Swarthmore Supplemental Essays 2024-2025: Writing Tips + Examples

Swarthmore College is the third-best liberal arts college in the U.S., so it’s no surprise that it attracts thousands of curious and driven students. It doesn’t hurt that the campus is stunning in all four seasons, too. However, last year, they only admitted 975 out of over 13,000 applicants, translating to just a 7% acceptance rate.

To be a part of this community, you’ll need to make your answers to the two Swarthmore supplemental essay questions stand out. There may only be two, but these essays pack a punch. Keep reading to learn what they’re really asking and how to craft a compelling response.

• Swarthmore Supplemental Essay Prompts
• How to Write the Swarthmore Supplemental Essay #1
• How to Write the Swarthmore Supplemental Essay #2
• Mistakes to Avoid When Writing Swarthmore Supplemental Essays
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Takeaways

Swarthmore Supplemental Essay Prompts

In addition to the Common App’s personal statement, you must submit two Swarthmore-specific essays of no more than 250 words each. This year’s prompts are designed to highlight your unique identity, background, and intellectual curiosity.

Below are the short answer questions for the 2024-2025 application cycle:

Prompt 1

Swarthmore College maintains an ongoing commitment of building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive residential community dedicated to rigorous intellectual inquiry.

All who engage in our community are empowered through the open exchange of ideas guided by equity and social responsibility to thrive and contribute as bridge builders within global communities.

Our identities and perspectives are supported and developed by our immediate contexts and lived experiences – in our neighborhoods, families, classrooms, communities of faith, and more.

• What aspects of your self-identity or personal background are most significant to you? Reflecting on the elements of your home, school, or other communities that have shaped your life, explain how you have grown in your ability to navigate differences when engaging with others, or demonstrated your ability to collaborate in communities other than your own.

Prompt 2

Swarthmore’s community of learners inspire one another through their collaborative and flexible approach to learning. Swarthmore students are comfortable with intellectual experimentation and connection of ideas across the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and interdisciplinary studies through a liberal arts education.

• Tell us about a topic that has fascinated you recently – either inside or outside of the classroom. What made you curious about this? Has this topic connected across other areas of your interests? How has this experience shaped you and what encourages you to keep exploring?

Things to remember

Whew! The Swarthmore supplemental essays can feel a little overwhelming. The questions are long, and it’s easy to get lost in them. But before you sigh dramatically at the screen or scrunch up your face in frustration, we’ve got you.

There are two essays, and you must answer both in 250 words or less. The first prompt is about your identity and background, and the second is about a topic that fascinated you recently. Again, each prompt is pretty lengthy, so don’t be surprised if you have to read them a few times before the ideas start flowing.

With thousands of high-performing applicants (like you), Swarthmore looks beyond grades and test scores. Your essays might just be what gets you noticed.

Up next, we’ll discuss how to craft a compelling response to each of these prompts and give you some real examples to inspire your own writing.

How to Write the Swarthmore Supplemental Essay #1

If there were a contest for the longest supplemental essay prompt, Swarthmore would take the trophy. But don’t worry! Once you break it down, it’s actually just your usual “Diversity” essay and “Community” essay blended into one.

Swarthmore wants students who are excited to connect with others, exchange ideas, and contribute to their community. To see if you’re a good fit, they’re looking for a story about what has shaped your identity and how that’s helped you engage with different perspectives.

So, start by taking a moment to reflect on what makes you you. Consider the communities you’re part of and the environments that influenced you. Maybe you grew up in a busy household with five siblings or attended a high school where Socratic seminars were a priority. How did these experiences affect you and how you interact with others?

Brainstorming ideas

Here are some ideas to help you while brainstorming:

• Cultural or family background. How have your traditions, language, or upbringing shaped your perspective? For example, translating your grandparents’ Tagalog stories into English for your younger cousins made you realize how language shapes identity.
• School or extracurricular communities. How have you worked with people from different backgrounds? For example, lacking formal STEM training, you teamed up with a coder in your robotics team who helped you understand programming while you applied your mechanical skills to problem-solving.
• Experiencing or witnessing social challenges. Have you encountered differences in race, religion, gender, or socioeconomic background? For example, helping a friend’s parents fill out financial aid forms showed you how bureaucracy often excludes first-generation families.
• Personal growth through collaboration. Have you learned to navigate cultural, ideological, or personal differences? For example, partnering with international students on a science project helped you understand different approaches to problem-solving.
• Faith, beliefs, or values. How have they influenced the way you interact with others? Perhaps debating morality with an atheist friend pushed you to re-examine your faith, not to abandon it, but to understand it more deeply.

Whatever aspects of your identity you want to write about, make sure you show how they’ve helped you learn to engage with different people and communities. The reader should be able to see the connection between your background, your story, and how you’ve grown from it.

Essay structure tips + examples

Once you’ve zeroed in on a topic, here’s how to structure your essay:

• Personal anecdote. Drop the reader into a specific scene that highlights an experience that shaped you. “At a family dinner, my parents casually mentioned which medical schools I should apply to—except I had no interest in medicine. When I told them I wanted to study film, their silence made it clear they weren’t on board.”
• Background and experiences. Show how your background has influenced how you interact with others and respond to unfamiliar ideas. “In my family of doctors, hard work and stability were everything. Creative careers were discouraged or not even considered. So when I fell in love with filmmaking, I kept it to myself, unsure how to bridge the gap between my passion and their expectations.”
• The turning point. Pinpoint a moment where you realized something new about yourself or the world around you. “Instead of debating, I showed them what film meant to me. I made a short documentary about our family, weaving in old photos, home videos, and grandparent interviews. As the credits rolled, my parents sat in quiet reflection. I realized storytelling was more than entertainment—it was a way to connect.
• The impact. Show how your ability to collaborate, even with differences, has a real-world impact. “When I made a short film on immigrant experiences, I worked with classmates from different cultural backgrounds, and seeing them open up taught me how storytelling bridges divides. At home, my parents still worried about job security, but they began asking about film schools—proof that understanding takes time.”
• A forward-looking conclusion. How will the lessons you’ve learned shape how you contribute to Swarthmore’s community? “At Swarthmore, I want to keep using storytelling to connect with people from different backgrounds. Whether through film studies or collaborations with the Cinema Club, I want to keep sharing my experiences to open up conversations and build understanding.”

To answer this essay well, don’t do what Swarthmore did and write three paragraphs to “set up” your point. You only have 250 words, remember? Instead, build a story that shows, not tells, what you feel Swarthmore needs to know about you.

Supplemental essay example

Steam rises from the pot as I press masa into banana leaves, my grandmother humming a ranchera under her breath while telling stories about her village in Jalisco. The house smells like cinnamon and garlic, and the conversation drifts between Spanish and English without either of us noticing. At school, it’s different. I raise my hand in AP Government, answer in English, and often look around to find I’m the only Latina in the room. For years, I felt like I was switching costumes—Spanish at home, English at school—never quite one version of myself.

That started to change when I joined our school’s Latinx student group. It became a space where I didn’t have to explain myself first. We organized Día de los Muertos events, created Spanish-language tutoring sessions, and talked about things like being heritage speakers who still get nervous conjugating verbs.

Outside school, I volunteer with a community organization that helps Hispanic parents navigate local school systems. I translate report cards, explain digital learning tools, and answer questions about financial aid. Many of these parents remind me of my own family: hardworking, resourceful, and often overlooked. These experiences have deepened my understanding of what access, language, and dignity mean in practice.

At Swarthmore, I want to be in a community that doesn’t just welcome differences but asks what it can teach us. My ability to move between cultures—and my commitment to helping others feel like they belong—is the lens I’ll bring to conversations, classrooms, and community life.

How to Write the Swarthmore Supplemental Essay #2

The previous question was all about who you are, but this one’s about what excites you academically. We love this because it’s your chance to build on everything you’ve already shared, from your Common App essay to your activities list and resume. They know what you’ve done at this point, but now it’s time to connect it all to Swarthmore.

Maybe you’re obsessed with Greek mythology and can’t get enough of the gods, goddesses, and their wildly tangled timelines. Where did that passion start? Are you thinking about majoring in the Classics? Or maybe a bird-watching trip with your grandfather sparked a new fascination with all things avian. How does that connect to your other interests?

Brainstorming ideas

If you’re struggling on what to write, here are some examples to inspire you:

• How memory works. Maybe you read about how people memorize things faster using memory tricks, and now you’re obsessed with how the brain works.
• Music and social change. Perhaps while learning about the Civil Rights Movement, you discovered that songs like “We Shall Overcome” gave people strength, making you wonder how music still shapes activism today.
• Why we dream. A weird dream, like teeth turning into puzzle pieces, made you wonder what dreams actually mean, so you started looking into psychology and neuroscience.
• Theme park design. Maybe a recent trip to Disneyland made you wonder how rides and spaces are designed to look taller and bigger and feel so immersive.
• AI and art. Perhaps you tested an AI art program and debated with friends whether something made by a machine counts as “real” art.

This Swarthmore supplemental essay is about what excites you to learn and doesn’t need to be related to school classes or courses. It could be anything that made you stop and think, “Wait, that’s really cool!” What’s important is to show Swarthmore how that curiosity led you to explore new ideas.

Essay structure tips + examples

Now that you’ve got your idea, it’s time to structure your essay. Instead of just saying, “I love learning about dreams,” show the moment that sparked your curiosity. Here’s how to do it:

• The spark. What made you curious? “One night, I woke up in a panic, convinced I had already taken my math final and completely failed it. The dream was so vivid I could remember every wrong answer. That got me wondering: Why do dreams feel so real?”
• The deep dive. What did you do about it? “I started reading about REM sleep and lucid dreaming, and the more I learned, the more questions I had. If dreams help us process emotions, could they also help us solve problems?”
• The connection. How does this relate to other things you’re interested in? “I realized dreams and storytelling have a lot in common. Writers often say their best ideas come from dreams, and I started using dream journaling as a way to brainstorm my own creative writing ideas.”
• The impact. How did this change the way you think or learn? “Learning about dreams made me appreciate how the mind works in ways we don’t even notice. Now, when I’m stuck on a problem, I don’t force an answer; I let my brain work on it in the background.”
• Looking forward. How will you explore this at Swarthmore? “At Swarthmore, I want to major in psychology and take courses on creative writing to keep exploring how stories and the brain are connected. I’m eager to learn more about the questions that keep me curious.”

As shown in the example, try to connect your interests to your intended major at Swarthmore. This helps link your passions to your career goals and demonstrates your genuine enthusiasm for your field, which can give you a leg up on the competition.

Supplemental essay example

As I crossed the street, I paused and closed my eyes. A bus hissed to a stop behind me, someone’s keys jingled, and two kids shouted over the thud of a bouncing basketball. I was doing a soundwalk, something I’d learned about on a podcast the night before. The idea was simple: walk through your city and really listen. That afternoon, I noticed the layers of sound I usually ignored. The city wasn’t background noise—it was a designed soundscape.

That small experiment led me down a rabbit hole. I read about how noise pollution affects public health, especially in low-income neighborhoods. I got curious about how architects and urban planners think about sound, and how designers use audio to influence behavior. Suddenly, a question about sidewalks turned into a bridge between psychology, infrastructure, and design.

This topic reshaped how I observe the world. I started recording sound clips around my neighborhood, comparing patterns in different areas. I even re-read a favorite short story, “The Pedestrian” by Ray Bradbury, focusing only on ambient sound. I used to think curiosity had to lead to clear answers, but now, I think it’s more about asking better questions.

At Swarthmore, I’m excited by the idea that studying environmental issues might also mean exploring how noise impacts mental health, or how artists document soundscapes to reflect social conditions. That freedom to chase a thread—and see where it weaves—is what keeps me exploring, and what makes Swarthmore the kind of place I want to learn in.

Mistakes to Avoid When Writing Swarthmore Supplemental Essays

Even top students can stumble on supplemental essays, especially Swarthmore’s, which can feel overwhelming and tricky to answer.

Here are some common mistakes to avoid:

1. Trying to be perfect

It’s tempting to toot your own horn and present yourself as flawless, but avoiding vulnerability can make your essay feel less authentic. The admissions team knows how competitive college applications are, so they don’t expect perfection.

Instead of hiding weaknesses, show how you’ve grown from them. Talk about how you’ve overcome a challenge, and that will make you sound more relatable. Plus, it will demonstrate your self-awareness and resilience.

2. Lack of organization

A great essay has a clear introduction, logical flow, and a memorable closing. If your writing jumps from one idea to another, then the reader might not be able to follow.

Before you start writing, create an outline to map out your points. Make sure to include enough background so your story makes sense. For example, don’t write about your terrible first day of school without mentioning you just moved from another country and barely spoke English. Context, please. Taking the time to plan your essay will make it much better and save you time in the long run.

3. “Telling” instead of “showing”

Admissions officers read thousands of essays, so yours needs to stand out. Instead of stating facts about yourself or rehashing that list of achievements, bring your story to life with vivid details and personal reflections. 

Use anecdotes, memories, and emotions to make your experiences feel real. Rather than saying, “I love science,” describe how you spent hours building a homemade rocket, watching it soar (or crash) in your backyard. A well-told story sticks with the reader and makes your application more memorable.

4. Typos and grammatical errors

Even small mistakes can be glaring and weaken your essays. Admissions officers want to see that you’ve made an effort to proofread, so double-check that no typos or grammar issues are distracting your writing.

It’s always a good idea to have someone else, like a teacher or a professional editor, look over your essay before you submit it. They’ve reviewed plenty of essays before, so they can spot things you might miss.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does Swarthmore have supplemental essays?

Yes, Swarthmore has supplemental essays on top of your Common App personal statement. These essays are your chance to show Swarthmore why you belong there, in your own words, and not through numbers and stats.

2. How many supplemental essays does Swarthmore have?

Swarthmore has two supplemental essays for the 2024-2025 application cycle. Each essay should be 250 words or fewer, so make sure to read the prompt carefully to understand what it asks before you start writing. Make every word count!

3. How important are Swarthmore supplemental essays?

Super important! Think of your supplemental essays as a part of a larger whole, along with your GPA, recommendation letters, and more. They help admissions see why you’d be a great fit. With so many strong applicants, this is one way to stand out.

Takeaways

• Swarthmore has two supplemental essays, each with a limit of 250 words.
• The first essay asks about your identity and background, while the second is about a topic that fascinated you recently.
• Avoid common writing mistakes, such as aiming for perfection, lacking a clear structure, or simply stating facts instead of bringing your story to life.
• Work with a private admissions consultant to refine your essay and strengthen your application for Swarthmore’s competitive admissions process.