Type to search
La Mirada, California

Biola University

biola.edu
Ask a question
Add to my list
  • Overview
  • Cost & scholarships
  • Majors
  • Admission requirements
  • Essay prompts

Want to see your chances of admission at Biola University?

We take every aspect of your personal profile into consideration when calculating your admissions chances.

Biola University's 2021-22 Essay Prompts

Read our essay guide

Spiritual Growth Short Response

Required
Words

At Biola University our common foundation is our faith in Christ and looking to the Bible as a source of knowledge, truth, and inspiration. In at least 375 words, 1. Describe how and when you made a decision to follow Christ 2. Using personal examples, share about your spiritual growth over the past 3 years.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Why This College Essay

Required
50 Words

Additionally, in 50 words or less, please share why you‘re interested in attending Biola University.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

School of Cinema and Media Arts Short Response

Required
180 Characters

Please describe yourself as fully and accurately as possible in the 180-character limit of a classic tweet.*

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

School of Cinema and Media Arts Essay

Required
500 Words

Your personal statement should be something about yourself, telling a story of how you came to be interested in media, how faith plays a part in your creative life and what you hope to accomplish after college.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

School of Cinema and Media Arts Essay

Not Required

By this part of your college application process, you will have probably written dozens of essays and responded to a multitude of questions. Use this opportunity to add anything else you would like us to know about you.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

School of Cinema and Media Arts Essay

Required

Why did you choose to also apply to the Cinema and Media Arts program at Biola University?

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Faith Short Response

Required
5 Paragraphs

Who is Jesus Christ? How do you use the Bible to answer this question?

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Books Short Response

Required
5 Paragraphs

Other than the Bible, what 2-3 books have challenged the way you think about yourself and/or the world? Describe how.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Academic Interest Short Response

Required
5 Paragraphs

What is an idea that you‘re looking forward to studying more deeply? Why?

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Overcoming Challenges Essay

Required
5 Paragraphs

How do you approach difficulties in your life, and what wisdom have you gained?

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Overcoming Challenges Essay

Required
5 Paragraphs

Describe a time in which you handled a meaningful disagreement.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Why This College Essay

Required
5 Paragraphs

What is it about Torrey Honors that leads you to believe that you will thrive in our program?

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Select-A-Prompt Essay

Required

Please answer the following questions. They are meant to help us get to know you better and allow you to express yourself. Please take the time to answer these essay questions well as they are an important part of your application. University faculty will review your application and base decisions on your ability to communicate.


Option 1

Pick a movie, novel, or game where the protagonist makes a difficult choice. What did you learn from watching this journey?*


Option 2

What matters to you, and why?


Option 3

Media production is a collaborative art. What contributions do you feel you can make to a creative community?


Option 4

Give us your top 10 list (this is an intentionally unrestricted question)

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

Common App Personal Essay

Required
650 words

The essay demonstrates your ability to write clearly and concisely on a selected topic and helps you distinguish yourself in your own voice. What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores? Choose the option that best helps you answer that question and write an essay of no more than 650 words, using the prompt to inspire and structure your response. Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don‘t feel obligated to do so.


Option 1

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.


Option 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?


Option 3

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?


Option 4

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?


Option 5

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.


Option 6

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?


Option 7

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.

Read our essay guide to get started. Submit your essay for free peer review to refine and perfect it.
Submit or review an essay

What will first-time readers think of your college essay?

Join thousands of students getting and giving peer feedback on college essays—all for free!
Submit or review an essay