Colby College is a small, private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It is one of the most selective liberal arts colleges around, with a 9.7% acceptance rate and a little under 2,000 undergraduates in total. Colby also doesn’t have a supplemental essay. We can see the light go out behind your eyes as you realize this is a whole article on how to write the Colby College supplement. “But TKG,” you say, “there is no supplement!” Not with that attitude!

Colby is one of the “Little Ivies” and tons of students are vying for spots at this college. We’re going to help you draft an email to show your interest, and hopefully help give you an advantage.

You’re going to follow the standard “why X college” format, and include the following:

An introduction. Tell them your name and explain that you’re sending this email because there was no formal place for you to tell Colby why you want to attend.
What you want to study and a short little origin story as to why you want to study it. If you want to study Government, maybe tell them about your time as a Senate Page or how you have organized rallies or gotten involved with politics back home.
Next, find a few classes at Colby that interest you. Stick to the upper-level courses, since all colleges have an intro to government class. Go to the course catalog and identify a few that align with your current interests. Maybe GO297f - In the Streets: Politics of Protest and Refusal looks interesting to you because you helped organize protests last summer, or maybe you want to take GO356s - Winners and Losers in Japanese Politics because when you visited Japan, you were fascinated by how they campaign out of moving vehicles in the streets and wanted to learn more. You want to pick classes that have a through-line to your current interests and actions.
Next, find a professor who is researching something that interests you. Don’t be afraid to google-stalk and find out exactly what they’ve researched and what their focus is. Talk about how that research is just so exactly what you want to do.
Finally, find a student organization or club that also aligns with your current interests and actions. If you’ve spent all four years of high school doing community service, pick a community service org. If you’ve been active in theater, maybe an improv troupe.

You’re going to take all this information and weave it into a story that pitches you to Colby. Don’t just regurgitate the information, you are not a brochure. You are a person! Tell the story of you while including details and information that fill out who you are. We recommend capping the email at 350 words, so you’ll have to go back and edit and cut out a lot of your first draft.

Send the email to the admissions office at Colby, and don’t be afraid to call them to follow up about any additional people you should send it to. Good luck!

If you’re having a hard time with your college applications, feel free to reach out to us here for one-on-one assistance with your essays.