As a prestigious liberal arts and Ivy League institution, Brown University has high expectations from its applicants regarding the quality of their written essays. However, these supplemental essays are by no means unapproachable. With proper planning and execution, successful essays can reflect extremely well upon an applicant, showcasing multiple facets of their personality and demonstrating the abilities that will help them thrive at this university. In this article, we will guide you through how to write the Brown University supplemental essays.
Brown University’s 2022-2023 Prompts
Supplemental Essay Prompts (200-250 words)
- Brown’s Open Curriculum allows students to explore broadly while also diving deeply into their academic pursuits. Tell us about any academic interests that excite you, and how you might use the Open Curriculum to pursue them while also embracing topics which you are unfamiliar.
- Brown’s culture fosters a community in which students challenge the ideas of others and have their ideas challenged in return, promoting a deeper and clearer understanding of the complex issues confronting society. This active engagement in dialogue is as present outside the classroom as it is in academic spaces. Tell us about a time you were challenged by a perspective that differed from your own. How did you respond?
- Brown students care deeply about their work and the world around them. Students find contentment, satisfaction, and meaning in daily interactions and major discoveries. Whether big or small, mundane or spectacular, tell us about something that brings you joy.
General Tips
One of the key features about each of these Brown University supplemental essays is their length: they are short. Limiting each response to 250 words maximum can be challenging, especially when discussing complex interests or topics about which you are passionate. The key to writing a succinct yet impactful essay is to limit the words spent on narrative or objective descriptions and instead devote space to emotions, thoughts, and reflections. For instance, compare…
“Painting brings me joy. When I was five years old, my father bought me my first set of paintbrushes. Since then, I have painted every day, joining art clubs in middle and high school and collaborating with peers on projects in the community. We painted murals and posters for events and local exhibitions, learning and meeting new people as we did so. My skills have improved over time, and I aim to continue my development as an artist and a creative in college and beyond.”
…to the following:
“Painting brings me joy. Ever since receiving my first set of brushes at five years old, I have embraced the challenge of setting color to paper to create brilliant images. As I improved over time, I searched for ways to share the satisfaction of art with others. Orchestrating community projects allowed me to connect with peers and express my gratitude for my hometown, and as I continue to develop my skills, I will spread that joy to an even broader audience in college and beyond.”
These two passages have the same word count, but the second much more effectively gives the reader a sense of who the writer is and what they value about their interest in painting. Instead of simply listing the factual details of an interest or event, academic or otherwise, be sure to give the reader a glimpse into your emotions and thought processes. Doing so will increase the impact of each word, allowing you to convey your meaning more succinctly.
Brown University’s Supplemental Essay Prompts
Brown’s Open Curriculum allows students to explore broadly while also diving deeply into their academic pursuits. Tell us about any academic interests that excite you, and how you might use the Open Curriculum to pursue them while also embracing topics with which you are unfamiliar. (200-250 words)
This first prompt is an iteration of the common “why us” essay trope. However, Brown’s Open Curriculum, the star of its academic programming, features prominently in this supplemental essay, and students are expected to have a basic understanding of the core tenets of this curriculum. Essentially, the Open Curriculum at Brown University allows undergraduates to forego the general education and distribution requirements mandated by most colleges and universities and instead enables students to formulate their own paths of study. Some students even develop their own majors based on personal interests that they enter with or discover along the way. This first essay asks applicants to consider how they would make the most of this unique flexibility.
First and foremost, research the Open Curriculum. Read about how current and past students have approached this opportunity, and consider how you would do so yourself. Then, brainstorm. Write out a list of your academic interests, ranging from your intended major (if you have one – no commitment necessary at this point!) to potential interests that you would like to develop further, and everything in between. For now, the more the merrier! Consider browsing the academic offerings to find departments, courses, or tracks that align with your interests. Lastly, and arguably, most importantly, look for connections between your areas of interest and explore how you could connect them. This is the greatest and most unique benefit of Brown’s Open Curriculum: the ability to craft your own cocktail of learning experiences. Be sure to delve into the why – why combine the interests you choose? What added benefit do you gain by studying simultaneously across disciplines? This interdisciplinary emphasis on exploration is central to Brown’s values as a university.
Brown’s culture fosters a community in which students challenge the ideas of others and have their ideas challenged in return, promoting a deeper and clearer understanding of the complex issues confronting society. This active engagement in dialogue is as present outside the classroom as it is in academic spaces. Tell us about a time you were challenged by a perspective that differed from your own. How did you respond? (200-250 words)
The second prompt focuses more on community involvement and development. The purpose of this essay is essentially to examine whether you as an applicant will be up to the tasks of critical thinking and discussion which are integral to the liberal arts experience at Brown. Uncomfortable or difficult discussions are important for learning as an individual and for the creation of new knowledge and understanding, so admissions officers are looking to see whether you have the capacity to contribute meaningfully to this important aspect of campus life.
Whether the example you choose is academic in nature or not, it is important that it be a moment where you truly had to face a challenge to your own beliefs or perspective. Regardless of the outcome of the interaction (whether either person changed their mind or not, whether a conclusion was reached or a compromise made, etc.), it is important that you remain true to the experience. Remember, this does not have to be a “perfect” dialogue where you “win” the debate or discussion; it simply has to be genuine and meaningful.
Begin with a brainstorming session of times when someone challenged your perspective on a topic or issue. This could be anyone from a friend to a spiritual leader, a parent, or a teacher. The nature of the issue upon which you disagreed or differed is generally less important than the manner in which you approached your differences and handled any disagreements. Since admissions officers read this essay with your character in mind, choose an instance in which you approached the situation with grace, self-awareness, and an open mind, even if you ultimately still disagreed with the opposing perspective you encountered. Constructive interactions can stem from any set of opinions; it all depends on how such interactions are approached. Then, once you have selected an example, outline and execute your essay with the prompt’s final question in mind: “how did you respond?” Recall my first piece of advice in the overview section – narrative detail is important, but thought processes and internal workings are even more so. As you describe how you responded, remember to reflect on how the experience made you feel and what realizations you may have come to as a result.
Brown students care deeply about their work and the world around them. Students find contentment, satisfaction, and meaning in daily interactions and major discoveries. Whether big or small, mundane or spectacular, tell us about something that brings you joy. (200-250 words)
Lastly, this third supplemental prompt is the most open-ended. I hesitate to categorize it as a simple “extracurriculars” or “other interests” prompt because it is so broad in its scope; as long as it brings you joy, any topic is on the table, academic, artistic, intellectual, philosophical, culinary, athletic, or otherwise. If you feel that your application so far has not done justice to an important part of yourself, then this would be an opportune place to discuss that aspect. The prompt goes so far as to specify that the topic can be “big or small, mundane or spectacular,” so if something in particular comes to mind as you read this, then chances are it would make a strong essay, whatever it may be. The most important consideration in choosing a topic for this essay is to select something that truly does bring you joy. Readers can tell when the excitement in your tone is genuine, and that realness is what sells your essay.
As you brainstorm ideas for this essay, restrain yourself from writing about a topic that you think you “should” write about. If your true passion is baking chocolate chip cookies for your little sisters when they are feeling down, but you feel like you should write about coding because it seems more “sophisticated” or “academic,” choose the former. A genuine essay will shine through every time. As you describe what brings you joy, try to draw the reader into your excitement. Invite them to enjoy the activity or the project with you and show them why it is that you love it. Make them love it too! Vivid descriptors and sensory details can go a long way in essays like this one, especially if your passion has a sensory component. Allow yourself and your readers to be swept up in “contentment, satisfaction, and meaning.” Joy is infectious, so fill your essay with as much of it as possible.
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