COMMON APPLICATION PROMPT 2: “The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?”
The advantage of Common App Prompt 2 is it invites you to tell a story that starts with a problem, which immediately makes you start writing about yourself. The essay should begin with you setting a scene describing your challenge, setback or failure. Again, the specificity with which you describe this scenario should plop the reader smack-dab into your life.
Examples of challenges, setbacks or failures for Prompt 2?
- You have dyslexia.
- You are bullied.
- You are anorexic.
- You are obese.
- You are addicted to video games.
- You don’t have a car.
- You were the only waitress who showed up at work one day.
- You have a job mowing lawns and your lawn mower is broken.
- You got fired for being late.
- You have a tree nut allergy.
- You don’t have reliable access to the internet because you live in a very rural area.
- You single-handedly lost the game.
- You got caught for knocking down a mailbox with a baseball bat while in a moving car.
- You can’t pass your stupid driver’s test.
- Your parents couldn’t afford a school trip.
- You are really shy.
- You are bossy.
- You have a bad temper.
- You are impatient.
- You are hypercritical.
Problems beg for solutions, too, right? So, after you’ve set up your essential first scene (knowing that no detail is too small or mundane as long as it’s honest), your Prompt 2 essay should explore how you went about searching for solutions and what parts of yourself were exposed along the way. Even if there was no solution to your problem, that’s OK. The ways in which you tried to find one show your character — as do the ways in which you dealt with your failure.
Another advantage of Prompt 2 is it keeps you humble, unlike, say showcasing a talent. Even as you explore the ways in which you dealt with your problem, you likely won’t be inclined to brag.
Prompt 2 also asks you to expose yourself and exposing yourself takes guts. Admissions readers like bravery, especially if it presents itself in tandem with humility.
Head back here to read tips for other Common Application prompts.