2026-2027 UIUC Essay Topics and Questions

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has released its supplemental essay prompts for the Class of 2031. This year, applicants are directed to respond to three essays of 150 words each, although the prompts themselves vary depending on whether the applicant applies with an intended major or not. So, what are these prompts, and how should UIUC hopefuls navigate their answers to position themselves as competitive candidates? Let’s review.

First-Choice Major Essays

Students who select a first-choice major on their UIUC application must respond to the following two prompts in 150 words or less: 

1. Explain, in detail, an experience you’ve had in the past 3 to 4 years related to your first-choice major. This can be an experience from an extracurricular activity, in a class you’ve taken, or through something else.

This is a pretty standard Why Major prompt one often encounters on elite college applications. In your response, you should expound upon an activity you’ve listed on your Common App Activities Section or an experience you had in the classroom that does not repeat any information you’ve shared in your Personal Statement. Add the human element that’s missing from your activities section description of this activity (or from your transcript, in the case of an experience in an academic context), and be sure to underscore how this experience supported the pursuit of your singular hook.

And for those of you who don’t already know, your singular hook is the discipline, cause, art form, or passion you’ve devoted the most time to during your four years in high school. If you’ve taken Ivy Coach’s advice articulated in our college admissions blog, you’ll have presented this hook as the narrative throughline of your entire application to UIUC, and this prompt adds an in-depth description of one aspect of this hook. And for the record, they state they’re looking for an experience from the last 3 to 4 years because they don’t want to hear about anything you’ve done before high school!

2. Describe your personal and/or career goals after graduating from Illinois and how your selected first-choice major will help you achieve them.

Here’s where you get big-picture. How will the major you selected serve as a springboard for pursuing your hook post-graduation? In your response, you should focus just as much on your long-term goals as on the departmental specifics at UIUC that will help you achieve them. By specifics, we don’t mean the specific courses or professors you’ll encounter during your time at UIUC. These details change from year to year, so what you need to cite instead is the enduring institutional specifics, including the research opportunities, advising structures, fellowships, etc. that you’ll take advantage of while pursuing your major.

Second-Choice Major Essays

Students who apply with a second-choice major will be presented with the following prompt, to which they must respond in 150 words or less:

1. Please explain your interest in your second-choice major or your overall academic or career goals.

This prompt essentially presents students with an alternative to the second of the first-choice major essays, A.K.A. an opportunity to articulate the institutional specifics related to your second-choice major that you’ll pursue during your time on campus. Just be sure not to include any redundancies between the two prompts! This response should be entirely fresh, covering a different major that still ties back into your singular hook.

Essays for the Undeclared

If you’re applying undeclared to UIUC (which we at Ivy Coach would not recommend), you’ll be presented with the following two prompts which you must respond to in 150 words or less:

1. What are your future career or academic goals? You may include courses you took in high school and how these impacted your goals.

If you are indeed applying undeclared to UIUC, you probably haven’t heeded our advice to present a singular hook to optimize your odds of admission. Still, your response should articulate the singular hook you do have to the extent possible. Even if it’s just the high school subject you particularly excelled in, you should describe why this discipline inspires you and how you’ll pursue it at UIUC. Yes, this means citing specific examples that apply only to UIUC!

2. What are your academic interests? Please include 2-3 majors you’re considering at Illinois and why.

UIUC admissions officers don’t want to admit students who don’t have the faintest idea how they’d like to spend their time on campus. In fact, they’d rather avoid these time-wasters at all costs! In your response, you need to instill faith in UIUC that you won’t squander your time on campus. Research the departments that pique your interest and cite the institutional specifics (i.e., the research opportunities, advising structures, fellowships, and NOT the specific classes or professors, which are subject to change from year to year) that draw you to these majors.

Ivy Coach’s Assistance with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

If you’re interested in optimizing your case for admission to UIUC by submitting essays that compel admissions officers to wish to offer you admission, fill out Ivy Coach’s complimentary consultation form, and we’ll be in touch to outline our college counseling services for seniors.