Boston College

Boston College Supplemental Essay Outlines

Q: Strong communities are sustained by traditions. Boston College's annual calendar is marked with both long-standing and newer traditions that help shape our community. Tell us about a meaningful tradition in your family or community. Why is it important to you, and how does it bring people together or strengthen the bonds of those who participate?

Boston College asks applicants to respond in up to 400 words. A complete paragraph-by-paragraph strategy guide for this prompt and a Wiz rough draft are available with AdmitPro Plus, Pro, or Elite.

Q: The late BC theology professor, Father Michael Himes, argued that a university is not a place to which you go, but instead, a "rigorous and sustained conversation about the great questions of human existence, among the widest possible circle of the best possible conversation partners.” Who has been your most meaningful conversation partner, and what profound questions have you considered together?

Boston College asks applicants to respond in up to 400 words. A complete paragraph-by-paragraph strategy guide for this prompt and a Wiz rough draft are available with AdmitPro Plus, Pro, or Elite.

Q: In her July 2009 Ted Talk, "The Danger of a Single Story," Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie warned viewers against assigning people a "single story" through assumptions about their nationality, appearance, or background. Discuss a time when someone defined you by a single story. What challenges did this present and how did you overcome them?

Boston College asks applicants to respond in up to 400 words. A complete paragraph-by-paragraph strategy guide for this prompt and a Wiz rough draft are available with AdmitPro Plus, Pro, or Elite.

Q: Boston College's Jesuit mission highlights "the three Be's": be attentive, be reflective, be loving – core to Jesuit education (see A Pocket Guide to Jesuit Education). If you could add a fourth "Be," what would it be and why? How would this new value support your personal development and enrich the BC community?

Boston College asks applicants to respond in up to 400 words. A complete paragraph-by-paragraph strategy guide for this prompt and a Wiz rough draft are available with AdmitPro Plus, Pro, or Elite.

Q: Human-Centered Engineering (HCE) Applicants only: One goal of a Jesuit education is to prepare students to serve the Common Good. Human-Centered Engineering at Boston College integrates technical knowledge, creativity, and a humanistic perspective to address societal challenges and opportunities. What societal problems are important to you and how will you use your HCE education to solve them?

Boston College asks applicants to respond in up to 400 words. A complete paragraph-by-paragraph strategy guide for this prompt and a Wiz rough draft are available with AdmitPro Plus, Pro, or Elite.

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Essay outlines

Every Boston College prompt, outlined

Supplemental Essay (Choose 1)

Meaningful Tradition

400 words

Strong communities are sustained by traditions. Boston College's annual calendar is marked with both long-standing and newer traditions that help shape our community. Tell us about a meaningful tradition in your family or community. Why is it important to you, and how does it bring people together or strengthen the bonds of those who participate?

Paragraph 1: The Opening Scene

Drop the admissions reader directly into a specific, active instance of your tradition as it is happening.
Recreate the environment with rich sensory details, visual descriptions, and immediate sounds or smells to make the scene feel real.
What is best to include: a small, intimate, and highly unique family ritual or localized community event that represents your true background.
What not to include and what to avoid: a generic introduction explaining what the tradition is, a dictionary definition of tradition, or a list of traditional food and holiday schedules.

Paragraph 2: The Community Context

Define the specific community or group surrounding this tradition, whether it is place-based, interest-based, or cultural.
Establish your natural place within this community as a peer rather than a detached observer.
What is best to include: a clear sense of the group size, the general atmosphere, and your specific, active role in the initial setup of the tradition.
What not to include and what to avoid: listing multiple unrelated groups you belong to, or repeating your Common Application activities list.

Paragraph 3: The Deep Meaning

Explain why this specific tradition holds personal significance for you, grounding its importance in your lived experience.
Reflect on how your perception of the ritual has evolved from when you were younger to how you participate in it today.
What is best to include: an honest admission of past resistance or misunderstanding that transitioned into genuine appreciation.
What not to include and what to avoid: generic, clichéd statements about family warmth, or shallow claims about the importance of being nice to others.

Paragraph 4: The Family History

Trace the background, lineage, or origin of the tradition to reveal how it connects generations or preserves local culture.
Show the reader the specific historical or familial weight carried by the ritual.
What is best to include: real family history or cultural heritage that arrives organically through the physical steps of the ritual.
What not to include and what to avoid: long, dry history lectures, or fabricated historical lineage that cannot be backed up by your actual family experiences.

Paragraph 5: The Human Connections

Focus on the relationships within the tradition, illustrating exactly how the ritual brings people together and strengthens social bonds.
Describe the specific, real-world exchanges and conversations that occur during the activity.
What is best to include: a concrete moment of interaction between different generations or diverse group members who are bound together by the shared task.
What not to include and what to avoid: abstract discussions about the general concept of togetherness, or idealized, conflict-free depictions of family harmony.

Paragraph 6: The Personal Impact

Reflect on how participating in this tradition has shaped your personality, values, or academic interests.
Bridge the external ritual to your internal intellectual growth.
What is best to include: a clear connection to an academic curiosity, such as how organizing a cultural event sparked an interest in sociology or community leadership.
What not to include and what to avoid: moralizing summaries of your virtues, or claiming that a single holiday permanently decided your entire career path.

Paragraph 7: The Future Contribution

Project your appreciation for community rituals onto the Boston College campus, showing how you will contribute to building community as a student.
Identify specific, authentic ways you will bring this collaborative energy to student life.
What is best to include: referencing how your experiences prepare you to actively participate in residential life, student-led organizations, or collaborative campus spaces on the Heights.
What not to include and what to avoid: list-dumping popular clubs and courses from the university brochure without any personal connection.

Paragraph 8: The Satisfying Close

Bring the narrative full circle by returning to the imagery, theme, or sensory details introduced in your opening scene.
Conclude with a strong, memorable final image that leaves a lasting impression.
What is best to include: a quiet, reflective gesture or a specific physical action that symbolizes your ongoing commitment to these values.
What not to include and what to avoid: repeating your previous points, ending with a broad moral lesson, or using cliché summaries like "in conclusion."

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Conversation Partner

400 words

The late BC theology professor, Father Michael Himes, argued that a university is not a place to which you go, but instead, a "rigorous and sustained conversation about the great questions of human existence, among the widest possible circle of the best possible conversation partners.” Who has been your most meaningful conversation partner, and what profound questions have you considered together?

Paragraph 1: The Vivid Setting

Drop the reader immediately into a real-world scene of a deep discussion in motion, showing rather than telling who your partner is.
Use sensory details to establish where you are and the physical environment surrounding the dialogue.
What is best to include: setting a specific, recurring location, such as car rides to school or games of golf.
What not to include and what to avoid: opening with a dry thesis statement, restating the prompt, or saying "If I could talk to anyone."

Paragraph 2: The Partner Profile

Introduce your conversation partner, establishing your genuine relationship with them and explaining why they are meaningful to your growth.
What is best to include: a real, personal connection in your life, such as a local mentor, grandparent, teacher, or sibling.
What not to include and what to avoid: choosing a famous historical figure, an untouchable celebrity, or an imaginary conversation partner with whom you have never actually spoken.

Paragraph 3: The Big Question

Present the specific, profound question of human existence that you and your partner keep returning to, anchoring the essay in a single intellectual thread.
What is best to include: a narrow, authentic, and potentially unresolved question, such as whether human character is fixed or how to balance justice with forgiveness.
What not to include and avoid: listing multiple unrelated topics, or proposing abstract questions with no personal stake.

Paragraph 4: The Active Exchange

Showcase a dynamic, two-way dialogue using realistic snippets of conversation, body language, and environmental reactions.
Make the reader feel like an active observer of the exchange.
What is best to include: actual quotes or paraphrased words that carry the unique voice, inflections, and personality of your partner.
What not to include and what to avoid: writing a dry, academic transcript, or portraying the conversation as a one-sided lecture where you simply nod and agree.

Paragraph 5: The Clashing Views

Detail the friction or difference in perspectives between you and your partner, showing that you do not always see eye to eye.
What is best to include: a respectful but real disagreement based on your differing experiences, backgrounds, or generations.
What not to include and what to avoid: constructing a weak argument for your partner, or portraying their perspective as obviously incorrect or uneducated.

Paragraph 6: The Turning Point

Highlight the precise, internal moment during the discussion where your absolute certainty was challenged or cracked under a new perspective.
What is best to include: documenting a sudden moment of self-doubt, cognitive friction, or the realization that your initial viewpoint was incomplete.
What not to include and what to avoid: claiming a complete and unrealistic victory, or pretending that you successfully resolved a massive philosophical debate in one sitting.

Paragraph 7: The New Understanding

Reflect on the aftermath of these ongoing discussions, illustrating how they have shaped your current worldview, intellectual humility, and capacity for active listening.
What is best to include: explaining how you have learned to coexist with differing opinions and find value in inconvenient, unfinished dialogues.
What not to include and what to avoid: concluding with a neat, cliché resolution where everyone magically agrees, or lecturing the reader on the value of being open-minded.

Paragraph 8: The Campus Outlook

Connect this capacity for rigorous, collaborative thinking directly to the academic environment on the Heights.
Show how you will contribute to Father Michael Himes' vision of a university as a sustained conversation.
What is best to include: explaining how you will seek out and engage with diverse perspectives in freshman seminars, residence halls, and collaborative spaces at Boston College.
What not to include and what to avoid: a generic, school-swappable paragraph praising the general prestige of the university.

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Single Story

400 words

In her July 2009 Ted Talk, "The Danger of a Single Story," Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie warned viewers against assigning people a "single story" through assumptions about their nationality, appearance, or background. Discuss a time when someone defined you by a single story. What challenges did this present and how did you overcome them?

Paragraph 1: The Stereotype Moment

Begin immediately with the specific moment when a single story or narrow assumption was placed on you by another person.
Describe the setting, the specific dialogue, and the immediate atmosphere of the room.
What is best to include: a highly localized, real-world interaction where your background, appearance, or nationality was flattened into a label.
What not to include and what to avoid: a broad, academic introduction discussing Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED Talk in general, or writing a long thesis on societal stereotypes.

Paragraph 2: The Direct Effect

Explain the immediate emotional or mental impact of being reduced to a single dimension.
Share how this misjudgment felt in the moment and the initial reaction it provoked.
What is best to include: honest vulnerability, capturing the sting of being flattened or misunderstood without sounding overly dramatic or bitter.
What not to include and what to avoid: lecturing the reader on the evils of prejudice, or adopting a self-righteous, combative tone.

Paragraph 3: The Real Complexity

Contrast the flat stereotype with the rich, multidimensional reality of your actual identity and interests.
Highlight the specific layers of your character that the single story ignored.
What is best to include: showing the contrast between how you were seen and who you knew yourself to be, highlighting unexpected passions or personal values.
What not to include and what to avoid: listing all your resume achievements to prove your worth, or boasting about your accomplishments.

Paragraph 4: The Internal Struggle

Describe the ongoing challenges this single story created in your daily life, school environment, or community.
Explain how this assumption affected your behavior, self-confidence, or relationships over time.
What is best to include: concrete challenges, such as feeling discouraged from participating in certain classes, or feeling pressured to alter your appearance or accent.
What not to include and what to avoid: choosing a trivial challenge like a delayed vacation or a broken laptop, which signals a lack of real perspective on adversity.

Paragraph 5: The Turning Point

Highlight the specific moment or decision where you resolved to take positive action and refuse to let this single story define you.
Explain the internal shift in your thinking that motivated you to act.
What is best to include: a quiet realization of your own agency, focusing on how you chose to complicate the narrative through constructive behavior.
What not to include and what to avoid: describing an aggressive confrontation, or portraying yourself as a flawless hero who easily defeated all prejudice.

Paragraph 6: The Positive Actions

Show the concrete steps and actions you took to reveal your true, complex character to those around you.
Illustrate how your actions spoke louder than the label.
What is best to include: active engagement, such as launching an independent project, leading a discussion, or continuing to pursue a passion with renewed dedication.
What not to include and what to avoid: vague claims of overcoming the challenge, or continuing to focus entirely on what other characters did or said to you.

Paragraph 7: The Growth Lesson

Reflect deeply on how this tension clarified your understanding of yourself and helped you build resilience.
Explain what this experience taught you about the nature of human identity.
What is best to include: personal insight, showing how being misread by others actually forced you to sharpen your own values, self-awareness, and personal boundaries.
What not to include and what to avoid: generic summary statements like "I learned to never judge a book by its cover," or simple repetitions of previous paragraphs.

Paragraph 8: The Shared Future

Conclude by translating this hard-earned lesson into a commitment to resist assigning single stories to others within the college community.
Show how your perspective will enrich campus life.
What is best to include: a forward-looking promise of college citizenship, showing how you will actively seek out the complex, multidimensional stories of your peers on the Heights.
What not to include and what to avoid: global call-to-actions, or self-righteous claims about how you will teach others not to stereotype.

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The Fourth Be

400 words

Boston College's Jesuit mission highlights "the three Be's": be attentive, be reflective, be loving – core to Jesuit education (see A Pocket Guide to Jesuit Education). If you could add a fourth "Be," what would it be and why? How would this new value support your personal development and enrich the BC community?

Paragraph 1: The Bold Choice

State your proposed fourth "Be" directly and boldly in the very first sentence, immediately engaging the reader's interest.
Define what this value means on your own unique terms.
What is best to include: an unexpected, fresh, and deeply personal value, such as "be interruptible," "be brave," "be honest," or "be humble."
What not to include and what to avoid: choosing a predictable synonym for the original three, such as "be mindful" (overlaps with attentive) or "be kind" (overlaps with loving).

Paragraph 2: The Personal Spark

Share a brief, real-life story or specific scene that illustrates where this value came from and why it became important in your life.
What is best to include: grounding the value in a concrete activity, personal responsibility, or family environment rather than a dictionary definition.
What not to include and what to avoid: writing a theoretical treatise on moral philosophy, or claiming that this value fell out of the sky without any personal context.

Paragraph 3: The Daily Practice

Show, don't tell, how this value actively guides your behavior and daily decisions.
Describe a typical, ordinary moment where you put this value into action.
What is best to include: specific, concrete actions, such as closing your homework book to listen to a sibling, or choosing to speak up when it is uncomfortable.
What not to include and what to avoid: boasting about your moral perfection, or listing major achievements to prove how virtuous you are.

Paragraph 4: The Honest Struggle

Build trust with the admissions reader by admitting where you fall short and highlighting that living this value is an ongoing challenge.
What is best to include: genuine self-deprecation and humility, showing that you are not naturally perfect at practicing your proposed value.
What not to include and what to avoid: describing a fake failure, or using a self-aggrandizing tone that suggests you have already mastered all aspects of moral development.

Paragraph 5: The Contrast

Make a clear, logical case for why your proposed "Be" is a necessary addition to the original three, explaining what distinct dimension it adds to Jesuit pedagogy.
What is best to include: comparing and contrasting your value with "be attentive," "be reflective," and "be loving" to defend its unique importance.
What not to include and what to avoid: repeating previous descriptions of the value, or implying that the original three values are flawed or incomplete.

Paragraph 6: The Individual Growth

Explain how this value supports your ongoing personal, academic, and spiritual development.
Describe the internal changes you have observed in yourself as a result of practicing it.
What is best to include: a clear "before and after" of your personal perspective, showing how this value helps you navigate adolescent challenges or academic pressures.
What not to include and what to avoid: asserting growth without concrete evidence, or listing future post-graduation accolades.

Paragraph 7: The Campus Enrichment

Illustrate concretely how a student who embodies this fourth "Be" will enrich the wider Boston College community.
Describe a specific, tangible scene on campus where this value will make a positive impact.
What is best to include: showing how your value changes the dynamic of a seminar room, residential hall, or student group, making it a safer or more vibrant space for others.
What not to include and what to avoid: vague, sweeping claims about making the campus a better place, or brochure-level generalizations.

Paragraph 8: The Final Vision

Close with a powerful, forward-looking image of yourself carrying this value onto campus and into your interactions with future peers.
What is best to include: a simple, resonant gesture that connects back to your personal story and links to specific opportunities at Boston College.
What not to include and what to avoid: ending with a pedantic, lecturing tone, or using tired clichés like "spreading my horizons."

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Human-Centered Engineering (HCE)

400 words

Human-Centered Engineering (HCE) Applicants only: One goal of a Jesuit education is to prepare students to serve the Common Good. Human-Centered Engineering at Boston College integrates technical knowledge, creativity, and a humanistic perspective to address societal challenges and opportunities. What societal problems are important to you and how will you use your HCE education to solve them?

Paragraph 1: The Real Story

Open in the middle of a highly specific, sensory-rich moment where a massive societal problem became real because of its direct impact on a person or local community.
What is best to include: a vivid first-person scene that immediately establishes your personal connection and stake in the issue.
What not to include and what to avoid: opening with a dry, abstract declaration about climate change or global inequality, or giving a generic history of engineering.

Paragraph 2: The Local Problem

Define the specific, human-scale problem that you want to solve, narrowing down a global issue to a manageable, observable challenge.
What is best to include: a niche, defined problem, such as local water runoff, exposure to specific air pollutants, or access to assistive technologies for disabled neighbors.
What not to include and what to avoid: attempting to address multiple, massive, and disconnected global crises at once, which makes your goals seem unrealistic in a short essay.

Paragraph 3: The Personal Stake

Explain why this specific societal problem weighs on your heart, showing your authentic commitment to the common good and your motivation to pursue engineering.
What is best to include: linking the problem directly to your personal values, family background, or a localized community experience.
What not to include and what to avoid: claiming that you decided to become an engineer simply to make a high salary, or repeating broad statements from college brochures.

Paragraph 4: The Current Effort

Prove your "maker's mindset" and unassigned agency by showing how you have already worked to explore, research, or address this issue in your local community.
What is best to include: describing active, hands-on tasks, independent research, or community service where you used your skills to help others, using strong active verbs.
What not to include and what to avoid: reciting your resume, or exaggerating your impact by claiming you single-handedly solved a systemic issue.

Paragraph 5: The Technical Need

Explain why purely technical engineering solutions are incomplete without creativity and a humanistic perspective.
Show that you understand the core philosophy behind human-centered engineering.
What is best to include: illustrating how functional designs can fail if they do not account for human habits, cultural contexts, or ethical implications.
What not to include and what to avoid: criticizing traditional engineering programs, or getting bogged down in abstract, technical jargon.

Paragraph 6: The Class Fit

Connect your academic goals directly to the specific curriculum and unique offerings of the Human-Centered Engineering program at Boston College.
What is best to include: referencing specific, upper-level courses, design experiences, or interdisciplinary pathways that directly align with your central problem.
What not to include and what to avoid: listing general introductory courses, or simply copying course names from the website homepage without any personal context.

Paragraph 7: The Campus Resource

Identify unique, named campus resources, laboratory spaces, or faculty research that will support your goals and allow you to take your pursuit to the next level.
What is best to include: referencing specific spaces like the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society, collaborative project-based courses, or interdisciplinary engineering spaces.
What not to include and what to avoid: praising the general prestige of the university, or referencing outdated campus resources or retired professors.

Paragraph 8: The Future Impact

Conclude with a clear, inspiring picture of the real-world impact you hope to achieve, bringing the narrative arc back to the person or community from your opening hook.
What is best to include: a satisfying final sentence that positions a Boston College HCE education as the irreplaceable launchpad for your future role serving the common good.
What not to include and what to avoid: ending on a broad, cliché moral lesson, or repeating your previous points.

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