Harvard is widely-accepted to be one of the best respected, and best known, universities in the world. For nearly any subject, Harvard has one of the best programs globally. Many recognize a degree from Harvard as a ticket to early professional success, empowering graduates to skip a few hurdles as they enter the workforce.
Harvard opened in 1636, and is home to 7,100 undergraduate students. The Cambridge, Massachusetts campus is what so many other college campuses are modeled after. The number of applicants to Harvard has more than doubled since the Class of 2006, but the number of accepted students has stayed nearly the same. As a result, the acceptance rate has plummeted. Today, it sits at 3.59%. Yes, you read that right. They also require applicants to submit an ACT or SAT score, except for in ‘exceptional cases.’
In this post, we’ll break down what you need to know to make the Harvard supplemental questions strong additions to your application that increase your chances of success. We recently had a conversation with a former Harvard admissions officer, and we were excited that they affirmed what we know to be true—Harvard wants to have fun reading your application. They want essays that make them smile and laugh, and that make them feel connected to you. They don’t want sob stories; they want strong stories. With that in mind, let’s dig in.
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When applying to a school like Harvard, you need every single piece of your application to be fire. Your grades must be flawless. Your scores must be superior. Your extracurriculars must show passion, compassion, and commitment. Your recommendations must be glowing. And your essays have to underline everything that you are emphasizing about yourself — and more. They need to show you to the application readers. This is because most students who apply to Harvard have the grades and the scores and the recommendations and the extracurriculars, so the differentiating factor isn’t an A in Biology. It’s who you are beyond all that. So, let’s show them.
The Harvard supplement is a set of short answer questions, but there is something that comes before that in the Common App that we need to talk to you about first.
Harvard invites applicants to submit a wide range of supplementary materials, including documents, videos, images, and audio. This can be extremely tempting, but you need to be careful.
Do you intend to submit supplementary media materials (video, audio, images) to be considered as part of the admission process to Harvard? Portfolio materials can illustrate special talents in academics or in one or more of the arts. These materials should be included only if you think they would significantly add to your application. If yes, you will be directed to upload these materials through Slideroom. If you intend to submit documents only (i.e., PDFs, word documents), these should be uploaded through the applicant portal, in which case you can select "no" for this question. Please see thewebsitefor more information.
We are including this not because it is technically a supplement, but because we see students abuse it — a lot. We’ve had students come to us after receiving a waitlist or rejection decision who submitted 12-page-long resumes, self-published novels, and a pile of research papers. Unsurprisingly, none of them were accepted. They diluted the power of their truly impressive credentials, resulting in a lackluster performance. The point of accepting supplemental material is so students who have “truly exceptional talents or achievements” can spotlight what they have done that doesn’t fit elsewhere on the application. This could include, “scholarly articles, research, creative writing or other documents of which you are the primary author.” You could also include audio or video recordings of dance, choreography, performance art, musical performance, or composition.
So, yes, if you are applying to Harvard you probably have something you could submit here. And, if so, you should. But you really need to absorb that more is not more when it comes to the application. They have a few minutes to review your application and get a first impression. If you dilute the app with a ton of supplementary material, you risk leaving them with a bland, or even bad, taste in their mouth. At a certain point, it doesn’t matter how impressive each individual thing is. If you add too many, they start to lose their power. Tread carefully, and plan strategically.
Now let’s get into the short answers.
Harvard has long recognized the importance of enrolling a diverse student body. How will the life experiences that shape who you are today enable you to contribute to Harvard? (about 100 words)
First, let’s talk word count — and this applies to all of the short answers. They say, “about 100,” but the text box will let you enter up to 150. For this prompt, and all the subsequent ones, we suggest aiming for no more than 110 words. It’s more important to follow directions than it is to use up every space they allow for. Going far above 100 can read like ignoring directions, and perhaps the most basic and yet most important aspect of presenting yourself to any college is showing that you know how to follow directions.
Now about the prompt. This is a “who are you?” prompt. In 100 words — just the length of the paragraph above — they want you to share something vulnerable about your life, and include how that will contribute to Harvard. That’s a lot to ask for in such a small amount of space. The only way to do it, we feel, is to write a vignette. Remember this word because it’ll apply to a number of this supplements. A vignette is moment in time, written in vivid detail to capture an emotional resonance. So, if you faced adversity in some way, don’t try to summarize it and then run out of space. Instead, zoom in on a particular moment that illustrates it. For example, if you have a single parent and had to step up to take care of your siblings, maybe write about flipping pancakes in the morning, or helping with homework. If your family speaks multiple languages at home, show a moment at the dinner table. Then link this to Harvard and how you’ll contribute to their culture whether through clubs, the residential community, or something else you’re excited about joining.
Describe a time when you strongly disagreed with someone about an idea or issue. How did you communicate or engage with this person? What did you learn from this experience? (about 100 words)
This prompt is fascinating because it requires you to walk a fine line and find balance. We love when students find a way to work dialog into their answer, drawing the reader into the story and making it feel ‘real’. You don’t want to over-dramatize the disagreement, but you do want to be honest. Ideally, too, the disagreement isn’t black and white. This isn’t a matter of you being in the right and someone else being unilaterally wrong. Try to sit in the grey, whether it’s a disagreement over something personal, ethical, academic, social, or even political. And don’t just say you learned that you were right. That joke doesn’t go over well.
Briefly describe any of your extracurricular activities, employment experience, travel, or family responsibilities that have shaped who you are. (about 100 words)
You have 100 words, so you’ll only focus on one thing. And it won’t be travel, so rule that out. When people read your application, they don’t want to be reminded that they can’t afford to go on a two-week safari in Africa. We also ask students who are not being recruited for a sport to avoid writing about a sport. So, if travel and sports are out, what do you write about? We like work experience, family responsibilities, or long-term service experiences. And, as we said earlier, you need to really focus in on a singular moment that you can then zoom out from to reflect on how it has shaped you.
How do you hope to use your Harvard education in the future? (about 100 words)
Ok, so this is like a “why us,” but they don’t need you to tell them about themself. They know what they offer. What they want to know is what you’re going to do with it. So, what do you want to do in life? And, ideally, it involves improving the lives of others in some way. Whether it’s going into medicine, building a business that impacts people’s lives positively, or anything else with an altruistic bend, look for links between what you want to major in, where you want to go, and how it can improve our world without getting too cheesy.
Top 3 things your roommates might like to know about you. (about 100 words)
This is our favorite Harvard supplement, even though it is of course a riff of a Stanford supplement. The best answers are fun answers. Applicants to Harvard risk sounding like robots. This is where you show that you actually are a teenager still figuring things out. Whether you do a facemask every Thursday, have mastered microwave nachos, or zoom with your grandpa once a month, be yourself, have fun, and don’t just talk about studying late because everyone does that.
Applying to Harvard is audacious. You need to have a lot of confidence to even think to apply to Harvard, but so does everyone else who is applying. So, the way to stand out isn’t by simply building yourself up — it’s by showing who you are.
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