Boston College, sometimes just called BC, is a private Jesuit college in… well… “Boston” (it is actually a few miles outside of the city in the village of Chestnut Hill). BC is a popular choice for students looking for a suburban mid-sized college, especially those who want fun sports traditions, service opportunities, and no Greek life. Add a need-blind financial aid and test-optional admissions policies, and it is no wonder that over 40,000 students applied to be part of the Class of 2026. Last year, their acceptance rate was around 15%, so BC is pretty selective. If you hope to get in, you want your application to be as strong as possible, and part of that is writing a great supplement.
BC’s supplement only asks for one essay from several prompts. However, be warned that some questions are better than others. Let’s break it down.
We would like to get a better sense of you. Please respond to one of the first four prompts below (400-word limit). Students applying to the Human Centered Engineering major should respond to Prompt #5 instead.
1. Each year at University Convocation, our incoming class engages in reflective dialogue with the author of a common text. What book by a living author would you recommend for your incoming class to read, and why would this be an important shared text?
If this question really speaks to you, it is fine to answer, but it isn’t our favorite. This question works best if you love reading. You want that passion for books to come through. The first thing you need to do is choose an excellent text. Avoid anything basic. This means anything that would be on a high school reading list or is too popular. We would also avoid YA.
The second challenge is connecting the “why” to you. Remember, they want to get to know you better. So your choice doesn’t only need to be interesting, but it needs to open the door to talking about yourself. Your explanation of why the text is essential should bring us into your world. This is up to 400 words, so take your time to explain the text’s significance. You should include details like why you first read it and, what it meant to you at the time, etc. A good story will help sell this answer.
2. At Boston College, we draw upon the Jesuit tradition of finding worthwhile conversation partners. Some support our viewpoints while others challenge them. Who fulfills this role in your life? Please cite a specific conversation you had where this conversation partner challenged your perspective or you challenged theirs.
We like this question because anyone can answer it. Some people have someone they ‘real talk’ with. If you answer this question, you need to write it like a conversation. There should be dialogue. We need to know what you both say. The biggest pitfall here is biting off more than you can chew. There is a 400-word limit. Don’t try to tackle a conversation topic that is so charged or expansive that it feels hard to tackle. Getting specific is actually your friend here. We would also recommend not choosing a topic that is too hot-button. You don’t need to solve the crisis in the Middle East or single-handedly save abortion in America. Honestly, you really shouldn’t. We have had students write about things like understanding a friend’s obsession with K-Pop, reconsidering the necessity of animal testing, and disagreeing on the morality of “white lies.” These topics don’t need to be huge, political takes.
You also want some nuance in your answer. You don’t want to show your partner as a straw man. This is the perfect essay to explore shades of gray. You don’t need to fully agree with your partner at the end, but you do need to show how your (or their) perspective has shifted. No one has to be right or wrong, but you need to find some common ground or new conclusions.
3. In her November 2019 Ted Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie warned viewers against assigning people a “single story” through assumptions about their nationality, appearance, or background. Discuss a time when someone defined you by a single story. What challenges did this present and how did you overcome them?
First off, we don’t love when colleges ask students to respond to a random quote. Secondly, this is not for everyone. They call out “nationality, appearance, or background” in the question. Your story should fit in line with these categories. Honestly, if you are a cis-straight white man, you probably should skip this one. Please trust us. Read the room.
Some students also use this as a time to trauma dump; often, students think that if they tell the saddest story that they can, it will get them into college. It simply isn’t true. If you do choose to answer this question, talking about a microaggression or preconception will work far better as an answer than getting too traumatic. Mainly because you need to “overcome” something to answer this question. You probably didn’t singlehandedly end misogyny, but maybe you stood up to a friend who made a sexist joke in front of you and made him understand why it wasn’t cool. Trust us, zooming in works better here.
4. Boston College’s founding in 1863 was in response to society’s call. That call came from an immigrant community in Boston seeking a Jesuit education to foster social mobility. Still today, the University empowers its students to use their education to address society’s greatest needs. Which of today’s local or global issues is of particular concern to you and how might you use your Boston College education to address it?
This is another question that isn’t for everyone. If you are not civically minded or involved with service, you will struggle to answer this question. We highly recommend choosing a local(ish at least) issue that you are already involved with. If you go too big, answering this question on any scale will be hard. This isn’t to say that your local issue can connect to a more global issue. For example, if you volunteer at your local food bank, you can connect it to hunger more generally. However, you need to anchor it to your own experiences and be realistic about how you could address it. Ideally, You should try to choose a topic connected to what you hope to study or a professional goal. More on that later.
Once you have chosen your topic, it's time to research BC. Just talking about your experiences and the issue isn’t enough to answer this question; you need to connect it to your experience at BC. This is why connecting it to what you want to study is helpful. For example, if you are studying biology because you hope to one day become a doctor, your issue could be poor health outcomes for low-income kids. You want to mention classes you would take, professors you would work with, research you would do, etc., to help you reach your educational and/or professional goals. The more specific you can get here, the better.
5. Human-Centered Engineering (HCE) Applicants only: One goal of a Jesuit education is to prepare students to serve the Common Good. Human-Centered Engineering at Boston College integrates technical knowledge, creativity, and a humanistic perspective to address societal challenges and opportunities. What societal problems are important to you and how will you use your HCE education to solve them?
This one is only for our engineers, so if you aren’t an engineer, keep scrolling. Honestly, this is really just the same question as the one above, except it has to be about engineering, obviously. Otherwise, our advice is the same. Do your research. Get specific. And connect it to something that you are already involved in so you can talk about yourself and your experiences.
BC’s supplement isn’t very long or tricky, but you will still need time to write and edit it. Make sure you don’t rush yourself, especially if you are answering one of the questions that require research. If you are struggling with this supplement or any other part of the college application process, we can help!
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