The University of Rochester is a private research university. It’s a picturesque campus off of lake Ontario in the town of Rochester in Upstate New York. Rochester mid-sized school with about 7k students. They house some unique programs including a music school. They have an acceptance rate is about 41%. Their supplement is a little confusing. There are multiple parts and ways to answer prompts, so let’s break down how to approach their supplement.
Part 1:
The University of Rochester motto of Meliora – or “ever better” - deeply integrates critical core values into all that we do. These core values of equity, leadership, integrity, openness, respect and accountability define not only who we are, but also who we hope to become. Please use the space below to highlight a time, creative idea or research experience when you put into action one or more of these characteristics in order to make yourself, your community or the world ever better. (250-word limit)
For this question they let you answer in 3 different ways. There is a drop-down list to choose either an essay response, an analytical response, or a creative response in 250 words. This is a little confusing because with the analytical and creative, this is 250 words outside of uploaded materials, more on that later.
The Essay Route
The essay is the most straightforward. If you are nervous about answering this question, it’s probably the best route for you. This route just asks you to tell a story about your community and the time when you showed equity, leadership, integrity, openness, respect, and accountability in that community. It’s really open-ended but start with a community that you are a part of. It can be a school, a friend group, a family unit, a club or team, etc. Let us into your community/world and then tell a story that shows you in a positive light. Honestly, you don’t need to hit on every word even if they are pretty related. Choose your favorite and focus on that. You will probably end up covering two even if you aren’t trying because of how related they are. Like any essay, you write about openness might touch on equity or respect. An essay about leadership probably has something to do with integrity or accountability. If you tell a good story you should be golden.
The Creative Route
Upload up to three works of your own art (e.g. pictures, video, performances, literary) and use the space below to provide a brief explanation as to how the art is tied to making the world, your community and those around you “ever better.”
For the creative route, they describe some of the types of pieces they are looking for. There are also instructions about how to upload these documents. It’s in a separate portal and you do need to do it before you submit your application.
This is a great route for students who want to show off a creative talent they already have. If you are a photographer or an opera singer or poet etc. this might be a great opportunity for you to show off a skill. However, if you are someone who isn’t involved in the arts, it's probably not worth trying to take this on. If you aren’t a poet, maybe the first poem you have written shouldn’t be here. Honestly, 9 times out of 10, it’s a better call to use a piece that you have already created and are proud of than trying to through one together for this supplement in general.
While you should show off your artistic talents, possibly the more important part is how you explain how your art connects to making your community a better place. Like it's awesome to upload your photography, but if you can’t write about how it makes your community better, it’s probably not worth trying to take this on.
Once you have chosen the work you want to feature, think about a story you can tell related to that work. You have 250 words to tell that story (TLDR the word count is for your explanation, not your art piece… but like don’t upload your novel… keep your art to a digestible length.) For example, maybe you intern at a print shop and upload a print you are proud of. You can talk about the print itself or even how the community at the print shop fosters each other creatively and how that community approaches art with equity and openness. This should still feel like a story and connect to their values.
Analytic route
Upload an abstract describing your own related research and use the space below to provide a brief explanation as to how the research is tied to making the world, your community and those around you “ever better.”
This route is almost exactly the same as the creative route but instead of a painting, it's a research abstract. Two things to note here. Don’t do this one if you haven’t done research. You can maybe get away with the research you have done for a class, but ideally, this is serious research done outside of class. This question is for those who work in labs or research-based internships. We can’t believe we have to say this but don’t try to fake research experience here.
If you have done appropriate research, this isn’t a bad route, but again, the 250-word explanation of the story around your abstract is more important than actual research. A good story about the community/team you worked with to pursue this research is really going to sell this route.
After you have completed one of these routes it’s time for part 2. They let you select from 4 prompts. However, the prompts are extremely similar. All of them are essentially “why do you want to go here” essays with a twist. For all of them, you will need to mention specific classes, professors, clubs, and opportunities at the university. This means you will have to do some research. You can do this before or after you choose which prompt you want to respond to, but give yourself time to really look into the school and all its opportunities.
Please select one of the following prompts to respond to in 200 words or less.
American social reformer, abolitionist, writer and statesman Frederick Douglass said, “Some know the value of education by having it. I knew its value by not having it.” Explain ways in which education has directly influenced you and your ability to do good in the world. How will you use the curricular flexibility and co-curricular opportunities of the University of Rochester experience to grow and to promote positive change for yourself, your community and the world?
This prompt is long and thus can confuse people. First off, ignore the Douglass quote. We generally hate when colleges use quotes in their supplement questions. As a side note, while Douglass lived in Rochester NY and they now have a school named for him, the first black student to graduate from the University was most likely Charles Augustus Thompson class of 1891. Meaning Douglass was around 74 years old before a black student got a degree from Rochester since the school was seemingly all-white for the first 41 years of its history.
Even if you disregard the quote, this question still has a ton of words. But if you boil it down, this is a question about what opportunities you will take advantage of at Rochester. You need to get specific here. The opportunities you mention should be specific. You will need to state what you are going to study and cover opportunities both inside and outside of the class. You also need to connect it to positive future plans or progress.
This is a tall order and it will be easier for those pursuing academics that promote change. No matter what you are studying you can connect it to positive change, however, it might be easier for someone who wants to pursue medicine for example than someone who wants to study French. If you are hitting a wall, we suggest moving on to the next prompt.
Dr. Donna Strickland, University of Rochester alum and 2018 Nobel Prize winner in Physics said, “There’s no point in me being anything other than me.” The University of Rochester encourages each student to embrace who they are and create their own individual curricular path and experience. How will you use the opportunities here to fully be who you are? What unique perspectives will you bring to our community?
Again, for this essay, you need specifics, specifics, specifics. This is probably the easiest of the prompts to answer, however it helps to come up with something about yourself to ground this essay. For example, “I am a problem solver,” “I am someone who is deeply in love with writing,” or “I always need a challenge.” It's not really a thesis, but it’s something that can guide your essay. This will help you explore the first half of this question.
It is important to hit the second part as well. What will you bring to the community? You want to connect opportunities you are excited about to your own experiences. Maybe you want to join the paper because you wrote for your school's magazine. Talk about what you will bring to that club based on your past experience. You want to show that you will shape and contribute to the communities that surround those opportunities.
Susan B. Anthony, champion of abolition and women’s rights, once said “Organize, agitate, educate must be our war cry.” As you look to join our community of doers and disruptors, in what ways do you envision using both the curricular flexibility and co-curricular opportunities to invoke change for marginalized groups?
Ok, another quote from a random person -unlike Douglass, this one was also a racist. Ironic that they use her to be the one about marginalized groups. We never suggest talking a question about social justice unless you have done the work. If you haven’t done a ton of work in this space, this essay will feel unfocused. You want to be able to talk about your past experiences.
This is probably our least favorite of the prompts, because you need to use specifics to talk and how they relate to justice. This can be really hard. Like if you want to talk about the chemistry classes you are excited about, you can relate this to social justice but it might feel like a stretch. Also with how this essay is set up, it makes you have to say that Rochester is helping social change implicitly. They are the ones giving the opportunities after all. It's a little self-congratulatory.
The University of Rochester benefactor entrepreneur, photography pioneer and philanthropist George Eastman said, “What we do during our working hours determines what we have; what we do in our leisure hours determines what we are.” Looking forward towards your college experience, what do you hope to do outside of the classroom at the University of Rochester that will enhance who you are as a person? How will specific academic and social opportunities here help you grow?
This is another favorite prompt of ours. Mostly because it's the most straightforward. The only trick is that you still need to talk about academics. This makes the quote kind of random, but just ignore it and focus on what the question is actually asking you. This one is all about how you will use opportunities to grow. It can be hard to talk about growth that hasn’t happened yet, but if you root it in things you have already done, you should be fine.
Whatever prompt you choose, the essay is deceptively short. You are going to have to pack your points in and get specific about opportunities, if you can do both of those things, you should be fine.
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