Emory is a private research university in Georgia. Applying to Emory can be confusing for some students as they have two distinct academic pathways for freshmen: Emory College of Arts and Sciences and Oxford College. The College of Arts and Sciences is on the main Atlanta campus and has about 5,400 students. Oxford is about 38 miles away in the small town of Oxford, Georgia. Oxford only has about 950 students. Junior year, College and Oxford classes combine on the Atlanta Campus. Juniors also choose to finish their education at Emory College of Arts and Sciences, the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, or apply to join the Goizueta Business School. Both are excellent programs and historically, about 50% of applicants have applied to both programs. If you choose both, there is a chance you will get into both and will have to decide between them. The College has an acceptance rate of about 11%, while Oxford has a 17% acceptance rate.
We have written about their supplement before, but they have made some changes this year, so we wanted to revisit it. Here is how to approach the Emory Supplement.
What academic areas are you interested in exploring at Emory University and why?* 200
Before doing anything for this essay, you need to choose a major. Don’t worry if you aren’t 100% sure what you want to study; just take the most informed guess on what you will major in. They won’t hold you to this essay once you are on campus. Once you have chosen the major you want to write about, you are going to have to do some research. Then it’s time to write.
You should start this essay with a story about when you first became interested in your academic niche. For example, if you want to study art history, you could tell the story of the first time you went to the Met on a middle school trip. Keep this story short and sweet. Then you should show how that spark of interest led to wanting to major in it at Emory.
Once you have stated your intended major, it’s time to use the research that you have done into the program at Emory specifically. You should mention AT LEAST two higher-level classes and a professor you would want to work with. Look for classes that feel specific. You want to show why you want to study this at Emory, not any other school. You can also mention any other academic opportunities at Emory that stood out to you. This essay is short, but you should try to leave the reader feeling that you would be a perfect Emory and that Emory would be lucky to have you.
For the next question, you can choose between 6 prompts. Some are easier to write than others. We will break down our suggestions, but if you immediately connect with one of the prompts, that is always a good choice.
Please answer one of the following questions:* 150
Which book, character, song, monologue, or other creative work (fiction or non-fiction) seems made for you? Why?
This is a fun question, but there are some pitfalls here. You want to choose something off the beaten path, and then you need to creatively describe why you connect with it. We would avoid YA books, anything on a summer reading list for school, and anything that feels too obvious. For example, saying “The Great Gabsy” is much less fascinating than saying “Goodbye to Berlin” or “My Cousin Vinny.” Sometimes it is easier to work backward. Start with what you want to say about yourself and brainstorm a song or play that captures that feeling.
You also want to be creative on the “why?” Dig deep and tell a good story. This is a tall order for 150 words, so be warned.
Reflect on a personal experience where you intentionally expanded your cultural awareness.
We don’t love this question for two reasons. 1) We don’t love when people tell travel stories, and many students read this prompt and think, “Travel.” These stories often make the writer sound highly privileged and uncreative. 2) This question is short. You need to tell a story with a beginning, middle, and end. That is really hard in 150 words. If you are taking this on, tell a story about going to a local festival or a friend’s cousin’s wedding. Make sure to include what you learned.
Emory University aspires for all students to flourish on campus. Reflect on what flourishing at Emory means to you.
If the first question concerns academics at Emory, this prompt is about everything else. You will need to do some research. Look into clubs, organizations, opportunities, etc., on Emory’s campus. You want to find opportunities that connect to what you are already doing so that you can also talk about yourself and your resume. This question isn’t bad. However, it can be a little dry. You have to bring excitement and love for Emory in your answer.
Emory University's core mission calls for service to humanity. Share how you might personally contribute to this mission.
Only choose this question if you are deeply involved in service. If you volunteer once a month at a soup kitchen, this isn’t the prompt for you. However, if you are deeply passionate about service, you can use this prompt to tell a story about your work and telegraph your passion for service. Make sure you tell a story here. Without one, it will feel unfocused.
Emory University has a strong commitment to building community. Tell us about a community you have been part of where your participation helped to change or shape the community for the better.
Anyone can write this essay; the only challenge is that 150-word count. Sometimes students get scared of the word “community.” A community is just any group of people with a common interest, feature, or goal. A volleyball team, art club, Spanish study group, bi-weekly dungeons, and dragons meet-up, or even friend group are all communities. Choose a community to write about that is important to you. Tell a good story, and make sure you answer the question. Just telling a story isn’t enough. You need to show how you helped change or shaped it.
Reflection is a central tenet of Emory University's values. Craft a personal email giving advice to yourself in your first year of high school.
We love this question. It’s an excellent opportunity to be creative. The trick here is to be specific and personal about the advice you are giving yourself. This prompt takes some reflection… fittingly. Really dive deep. You will want to connect that advice to you with a story. Everyone can use the advice, “Be nice to others,” but why was that important to the freshman version of you? How did you learn that lesson?
The real trick of Emory’s supplement is how short its word counts are. Sometimes students think that “short essays are less to write,” but we often find short essays harder. You will need to pack a lot of information in while still telling good stories and showing off your writing skills. The best way of doing this is to give yourself time to edit! So start early, and if you need us, we can help!
Stressed over supplements? Reach out here!