Colleges Without Supplemental Essays

When applying to colleges, experts often advise applying to at least 12 colleges to improve your options and boost your chances of acceptance into multiple schools. However, while this is a good idea, it can be pretty tedious writing college application essays and supplemental essays for all those colleges. Some colleges like Yale give up to 5 supplemental essays, hence say you apply to five more colleges as such, it won’t exactly be time-saving writing 20-25 supplemental essays. More reason why it should interest you to know that there are colleges that don’t require supplemental essays. In this article, you’ll find a couple of colleges without supplemental essays and what they have to offer. Let us know Colleges Without Supplemental Essays.

Colleges Without Supplemental Essays

Now, before we discuss these colleges, what are supplemental essays?

Supplemental Essays are essays of varying lengths written in response to questions related to the college or college-specified questions. Colleges usually make this addition to their common applications to ascertain if an applicant is interested in studying in the college, to know what values you’ll be adding to the college and if you’re fit for the college. This makes supplemental essays a very important aspect of applications and should be treated as such.

You might be wondering why some colleges don’t require supplemental essays if they’re so important. One reason is that it’s easier for a college to boost their application numbers this way. Eliminating supplemental essays eases the workload of additional writing involved and makes the college a choice option.

Regardless, while it seems almost all top-ranking colleges like Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and the likes make use of supplemental essays, it does not in any way mean that colleges without supplemental essays are substandard; most of these colleges have good rankings as well, and still focus on other important aspects of the common application like your GPA, SAT scores and resume. These colleges are great options when you’re looking to strike a balance on your list of colleges, if you’ve not made a top choice of colleges yet or for other reasons particular to you.

That being said, here are some colleges with supplemental essays:

Colby College

Founded in 1813, is a private liberal arts college located in Waterville Maine, which has consistently made it to the top ranks of the top colleges in the nation. Colby College ranks 21st of the 50 best colleges on the East Coast, 17th in the 2022 edition of National Liberal Arts Colleges, and 4th of the 2022 Best colleges with no application fees in America.

Colby College offers about 57 majors and 36 minors with newly developed programs including the Davis Institute for Artificial intelligence and digital humanities. Colby also offers a unique 4-1-4 academic calendar allowing students to have access to at least one internship, research, and global experience related to their areas of study. 

Colby college is highly selective with an acceptance rate of 10% and requires a GPA of 3.98, average SAT scores of 1430 or between 1380 and 1520, or an average ACT score of 34 (Although optional but will improve your application chances), at least two letters of recommendation, extracurricular activities, and an engaging personal statement or essay. Although Colby College is incredibly selective, the strength of your profile will most likely boost your chances of admission.

Colby College is known for racial diversity, meeting 100% financial needs of students, no application fees, optional test scores, and of course, no extra supplemental essays.

Middleburg College

Founded in 1800, is Vermont’s first operating college. Middleburg is a private liberal arts college, ranked 9th of the National Liberal Arts Colleges, and offers majors and minors in over 50 different areas including arts, humanities, foreign languages, literature, social sciences, and engineering programs. 

The college also offers graduate schools and programs such as the Bread Loaf School of English, the Middleburg College Language Schools, the Middleburg Institute of International Studies at Monterey, and Middleburg schools abroad international programs. Middlebury operates on a 4-1-4 academic calendar which allows students to register for an intensive course, research experience, and internship.

Middleburg College aims to raise thoughtful and ethical graduates skilled in their use of language, ready to lead creative and meaningful lives.

The college is said to enroll undergraduates from all 50 states of America and 74 countries. Middleburg holds high standards for her prospective applicants and has an acceptance rate of 16%-22%. The college requires a range of 1380-1520 SAT scores or ACT scores between 31-34, an application fee of about $65, a good high school GPA of at least 4.0, two letters of recommendation, extracurricular activities, and a well-written personal essay. 

Middleburg makes use of only the common application but also considers demonstrated interests like visiting the school, contacting an admissions officer, or following the school on social media.

Skidmore College

The Skidmore college was first established as the Young women’s industrial club in 1903 before becoming the Skidmore college in 1922. Ever since the college has maintained a prestigious title and rank. Skidmore is a private liberal arts college and is located in Saratoga springs New York and ranks 38th among Liberal Arts Colleges according to the US News and World Reports. 

Skidmore also offers about 44 undergraduate majors and bachelor’s degrees in English, Business, Political sciences, Studio Art, and theater amongst others. Skidmore is known for its outstanding student media infrastructures in the country and owns prestigious media productions like Salmagundi, Skid TV, Skidmore news, and others. 

Here, academics go beyond the classroom walls as nearly 85% of students participate in internships during their careers. The student-faculty ratio is 8:1 with about 71.6% of its classes having fewer than 20 students.

Skidmore has an acceptance rate of 32% and requires an SAT score between 1220 and 1403 or an ACT score between 27 and 31, an application fee of $65, a good high school GPA and rank, college prep courses, letters of recommendation, and a personal essay of no less than 650 words. Asides from academics, Skidmore college competes in NCAA Division III sports and holds various festivals.

Connecticut College

Connecticut college is a private liberal arts institution founded in 1911 and is ranked 50th among National Liberal Arts Colleges. The college is organized into 31 academic departments, 7 interdisciplinary, 41 majors as well as self-designed interdisciplinary majors. The college has a student-faculty ratio of about 9:1. 

With Connections- Connecticut college’s reinvented liberal arts education/curriculum- the college aims to help undergraduates connect to the world and make a difference. Admissions into Connecticut are fairly selective with an acceptance rate of 37%. 

The college makes use of the common application and requires a school report (including counselor recommendation and high school transcript), two letters of recommendation, a Common application early decision agreement form, TOEFL or IELTS (for non-English speaking applicants), and verification of financial support (for non-US citizens). Other optional materials recommended for the admission process include standardized SAT scores between 1310 and 1450 or ACT scores between 30 and 33 and a GPA of 3.84. 

Connecticut College also strives to uphold academic excellence and high community standards through its Honor Code.

Here are some public research universities without supplemental essays:

University of Memphis

Looking for a school that’ll channel your passions into building a strong creative identity for yourself? Lucky you, because the U of M is all for passion expression, exploration, and adventure. Founded in one of America’s coolest cities, the university of Memphis is the second-largest public college in Tennessee. For over 100 years, the U of M has created a unique blend of hands-on academic experience and adventures for transformational growth.

Ranked 249th best national university, the university maintains a good number of colleges and schools including, the College of Arts and Sciences, Fogelman College of Business and economics, Herff college of engineering, Loewenberg college of nursing, Cecil C. Humphrey College of Law, FedEx institute of technology amongst others.

The U of M offers over 50 majors and master’s degree subjects, it also operates a semester-based academic calendar. 

The University of Memphis has an acceptance rate of 85%  and ensures racial diversity. During the application process, the University requires you to have an average high school GPA of 3.53, SAT score between 990-1200, or an ACT score between 19-26. You’ll also have to pay an application fee of $25 and show a demonstration of competencies. The University does not require recommendations or supplemental essays.

University of Iowa

Founded in 1847, the University of Iowa is the oldest in the state and is ranked 33rd best university by US News and World Reports. The University utilizes a semester-based academic calendar and offers top-notch programs and professional degrees in over 200 areas of study. 

The University of Iowa is organized into 12 colleges including the Carver college of medicine, college of engineering, college of law, and college of liberal arts and sciences amongst others. The school is best known for its top-ranking healthcare, law, and fine art programs.

Being a Hawkeye, you are allowed to discover and be yourself while being groomed to break ground in research. Unique facts about UI are that it originally developed the Master of Fine Arts degree and also operates the Iowa Writer’s Workshop which has produced 17 Pulitzer prize winners.

The University of Iowa has an acceptance rate of 82.6% and utilizes the common application. To be considered for admission, you need to have a high school GPA of 3.76, an average SAT score of 1235, an average ACT score of 26, and an application fee of $40. Note that you’ll have a great shot at getting into this school if your profile does not fall far below average.

Washington State University

Founded in 1890, WSU is the oldest campus in West America and ranks 179th best national university. This university has 6 campuses and they all award bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in 200 fields of study. 

WSU is organized into 10 academic colleges including the College of Agricultural, Rural, Human, and Natural resources science, Carson College of Business, Elson S. Floyd college of medicine, college of veterinary medicine, and Voiland college of engineering and Architecture amongst others. The University is highly recommended for its business management, veterinary medicine, engineering, and agriculture programs. WSU also has an all-university honors college, a graduate school, and an online global campus.

Asides from academics, the university has about 300 student clubs as well as fraternities and sororities. The school’s sports team-Cougars- also competes in the NCAA Division I Pac-12 conference.

For admission, WSU has an acceptance rate of 80% and requires an SAT score between 1020-1210, or an ACT score between 20-26. You’ll have to pay an application fee of $50 and have a high school GPA of at least 3.60 or better. In all, WSU is a top-tier public research school that aims to groom undergraduates in areas of research to make the world a better place.

San Diego State University

Founded in 1897, San Diego State University is a public research institution that aims at transforming the academic experience for students. The University ranks 1st in the California state university system and 148th best national university. SDSU is known for its broad band of student life, leadership opportunities, and diversity.

In an almost perfect climate and breath-taking scenery, SDSU is home to exceptional business and engineering programs among others. The school has produced students and alumni that have taken part in addressing current subjects like COVID-19 and RNA modification.

SDSU operates a semester-based academic calendar and offers bachelor’s degrees in 97 areas, master’s degrees in 84 fields of study, 21 doctoral degrees as well as internships and mentoring programs. For a balanced blend of academic and fun, San Diego State University offers a variety of socio-cultural and recreational activities for students.

SDSU has an acceptance rate of 37% and requires an SAT score between 1090 and 1300, or an ACT score of 22-29. You’ll also have to pay a $70 application fee, a high school GPA of 3.77, a list of extracurricular activities, and a stellar personal statement.

Conclusion

Supplemental Essays are used to test if you’ll fit into a school academically and socially. If you’re keen on applying to a college, writing their supplemental essays should excite or inspire you. If this isn’t the case, it might be an indication that it’s not the right school for your areas of interest. You might need to explore other colleges and options that do not require supplemental essays and we’ve discussed a few in this article.

Frequently Asked Questions

– How do I apply to colleges without supplemental essays?

Without supplemental essays, you’ll have to show that you’re a strong applicant fit for the School with a compelling personal statement. You’ll also need to build your extracurricular activities and get letters of recommendation from your best high school teachers. Note that most colleges without supplemental essays are test-optional but may recommend your SAT or ACT score and a good GPA.

– Why do colleges wave supplemental essays?

Colleges wave supplemental essays most times because of limited time, resources, and the cost associated with evaluating thousands of essays of prospective applicants.