What makes northwestern unique essay

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On the whole, Northwestern University provides an incredible platform for education, diversely cultured campus life, athletics, as well as excellent faculty and alumni. Indeed, these unique qualities make Northwestern University one in a million and it would be an honor for me to be a part of and to serve to enhance the Northwestern pride. Nafisa, your response sounds more like a travelogue than a well thought analysis of why you chose to apply for admission to Northwestern. There is no sense of academic connection nor social interest in what the school has to offer.

For example, you state that the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science is the best place for you to learn and yet, you did not explain why you felt that is so. What is it about the academics of this department that appealed to you? What made their university stand out, academically in your eyes when there are other schools with better known programs in this field of study? Additionally, you do not make a social connection with Northwestern as a place for your emotional and social development.

The description that you gave regarding the school using renewable energy and simply mentioning an interest to socialize with your classmates is not enough of a reason for the reviewer to believe that you will do well as a student at the university.

You should definitely submit the Northwestern supplement essay—but what is the prompt asking you to do, specifically?

Also, how should you answer it so that you can give yourself a solid chance of getting accepted to the school? In order to answer these two questions, let's take a look at the Northwestern essay prompt:. While other parts of your application give us a sense of who you are, we are also excited to hear more about how you see yourself engaging with the larger Northwestern community.

We are curious about what these specifics are, as well as how they may enrich your time at Northwestern and beyond. Your "Why Northwestern" essay can be a max of words, making it rather short. Most college essays are around words. This means that you'll need to be clear and concise in order to get your point across and ultimately be able to craft an effective response. This Northwestern essay prompt isn't that different from other "why this college" essay prompts in that it really just wants you to answer one big question: how will Northwestern help you further your interests and achieve your goals?

Northwestern already has a general idea of how you can contribute to the school; now, it wants to know how it can help you. Here are some topics you could write about in your Northwestern supplement essay:. If you're not sure what to write about for your Northwestern supplement essay, spend some time doing research.

You can also browse other student-geared websites, such as College Confidential and Niche , to see what people have to say about Northwestern, including what makes it unique. We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools , from state colleges to the Ivy League.

We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.

Below are two real Northwestern essay examples for you to use as references when writing the "Why Northwestern" essay. The essays were both written by admitted applicants and should give you a good idea of what kinds of topics and styles you can use in your own essay. Before we look at the two essays, though, be aware that both are answering an older, slightly different version of the "Why Northwestern" prompt, which was as follows:.

What are the unique qualities of Northwestern—and of the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying—that make you want to attend the University? In what ways do you hope to take advantage of the qualities you have identified? As noted above, this first essay responds to an older version of the "Why Northwestern" essay prompt: it asked applicants to focus on the specific qualities that made the school unique and explain why these were ultimately appealing to them.

Since this student wanted to study in the Medill School of Journalism, he mainly writes about this facet of Northwestern. At about words, this essay is a little longer than what the current word limit allows words , so just know that you'll have to write more concisely for your own essay. One unquestioned pillar of journalism is the importance of accuracy in a journalist's work. So when my counselor at the National High School Institute, a current Northwestern journalism student, proclaimed, "Medill kicks your ass," I knew she had given my fellow cherubs and I the straight-up truth.

Many exchanged nervous looks, and several immediately dismissed any chance of attending the Medill School of Journalism. I surveyed the room, surprised at the fear hanging over the group. After all, we were 83 student journalists giving up a substantial portion of our summer to learn about and participate in the art. Northwestern's reputation as a top-rated academic institution immediately drew me to the school.

Specifically, the close connection with high-caliber professors was one quality that I originally found appealing even before my summer stay. I was also intrigued by the abundance of resources and facilities within the university and the city of Chicago.

The journalism school has unmatched amenities and a rigorous curriculum designed to produce top-of-the-line journalists. But above all, Medill has a reputation as the best journalism school in the country. Northwestern's outstanding academics combined with an athletic program in the Big Ten Conference makes the university unique. It is certainly fun for everyone except maybe for the Northwestern football team to see the Buckeyes and Wolverines roll into Ryan Field every couple years.

I would be able to use my experience writing about the Detroit Lions to report on Northwestern teams. And by covering the lowly Lions, I would be prepared for any sort of losing season thrown at me.

But I am sure of one thing: I am attending college in order to learn, contribute, and to become the best journalist I can be. So while my friends may be having an easy, fun time at some school not named Medill, I'll be getting my ass kicked. And to tell the truth, I won't mind at all. Be specific in your essay—if you're interested in studying journalism, for example, explain how you believe Northwestern can help you achieve your goals.

This second "Why Northwestern" essay example was written by an admitted student who chose to focus on extracurriculars at Northwestern and how the School of Engineering and Applied Science would benefit their desire to learn several skills at once. Once again, like the first essay, this essay is responding to the older version of the "Why Northwestern" prompt given above.

Note that this essay is exactly words long —the max length you are allowed to do for your own "Why Northwestern" essay. I just arrived from a basketball game, I'm not nervous.