2025 COMMON APP ESSAY PROMPTS BREAKDOWN!

Summary

In this informative video, Nick the Tutor guides students through the 2025 Common Application essay prompts, emphasizing the importance of choosing the right prompt that aligns with their personal story. He provides insights on each prompt, advising students to prioritize their content before selecting a prompt. Nick highlights the value of positivity and personal growth in essays, ultimately favoring the open-ended prompt for its creativity and authenticity, and offers to personally review essays for free to assist students in their college application journey.

Takeaways

• 📝 Nick the Tudor, a college application expert, discusses the 2025 Common Application essay prompts.
• 🔄 The prompts for 2025 have not changed from the previous year, but the process has evolved, requiring a fresh perspective.
• 🤔 Nick advises students to first consider their personal identity, experiences, and what they want to convey to the admissions committee before choosing a prompt.
• 📖 Prompt one is ideal for students who want to share a significant personal identity, characteristic, or talent that defines them.
• 🏆 Prompt two encourages students to recount a challenge, setback, or failure and the lessons learned from it, with a focus on personal growth.
• 🤨 Prompt three is suitable for students passionate about a social issue, but caution is advised to avoid sensitive topics that might offend readers.
• 🙏 Prompt four is about reflecting on a time when someone's actions made the student feel grateful, and how that gratitude influenced them.
• 🚀 Prompt five is about discussing an accomplishment or realization that led to personal growth and a new understanding of oneself or others.
• 🌟 Prompt six invites students to write about a topic, idea, or concept that captivates them and makes them lose track of time.
• 🎨 Prompt seven is an open-ended prompt that allows students to write on any topic of their choice, including creative and unique ideas.
• 💡 The key to a successful essay is to choose content that reflects the student's personality and growth, rather than forcing a fit with a specific prompt.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video?

The main topic of the video is discussing the 2025 common application essay prompts for college applications.

What is Nick's advice for students before choosing an essay prompt?

Nick advises students to first think about who they are as a person and what they want to tell the admissions committee before committing to a prompt.

What should students avoid when writing their college essays according to Nick?

Students should avoid writing about things that are heavily touched on in the rest of their application to prevent redundancy.

What is the first essay prompt about?

The first essay prompt is for students who have a background, identity, interest, or talent that they believe their application would be incomplete without.

What is the second essay prompt focused on?

The second essay prompt is about recounting a time when a student faced a challenge, setback, or failure and what they learned from that experience.

What kind of essay does the third prompt suggest writing?

The third prompt suggests writing an essay about a time when a student questioned or challenged a belief or idea and the outcome of that thinking.

What is the fourth essay prompt asking students to reflect on?

The fourth essay prompt asks students to reflect on a time when someone has done something for them that made them happy or thankful, and how that gratitude affected or motivated them.

What does the fifth essay prompt focus on?

The fifth essay prompt focuses on discussing an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked personal growth and a new understanding of oneself or others.

What is the sixth essay prompt about?

The sixth essay prompt is about describing a topic, idea, or concept that is so engaging it makes the student lose all track of time and why it captivates them.

What does the seventh and final essay prompt allow students to do?

The seventh essay prompt allows students to share an essay on any topic of their choice, including one they've already written or one of their own design.

Which essay prompt does Nick, the tutor, prefer the most and why?

Nick prefers the seventh, open-ended prompt the most because it lends itself to massive creativity and allows students to express their personality and interests authentically.

What does Nick suggest for students who want to write about a social issue?

Nick suggests that students who are passionate about a social issue and want to write about it should choose the third prompt, but they should be careful not to offend anyone and ensure their essay is specific to them.

What is the importance of maintaining a positive tone in a college application essay according to the video?

Maintaining a positive tone in a college application essay is important because it helps to present the student in an uplifting light, showcasing their ability to overcome challenges and grow personally.

What advice does Nick give regarding the length of the challenge or obstacle section in an essay about overcoming adversity?

Nick advises to keep the obstacle or challenge part of the essay shorter and spend more time discussing personal growth and improvement, ensuring the essay maintains a positive tone.

What is the purpose of the video in terms of helping students with their college application essays?

The purpose of the video is to guide students through the common application essay prompts, discuss what makes a successful essay for each prompt, and provide advice on choosing the right prompt that aligns with the student's story and personality.

Outlines

00:00

📚 College Application Essay Prompts Overview

Nick the Tutor introduces the 2025 common application essay prompts, emphasizing the importance of understanding one's identity and story before choosing a prompt. He advises against selecting a prompt first and then writing the essay, instead recommending that students think about their experiences and what they want to convey to the admissions committee. The video promises an analysis of each prompt and a final recommendation for the best prompt to use.

05:01

🏅 Discussing the First Prompt: Personal Identity and Talents

The first prompt is explored for students who wish to share a significant personal identity, characteristic, or talent. Nick advises against writing about aspects already covered in the application, such as sports achievements, and instead encourages highlighting unique or lesser-known talents. This prompt is ideal for those with a strong sense of self and a desire to share an integral part of their identity with the admissions committee.

10:01

🚧 Overcoming Obstacles: The Second Prompt

The second prompt focuses on recounting a challenge, setback, or failure and the lessons learned from it. Nick suggests keeping the negative aspects brief and concentrating on personal growth and improvement. He notes that while this prompt can be powerful, it might lead to a negative tone if not handled carefully, making it less favorable compared to others.

🤔 Challenging Beliefs: The Third Prompt

The third prompt is suitable for students passionate about a social issue and who have questioned or challenged a belief or idea. Nick warns about the potential sensitivity of such topics and advises caution to avoid offending readers. This prompt is best for those with a strong conviction and a unique perspective to share.

🙏 Gratitude and Motivation: The Fourth Prompt

The fourth prompt invites students to reflect on an act of kindness that left them feeling grateful and how it influenced their actions. Nick appreciates the positive tone of this prompt and its potential for discussing altruism. However, he notes the challenge of keeping the focus on oneself rather than the person who performed the act of kindness.

🌱 Personal Growth and Self-Understanding: The Fifth Prompt

Nick's favorite prompt, the fifth one, encourages students to discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that led to personal growth and self-understanding. He believes this prompt is excellent for showcasing maturity and readiness for college, allowing students to highlight their development and aspirations.

🎓 Engaging Interests and Learning: The Sixth Prompt

The sixth prompt is ideal for students who wish to write about an academic or core interest that captivates them. Nick sees this as an opportunity to convey a deep love for learning and knowledge, which can be particularly beneficial for those applying for specific majors or fields of study.

✍️ Open-Ended Creativity: The Seventh Prompt

The final prompt offers complete freedom for students to write on any topic of their choice. Nick appreciates the potential for creativity and personal expression, citing examples of successful essays that were unique and engaging. He encourages students to use this prompt to showcase their personality and interests authentically.

🌟 Choosing the Best Prompt for Your Essay

In conclusion, Nick emphasizes that the choice of prompt is less important than the content of the essay itself. He advises students to reflect on what matters to them and how they can express their personality and interests. Nick offers to read and provide feedback on submitted essays, aiming to help students present their best selves in their college application essays.

Keywords

💡Common Application Essay Prompts

The Common Application Essay Prompts are a set of questions provided by the Common Application, a platform used by college applicants to submit their applications to multiple colleges. These prompts guide students in writing personal essays that showcase their experiences, values, and personalities. In the video, Nick the Tutor discusses the prompts for the year 2025, emphasizing the importance of choosing a prompt that aligns with the student's personal story and not the other way around.

💡Personal Identity

Personal Identity refers to the individual characteristics that define a person, such as their heritage, personality traits, or talents. In the context of the video, Nick the Tutor suggests that Prompt 1 is ideal for students who wish to share a significant aspect of their personal identity with the admissions committee, providing an opportunity to express what makes them unique.

💡Challenges and Growth

Challenges and Growth are central themes in college essays, as they allow students to demonstrate resilience and personal development. Prompt 2 encourages students to recount a time when they faced a challenge, setback, or failure, and to discuss the lessons learned and how it affected them. Nick the Tutor advises focusing on the positive outcomes and personal growth rather than dwelling on the negative aspects.

💡Social Issues

Social Issues are topics of public concern that can be addressed in college essays to show a student's passion and commitment to making a difference. Prompt 3 is highlighted as a suitable choice for students who have strong views on a social issue and want to discuss how it prompted their thinking and the outcome of their engagement with it. The video cautions about the sensitivity of such topics and the need to approach them carefully.

💡Gratitude and Motivation

Gratitude and Motivation are positive emotions that can inspire essays showing a student's appreciation for acts of kindness and how they have been motivated to act positively. Prompt 4 asks students to reflect on an instance where someone's action made them feel happy or thankful, and how this gratitude has influenced their actions or thoughts. The video suggests that this prompt can lead to uplifting essays that highlight altruism.

💡Personal Growth

Personal Growth is a key concept in college essays, as it reflects a student's maturity and readiness for college life. Prompt 5 invites students to discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that led to personal growth and a new understanding of themselves or others. Nick the Tutor particularly likes this prompt for its potential to showcase a student's development and readiness to contribute positively to the college community.

💡Academic Interests

Academic Interests represent the subjects or fields a student is passionate about studying. Prompt 6 is designed for students who want to write about a topic, idea, or concept that captivates them, demonstrating their enthusiasm for learning and their potential to excel in a particular academic area. The video suggests that this prompt can help students convey their intellectual curiosity and dedication to their chosen field.

💡Open-Ended Prompt

An Open-Ended Prompt, as mentioned in Prompt 7, allows students the freedom to write about any topic of their choice, providing a platform for creativity and self-expression. In the video, Nick the Tutor expresses a preference for this type of prompt because it enables students to showcase their individuality and creativity without being confined to a specific theme or question.

💡College Admissions

College Admissions refers to the process by which students apply and are selected for enrollment in higher education institutions. The video's primary focus is on the college admissions process, specifically the essay component, which is a critical part of demonstrating a student's qualifications, character, and fit for a particular college or university.

💡Creativity in Essays

Creativity in Essays is encouraged as a way for students to stand out in the college application process. The video discusses how being creative can make an essay more engaging and memorable. Nick the Tutor gives an example of a successful essay about a student's Spotify playlist, which was a creative way to express personal experiences and tastes, demonstrating the value of thinking outside the box when writing college essays.

Highlights

Nick the Tudor provides guidance on the 2025 common application essay prompts.

The process for the common application has changed, but the prompts remain the same as the previous year.

Students are advised to consider their personal identity and story before choosing an essay prompt.

Prompt one is suitable for students with a strong personal identity or talent they wish to share.

A caution against writing about topics already covered in the application, to avoid redundancy.

Prompt two invites students to recount a challenge, setback, or failure and the lessons learned.

The importance of maintaining a positive tone and focusing on personal growth in essays about obstacles.

Prompt three is ideal for students passionate about a social issue and their personal beliefs.

A warning about the potential sensitivity of topics and the need for careful handling in essays.

Prompt four encourages reflection on acts of kindness that inspired gratitude and personal motivation.

The preference for essays that are uplifting and focus on positivity, rather than negativity.

Prompt five is about discussing personal growth, a realization, or an accomplishment that led to self-understanding.

The appeal of essays that demonstrate maturity and readiness for college through personal growth stories.

Prompt six allows students to write about a topic, idea, or concept that deeply engages them.

The opportunity for students to express their passion for learning and intellectual curiosity.

Prompt seven offers complete freedom to choose any topic, including previously written essays.

The value of creativity and personal expression in college application essays, as exemplified by successful examples.

Nick's personal preference for the open-ended prompt due to its potential for creativity and authenticity.

The final advice to focus on the content of the essay, ensuring it reveals the student's personality and values.

Transcripts

what's going on YouTube I'm Nick the

Tudor and I've helped thousands of

students through the college process

from the SAT act all the way to college

essays and college applications and in

today's video we're going to go over the

2025 common application essay prompts

we're going to go through each prompt

we're going to talk about what essays

would be successful with that prompt and

at the end of the video I'm going to

give you my vote for the number one

prompt for you guys so let's get into it

all right so I want to get straight into

the prompts the prompts for this year

year 2025 have not changed so we have

the same prompts as last year but the

process has changed so much we want to

look at this with a fresh eye go through

each prompt and figure out which one is

the prompt for us before I get into the

prompts guys I want to talk about one

thing my recommended course of action

for any student writing their college

essic is that they think about who they

are as a person and what they want to

tell the admissions committee before

committing to a prompt as you'll see by

the end of this video guys you can fit

any essay into a college application we

want to think about what we want to tell

the person do we want to tell them

something about our heritage do we want

to tell them about an experience we had

something we did positively for someone

else we want to think about our content

first before we look at the prompts the

prompts can be inspiring they can be

helpful if you're really struggling you

might want to look at them but don't

choose the prompt first and then write

the essay second write the essay think

about what you want to write about and

then fit it into the prompt at the end

that's my advice and let's get into

prompt one prompt number one says some

students have a background identity

interest or talent that is so meaningful

they believe their application would be

incomplete without it if this sounds

like you then please share your story so

this prompt prompt one guys this is a

great prompt for someone who has a

personal identity that they want to

share with the admissions committee you

feel really strongly about your heritage

you have a certain personality

characteristic or certain personal

characteristic that's really defining

for you and you want to tell them about

that this is a great prompt for them

that they also mentioned talents if

you're just incredibly talented in some

area you might want to write about it

this is the prompt that you would fit

that in now I want to be careful for a

second and here's a quick tip from Nick

the tutor don't write your college essay

about things that are heavily touched on

in the rest of your application so if

you spent a lot of your extracurricular

activity doing sports and you're really

great at soccer but you're not being

recruited for soccer you don't want to

then write your essay about your soccer

talent because that's just redundant of

what they've already seen in your

application so we want to make sure

we're giving them new content new

information maybe a hidden talent that

no one knows about you know you're

really great at origami or something

like that like whatever the case may be

if you have a hidden talent you have a

certain personality characteristic

you're part of a certain community that

you want to tell them about this is the

prompt for you so I can see a lot of

good essays coming for this prompt I

really like this prompt for the right

person so if you feel like this prompt

is for you I would definitely pick it

now let's get into prompt two all right

prompt number two the lessons we take

from obstacles we encounter can be

fundamental to later success recount a

time when you fac a challenge setback or

failure how did it affect you and what

did you learn from that experience so

let's talk about this prompt I think

this is a great prompt for people that

have faced a challenge in life that they

want to talk about how they overcame it

now if you're writing that kind of essay

about a challenge or about an obstacle

that you overcame you want to make sure

that you keep the obstacle challenge

part the shorter part of the essay and

spend more of the essay talking about

your growth and how you became better

because of this how you improved you

want to make sure to keep the tone

positive uh I feel like this prompt is

not necessarily my favorite because I

think it leads you towards spending a

lot of the essay talking about something

negative that impacted you or something

that went wrong and then it doesn't

leave you enough room to talk about the

positive if you can flip that

organization you could really spend most

of the essay talking about something

positive I think that would be extremely

powerful essay but you just have to be

careful that you don't get a negative

tone where you're you know spending the

first three paragraphs of your essay

talking about a failure or about

something bad that happened to you think

for the right person this is a good

prompt but I would say this is

definitely lower on my list of the

prompts that I really like students to

write about so let's get into prompt

three reflect on a time when you

questioned or challenged a belief or

idea what prompted your thinking what

was the outcome so this is a great

prompt for a student who feels really

strongly about a social issue if you

want to go down that route I think this

is a great prompt for you once again

that has to be specific to you I don't

think you can force for yourself into

this prompt if you are really that

passionate about something that you want

to talk about it in this way then I

think this is a perfect prompt for you I

think that you know you have to be

careful though right because talking

about anything that's very sensitive

like politics or you know sensitive

issues you don't know who's reading your

application you don't know how they feel

about it so you have to be careful if

you're using this prompt that you're not

offending anybody or anything like that

I think once again this prompt for the

right person with the right essay could

be an amazing prompt and could be very

powerful I don't think that I would go

down this prompt for most people I think

it's very specific you know what you

want to write about it fits in this

prompt then go for it otherwise I would

not do it and this is exactly why going

back to my earlier Point guys this is

why I don't like students picking the

prompt first and then forcing them into

it if you felt so passionate about some

social issue that you wanted to write

this prompt it's perfect for you so

that's using the issue first the content

first and then fitting it into the

prompt so don't Jam yourself into this

prompt because you think it's what a

college wants to hear here it's a good

prompt it's not a great prompt I would

put it on the bottom of my list probably

somewhere in the bottom but if it works

for you then it's going to be amazing so

if you do like this prompt go for it all

right guys prompt number four reflect on

something that someone has done for you

that has made you happy or thankful in a

surprising way how has this gratitude

affected or motivated you all right guys

I do like this prompt um I think this

could be a good uplifting prompt now one

of the things you'll see that I always

focus on is positivity you don't want to

bring negativity into your college essay

right you want it to be positive

uplifting and really tell them something

about yourself I like this prompt the

one thing I don't like about this prompt

is that you have to reference someone

else right now at the same time that's

not a problem of course if you can keep

the part about the someone else to a

minimum and just say okay they did this

for me they said this to me this

affected me in this way and then you

could talk mostly about yourself at the

end then it's going to be fine so I do

like this prompt I feel like it leans in

the positive someone did something good

for you right let's talk about that

that's amazing like how are you going to

do something good for someone else we

want to keep that positive tone so I

think this prompt strikes that so this

is a good prompt I think it fits a lot

of interesting essays where you can talk

about altruism which is a great thing to

talk about on a college application

essay so I do like this prompt if you

feel like you want to go down that route

this can be a really good prompt for you

all right let's get into prompt five

discuss an accomplishment event or

realization that sparked a period of

personal growth and a new understanding

of yourself or others this is one of my

favorite prompts guys I really like

personal growth I think colleges are

looking for people that are mature and

ready for college they know what they

want they have a path carved out for

themselves now look I didn't have a path

carved out for myself when I was 16 17

years old so if you don't that's totally

fine but for someone who does know what

they want to study they do know where

they want to be they feel strongly about

certain issues and they really feel like

they can help others and uplift others I

think this is a good prompt to do

something like that I love the idea of

accomplishments I love the idea of

personal growth becoming a better person

becoming more mature becoming more

organized becoming better in school

becoming a better human I think there's

a lot of really positive things you can

do with this prompt this is one of my

favorite prompts by far guys and I think

if you want that uplifting essay about

personal growth where you're really

rounding out into college say you had a

little bit of trouble in high school say

you have a few bad grades in there not

the greatest test score but you found

growth in other areas right you feel

like you're a really good person you're

a good team member a good Community

member I think this is a great prompt to

really balance some of those mistakes

that you made out and I think everybody

might have one or two of those and this

is a great prompt to show that you're a

mature uplifting positive person that

really has grown over the course of high

school and will continue to grow in

college I think it's a great message to

send I love this prompt definitely check

it out all right let's get into prompt

six describe a topic idea or concept you

find so engaging that it makes you lose

all track of time why does it Captivate

you what or who do you turn to when you

want to learn more I think this is also

a very good prompt guys I think if you

want to write your essay about an

academic interest or some core interest

that you have where you really want to

learn just dive into this subject I

think this is a great prompt I think you

could really talk about a deep love for

Learning and knowledge if you want to go

down that slightly educational route for

your college application essay you feel

like that's going to benefit you maybe

you're applying for engineering or a

very specific major think you could f

fit something really cool into this

prompt that talks about your passions

your interests things you love to do

love to learn about that's a great

message sent to a college you're ready

to learn you're ready to take on

challenging material and you're really

ready to do what you need to do when you

get to college so I do like this prompt

I think that is good I want to go back

and say I don't dislike any of these

prompts I think a few of them are more

Niche and some of them are more you know

widely uh usable for most students I

think this is one that anybody could use

you could talk about your greatest

interest

but I do like this prompt I think it

lends towards the positive and you

should definitely check it out all right

let's get into prompt number seven guys

share an essay on any topic of your

choice it can be one you've already

written one that responds to a different

prompt or one of your own design so

basically at the end guys here we have

the catchall prompt a lot of people say

you shouldn't do this one I don't know

if I necessarily agree with that at all

I think you know like I said earlier we

want the essay to be entertaining we

want it to be fun we want it to be

uplifting if it needs to be serious if

that's what your essay is going to be

about then also it can be serious but I

think a lot of the best essays if you

review really great college essays

they're creative they're fun and they

talk about specific interesting things

that teens do and go through that people

want to hear that makes it sound very

realistic and it gives a great

connection to the reader I'll give you

one perfect example on the Johns Hopkins

essays that worked website which we'll

link below this is a great website it

basically gives some of the top essays

that they read every year they're all

very unique they're all very different

right one of them that they put up

recently was about the student Spotify

playlist and how the songs give the

student an Asal it remember specific

moments and then going to college

they'll have new song so on and so forth

I thought that was a creative one I'm

sure probably people are copying that

now maybe it's not that creative but I

think that prompt really shows what a

teen would actually write about if you

ask them right they're not putting on a

show because it's a college application

and talking about something they don't

really care about that's what they

wanted to write that tells the college

about their personality tells them the

value Community to togetherness time

spent with other people that's what a

lot of this is about now yes there's a

lot of different routes you can go with

a college application essay that's only

one of them but if you're going to go

that creative and fun route I think

that's the kind of essay that I would

love to see um I think a lot of people

would love to see so this prompt allows

you to basically do whatever you want so

if you have something wildly creative

you have something really fun this is

where a lot of times you can do that and

that's why this is an exciting prompt

for me guys if you like the content of

this video hit that like button hit that

subscribe button that's how I continue

to make this content for you guys I'm

going to drop more videos on college

application essays as we get closer to

that submit deadline so take a look out

for that and make sure to tell a friend

to tell a friend that Nick the tutor is

here for you guys and is helping you

with the college process but let's get

into what I promise you guys which is my

last Point what prompt do I like the

best what would I pick now you guys can

probably already tell a little bit from

this video I love creative positive

uplifting essays that are from 18 teen

voice so my favorite prompt is the last

prompt is the open-ended prompt that

just lends itself to massive creativity

you can do whatever you want with that

prompt so that's going to be my personal

favorite I think if I had to pick other

two prompts I would really like prompt

five personal growth prompt and I also

really like prompt six if you're going

down more of an educational formal essay

I think that's a really good one I'm not

a huge fan of the prompts that take you

towards something negative or towards

other people I also think for the right

person prompt number one can be very

powerful if you want to tell that

personal story so at the end of the day

it doesn't matter what prompt you pick

really is irrelevant what matters is the

content of your essay is good the

writing is good but realistically you

want to make sure to tell them about

yourself open up for a second look

around your room look at your life and

say what matters to me what do I love to

do and how can I express that to others

as long as of course it's appropriate

and how can I tell them who I really am

let them see my personality they can't

read personality from GPA from test

scores or really from college

applications very well they can read

personality and who you are as a person

for your college application essay once

again guys thanks for watching this

video you made it to the end you are a

true college application ESS prompt

expert if you need any help with your

college application check the links

below I'll link all of our college

application essay Services if any of you

want me to read your essay I will read

it for free I don't care as long as this

doesn't blow up and turn into thousands

and thousands of people hopefully it

does we'll see what happens then but at

the same time you want to send me your

essay I'll check it out I'll tell you

what I think I always love to do that

help people out um so definitely shoot

that over to me we'll put a link below

or you can send me your college

application essay but at the same time

thanks for watching this video and I'll

see you guys in the next one peace