When we at Ivy Coach hear the term “the college essay,” we instinctively roll our eyes because there is not one college essay. While The Common Application includes a Personal Statement that is submitted to every Common App.-subscribing school, most of America’s highly selective universities feature additional essays on their unique supplements, and these essays are just as critical as the Personal Statement.

Since many schools change their supplemental admissions essay prompts from year to year, especially in the wake of President Trump’s anti-DEI policy shift and campaign to strip schools of federal funding, and also in the wake of the Supreme Court striking down Affirmative Action in late June of 2023 (the essays are, in some ways, a legal loophole allowing colleges to consider a student’s background when weighing their case for admission), it’s hard to find all of the new prompts for America’s top colleges in one place. Until now, that is.

2025-2026 College Essay Prompts

Below, applicants to the Class of 2030, you’ll find this year’s essay prompts for America’s highly selective universities directly from each school’s admissions office:

College / University	2026 US News Rank (“Best National Universities”)	2025-2026 Supplemental College Essays
Princeton University	#1	Princeton Essays
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	#2	MIT Essays
Harvard University	#3	Harvard Essays
Stanford University	#4	Stanford Essays
Yale University	#4	Yale Essays
University of Chicago	#6	UChicago Essays
Duke University	#7	Duke Essays
Johns Hopkins University	#7	Johns Hopkins Essay
Northwestern University	#7	Northwestern Essays
University of Pennsylvania	#7	UPenn Essays
California Institute of Technology	#11	Caltech Essays
Cornell University	#12	Cornell Essays
Brown University	#13	Brown Essays
Dartmouth College	#13	Dartmouth Essays
Columbia University	#15	Columbia Essays
University of California, Berkeley	#15	UC Berkeley Essays
University of California, Los Angeles	#17	UCLA Essays
Rice University	#17	Rice Essays
Vanderbilt University	#17	Vanderbilt Essays
University of Notre Dame	#20	Notre Dame Essays
Carnegie Mellon University	#20	Carnegie Mellon Essays
University of Michigan	#20	Michigan Essays
Washington University in St. Louis	#20	WashU Essays
Emory University	#24	Emory Essays
Georgetown University	#24	Georgetown Essays

How to Address the 2025-2026 College Essay Prompts

Below, you’ll find Ivy Coach’s tips on approaching the 2025-2026 supplemental essay prompts at America’s highly selective universities. If we haven’t yet posted our annual tips for a specific university, whose essays are hot off the presses, rest assured that it will be posted in short order.

College / University	2026 US News Rank (“Best National Universities”)	2025-2026 Supplemental College Essays with Ivy Coach Tips
Princeton University	#1	Princeton Tips
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	#2	MIT Tips
Harvard University	#3	Harvard Tips
Stanford University	#4	Stanford Tips
Yale University	#4	Yale Tips
University of Chicago	#6	UChicago Tips
Duke University	#7	Duke Tips
Johns Hopkins University	#7	Johns Hopkins Tips
Northwestern University	#7	Northwestern Tips
University of Pennsylvania	#7	UPenn Essays
California Institute of Technology	#11	Caltech Tips
Cornell University	#12	Cornell Tips
Brown University	#13	Brown Tips
Dartmouth College	#13	Dartmouth Tips
Columbia University	#15	Columbia Tips
University of California, Berkeley	#15	UC Berkeley Tips
University of California, Los Angeles	#17	UCLA Tips
Rice University	#17	Rice Tips
Vanderbilt University	#17	Vanderbilt Tips
University of Notre Dame	#20	Notre Dame Tips
Carnegie Mellon University	#20	Carnegie Mellon Tips
University of Michigan	#20	Michigan Tips
Washington University in St. Louis	#20	WashU Tips
Emory University	#24	Emory Tips
Georgetown University	#24	Georgetown Tips

Ivy Coach’s Assistance Tackling the 2025-2026 College Essays

If you’re interested in optimizing your case for admission to America’s highly selective universities by submitting compelling narratives, fill out Ivy Coach’s complimentary consultation form, and we’ll respond by outlining our college counseling services for seniors.