Texas Christian University or TCU for short is located outside of Fort Worth Texas. The school is Christian (like it’s right in the name.) While you don’t have to be Christian to go to TCU, it may feel slightly more religious than some similar, let’s say, Jesuit schools. The school hosts about 10k undergrads and has an acceptance rate of about 40% Their supplement only has 2 questions (kind of 3 more on that later) so let’s break them down.
At TCU, it is our vision to be a world-class, values-centered university. We value academics, intellectual inquiry, creative expression, leadership, service, diversity, and the appreciation of the human experience. With which one of TCU’s core values do you most align and why? (Maximum length: 200 words) *
This question asks you to speak to a value. Some are easier to write about than others, but if you are looking at the list and immediately connect with one, go with that. If you are having a harder time with them let’s talk about it. Whichever word you choose to speak to, you need to tell a story. We love leadership and creative expression as prompts. They are easy to tell stories about in general and most people do something that shows leadership or creativity in their daily life. For leadership, it can be leading a club or activity, but often the best stories are about times you stepped up when you didn’t need to. Maybe you take care of your sister or lead your friend group in some way. Creativity is similar. You can write about teaching yourself macrame or how you creatively solve problems. TLDR; it can be art, but it doesn’t have to be.
We don’t suggest service or diversity unless you are a person who is deeply involved with these words. For example, going to volunteer at a soup kitchen once a month is not enough to write about service. However, running a community fridge for the last 2 years every day? That’s service to the community. Only choose to write a story about these words if you can back it up.
Academics is probably our least favorite. It might seem like the one that is most obvious to write about, but it can be hard to get personal with it and it can be really hard to set yourself apart when writing about academics in general. If you want to write about your academic passions, we suggest choosing intellectual inquiry instead. Intellectual inquiry lets you speak to your passions. You can tell a story about the research you have done or how you have pursued your academic interests outside of the classroom.
The last word, the appreciation of the human experience, is a lot. If you have a unique and creative story to tell that's great, however, we think this word will just stump most students.
Whichever word you choose, make sure you show (or if you need to tell) why you align with this word. It's best to show your alignment through your story and hit home the why in your conclusion. This prompt has a short word count and you are asked to do a lot. It might take a couple of drafts to get it right.
TCU is committed to creating an inclusive campus culture for all people. We have a shared responsibility to enhance our community by encouraging inclusive environments through learning opportunities related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Describe how you have already contributed to creating an inclusive environment in your community or how you plan to contribute to an inclusive college environment in the future. (Maximum length: 200 words)*
You should focus on the first half of this question: what have you already contributed? If you write about the future, your essay will most likely be filled with “ifs.” This makes essays feel unfocused most of the time. Instead, write about something you have already done.
The story you use for this can be a small moment. The word “inclusion” can feel big, but it doesn’t have to be. Sometimes our students hear the word inclusion and think that they have to write about fighting for a minority group or access. If you are currently doing that, great! But many students probably aren’t pushing for teachers to go to pronoun use trainings. Your interaction with inclusion can be smaller. Your story could be about adding a new kid to your study group or doing club outreach. Make sure your answer tells a story (we know we’ve said it a million times but it’s important.)
Freedom of Expression
Completion of the questions below is optional. TCU values individuality and believes that students are more than just a GPA and test score. To help us get to know you even better, consider this opportunity to further express yourself. The only limitations are the boundaries of your imagination. Please upload an essay, poem, work of art or a URL that showcases another side of you.
The final question is optional. It asks for something that you have made and that showcases you. They mention a couple of things. Use them as a guide. Some things we would probably advise on working here as well include a photography portfolio, short film, research abstract, a musical performance, etc.
The big trick here is you probably don’t need to upload anything if you don’t already have it. Pretty much is if you have never written a poem, this shouldn’t be the first one you write. If you upload a poem, you probably should already be a poet. If you throw something together for this question last minute, they probably will be able to tell. That being said, this is a really open space; many students will probably already have a piece that they are proud of and want to show to colleges.
TCU’s supplement is fairly short. Yes, it is multiple questions, but they have pretty low word counts. This might make it seem easier but short word counts can be a challenge. You are going to have to squeeze a lot of info in.
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