Carleton College has one required essay and one optional essay. The first essay asks you to discuss someone who has impacted you. While normally we would encourage you to also respond to the optional second prompt, this is the kind of “additional information” question that is truly optional, so only answer if there is truly something that you don’t feel is captured anywhere else in your application.
Carleton is one of the most selective liberal arts colleges out there, so strong essays are key to set yourself apart in a talented applicant pool. Read on for our expert tips and tricks!
Prompt 1 (required) : Think about someone you connect with who’s different from you. What do you find most meaningful about your interactions with them? (100-300 words)
Prompt 2 (optional) : Anything missing? Do you want to share more with us? If so, use this space to fill any gaps you think would assist us in reviewing your application. (250 words)
Carleton admission staff provide helpful essay tips on their admissions website. This is great advice for writing college essays overall. They encourage students to see the essay as an opportunity to share information that won’t be found elsewhere in your application and to show who you are beyond test scores and GPAs.
Residential liberal arts colleges like Carleton know that students have a better experience and greater success when they feel that they belong at their school. This is especially true for smaller colleges where students and faculty know each other by name. These prompts give admission staff an opportunity to get to know you as a person and how the Carleton community might be a good fit for you.
All of these options will require some introspection on your part. You may even surprise yourself as you consider these prompts.
Carleton is known to value diversity, so they are interested in understanding how meaningful connections with people who are different from you have shaped your perspective.
Good Example
“My friendship with Olivia, a girl I met during a summer coding camp, has been one of the most eye-opening relationships I’ve had. Olivia was born deaf, and though I initially thought our communication would be challenging, it quickly became clear that the richness her perspective added was worth navigating any logistical hurdle.
During group projects, Olivia would always suggest incredibly creative ways to visualize coding problems—solutions that I never would have considered. One time, when we were struggling to debug a tricky program, she suggested thinking of the code in terms of visual patterns rather than lines of text. That moment completely changed the way I approach coding.
Over time, I’ve realized that her deafness isn’t a barrier at all, but a unique strength that adds incredible value to any team. Our friendship has taught me that sometimes, a major difference between me and someone else is simply a chance to broaden my mind beyond what I originally thought was possible.”
Why this works: This example is personal, specific, and highlights a clear interaction (debugging session at coding camp) that shows how the relationship has affected the writer’s thinking. The essay focuses on the student’s growth and learning while also showing admiration for their friend’s strengths. Finally, the vivid storytelling and details make the essay unique and memorable.
Bad Example
“I have a friend who is from a very different background than me. He is from Pakistan, and I’m from the U.S., so we grew up with very different cultures. He practices Islam, and I don’t follow any religion, but we still get along well. I’ve learned that even though we come from different places, we are all human and can still be friends. It’s made me more open to meeting people from different cultures in the future.”
Why this doesn’t work: This response is too vague. There are no specific examples of the moments the student has shared with their friend, and as a result the lesson learned feels cliché. There’s little depth or personal reflection, so the essay doesn’t do much to show us what distinguishes this student from any other Carleton applicant.
Usually, at a school as selective as Carleton, you want to take advantage of any and all opportunities to share your personality. This prompt, though, is an example of one that’s truly optional. If you feel that the rest of your application already fully captures who you are, there’s no need to force anything here.
However, if you feel as though there is something about your identity or about why you want to go to Carleton that is important to your application and hasn’t yet been addressed, don’t hesitate to include it here. Here are some examples of details you may wish to write about here:
This prompt is going to be on an extremely case-by-case basis, so do what feels right for you and remember that you don’t have to embellish anything about yourself or your life in an attempt to make it sound more interesting to an admissions reader. They really just want to get to know you as your authentic self, so if you do choose to answer this prompt, make sure that you’re doing it in a manner that is genuine and honest.
Also, even though this prompt has a 250-word limit, feel free to only write a few short sentences if that feels more appropriate to you. Again, this prompt is truly optional, so unlike with other essays, don’t feel like you have to use up every last bit of space.
Do you want feedback on your Carleton College essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays.
Need feedback faster? Get a free, nearly-instantaneous essay review from Sage, our AI tutor and advisor. Sage will rate your essay, give you suggestions for improvement, and summarize what admissions officers would take away from your writing. Use these tools to improve your chances of acceptance to your dream school!