Can someone give me a thorough run down of how to answer this prompt? I’m in dire need of help. This is for MIT & TUFTSAnswered
MIT: Describe the world you come from; for example, your family, clubs, school, community, city, or town. How has that world shaped your dreams and aspirations? (200-250 words)
Tufts: How have the environments or experiences of your upbringing – your family, home, neighborhood, or community – shaped the person you are today(200-250 words)?
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2 answers
These essays are both part of the same essay archetype: the "community essay". From my experience, this is one of the most common essay topics that several schools want you to write about. The good thing about this prompt is that you can pretty much talk about anything you want: Sexual orientation, gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic background, life experiences, geographic background, etc. Because they want a diverse class, schools are always interested in seeing what you "bring to the table" in terms of life perspectives and experiences.
For the community essay, I'd recommend focusing on ONLY one aspect of your identity, and going deep with it. It should be an aspect that you really connect to and can talk a lot about. Don't worry if you can't think of any obvious thing that makes you special--you can talk about literally anything you have done or experienced and make it work. The key thing is to show colleges how this aspect of your identity has SHAPED YOU and how you'll contribute unique perspectives in college.
For example, you could talk about baseball, and how you've learned the value of teamwork and sportsmanship from it, and how in college you will treat everyone with respect and be open-minded (This would probably not be a very good essay, but I hope you get the idea).
Hi @nevermissed1! Like @bendajew said, both of these prompts are the “community essay” prompts. You can talk about any community that you are linked to – possibly through culture, a sports team, a club, etc. Since these essays are only around 200 words, choose to focus on one aspect of your identity (geographic background, race, ethnicity, SES, etc) and delve into it.
Schools are trying to create a diverse class so they ask this prompt to learn more about your experiences, the skills you bring to the table, and your perspectives based on your childhood/upbringing. Hope that helps!
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