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Orange, California

Chapman University

chapman.edu
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  • Overview
  • Cost & scholarships
  • Majors
  • Admission requirements
  • Essay prompts

Want to see your chances of admission at Chapman University?

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

Chapman University's 2022-23 Essay Prompts

Read our essay guide

Select-A-Prompt Essay

Required
Words

Out of the thousands of universities and colleges, what excites you about attending Chapman University specifically?


Option 1

What is your dream job?


Option 2

What are three words to describe yourself?


Option 3

What song should we be listening to while reading your application?


Option 4

Name one dish you would cook for our admission team


Option 5

What is your favorite subject?


Option 6

What is the top thing on your bucket list?


Option 7

What makes you happy?


Option 8

If Chapman’s admission team came to visit your hometown, what site would you take them to?


Option 9

What can you give a 30-minute presentation on without any preparation?


Option 10

What is something you have always wanted to learn but never had the chance to?

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