formal education will be most important. They want to know what kind of academic life you may lead in college so keep it brief, but allow your excitement for learning to drive these words. You are, after all, applying to MIT—they want to know about your academic side.

You should demonstrate your knowledge of and affinity for MIT in this essay. Don't just say that you admire the MIT engineering program—explain exactly what it is about the engineering program that appeals to you.

You can call out specific professors or classes that are of interest to you. Doing so helps show that you truly want to go to MIT and have done your research.

If you love playing games with kids at the Boys & Girls Club, the third MIT essay prompt is the time to talk about that passion.

MIT Open-Ended Text Box

This is one of the most open-ended options that you'll find on a college application! Here's one last chance for you to let MIT get to know the real you—the you that didn't quite get to come out during the previous four essays.

MIT wants to know exactly who you are, but, just as a word of caution, make sure your answer is appropriate for general audiences.

How to Write a Great MIT Essay

Regardless of which MIT essay prompt you're responding to, you should keep in mind the following tips for how to write a great MIT essay.

#1: Use Your Own Voice

The point of a college essay is for the admissions committee to have the chance to get to know you beyond your test scores, grades, and honors. Your admissions essays are your opportunity to make yourself come alive for the essay readers and to present yourself as a fully fleshed out person.

You should, then, make sure that the person you're presenting in your college essays is yourself. Don't try to emulate what you think the committee wants to hear or try to act like someone you're not.

If you lie or exaggerate, your essay will come across as insincere, which will diminish its effectiveness. Stick to telling real stories about the person you really are, not who you think MIT wants you to be.

You're the star of the show in your MIT essays! Make sure your work reflects who you are as a student and person, not who you think the admissions committee wants you to be.

#2: Avoid Clichés and Overused Phrases

When writing your MIT essays, try to avoid using clichés or overused quotes or phrases.

These include quotations that have been quoted to death and phrases or idioms that are overused in daily life. The college admissions committee has probably seen numerous essays that state, "You miss a hundred percent of the shots you don't take."  Strive for originality.

Similarly, avoid using clichés, which take away from the strength and sincerity of your work.

Your work should be straightforward and authentic.

#3: Check Your Work

It should almost go without saying, but you want to make sure your MIT essays are the strongest example of your work possible. Before you turn in your MIT application, make sure to edit and proofread your essays.

Your work should be free of spelling and grammar errors. Make sure to run your essays through a spelling and grammar check before you submit.

It's a good idea to have someone else read your MIT essays, too. You can seek a second opinion on your work from a parent, teacher, or friend. Ask them whether your work represents you as a student and person. Have them check and make sure you haven't missed any small writing errors. Having a second opinion will help your work be the best it possibly can be.

#4: Demonstrate Your Love for MIT

MIT's five essay prompts are specific to MIT. Keep that in mind as you're answering them, particularly when you attack prompt two.

Show why MIT is your dream school—what aspects of the education and community there are most attractive to you as a student.

MIT receives thousands of applications, from students who have different levels of interest in the university.

The more you can show that you really want to go to MIT, the more the school will be interested in your application. Your passion for MIT may even give you a leg up on other applicants.

What's Next?

Exploring your standardized testing options? Click here for the full list and for strategies on how to get your best ACT score .

Are you happy with your ACT/SAT score, or do you think it should be higher? Learn what a good SAT / ACT score is for your target schools .

Your MIT essays are just one part of your college application process. Check out our guide to applying to college   for a step-by-step breakdown of what you'll need to do.

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Hayley Milliman is a former teacher turned writer who blogs about education, history, and technology. When she was a teacher, Hayley's students regularly scored in the 99th percentile thanks to her passion for making topics digestible and accessible. In addition to her work for PrepScholar, Hayley is the author of Museum Hack's Guide to History's Fiercest Females.

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How to Write the MIT Application Essays 2021-2022

Padya Paramita

May 3, 2021

Massachusetts Institute of Technology is the dream university for many STEM-oriented students, and it comes as no surprise that it’s also one of the most selective schools in the world. If you’re set on majoring in Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Computation and Cognition, or one of the other highly specialized programs that MIT offers, it’s important to let admissions officers know who you are and what you’d bring through the MIT application essays 2021-2022 . 

Since MIT uses MyMIT , its own application system, you don’t have to worry about repeating your Common App personal statement topic here! But, this means that the essays act as your personal statement and supplemental responses all in one. Alongside conveying your love for MIT, you must take advantage of your supplemental essays to provide crucial context on your interests and background. You have five prompts to convince admissions officers why you’re an ideal fit for this highly competitive Boston institution, which only accepted 7.3% of students this year. To help guide you through the writing process , I’ve outlined each prompt, dos and don’ts for your responses, and more tips on the MIT application essays 2021-2022 .

Describe the world you come from; for example, your family, clubs, school, community, city, or town. How has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations? (250 words or fewer)

It’s crucial that you go through all of the prompts offered by the MIT application essays 2021-2022 before you decide on a topic for each of them because what you cover in this first prompt might also be a good fit for Prompt 4. And if you are invested in more than one community, then you’re in luck! Either way, your answer to questions 1 and 4 should not cover the same topic because each essay is meant to add new information about you.

A good clue on what to write here comes from the second part of the question, “how has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations?” It’s time to think about your goals again. Is there any community or group which has played a strong role in solidifying your goals? If the answer is yes, there’s your answer. Start your essay by introducing the chosen world—keep it brief as you have another segment to cover. The major focus of your essay should lie in elaborating on the connection between the topic you’ve chosen and your career aspirations. Use anecdotes as evidence to drive your point home in order for admission officers to better visualize the impact. 

Pick what field of study at MIT appeals to you the most right now, and tell us more about why this field of study appeals to you. (100 words or fewer)

This is an accelerated version of the “why this school” essay. Remember that your response shouldn’t revolve around broad categories that make MIT wonderful—everyone knows it’s a great school. Plus, you have a very tight word limit. Think about how an MIT education pertains to your goals. Even if you’re not sure what specific major you’re interested in, you should have an idea of one or two programs you like the most in order to connect your experiences and aspirations with why you’ve chosen the school. 

Research is the key to any “why this school” essay. Before you write this response, it’s important to sit down and look through the majors and course offerings. Once you’ve decided which major appeals to you, it’s time to think about your own experiences. How did your love for the field begin? How have you honed your skills in the discipline since then? If you’ve taken any challenging courses or started relevant clubs, how is MIT the perfect place for you to continue your exploration? No matter which MIT major you’ve chosen, it’s important to show admissions officers why your interest makes sense for you and that your dedication to the field is real. 

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (200–250 words)

MIT values students who are particularly invested in activities and topics that are meaningful to them, no matter what the scale. If you have a hobby that is highly meaningful that isn’t a conventional extracurricular per say, MIT is telling you to go for it. Just the introductory paragraph to most essays requires over 100 words—you might find it difficult to restrain yourself while talking about your favorite activity. In order to get your point across, you need to put less emphasis on describing the activity—limit it to one or two sentences - and more on what brings you joy about it. Why is it your favorite? How does it recharge you in a way others may not? Has it shaped your perspective in a significant way?

Since admissions officers will see your activities list through MyMIT, you should find ways to include anecdotes which will convey additional information about yourself. While you should not pick a purely academic activity or something that you think MIT wants to hear, you also should think of something beyond sleeping, eating, or hanging out with friends. Your outlook on the activity should be unique, and help you stand out among your peers.

At MIT, we bring people together to better the lives of others. MIT students work to improve their communities in different ways, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to being a good friend. Describe one way in which you have contributed to your community, whether in your family, the classroom, your neighborhood, etc. (200–250 words)

Since the prompt clearly states that there are no specific boxes which your choice of community has to check, think about a place where you’ve actually made an impact. Think about how to differentiate yourself—while service trips abroad definitely could count as community service, they won’t help paint a memorable picture of you because lots of students participate in them. You could write about the smaller circles such as your family, friend group, or neighborhood. You may have helped the community as a whole or you could have helped one or two individuals who belong to it. 

To think about the kinds of contributions to elaborate on, ask yourself the following questions:

• How have you collaborated with others in your community?
• Have you taken any risks to help others? How have they paid off?
• Have you spearheaded any initiatives towards change?
• Are there any service examples that portray your curiosity and creativity?
• Why do you care about this community? How have you shown it? 

If you choose a larger community—like your whole school or city—make sure your essay still focuses on your own contribution and role. A response to such a prompt needs to follow the classic “show, not tell” advice. Admissions officers won’t be satisfied with just “I helped my family.” You need to dig deeper and convince them through the MIT application essays 2021-2022 that you are the kind of hardworking and passionate individual who can thrive at MIT.

Tell us about the most significant challenge you’ve faced or something important that didn’t go according to plan. How did you manage the situation? (200-250 words)

MIT values candidates “ who are not only planning to succeed but who are also not afraid to fail .” When admissions officers read prompts about challenges students have overcome, they don’t want to know every single detail about the hurdle. The response should be more focused on the way the student reacted in the situation and how they’ve grown from the circumstances. Don’t pick an experience where you gave up easily after failing to do something. Your essay should highlight your strength and resilience in the face of an obstacle.

The definition of a “challenge” may vary from person to person. The keyword here is “significant.” Avoid writing about situations such as a bad grade or a sprain playing soccer that might be minor in comparison to issues other students have faced. Instead, think about an instance which showcases how your ability to recover from a struggle and proves your determination as well as humility. Instead of writing general statements, focus your essay on your actions you took during the situation and the lessons you picked up. 

This is a great opportunity to tell admissions officers about the way you respond to tough moments - end your essay on a positive note!

There is also one final, open-ended, additional-information text box where you can tell us anything else you think we really ought to know.

Next, MIT gives you a space of 500 words to describe any additional information you might wish to share with the admissions officers that has not yet been mentioned in the application. 

You should always be very careful when filling out this section. Admissions officers go through a lot of applications. You do not want to waste their time with something that could have been mentioned elsewhere in the application. It could be used to provide context on whether any unforeseen circumstances, such as illness or a death in the family, impacted your school performance. You could use it to build upon any research abstract or include your art or writing portfolio. You could also use it to address any disciplinary action that might exist on your record. 

This section is not a place to extend your essays or add to your activities list. Those word limits and guidelines exist for a reason. You absolutely do not have to fill out this section if you don’t have anything else to add. It will not make or break your application.

More Tips to Answer the MIT Application Essays 2021-2022

• Use Your Common Application Profile As Inspiration: Chances are, other schools on your list use the Common Application so you’ve already filled it out. The Common App can be a great source of letting you know the kind of context colleges want to know about you. If there’s anything that you’ve mentioned in the Common App that you haven’t gotten a chance to express for MyMIT—whether it’s mentioned in your personal statement topic or an impressive award—you may be able to include it somewhere in your response to the MIT application essays 2021-2022!
• Read the Website Very Carefully: Research is extremely important before sitting down to answer school-specific questions and the MIT application essays 2021-2022 are no different. Luckily, MIT has very detailed information for prospective students that can help you go deeper into admissions officers’ minds. Use the information given on the “ What we look for ” page to get an idea of which characteristics you should emphasize in your responses.
• Use Strong Examples : The MIT application essays 2021-2022 are all about gauging your intellectual pursuits, community involvement, and engagements outside the classroom. Since the word limits for the prompts aren’t generous, each of your essays should focus on being as specific as possible in depicting your personality and interests. Adding specific examples lets admissions officers understand your perspective better and envision the areas of campus where you’d contribute and how you’d fit in with the MIT community.

The questions asked by MIT act as your personal statement and supplemental essays all in one. So when thinking about the MIT application essays 2021-2022 , make sure your responses show your passions and perspective in a way that distinguishes you from other applicants. If admissions officers understand your context and agree with the ways you would be a strong fit for MIT, you’ll be one step closer to that acceptance letter. Good luck!

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How to write the mit essays, updated for 2024-2025, instructions.

Before you begin writing the MIT supplements, consider the following advice they provide on their website:

“Rather than asking you to write one long essay, the MIT application consists of several short response questions and essays designed to help us get to know you. Remember that this is not a writing test. Be honest, be open, be authentic—this is your opportunity to connect with us.

You should certainly be thoughtful about your essays, but if you’re thinking too much—spending a lot of time stressing or strategizing about what makes you “look best,” as opposed to the answers that are honest and easy—you’re doing it wrong.”

The key to writing a standout MIT essay is authenticity—so be sure that you are conveying your genuine convictions, voice, and personality in your writing, rather than seeking to impress admissions officers with your answers.

What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you. (approximately 100–200 words)

Explanation:

Your answer to prompt #1 should include clear reason(s) for why the field of study you select from the drop down menu appeals to you, as well as how it connects to your personal, academic, and professional pursuits. Include specific examples of courses or related academic opportunities (e.g., study abroad programs, field work opportunities, senior projects, internships, etc.) offered by MIT that are of interest to you and explain how they will enrich your study. Finally, research relevant MIT student organizations that will similarly help you achieve your goals. You should seek to engage with the specific examples you choose in a creative manner rather than simply listing them out. Ultimately, your answer should demonstrate that you want to pursue a particular area of study specifically at MIT—not just at any college. Given that the word count is limited, you should be concise in your explanation. Also, note that MIT does not necessarily offer every field of study listed as a major (or even minor), so be sure to connect your interests to a relevant course of study if the connection is not immediately evident.

Linguistics (from dropdown menu)

As an avid language learner and prospective ESL teacher, I am excited to explore the intersection between language acquisition and cognition at MIT. By taking Linguistics courses such as Laboratory in Psycholinguistics, as well as conducting research at the Scheller Teacher Education Program, I hope to enrich my understanding of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis and its real-life applications while also learning about relevant pedagogical practices. Given MIT’s strong theoretical and practical foundations in psycholinguistics and STEP’s focus on research-driven educational tools, I’m confident that studying Linguistics at MIT will prepare me to develop effective ESL resources for my future students.

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (approximately 100–200 words)

This is an opportunity to add depth to your application—while MIT wants to see your dedicated pursuit of your subject of interest, they also want to know that you are a balanced and dynamic individual. Your creativity and “pleasure” activities can demonstrate how you will bring a fresh perspective and invigorating way of thinking to your intended field.

That being said, the activity you choose to write about does not necessarily have to relate to your academic or professional pursuits, although you can certainly choose to write about a related activity if applicable. Most importantly, you should demonstrate and engage with a specific quality or value that characterizes you through the activity rather than just describing the activity itself. This can range from what motivates you to how you’ve personally grown from the activity to how you problem-solve. Be creative in your response, as this prompt offers you the opportunity to demonstrate a different side of who you are outside of the classroom!

Like many people, I started out as a quarantine baker. In the past two years, however, my passion has turned into what my mom dubs “science experiments.”

I’m most proud of my banana chia trail mix bread, which has transformed from a simple chocolate chip banana bread into a Frankenstein-looking creation (that thankfully still tastes great). To account for my mom’s diabetes, I’ve had to constantly ruminate over how to tweak the recipe. How can I replace the chocolate chips? Will coconut sugar affect taste? Is gluten-free flour less likely to spike blood sugar?

As I’ve hypothesized my way through these trials and errors, I’ve racked up our grocery bills buying almost every ingredient available at the store. Despite my mom’s consternation, when I present her with my newest experiment and see the smile on her face as she digs in to her heart’s content, it’s worth it.

While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey? (approximately 100–200 words)

As a STEM institution, MIT is seeking to admit applicants who think outside the box and dare to take risks , both in and out of the classroom. After all, unconventional thinking often makes for the best problem-solving. This prompt offers you the opportunity to demonstrate the ways you exhibit the qualities MIT looks for in applicants, including “risk-taking” and “intensity, curiosity, and excitement,” among others. You can read more about what MIT looks for here . In answering this prompt, write about an endeavor you undertook that falls outside of traditional academic pursuits or extracurricular activities. This is also a chance to shed light on your goals and aspirations—how have you already worked towards and achieved some of your goals? In what ways are you currently working towards others?

“I talked to the headmaster- he said I can stay if I want to. And I want to.”

My counselor paused.

When I decided to spend the summer in northern Nigeria teaching English to elementary school children, I’d also gotten special permission to write my senior thesis about the pedagogy of second language acquisition instead of on the biology research project I devoted most of my junior year to. A change in plans, but one my school reluctantly accepted on the grounds that I still complete and submit my research paper by the new year; they wanted to support my shifting interests.

Extending my stay by 9-months and delaying my graduation was not part of the agreed upon plan, but I knew I’d learn more about my newfound interest in linguistics immersed in a new culture and learning a new language than back home. My host sister devoted hours and hours to teaching me new vocabulary words and conjugations each night; lessons I mirrored in English in the classroom the next day.

Now, back in the U.S., I am armed with firsthand knowledge of linguistics, sure of my intended course of study at MIT, and itching to understand my experience through an academic lens.

MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together. (approximately 100–200 words)

With this prompt, you are encouraged to describe a challenge (whether physical or mental) that you overcame in collaboration with others. Note that MIT looks for a “collaborative and cooperative spirit” in potential students, offering the following explanation: “Many of the problem sets (our affectionate term for homework) at MIT are designed to be worked on in groups, and cross-department labs are very common. MIT is known for its interdisciplinary research—passionate people working across their differences to tackle big questions and challenges together. If you enjoy working alone all the time, that’s completely valid, but you might not be particularly happy at MIT.” This question is designed to help the admissions committee understand how you work with others, whether to solve problems or to enact positive change in your community. Be careful to be neither too humble nor too arrogant in your response to this question—while you should focus on your unique role in the group dynamic, avoid casting yourself as the hero or sole champion of the solution. Ideally, your response to this question should combine an anecdote with introspection and reflection. Most importantly, explain how your previous experience will allow you to better collaborate as a member of the MIT community.

At 10 AM sharp every Sunday, I eagerly wait for my Cantonese language exchange partner Allen to enter the Zoom room. Across the 13-hour time difference between New York and Hong Kong, we’ve met weekly for almost three years and discussed anything and everything that comes to mind, from parental expectations to our deepest fears.

In the beginning, I used to dread Sundays. As a U.S.-born heritage speaker of Cantonese, I knew I was making mistakes left and right every time I opened my mouth. As Allen and I continued to meet, however, my clumsy missteps were all met with a smile and a gentle correction. Saying an incorrect word changed from something I was fearful of to something that I appreciated—and sometimes even found fun. In the end, what better way to learn a language than to make mistakes? (Nothing is more mortifying, yet simultaneously motivating, than confusing window for brothel and proceeding to say that you want to re-paint your brothel.)

Whether in my weekly language exchange or in my interactions with the diverse community of MIT Engineers, I hope to continue openly communicating with others regardless of our different backgrounds, powering through any potential “mistakes,” misunderstandings, or awkward situations with the determination to use them all as learning experiences.

How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it? (approximately 100–200 words)

College is a time of growth and transition that comes with growing pains and challenges that students don’t foresee. MIT admissions officers want to see that you can face the unexpected with a teachable spirit and willingness to learn from the obstacles you face. As you answer this prompt, be sure to demonstrate your resilience, self-reflection, and initiative—the goal is to show that you take an active role in navigating challenges and looking back introspectively to develop as a person through them. Ultimately, you should describe the problem you overcame, how you reacted to the situation/challenge, what you learned from it, and how you will apply your learnings to your future endeavors (whether personal, academic, professional, or all of the above). Ideally, you should choose something that is uncommon and is not cliche—try to come up with an experience that is unique to you! Finally, strive to connect the experience to how you will contribute to the MIT community.

“Me llamo Ella y estoy en mi tercer año de secundaria.”

This sentence haunted me for weeks.

I decided to take Spanish as an elective; however, it was with no shortage of embarrassment that I introduced myself as a junior—amongst 20+ freshmen.

Every look of surprise became yet another hit to my self-esteem. Why is she taking Spanish 1? Is she that bad at Spanish? In my worst moments, I even considered dropping the class.

I knew, however, that I couldn’t let my anxieties eclipse the rewards I would glean from learning a new language—I just had to own it. We were all conjugating ir and haber incorrectly anyway. What mattered most was that I was still trying. Who cared if I was older by a few years?

Now, whenever I volunteer as an English tutor for adult immigrants through Bridges, my goal is to encourage my students by sharing my experience of feeling like I was lagging behind my peers. Although our motivations for language learning aren’t necessarily the same, we share the belief that trying to learn a new language is no less rewarding just because you’re a little older—and a little wiser—than the rest.

Optional 6th Prompt

There is also one final, open-ended, additional information text box where you can tell us anything else you think we really ought to know.

Much like the additional information section on the Common App, this prompt allows you the space to share anything you have not had the opportunity to write about in the other components of your application. Perhaps you wish to provide an explanation for a gap in your academic endeavors or anomaly on your transcript resulting from illness or other family obligations, or you want to provide more information about one of your accomplishments or activities. You can refer to our guide on how to write the Common App Additional Information section for tips on how to tackle this optional prompt.

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Massachusetts Institute of Technology | MIT’s 2023-24 Essay Prompts

Why this major short response.

What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you.

Extracurricular Short Response

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.

Diversity Short Response

How has the world you come from—including your opportunities, experiences, and challenges—shaped your dreams and aspirations?

Community Service Short Response

MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together.

Overcoming Challenges Short Response

How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?

Additional Info Short Response

No application can meet the needs of every individual. If there is significant information that you were not able to include elsewhere in the application, you may include it here. (Many students will leave this section blank—and that’s okay.)

Please note, we may not be able to access all links you share. If you have supplemental materials you would like to submit, please refer to our optional creative portfolios.

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September 10, 2024

MIT Supplemental Essay Prompts: 2024-2025

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has released its essay prompts for applicants to the Class of 2029. The Institute, one of the last highly selective universities to release its essay prompts for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle , poses five required essay prompts to this year’s applicants in addition to an optional text box in which applicants can include anything else they wish to share. So what are this year’s MIT essay prompts? Let’s check them out!

2024-2025 MIT Essay Topics and Questions

Required essay prompts.

MIT applicants are asked to answer the following five short answer essay prompts in 100-200 words.

1. What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you.

This essay is an opportunity for students to articulate the origin story of their interest in a specific discipline — a discipline that is ideally showcased through their activities section and other MIT essays (always in complementary, never redundant ways). Students should focus on how they became interested in the field as high schoolers rather than as children.

2. We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.

When answering this essay prompt, so many students choose to write about an activity that brings them joy that fails to showcase intellectual curiosity. The activity an applicant chooses need not relate to their hook that they’ve ideally showcased in other essays and their activities section. But it  must  showcase how an applicant thinks. Tie-dyeing a t-shirt isn’t an intellectual pursuit — until a student zeroes in on the math behind tie-dyeing. Do you get the idea?

3. While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey?

This is the only new essay prompt on this year’s MIT application. Last year, MIT posed a background/culture question in this slot, capitalizing on the Justice Roberts Loophole to the Supreme Court’s Affirmative Action ruling.

So why did MIT change the question? Perhaps Dean of Admissions Stu Schmill determined that including the question didn’t correlate with the Institute admitting a more diverse class. After all, in the wake of the fall of Affirmative Action, Black and Latino enrollment dropped sharply for the MIT Class of 2028 (the percentage of Black, Latino, Native American, and Pacific Islander students dropped to 16% from 25% in recent years), as reported by The New York Times .

In this essay’s place, MIT’s admissions committee instead asks students to write about something they’ve done academically that wasn’t required of them. Perhaps it’s research that they conducted at a local university. Or maybe it’s designing an independent study at their school. Or it could be taking courses outside of their school. Whichever direction a student chooses, they have to explain why, and the work should ideally relate to the student’s singular hook.

4. MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together.

MIT’s admissions committee wants to see that an applicant can play well in the sandbox with others. Too many know-it-alls apply to MIT. MIT is sifting through applications to identify students who have strong opinions but are malleable to change them when presented with differing viewpoints.

Through a specific anecdote, applicants should describe an example of a time they worked with others to address a problem in their community — ideally related to their hook so that their application sings with a singular talent rather than well-roundedness. If an applicant’s hook is environmental science, their answer will hopefully focus on an environmental issue in their community.

5. How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?

Too many applicants choose to write about tough graders or rigorous exams. It’s a mistake. MIT’s admissions committee seeks to admit students for whom learning comes easily rather than students who have to work hard to get great grades and scores. Besides, by writing about grades and tests, it implies that’s what matters to the applicant.

Students should instead focus on an anecdote that showcases their love of learning. It could be a time when an applicant was debating a hot-button political issue with a classmate in a political science course. Maybe the fellow student they were discussing raised a point the applicant didn’t foresee and for which they didn’t have a retort. So the applicant hit the library and learned more about the issue, only to come back the next day to either counter or further substantiate the fellow student’s position.

Optional Open-Ended Additional Information Textbox Prompt

MIT’s admissions committee also includes a final, open-ended text box with the below instructions and 650 words available in the text box:

There is also one final, open-ended, additional-information text box where you can tell us anything else you think we really ought to know.

In this free response, many students include their Common Application Personal Statement. So long as it fits like a puzzle piece with the MIT supplemental essays, we at Ivy Coach fully support that since any optional essay in elite college admissions should not be considered  optional . Instead, it should be viewed as an opportunity to inspire admissions officers to root for an applicant.

Ivy Coach’s Assistance with MIT Essays

If you’re interested in optimizing your case for admission to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, fill out Ivy Coach ’s complimentary consultation form , and we’ll be in touch to delineate our college counseling services for seniors.

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How to Ace the 2024-2025 MIT Supplemental Essay Prompts

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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private, four-year university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The MIT supplemental essays are a great way to show the admissions professionals what kind of person you are rather than just what your grades look like on a page. Let’s dive into what each prompt is asking of you so that you can feel even more confident submitting your application!

Before you start writing

• Each of the MIT supplemental essays should be approximately 200 words
• Remember to do some reflection on your skills and experience – these essays are meant to communicate a portrait of your authentic self.
• There is a final, additional information box where you can write anything that you want the admissions professionals at MIT to know about you

“ What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you.”

Depending on where you are in your college search right now, this might be an easy or difficult question for you to answer. For some students, you may know exactly what you want to study in college and already have an idea of what your career aspirations are. For others, you may be applying undecided, and unsure of what you want to do quite yet. For both sides, that is completely fine. Consider what interests you, and how that applies to your interest in MIT. 

Questions to ask yourself

• What are your passions?
• What have you enjoyed studying in high school?
• If you have decided on a major, why does that major interest you?
• Did your field of study influence your decision to apply at MIT? If so, how?

“We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.”

As busy high school students, this is a question we don’t often think about. Your response is a nice way to show who you are as an individual, and it allows the admissions professionals to see you as more human than just a student doing work. While 200 words may seem like a lot for this prompt, if you choose something that you are passionate about, the words will flow. You might even have to cut back on what you wrote! We always recommend free-writing, and then going back to edit once you are done. 

• What is your “go to” hobby when you have free time?
• What do you do to relax and rewind? 
• If you could spend a week doing absolutely anything, what would it be?

While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey?

While this question may initially seem challenging (especially if you do not see yourself as a trailblazer!), everyone at one time or another has done something unexpected in a good way. The prompt mentions “educational journey,” which could include a challenging class, a school club, or even an athletic team.

• How have you branched out to “do your own thing,” perhaps even surprising yourself?
• What inspired you to do the unexpected?
• Did you ever sign up for a class or club that you felt would be a challenge or make you step outside your comfort zone?

“MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds together to collaborate, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to lending a helping hand. Describe one way you have collaborated with others to learn from them, with them, or contribute to your community together.”

Whatever it may be, big or small, there is some way that you have contributed to your community. Your community could be your state, town, school, or your family. No matter which community you choose to talk about, be as authentic as possible. Think about an experience that shaped who you are as a person or how you changed someone else’s life for the better. 

• Who makes up the community you spend the most time with (remember, this can be one person to an entire group!)
• What challenge did your community face that you helped improve?
• How did you work as a team member to better a certain community?

“ How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?”

They are asking this question to see how you perform as a leader, and what your strengths and weaknesses are. This could be a big or small situation that you talk about here, but the important part is that you go into detail about how you learned from this experience and how it shaped you as a person. 

• What leadership positions have you held?
• Think of a time when you had something unexpected happen to you. How did you overcome that?
• What are your strengths when it comes to managing the unexpected?

Final thoughts for students

All of these prompts are very open-ended because MIT understands that not every student can fit into a typical student mold. This is a great opportunity for students to write their truth in each of these essays and be honest about responding to what MIT is  asking. 

There are a great number of additional things that must be submitted with your application to MIT. This includes, but is not limited to, letters of recommendation , creative portfolios (depending on your major), tests scores, activities, and academics. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to prepare and submit your very best application. 

Also see: How to respond to the Common App essay prompts

Additional resources

Once you are all finished up with your MIT supplemental essays, give yourself a pat on the back! But don’t rest for too long – once you send in your application, it’s time to get started looking into financial aid. At Scholarships360, we’ve got your back with tons of scholarships that are tailored specifically to you in our scholarship database . 

If you’re thinking that maybe the Massachusetts Institute of Technology isn’t the right fit for you, that’s alright! We also have more articles on supplemental essay prompts, from Boston University to Wellesley College . On top of that, we can help you fine-tune your college applications with guides on whether to send test scores to test-optional schools , how to write an essay about yourself , and what looks good on a college application . Good luck on the rest of your admissions journey!

Also see: How to choose a college

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MIT Essays that Worked

Mit essays that worked – introduction.

In this guide, we’ll provide you with several MIT essays that worked. After each, we’ll discuss elements of these MIT essay examples in depth. By reading these sample MIT essays and our expert analysis, you’ll be better prepared to write your own MIT essay. Before you apply to MIT, read on for six MIT essays that worked.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university in Cambridge , Massachusetts. Since its founding in 1861, MIT has become one of the world’s foremost institutions for science and technology . With MIT ranking highly year after year, the low MIT acceptance rate is no surprise. Knowing how to get into MIT means knowing about MIT admissions, the MIT application, and how to write MIT supplemental essays.

MIT Supplemental Essay Requirements

The MIT application for 2022–2023 requires four short essays. Each essay should be up to 200 words in length.

MIT essay prompts :

We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it., describe the world you come from (for example, your family, school, community, city, or town). how has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations.

• MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds and experiences together to better the lives of others. Our students work to improve their communities in different ways, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to being a good friend. Describe one way you have collaborated with people who are different from you to contribute to your community.
• Tell us about a significant challenge you’ve faced (that you feel comfortable sharing) or something that didn’t go according to plan. How did you manage the situation?

MIT changes the wording of these prompts a little bit every year. As a result, our MIT essay examples may look a little different from the prompts to which you will be crafting your own responses. However, there is a lot of overlap between current and past prompts and often the underlying questions are the same. In other words, even if the prompts differ, most of our MIT essays that worked are still helpful. Even MIT essay examples for prompts that are gone can be useful as a general sample college essay.

As one of the best universities worldwide, MIT is nearly impossible to get into without a good strategy . Even if you don’t have a stellar ACT or SAT score , your essays may impress admissions officers. Let’s briefly analyze each prompt so we know what to look for in MIT essays that worked.

MIT Essay Prompt Breakdown

1. extracurricular essay.

First, you’ll write about an activity you enjoy, whether it’s baking, doing magic tricks, or writing fanfiction. Remember, strong MIT essay examples for this prompt show genuine enthusiasm and explain why the activity is meaningful. Choose a hobby you can write about with gusto while also showing what it means to you.

2. Your Background Essay

Next, we have a prompt asking about your background. This is a classic question; in every other sample college essay, you find answers to this prompt. This question is intentionally open-ended, allowing you to write about any aspect of your background you’d like. In the MIT essays that worked, the “world” has something important to say about the author’s values or outlook.

3. Community Essay

Then, the third essay asks how you work with diverse groups to contribute to a larger community. MIT wants to see that you can work toward community goals while valuing diverse perspectives. But don’t worry. They don’t expect you to have solved world hunger—pick something that demonstrates what community means to you.

4. Significant Challenge Essay

Lastly, we have the failure essay, which seeks to answer how you persist in the face of adversity. Notice the prompt doesn’t mention “overcoming,” so this can be a time that you completely flat-out failed. Everyone handles setbacks differently, so effective MIT essay examples illustrate the author’s unique way of managing failure. It doesn’t have to be a particularly unique or unusual failure, although that may help you stand out .

How to Apply to MIT

MIT doesn’t accept the Common or Coalition Application. Instead, there’s a school-specific application for all prospective students. The 2022 Early Action MIT application deadline was November 1. The Regular Action MIT application deadline is usually January 1, but it’s been extended this year to January 5, 2023. The financial aid information deadline is February 15, 2023.

Depending on your admissions round, you need to submit all materials to the Apply MIT portal by the specified deadline.

MIT application requirements

• Basic biographical information, including your intended area of study
• Four supplemental essays
• A brief list of four extracurricular activities that are meaningful to you
• Self-reported coursework information
• A Secondary School Report from your guidance counselor, including your transcript
• Two letters of recommendation : MIT recommends one from a STEM teacher and one from a humanities teacher.
• SAT or ACT scores —MIT is not test-optional for 2022–2023!
• The February Updates form with your midyear grades (goes live in mid-February)

Furthermore, interviews are offered to many—but not all—students; not being offered an interview doesn’t negatively reflect on your application. At the end of this article, we compile more resources regarding the rest of the application. If you have specific questions about your application, reach out to the MIT admissions office .

Now that we’ve discussed the prompts and MIT admissions process, let’s read some MIT essays that worked. We have six sample MIT essays to help you learn how to write MIT supplemental essays. And, if you’re looking to test your knowledge of college admissions, take our quiz below!

MIT Essay Examples #1 – Cultural Background Essay

The first of our MIT essay examples responds to a prompt that isn’t exactly on this year’s list. Let’s take a look. The prompt for this MIT essay that worked is:

Please tell us more about your cultural background and identity in the space below (100 word limit). If you need more than 100 words, please use the Optional section on Part 2.

Although the wording isn’t identical to any of this year’s prompts, it is similar to prompt #2. Remember, essay prompt #2 asks about the world you come from, which is essentially your background. However, MIT essay examples for this prompt speak more specifically about cultural background. With a shorter word limit, concise language is even more critical in MIT essays that worked for this prompt.

MIT Essays That Worked #1

My dad is black and my mom is white. But I am a shade of brown somewhere in between. I could never wear my mom’s makeup like other girls. By ten, I was tired seeing confused stares whenever I was with my dad. I became frustrated and confused. I talked to my biracial friends about becoming confident in my divergent ancestral roots. I found having both an understanding of black issues in America and of the middle class’ lack of exposure gave me greater clarity in many social issues. My background enabled me to become a compassionate, understanding biracial woman.

Why This Essay Worked

MIT essays that worked effectively show that the author can think about the bigger picture. This author describes their experiences as a biracial woman while addressing the wider scope of racial issues. While you shouldn’t reach to reference irrelevant societal problems, MIT essays that worked do often incorporate big ideas.

In addition, this author mentions conversations with biracial friends. MIT essay examples often include collaboration and community, and this one is no different. Often, sample MIT essays about cultural background will connect that heritage with one’s community. It shows that you value what makes you unique and can find it in others.

Lastly, strong MIT essay examples display reflection and personal growth. Do you understand the ways your experiences have shaped you, and can you write about them? Can you point to areas where you’ve grown as a result of your experiences? MIT essays that worked link the topic and the writer’s personal growth or values.

MIT Essays That Worked #2 – Activities Essay

The second of our MIT essay examples answers a prompt that’s on this year’s list.

In other words, write about a hobby or extracurricular activity—and what it says about you. As we mentioned above, MIT essays that worked for this prompt aren’t all about lofty ambitions. If you don’t read textbooks in your spare time, don’t write an essay claiming that’s your hobby. Be honest, thoughtful, and enthusiastic while finding a way to make your uniqueness show through. Let’s read one of many MIT essays that worked for this prompt.

MIT Essays That Worked #2

Adventuring. Surrounded by trees wider than I am tall on my right and the clear, blue lake on my left. I made it to the top after a strenuous hike and it was majestic. There is no feeling like the harmony I feel when immersing myself in nature on a hike or running through the mud to train for my sprint triathlon or even fighting for a pair of cute boots on black Friday. I take pleasure in each shade of adventure on my canvas of life, with each deliberate stroke leading me to new ideas, perspectives, and experiences.

MIT essays that worked use precise language to appeal to readers’ emotions. Note words like “strenuous,” “majestic,” “harmony,” and “deliberate.” The strategic use of vivid words like this can strengthen MIT essay examples and heighten their impact. But don’t overuse them—like paintings use a variety of shades, you should play with the intensity of your words.

Another benefit of colorful language is conveying meaning more deeply and precisely. Well-written MIT essay examples layer on meaning: this author likes adventuring through nature as well as life. With effective diction, you can make the most of the words you’re given. Consider using metaphors like in this MIT essay conclusion, comparing life to a canvas.

Now, think about your impression of the author after reading this. They’re active, ambitious, and, above all, adventurous. We know they like to challenge themselves (training for a triathlon) but also like fashion (buying cute boots). And we see from their concluding sentence that they have no intention of slowing down or pulling back. In under 100 words, we’ve got a clear snapshot of their worldview and see their adventuring spirit fits MIT.

MIT Essay Examples #3 – Why Major Essay

The third of our MIT essays that worked answers a prompt that isn’t on our list for 2022.

Although you may not yet know what you want to major in, which department or program at MIT appeals to you and why?

This is a classic “Why Major” essay, asked by hundreds of colleges every year. Obviously, the prompt asks about your academic interests . However, it subtly asks about school fit : why is MIT the best place for you to pursue this interest? Although this sample college essay prompt isn’t in this cycle, you should read as many sample MIT essays as possible. MIT essays that worked for the “Why Major” essay prompt illustrated the author’s academic interests and motivations. Let’s see what the next of our sample MIT essays has to say.

MIT Essays That Worked #3

My first step in to the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research was magical. My eyes lit up like Christmas lights and my mind was racing faster than Usain Bolt. I was finally at home, in a community where my passions for biology, chemistry, math, and engineering collided, producing treatments to save lives everywhere.

I pictured myself in a tie-dyed lab coat, watching a tumor grow in a Petri disk then determining my treatment’s effectiveness. If I am admitted to MIT, I look forward to majoring in bioengineering and shaping and contributing to the forefront of bioengineering research.

Earlier, we said that MIT essays that worked use vivid language to drive home their point. This sample college essay is no different. Describing their instantaneous reaction, the author pulls us into their headspace to share in their delight. Following that, they show us their vision for the future. Finally, they state directly how they’ll work toward that vision at MIT.

This author points out that bioengineering aligns with their interests across math and the sciences. There’s no rule saying you can’t be purely into math, but MIT strives to cultivate the world’s leading minds. Many MIT essays that worked present the author as a multifaceted person and intellectual. If you write a Why Major essay for a STEM field, it may be worth your while to take an interdisciplinary angle.

Among other parts of these MIT essays that worked in the author’s favor is the mention of an experience. Many model MIT essay examples directly reference the author’s life experiences to connect them with their interest. For instance, this author frames their essay with a visit to a cancer research institute. We don’t know if it’s a tour or an internship—the reason for their visit is less important than the impact.

MIT Essay Examples #4 – Community Essay

At this point, we’ve gone through half of our MIT essay examples. Moving on, we’ll read three MIT essays that worked for prompts (nearly) identical to this year’s. Next, we’ve got a prompt asking about community contributions.

At MIT, we bring people together to better the lives of others. MIT students work to improve their communities in different ways,  from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to being a good friend. Describe one way in which you have contributed to your community, whether in your family, the classroom, your neighborhood, etc.

It’s very similar to this year’s third prompt, with one crucial difference. The current prompt asks for “one way you have collaborated with people who are different from you .” While past MIT essay examples for this prompt could have focused on individual efforts, now you should focus on group efforts. In particular, groups where “people who are different from you” also play key roles. This is intentionally open-ended, allowing for endless kinds of differences.

With that said, let’s continue with our MIT essay examples.

MIT Essays That Worked #4

“I’m going to Harvard,” my brother proclaimed to me. My jaw dropped. My little brother, the one who I taught to pee in the toilet, the one who played in the pool with me every day of the summer for 7 years, the one who threw me in the trash can 3 months ago, had finally realized the potential I have seen in him since he was a little kid. And I was thrilled.

He told me that after attending the Harvard basketball program, he knew that attending college was the perfect opportunity for him to continue playing the sport he loved as well as get a very good education. His end goal (this is where I almost cried) was to become an engineer at Nike. The best part, though, is that he asked me to help him achieve it. 

I was astounded that he thought so highly of me that he trusted me to help him. That night, we began discussing various fields of engineering that he could pursue, as well as the internship opportunities that he classified as “so cool.” As soon as school started, I bought him a planner and taught him to keep his activities organized. I go over homework with him and my baby brother almost every night.

I love using my knowledge to contribute to my family with my knowledge. I am so proud of my brother and our progress. I cannot wait to see him grow as he works to achieve his dream.

Perhaps while reading the prompt, you thought all MIT essays that worked discussed setting up a food bank or working at a hospital. Not so! What really matters for this essay is the impact the community has on you. In sample MIT essays like this one, we see just how important the writer’s family is to them. If your family means the world to you, don’t shy away from writing about them!

On the other hand, while many sample MIT essays discuss family, the best ones remember to center the author. It may seem selfish, but in an applicant pool of over 30,000 , you must stand out. You have to beat that low MIT acceptance rate by putting your best foot forward. Notice how the author’s feelings and thoughts show through in their interactions and reactions. Even in recounting their past with their little brother, you see them as a caring, playful older sibling. They’re thoroughly proud of their brother, his ambitions, and the trust he’s placed in them.

MIT Essay Examples #5 – Describe Your World 

The fifth of our MIT essay examples answers a prompt in circulation this year. Hooray!

This “world” is open-ended to allow writers to explore the communities and people that have shaped them. This essay calls for deep introspection; can you find a common thread connecting you to your “world”? Some MIT essays that worked discuss family traditions, other city identities, etc. Whatever you choose, it should reflect who you are now and who you want to become.

MIT Essays That Worked #5

I was standing on the top row of the choir risers with my fellow third graders. We were beside the fourth graders who were beside the fifth graders. My teacher struck the first chords of our favorite song and we sang together, in proud call and response “Ujima, let us work together. To make better our community. We can solve! Solve our problems with collective work and responsibility.”

Then the students playing African drums and the xylophones on the floor began the harmonious percussion section and we sang again with as much passion as nine-year-olds can muster. This was my world. As a child, my community was centered around my school. At my school we discovered that if you love something enough, and work hard enough for it, you can do great things for both yourself and others around you.

In the years since I left, I reflected back on the lessons I learned at school. I determined I wanted to focus on the things I love – mathematics, science, and helping others. I also want to harmonize my abilities with those of other people so that we can work together to make the world a better place. Today I aspire to work in integrative research as a bioengineer to address the pressing medical issues of today.

For those who don’t know, ujima is the Swahili word for collective work and responsibility. The most well-crafted MIT essay examples employ narrative devices like framing and theme to leave a lasting impression. This essay, for example, introduces ujima with the choir scene—which itself is collective work—then reflects on the general concept. In every sentence, this writer works with the idea of collaboration and the positive power of the collective.

Among sample MIT essays, this can be challenging if you haven’t thought critically about your past and present. This writer clearly values collective responsibility and sees their future through that lens. They speak directly to their interests and their aspirations of bioengineering. All in all, they show careful consideration of ideas that have influenced them and the direction they want to take.

MIT Essay Examples #6 – Significant Challenge

The last of our MIT essays that worked answers a prompt nearly identical to one from this year.

Tell us about the most significant challenge you’ve faced or something important that didn’t go according to plan. How did you manage the situation? 

The only difference is that this year’s prompt indicates you should feel comfortable sharing what you write about. This seems obvious, but you may be surprised how many students dredge up traumatic experiences in sample college essays. The issue isn’t that these experiences are unpleasant to read; on the contrary, they may be painful to write about. Although many MIT sample essays are somewhat vulnerable, you don’t have to write about experiences you’d rather keep to yourself.

With that said, let’s read the last of our MIT essay examples.

*Please be advised that the following essay example contains discussions of anxiety and panic attacks. 

Mit essays that worked #6.

Ten o’clock on Wednesday, April 2016. Ten o’clock and I was sobbing, heaving, and gasping for air. Ten o’clock and I felt like all my hard work, passion, and perseverance had amounted to nothing and I was not enough. It was ten o’clock on a Wednesday, but it all started in August of 2015. I moved cities in August 2015. I knew the adjustment would be hard, but I thought if I immersed myself in challenging activities and classes I loved, I would get through the year just fine.

I was wrong. With each passing month I experienced increased anxiety attacks, lack of satisfaction in any and every activity, and constant degradation of my personal happiness. By April, I was broken. Naked, bent over the toilet, sweating, shaking, choking on the tightening of my own throat, thinking “not enough, not enough, not enough.” 

It was extremely challenging to pick myself up after such a hard fall. When I finally made it out of the bathroom, I crawled to my room and read “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou. Her struggle encouraged me to rise to this challenge stronger than I had been before. I prioritized my own happiness and fulfillment, taking care of my body and mind.

I finally realized I did not have to do everything on my own, and began collaborating with my peers to finish the year strong and begin initiatives for the next year. I became a stronger, more confident woman than ever before.

Now, you may understand why this year’s wording includes “that you feel comfortable sharing.” While the author’s vivid description helps immerse us in the moment, a reader may hope they’re okay now. Again, you don’t need to strictly avoid traumatizing moments—but don’t feel obligated to share anything you don’t want to. In any case, the diction is indeed very precise and helps convey just how shaken the author was.

Furthermore, we see how the author dealt with this challenge: they were inspired by Maya Angelou. This ability to seek and find strength beyond yourself is crucial, especially in an ever more connected world. At the end of the essay, the writer notes how they’ve changed by working with others to accomplish goals. Their renewed confidence has made them even stronger and more willing to face challenges.

MIT Essay Examples – Key Takeaways

So after reading six sample MIT essays, what do you think? What are the takeaways from these MIT essays that worked? It goes without saying that you should read more sample MIT essays if you can. Additionally, when you draft your own MIT essays, take time to revise them and have other people read them.

MIT Essays that Worked Takeaways

1. discuss experiences.

The best MIT essay examples keep it real by talking about the author’s experiences. Can you think critically about how they have made you who you are? Find ways to address the prompt with your background and life experiences. You may also find sample MIT essays easier to write when they’re rooted in your reality.

2. Use precise language

Two hundred words are, in fact, not that much space. MIT essays that worked use every word to paint a vivid picture of the writer and their world. Mark Twain said it best: “The difference between the almost right word and the right word is … the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning.” Choose your words carefully to refine your meaning and strengthen your impact.

3. Reflect on yourself

In college essays, it’s all about you and your personal narrative . So don’t miss any opportunity to introspect on your experiences, community, and personal growth. Demonstrate that you know yourself well enough to point to specific influences on your worldview. We all move through the world in different ways—why do you move the way you do?

4. Be genuine

You’ve heard this a thousand times, and we’ll say it again: be yourself . While you hear all about the typical MIT student and what MIT looks for , we’re all unique individuals. As, or even more, important than good scores or a huge activities list is an accurate representation of you . Write about extracurriculars and subjects and communities that are important to you—not what you think will sound impressive.

Additional MIT Resources from CollegeAdvisor

We have a wealth of resources on how to get into MIT here at CollegeAdvisor.com. We’ve got a comprehensive article on the MIT admissions process, from the MIT acceptance rate to deadlines.

MIT Admissions

Speaking of the acceptance rate, we take a closer look at that, too.

MIT Acceptance Rate

If you’re wondering about MIT tuition and costs, read our breakdown .

MIT Tuition & MIT Cost

Finally, we’ve got a guide covering application strategy from start to finish.

Strategizing Your MIT Application

MIT Essays that Worked – Final thoughts

Placing among the top American universities, we see MIT ranking highly every year, and for good reason. By the same token, it’s very challenging to get admitted. So, in order to get in, you need to know how to write MIT supplemental essays.

We read through several MIT essays that worked and identified strengths in our MIT essay examples. Use these tips when writing your own essays to craft a strong application!

This article was written by  Gina Goosby . Looking for more admissions support? Click  here  to schedule a free meeting with one of our Admissions Specialists. During your meeting, our team will discuss your profile and help you find targeted ways to increase your admissions odds at top schools. We’ll also answer any questions and discuss how  CollegeAdvisor.com  can support you in the college application process.

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How to Write Outstanding MIT Supplemental Essays (With 5 Real Examples)

This is your complete guide to writing outstanding MIT supplemental essays.

(Step-by-step)

We all know MIT is math- and science- focused.

But MIT isn't looking for students who can just do the work (most students applying to MIT already can).

You need to be able to tackle dense STEM subjects and communicate your ideas effectively.

Which is why your supplemental essays are still incredibly important for MIT.

Let's dive right in.

How to Write the MIT Essay Prompts for 2024

According to MIT Admissions , there are 4 required MIT supplemental essays for 2024 which they ask you to answer in "approximately 200 words."

The MIT essay prompts for 2024 are:

MIT Essay Prompt #1: "Activity for Pleasure"

Prompt #1. We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. (About 200 words)

This is a quintessential "extracurricular activity" essay.

MIT wants to know what you do for fun, and how you spend your time outside of school.

But they don't want to hear about your "resume" activities. MIT already provides their own Activities Section for that.

Instead, this prompt is about sharing something that reveals who you are as a person , not just what you do.

How to Answer MIT Essay Prompt #1

Your goal with this essay should be simple:

Let the admissions officer understand exactly why this activity is enjoyable to you.

You want them to be able to understand your thought process and how you see the world.

To bring them into your world, you need to show where exactly you find pleasure in this activity.

How to Choose an Activity for MIT Essay Prompt #1

First, here's what topics you should avoid or be careful about writing:

• Activities already on your activities list. You want to reveal something new about yourself. - Generic or broad activities (e.g. "I like to read"). - Common activities without having an uncommon angle (e.g. "I like to play video games"). - A "big" activity (e.g. "I love working on my non-profit to help the homeless"). - Focus on the activity itself, rather than what ideas it represent.

Why? Because these topics are overdone and easily cliché.

Instead of focusing on the activity itself, your essay should be an exploration of an idea.

• Biking around your neighborhood? → An exploration of the unknown and what it means to be free
• Doodling extensive notes and diagrams while on plane rides? → Your exploration of imagination and elaborate daydreams
• Creating a new recipe for Thanksgiving dinner? → How exactly and at what point something becomes tradition

Here's how you can find your own unique topic:

• Focused on ideas. Ask questions like, "Why do I really enjoy this activity?" or "What ideas does this activity represent?" - Be unapologetically honest. Even if your activity seems silly or trivial, you can make it meaningful by connecting to an idea of what it represents.
• Be ultra-specific. Don't write about "drawing" or "playing the piano." Write about "drawing pictures of random people on the subway" or "writing fugal counterpoint." - A "small" activity. Something close to home. Then, connect to a bigger idea. If you like to draw pictures of people on the subway, you could write your love of questioning the seemingly mundane and overlooked.

MIT is a highly intellectual school.

They want to see that you're a strong, deep thinker who can connect the dots between seemingly unrelated things.

Here's the deal:

Focus on writing about ideas , not just the literal activity itself. What does this activity represent ? What unexpected connections can you form?

MIT Essay Example #1: "Activity for Pleasure"

Here's an example of a great response to MIT's first essay prompt.

This essay was written when the prompt was limited to only 100 words, so it's a little shorter than the current 200-word limit.

You can still use this essay as inspiration for your own MIT supplemental essays.

Prompt: We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do for the pleasure of it. (100 words max)

After combining the ingredients came an hour-long wait. I tapped my fingers, paced the kitchen, watched the clock anxiously. Time to shape the dough. Then another 30-minute wait. Stress. Dough in the oven! 40-minute wait. The aroma of freshly baked bread wafted lazily through my kitchen, impossibly tantalizing, evoking daydreams of quaint little French bakeries, ceilings stacked high with masterpieces of flour. Holding the bread to my ear, squeezing, I was reminded of the quote from Ratatouille, how great bread is distinguished by the sound, the “symphony of crackle”. Finally, finally , it was time to eat.

Why This Essay Works

• It's not a "big" activity. It's a small, everyday activity that's close to home. - It's not an activity on the author's Activity List, so it reveals something new. - It's ultra-specific: the author doesn't just say "I like to bake bread," they show us exactly what that looks like. - It has a sense of voice . The author writes informally and stylistically, without being casual.

What Could Be Improved

• Connect the activity to a bigger idea. What does baking bread represent? What does it mean to them? - Too much time spent describing the activity itself. The author could have spent more time on the "why" and "how" of the activity, which is more interesting.

I'm sure if this student had 200 words, they would have been able to expand on the "why" and "how" of their activity.

That said, this is still a great example of showing your personality through a small, everyday activity.

It doesn't need to be big or impressive. It doesn't need to be "quirky" or unique.

It just needs to be a meaningful activity that's close to home.

Then show us why it brings you pleasure. Specifically and vividly.

Allow the reader to relate to you and understand your thought process.

MIT Essay Prompt #2: "World You Come From"

Prompt #2. Describe the world you come from (for example, your family, school, community, city, or town). How has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations?

Prompt #3. MIT brings people with diverse backgrounds and experiences together to better the lives of others. Our students work to improve their communities in different ways, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to being a good friend. Describe one way you have collaborated with people who are different from you to contribute to your community.

Prompt #4. Tell us about a significant challenge you’ve faced (that you feel comfortable sharing) or something that didn’t go according to plan. How did you manage the situation?

Common App Prompt #1: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. (250-650 words)

Why This Essay Works:

This essay starts off by posing a challenge, which is typical of essays. But rather than showing how they overcame this particular challenge of speaking Romanian without an accent, this reader shows how something unexpected—baking—came to satisfy what was missing all along. By the end, this creates a conclusion that is both surprising, connected to the beginning, and makes perfect sense once you've read it. In other words, the conclusion is inevitable, but also surprising in content.

This student uses Romanian words to help exemplify the culture and language. If you're writing about a culture, using foreign language words can be a compelling way of adding depth to your essay. By including specific terms like "muni" and "cornulete," it shows a depth of knowledge which cannot be faked. Always use specific, tangible language where possible, because it is "evidence" that you know what you're talking about.

This student exhibits strong self-awareness by noting characteristics about themself, even some which may not be the most glamorous ("can be overbearing at times, stubborn in the face of offered help"). Rather than telling the reader flat out about these personal attributes, they are able to discuss them by connecting to another person—their grandmother Buni. Using another person to showcase your own character (through comparison or contrast) is a literary "foil," which can be an effective way of showing your character without stating it outright, which generally is boring and less convincing.

This student doesn't focus on surface-level ideas like "how they got better at speaking Romanian." Instead, they reflect in a creative way by connecting the Romanian language to baking. Revealing unseen connections between topics is a great way to show that you're a thoughtful and clever thinker. Ultimately, having unique ideas that are specific to you is what will create a compelling essay, and this essay is a perfect example of what that could look like.

Prompt: Although you may not yet know what you want to major in, which department or program at MIT appeals to you and why? (100 words max)

I remember boiling down cabbage with my dad to make titration indicators. When I first read about the process of translation, of rendering mRNA into proteins, my eyes filled with tears; this is what I would do, apply the chemistry that had defined my childhood to my love of biology. In the past few months alone, MIT researchers have visualized a critical growth kinase and decoded the kavalactone gene. To major in both the chemistry and biology departments at MIT would be an unequaled opportunity to explore the molecular basis of life and apply that knowledge to real-world innovation.

Prompt: Describe the world you come from; for example, your family, clubs, school, community, city, or town. How has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations? (200-250 words)

I grew up in a household with a physicist and a chemist. Our cupboards are occupied by periodic table mugs, our closets by t-shirts with taglines like “velociraptor= displacementeraptor/timeraptor”.

Underneath all the unabashed nerdiness, my parents fostered an environment of inquiry. Our kitchen moonlighted as a laboratory, complete with burets. My mom once brought home a 3D printed likeness of her own brain; I traced each sulcus in wonderment, imagining how each fold shaped her personality. My house was a sanctuary, a place where no question was too small, no claim uninvestigated.

It is precisely this background that drew me to research. Spending the past two summers in a neuroscience clinic, I found my second home surrounded by quirky med students, exhausted post-docs, and incisive surgeons. I felt more comfortable than I ever had in high school; loving science was no longer an embarrassment, but an asset. Lunch was spent in discussion about anticipatory alpha activity, and that’s just how I liked it. Though we used EEG’s in place of homemade indicators, MATLAB instead of “borrowed” dry ice, we were working towards the fundamental goal I’d spent my childhood developing: finding new knowledge.

Every one of my dreams can be traced back to my past, to individuals and experiences that have shaped the way I see the world and how I hope to better it. My parent's passion for learning by doing was passed down to me, finding its intersection with my love for the brain in one field: neurosurgery.

Prompt: Tell us about the most significant challenge you've faced or something important that didn't go according to plan. How did you manage the situation? (200-250 words)

Bluntly put, moving in high school was difficult. I remember waving good-bye to my best friend through tear-filled eyes. I remember staying up the night before the first day at my new school, dreading having to eat lunch alone. I remember crying on my birthday. Most of all, I remember hating how my life had become a movie cliche, how I had seemingly been reduced to a shell of myself by relocating 399.2 miles south.

Resolute in my desire to restore some semblance of normalcy, I started running incremental exploratory missions on this alien planet. I joined Science Olympiad, finding comfort in the companionship of fellow biology geeks. Fulfilling a longtime goal, I joined a volunteer station and became an EMT, loving the urgency of working in an ambulance and the unique satisfaction of saving a life. I spent countless hours reading papers about spinal cord stimulation, temporarily forgetting my social isolation with academic collaboration. I learned to drive, much to my parent’s chagrin.

Though I still had the occasional bad day (as do we all), things were looking up. Reluctant optimism replaced hopeless despair as I became more confident in my abilities and less reliant on the context in which I applied them. Moving compelled me to meet different people, try new things, and succeed in an environment I hadn’t grown up in. The result was resilience, a firm belief that with hard work, a willingness to diversify, and a little self-deprecation, no situation was impossible, no crisis un-manageable.

Meet the Author

Ryan Chiang

I'm Ryan Chiang and I created EssaysThatWorked.com - a website dedicated to helping students and their families apply to college with confidence & ease. We publish the best college admissions essays from successful applicants every year to inspire and teach future students.

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What do outstanding essays have in common? Here are our 23 most effective strategies based on lessons from admitted students.

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Types of Essays

Regardless of the type of school you are applying to, you will be required to submit an admissions essay as part of the application process. Graduate programs want students with clear commitment to the field. Essay prompts typically ask applicants to discuss their previous experience, future professional goals, and how the program can help them in achieving those objectives. The essay gives the applicant the chance to articulate these goals and display strong writing skills. Remember to tailor your essay to each school and the faculty committee that reviews your application. But first, take note of what kind of essay is being requested of you. Here are the two main admission essays:

Personal Statement

A personal statement is a narrative piece describing how your character and experiences have formed you into someone who will contribute positively and effectively to not only the department but the academic discipline as a whole. This is often achieved by detailing social, educational, cultural, and economic obstacles you have overcome in your journey to get to where you are today and your future objectives. A personal statement is also an opportunity to highlight what is unique about you and how you will advance diversity within the institution.

Check out Personal Statement Resources for Graduate School Applications in the Resources section of Handshake for a brainstorming activity and essay samples that can help you get started on your personal statement.

Statement of Purpose

Interchangeably called a “research statement”, a statement of purpose will prompt you to describe your research interests and professional goals, how you plan to accomplish them, and why a specific program is best suited for you to do so. Be specific about your specialized interests within your major field. Be clear about the kind of program you expect to undertake, and explain how your study plan connects with your previous training and future goals.

Use the Outlining Your Statement of Purpose guide in the Resources section of Handshake to get started on your statement outline.

How to Write a Powerful Admission Essay

Whatever required format, your essay should be thoughtful, concise, compelling, and interesting. Remember, admissions officers read hundreds of personal essays. Below are some tips for your admissions essay writing process:

Before Writing

• Read the question:  Be sure you are aware of all aspects of the prompt. Failing to pay attention to details in the prompt won’t reflect well on you as a potential candidate.
• What is distinct, special, and/or impressive about me and my life story?
• Have I overcome any particular hardships or obstacles?
• When did I become interested in this field and what have I learned about it?
• What are my career goals?
• What personal traits, values, and skill sets do I have that would make me stand out from other applicants?
• Create an outline:  You might have a lot that you want to say, but you will need to whittle down your many thoughts and experiences to a concrete thesis with a select number of examples to support it. Create an outline for your draft, not only to organize your points and examples, but to help tailor your essay for your readers.
• Know your audience:  Consider how your narrative can best meet the expectations of admissions committee members. Will faculty be reading this? Administrators? Experts in the field? Knowing your audience ahead of time will assist you in addressing the prompt appropriately.

While Writing

• Grab your reader’s attention:  Start your essay with something that will grab the reader’s attention such as a personal anecdote, questions, or engaging depiction of a scene. Avoid starting things off with common phrases such as “I was born in…” or “I have always wanted to…” Consider the experiences that have shaped you or your career decision, and delve into them with a creative hook.
• Write well:  Your essay is a sample of your writing abilities, so it’s important to convey your thoughts clearly and effectively. Be succinct—you don’t need to write out your full autobiography or resume in prose. Exclude anything that doesn’t support your thesis. Gentle humor is okay, but don’t overdo it. Also, don’t make things up! Be honest about your experiences.
• End strong:  End your essay with a conclusion that refers back to the lead and restates your thesis. This helps unify your essay as a whole, connecting your detailed experiences back to the reason you are writing this essay in the first place—to show your qualifications for your graduate program of choice.

Final Touches

• Use resources: The MIT Communication Labs have a CommKit that collects all of the Comm Lab resources relevant to the grad application process , including recommendation letters & interviews
• Revise:  Give yourself enough time to step away from your draft. Return with a fresh pair of eyes to make your edits. Be realistic with yourself, not your harshest critic. Make a few rounds of revisions if you need.
• Ask for help:  Have your essay critiqued by friends, family, educators, and the  MIT Writing and Communication Center or our Career Services staff.
• Proofread:  Read your essay out loud or even record yourself and listen to the recording, to help you catch mistakes or poor phrasing you may have missed when reading to yourself. Also, don’t rely exclusively on your computer to check your spelling.

46 Essays that Worked at MIT

Updated for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle.

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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a world-renowned research university based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Known for its prioritization of intellectual freedom and innovation, MIT offers students an education that’s constantly on the cutting-edge of academia. The school’s star-studded roster of professors includes Nobel prize winners and MacArthur fellows in disciplines like technology, biology, and social science. A deeply-technical school, MIT offers students with the resources they need to become specialists in a range of STEM subjects. In many ways, MIT is the gold standard for creativity, critical thinking, and problem solving.

Unique traditions at MIT

1. "Ring Knocking": During the weeks preceding the MIT Commencement Ceremony, graduating students celebrate by finding a way to touch the MIT seal in the lobby of Building 10 with their newly-received class rings. 2. "Steer Roast": Every year in May, the MIT Science Fiction Society hosts a traditional event on the Killian Court lawn for incoming freshmen. During the Steer Roast, attendees cook (and sometimes eat) a sacrificial male cow and hang out outside until the early hours of the morning. 3. Pranking: Pranking has been an ongoing tradition at MIT since the 1960s. Creative pranks by student groups, ranging from changing the words of a university song to painting the Great Dome of the school, add to the quirkiness and wit of the MIT culture. 4. Senior House Seals: The all-senior undergraduate dormitory of Senior House is known for its yearly tradition of collecting and displaying seals, which are emblems that represent the class of the graduating seniors.

Programs at MIT

1. Global Entrepreneurship Lab (G-Lab): G-Lab provides undergraduate and graduate students with the skills to build entrepreneurial ventures that meet developing world challenges. 2. Mars Rover Design Team: This club is part of the MIT Student Robotics program that provides students with the engineering, design, and fabrication skills to build robots for planetary exploration. 3. Media Lab: The Media Lab is an interdisciplinary research lab that explores new technologies to allow individuals to create and manipulate communication presentation of stories, images, and sounds. 4. Independent Activities Period (IAP): A month-long intersession program that allows students to take courses and participate in extracurricular activities from flying classes to volunteering projects and sports. 5. AeroAstro: A club that provides students with the opportunity to learn about aerospace engineering and build model rockets.

At a glance…

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Real Essays from MIT Admits

Prompt: mit brings people with diverse backgrounds and experiences together to better the lives of others. our students work to improve their communities in different ways, from tackling the world’s biggest challenges to being a good friend. describe one way you have collaborated with people who are different from you to contribute to your community..

Last year, my European History teacher asked me to host weekly workshops for AP test preparation and credit recovery opportunities: David, Michelangelo 1504. “*Why* is this the answer?” my tutee asked. I tried re-explaining the Renaissance. Michelangelo? The Papacy? I finally asked: “Do you know the story of David and Goliath?” Raised Catholic, I knew the story but her family was Hindu. I naively hadn’t considered she wouldn’t know the story. After I explained, she relayed a similar story from her culture. As sessions grew to upwards of 15 students, I recruited more tutors so everyone could receive more individualized support. While my school is nearly half Hispanic, AP classes are overwhelmingly White and Asian, so I’ve learned to understand the diverse and often unfamiliar backgrounds of my tutees. One student struggled to write idiomatically despite possessing extensive historical knowledge. Although she was initially nervous, we discovered common ground after I asked about her Rohan Kishibe keychain, a character from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. She opened up; I learned she recently immigrated from China and was having difficulty adjusting to writing in English. With a clearer understanding of her background, I could now consider her situation to better address her needs. Together, we combed out grammar mistakes and studied English syntax. The bond we formed over anime facilitated honest dialogue, and therefore genuine learning.

Essay by Víctor

i love cities <3

Prompt: We know you lead a busy life, full of activities, many of which are required of you. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it.

I slam the ball onto the concrete of our dorm’s courtyard, and it whizzes past my opponents. ******, which is a mashup of tennis, squash, and volleyball, is not only a spring term pastime but also an important dorm tradition. It can only be played using the eccentric layout of our dorm’s architecture and thus cultivates a special feeling of community that transcends grade or friend groups. I will always remember the amazing outplays from yearly tournaments that we celebrate together. Our dorm’s collective GPA may go significantly down during the spring, but it’s worth it.

Essay by Brian

CS, math, and economics at MIT

Prompt: What field of study appeals to you the most right now? Tell us more about why this field of study at MIT appeals to you.

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) fascinates me because it lies at the heart of technological innovation. I'm particularly drawn to developing energy-efficient AI chips, which can revolutionize how we approach computing power and sustainability. MIT's cutting-edge research, interdisciplinary approach, and commitment to tackling global challenges make it the perfect place to pursue this field. The opportunity to collaborate with leading experts and like-minded peers at MIT excites me as I aspire to create more efficient, powerful, and sustainable technology that can impact the world.

Essay by Michael Sato

Stanford EE and CS '27 (Double Major) | Energized about all things energy: energy-efficient hardware, renewable energy, and energy drinks!

Prompt: Describe the world you come from (for example, your family, school, community, city, or town). How has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations?

The fragile glass beaker shattered on the ground, and hydrogen peroxide, flowing furiously like lava, began to conquer the floor with every inch the flammable puddle expanded. This was my solace. As an assistant teacher for a middle school STEM class on the weekends, mistakes were common, especially those that made me mentally pinpoint where we kept the fire extinguishers. However, these mishaps reminded me exactly why I loved this job (besides the obvious luxury of cleaning up spills): every failure was a chance to learn in the purest form. As we conducted chemical experiments or explored electronics kits, I was comforted by the kids’ genuine enthusiasm for exploration—a sentiment often lost in the grade-obsessed world of high school. Accordingly, I tried to help my students recognize that mistakes are often the most productive way to grow and learn. I encouraged my students to persist when faced with failure, especially those who might not have been encouraged in their everyday lives. I was there for students like Nathan, a child on the autism spectrum who reminded me of my older brother with autism. I was there for the two girls in a class of 17, reminding me of my own journey navigating the male-dominated world of STEM. I wanted to encourage them into a lifelong journey of pursuing knowledge and embracing mistakes. I may have been their mentor, but these lessons also serve as a crucial reminder to me that mistakes are not representative of one’s overall worth.

Essay by Sarah J.

CS @ Stanford

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Someone with the same interests, stats, and background as you

Advice On The Essay by Ben Jones

The rules are simple: write your own.

September 25, 2007

• in Admissions ,
• Best of the Blogs ,
• Process & Statistics

I recently opened my in-box to find an email from someone who "would love to interview an admissions officer from your prestigious university to measure the impact of the admissions essay on today's college applicant." The email included a bunch of questions.

Seemed harmless enough, so without thinking too much about it, I wrote the following in response:

Essays are a wonderful way to connect with the selection committee on a human level, i.e. beyond all of the test scores, grades, etc – so we read them very carefully. Quite simply, we are looking for the applicant's true voice when we read his or her essay. Not some perfect piece of prose worthy of a magazine, or something that has been edited and edited and edited by a variety of different people. Just a voice, and therefore, a connection. We can always tell when an applicant's essay has been edited to be something other than his or her true voice.

Encourage students to write from the heart and to not have their essays edited by any counselor, service, parent, etc – I can't speak for all schools, but here at MIT, that's what we're looking for.

Best wishes, Ben

After sending the email I got curious about the URL in the recipient's email address, so I checked out the site. Turns out it's run by a "team of professional journalists" who will help you craft the perfect essay… for a price, of course. (Anywhere from a few bucks for basic proofreading to three figures for a full-blown rewrite – the irony being this: the more you pay, the less it will be your voice!)

Oooops. I guess my response wasn't very helpful to them. But hopefully it will be helpful to you.

The rules are simple: write your own essays. That's the best advice anyone can give to you. Your application is full of grades and test scores and teachers writing things about you and interviewers writing things about you and things inferred from your participation in clubs and sports and whatever else you do… the essay is the one place where you get to say "hey, I'm a human being, let me connect with you on that level, here is my voice, here is who I am." That's all we're really looking for.

To clarify, I'm not telling you to shut your parents or counselors out of the process entirely. It's always nice to have someone look over your writing and fix the things that spell-check doesn't catch, like when you spell "here" as "hear" or "their" as "there" or "they're." Or, if you're so close to an experience that you take for granted that the reader will know what you're talking about, it's nice to have someone say "don't take for granted that your reader will know what you're talking about." Stuff like that is fine.

But there's a big difference between those little things and the act of someone else rewriting your essay for you to the point that it's no longer your work – or, even worse, your voice. So don't go there.

To summarize: be yourself, and let your essay be a perfect window into that person. You're the best only person who can truly translate that into words.

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65 responses to “Advice On The Essay”

Great advice. Thanks.

Thanks for the great advice, came at a very good time too!

So true Ben. And really, I don’t get it; I *want* to be the one writing my essay, how could anyone else write what I want to say? Even though I’m not such a great writer, it’s the one part of the application that I’m actually excited to write. Although I’ll probably be singing a very different tune in a month or two, after 20 drafts of the essay, when I still can’t get my point across like I want to…

Mmmmmmmmmmmm, essays.

Uhm… Yeah… this is second thing hear from MIT about essays in two days. The first one was about MIT and several other schools(but mostly MIT) not taking SAT essay into account when decision time comes. Looks like MIT is really taking this seriously.

Great advices Ben ! A little to late for me ^^’ but still great advices !

This IS good advice. EVERYONE, FOLLOW IT.

I had a particularly awesome English teacher sophomore year, so I asked her to edit my essays. She never changed much – usually, my issues were minor grammatical errors (COMMAS) or just putting random words down. In the past I’ve written…

“Cherry personality” instead of a “cheery” one “Saving American livers” instead of “lives” Etc etc.

And then there was the optional essay, which I wrote the night of submission on a whim and therefore was not edited.

Oh applications.

BEN JONES IS GOD DO AS HE SAYS. Just a suggestion.

I SECOND THE MOTION THAT BEN JONES IS GOD.

I KEEP TRYING TO VISIT YOU BUT YOU’RE NEVER IN YOUR OFFICE GOD!

I’ve heard a story about someone who wrote that he “tortured students every day after school.”

Sort of makes you wonder if he was actually a good tutor, doesn’t it?

Ha, essays!

I kind of have to agree with Snively and Harrison on this one, Ben is God, listen to him. Write from the heart, don’t write whatever you think they want to read about. Try to make it easier for them to read your essay; reading the 1,037th essay about how your father is your biggest role model is kind of lame (unless, of course, you write a kick-ass essay about your dad that somehow stands out from the rest). Choose a topic that describes you in the most unique way, whatever it may be. My essay was a little tragic, but I know people that wrote fantastic funny essays and got into their top choice. Point is, use your essay as a way for them to get to know you!

lol! Love the irony.

Thanks a ton Ben(or God, should I say?;)!!! Its fantastic how MIT throws a completely new light onto the application essay. Hope all the applicants this season do exactly as you say.(Come on ppl!…Its “Gods wish!”..haha:D)

Thanks a lot Ben. Your advice will be very helpful to poor souls like us who are still trying to figure out what kind of essay should we write because we don’t want anyone else to fabricate our essays. By the way, though its good that you found out who those guys were (who sent that email), i hope that you don’t start doubting/ignoring all the emails your receive. Still, most of the applicants do need your advice many a times, be it through blogs or emails or personal meetings. here’s a bow to GOD. Good bye. Take care.

http://mit.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2223270251

@Sanja – MIT will not use your Literature score for the admissions decision. They only require a Math and a Science subject test, so that’s what they’ll be looking at.

Thank you so much!

I just started part II of my application, and your entry came just in time! ^.^

Thanks again! -Josh

Do you know anything about sending in essays separately? The MyMIT account sent my Part II before I’d attached the essay. Of course, it was probably just my own mistake and had nothing to do with the account, but I still want to send my essay!

And yes, a vegetable metaphor was completely necessary to express my point.

Ah, this is indeed a truly refreshing perspective.

It takes off the usual weight put on the essay by faculty and fellow students; allowing us to be ourselves.

But, alas, what if I tend to write meticulously enough for a paper to seem déjà revised?

Hey Caitlin – yikes! Probably the simplest way to send in your essay it is to send a hard copy of the essay to the Admissions Office (address is at the bottom of the page), perhaps with a cover letter explaining your situation.

You can also email or call the Admissions Office, and I’m sure someone will be able to help you more specifically.

Hi Ben, thx a lot for your advice. appreciate it..By the way, do you mind to furnish me with more information about what kind of person MIT basically is looking for?and how can i actually get to catch the eye of the admission officer when i send in my application?

I try not to give a ton of advice on here, but Caitlin, don’t worry too much. You’ve submitted your application really early, so there’s probably not a ton of paper floating around the admissions office yet. Also, they’re very understanding about stuff like this (Unlike Harvard or Stanford) so they more than likely just tell you to hard-copy it to them so they can staple it to your application. Don’t worry about this at all, Admissions is really cool about all this stuff.

essays, oh sweet *cough* memories :D

haha hunter’s comment about the typo ‘saving American livers’ (lives) cracks me up!

Hey Ben, Being an International Student, I am considering taking the TOEFL since i am eligible. I read about the minimum scores required as stated by Matt. He also stated specific scores that we should aim for or exceed. For the Internet Based Testing this particular score was 100/120. Although i know this is incomparable to the SAT Reasoning Test, I curious as to how you would compare a 100/120 in TOEFL iBT to an SAT score.

Great advice (as always), Ben. Obviously, its always better to write an original essay.

I had an enquiry about financial aid for international students. I’m an international applicant, about to apply for the class of 2012. I’m also going to apply for financial aid. On the MIT Financial Aid web site, it is stated that the first $ 5250 of the undergraduate student’s need is covered in loans and/or jobs. If there is any remaining need, then it is covered in scholarships and grants, which is money that doesn’t have to be paid back.

I would like to know whether the process of granting financial aid at MIT is the same, or different, for U.S. and international undergrad students. Is the maximum amount of need covered in loans/jobs equal to $ 5250, even for international students? Or can it be more?

In the MIT Freshman Application (PDF format), it is stated that MIT “may favor US citizens or residents in admissions and financial aid”. But it’s also stated that MIT meets “100% of a family’s calculated need”.

So does MIT meet 100% of the need of international students? If an international student’s need is large (e.g. more than $ 45,000), then will that international student get all the aid (incuding scholarships and grants) that he needs? And will scholarships and grants be the major aid component? (More than $ 39,750 in the example above.)

I’ll be glad if someone here can answer my queries.

hey, thanks for the advice!

I’ve recently been getting frustrated over the MIT essay topics because they do confine you into choosing one topic or the other, thus ruling out an essay that I wrote for my other top choices that I’m really sure represents me well.

so I’m just curious – why did MIT choose these two topics specifically, and do you know how the admissions at MIT would review essays differently than, say, Harvard, which does give you the option to choose “A topic of your choice”?

@Emma Hi! I’m no expert (not even in yet), but they need to know if you have “the match” to come to MIT. So I think they choose specific essays that can tell if you have it or not, and maybe that’s why they don’t give you the right to write about anything, in fear that they won’t have the informations about you they want. But that’s just a guess. But I find restrictions sometimes better because you have a direction to follow.

@Emma – I think the topics have been carefully crafted to produce the type of response that tells the admissions committee what they need to know. As effectively as you believe some things may represent you, if they didn’t help you overcome an “end of the world” situation, and if they weren’t part of the world that “shaped your dreams and aspirations”, MIT may not need to hear about them.

But then again, there’s always the completely optional question 14 on Part 2 of the app:

“No admission application can meet the needs of every individual. If you think that additional information or material will give us a more thorough impression of you, please respond on a separate sheet.”

Sounds like a topic of your choice is still an option. =)

@Caitlin – Nice vegetable metaphor. =) As many have said, the admissions office is totally amazing and cool about things like this. No worries, just send them a copy and let them know what you’re doing (Ben probably already knows, as we’re all talking about it on his blog, lol).

@Eldrick Saw – Try the What We Look For in Applicants page. The Match Between You and MIT page has some good info as well.

To correct Isshak, I would like to say that we might now what CAN happen(like a meteorite striking me 15 seconds after I post this comment), but we certainly don’t know what WILL happen and that makes life fun.

No meteorite, what a shame…

Ben, this was hard for me, because I had such great ideas for my son’s essays!

His disability gave him the perfect topic for Essay A: the heartbreak of not being able to attend mainstream school, the struggle with speech therapy and physical therapy, the search for a diagnosis, the years of home schooling, the fight for access to GCSE exam centres as a private candidate, and then finally his successful return to mainstream school. A heart-warming story about overcoming adversity. Perfect!

Well, he would have none of it. “That’s your story, not mine,” he said, and he was right. I was the one crying buckets over school, searching for a diagnosis, fighting for access to exam centres. He didn’t see himself as a victim; he was just getting on with it.

All right, then how about Essay B? We live near Stratford-upon-Avon, home of the Royal Shakespeare Company, and as a result he knows the works of Shakespeare as well as others know the works of J K Rowling. What a fantastic opportunity to show off his literary erudition!

No, not interested. If he’s honest, he, too, prefers Harry Potter to Hamlet.

In the end, he wrote about a disappointment of great significance to him that meant absolutely nothing to me. At least no one will ever think that his essay was penned by an expensive college preparation service! I can’t imagine what the admissions committee will make of it, but it’s all his.

@Mum in England Do not give up! The essay is not te only part of the application ; and do not forget that they MIT wants a picture of your son, and maybe his essay that doesn’t mean anything to you will reveal a lot of things to MIT, who knows ? I’ve been told many times not to give up, so you too don’t give up! We never know what can happen.

MIT Office of Admissions, will you hate me if I send in a resume listing my community service? Because I’ve done so much more than just 5 activities during high school. But I won’t send it in if it will give you guys an automatic reason to reject me ! Thanks.

Hi, quick question: I was at MIT and was told by a tour guide that my teacher recommendations need to come from a teacher who’s known me for at least a year and has had me in junior or senior year. Is this true, or can I submit a recommendation from a sophomore year teacher?

Writing your own eassay is certainly the way that MIT can understand the candidate. Only writing onself can reveal his/her originality which MIT wants to know.But does not it mean that to reveal yourself you should get a chance to select the topic of your own.For the easasy1 I shall be telling a story of mine but i have no context to write something like i like making freinds , I hate discrimination and lookism etc.

Thanks so much for this blog entry, it made me feel 100000x better about my essays.

I have a question for you regarding the optional “Tell us about something that you have created” essay. Does this have to be something unique? Say, for example, that I really love to bake apple pies (I don’t, but use your imagination). Could I write my optional essay on a pie that I’d made, even if it had been from a recipe in a cookbook and had little or no relation to math or science? Am I stretching the question too far to fit my hobby?

I have a question about length of the essay. My essay is around 550 words. Are the admissions counselors going to get mad over that?

I have a quick question about the online application…

there doesn’t seem to be an area for the required-but-not-core-classes section of the self-reported course work and there wasn’t enough room in the Additional Classes for all the art/computer/PE/Health/Theory of Knowledge classes I took.

…should I just fill them in other spaces?

Hello Ben, My son is applying for early action at MIT. We are coming to the information session in East Brunswick next week. I have been reading your blog entries and have found them very helpful. I do have a question, why doesn’t MIT accept the National Merit Scholarship money? Looking forward to seeing you in person, Haya

@Self-Advocator – The adcom will not hate you if you send them a resume, but they may think you’ve missed the point. Most every applicant has more than five activities they can rattle off, but your application readers want to see what is most important to you. The intensity of your involvement is much more important here than the number of activities you’ve done.

@Ginger – Your recommendation can come from any teacher who knows you well. I got recommendations for my app from my teachers after I had been out of high school for more than two years, but it was fine because they knew me well enough to write good recommendations.

@Ally – I don’t think you’re stretching it at all. Your creation could be anything, even an apple pie. The point is simply to hear about how much fun you had creating something of your very own and why you chose to do so.

@Akshay – I doubt they’ll get mad ; the word limit is a guideline (as opposed to a strict rule). But be nice to the admissions people and see if you can shorten it a bit. They have over 10,000 applications to read.

For the first essay prompt about overcoming a situation that seemed like “the end of the world”, does the situation have to be serious? Or can it be something that was discouraging while I was a child but seems funny now?

Thanks for the post, It was very helpful

A tip for applicants – Choose what you are going to write about, make an outline and just write. You may end up closer to 1000 words than 500. Restructure sentences to convey the meaning in fewer words. Look for whole sentences that you can remove without losing continuity and impact. Beleive me, there will be quite a few lines in the essay that can be taken out this way. You may have to make a few iterations. You may find you are down to 550 and that’s the best that can be done for what you are trying to convey. Good enough. Proofread, get one or two pairs of eyes to look it over and send it in. One more advice – Don’t wait until the last moment. If you finish the essays ahead of time, you can put them aside for a week and read them over. There is a good chance that you will be able to make it at least a notch better.

hi, Thanks alot for your advice. I believe you are absolutely right and it will be way easier for me to write from the heart and with my voice than composing an essay even i do not understand.

Essay that is written the goodest you can will be liked muchly. Y do peepel tries to be somthin they is not just to oppress otters and unknown individuals. I Like Mit and their fresh approach. If yer stupid, but honest they while leht you in.

thanks for all the comments and suggestions, they are in really good time.

could i know that approximately how many applicants to MIT were there from india and how many were accepted?

Woot! can’t wait until you come to NJ for the info session. Anyways, I have a question. I am a transfer student who switched his major. On one MIT admissions site it says that I am ineligible for transfer if i’ve been at my current college for more than 5 semesters (which I will be upon my applying for transfer), the other site says that I need to spend at least 4 semesters at MIT to be eligible ( which I will be upon applying). Are they both correct?

I agree with your comment on how the essays should be written.

However, I don’t think that the prompts encourage it. I am applying to MIT early, and I don’t feel that most of the prompts allow you to really connect and let someone know my real personality.

Thanks for the advice.

I’m working on my essay right now. Actually, I’m doing two essays and then figuring out which one I want to use, because I have two different ideas and I’m not sure which would represent me best.

Would it be best to include an essay that demonstrates my love of math and science or an essay that talks about something unique that I do? I want to make myself stand out, but I also want to make sure MIT knows that I love Chemistry.

Do 3-letter words count in the word counting process. My English teacher claims they do not. Just wondering- Thanks.

I just sent in my application online – and it completely ruined the format of my essay – taking out all quotation marks and making reading it very confusing. I uploaded a plain text file as my essay that was formatted with indentations and spaces between the paragraphs, but on viewing it in PDF, all the formating and quotation marks are gone.

Is there any way to fix this or will this just be a hard-learned lesson?

Hi im a sophmore at cass technical high school and am striving to go to MIT. but i know my english has always been a challegened for me and have never done real well on standarized test and was wondering if you could give me tips on writing better and for my vocabulary skills as well.

Even after reading this blog and all of the comments about it, I am still unsure about my essay decision. I was planning to write an essay, which would describe a particular day of my life, but is not exactly the answer to either of the prompts. Once I started writing it, it became quite obvious that 500 words is definitely not enough to say what I want to say. On the other hand, I feel that I could write a 500 word essay that described one particular side of me. I know that the first essay is way too long (1000 – 2000) words, but the smaller one would not show all of what I want to show about myself. I have been trying to make decision about what to do, but I just keep going in circles about it. Any advice?