college essay examples about being trans

Just one more step to start saving colleges!

Sign up for an account or login to start your college list.

Tips for Applying to College as a Trans Student

Choosing where to apply and applying to college is hard enough, but when you’re trans, non-binary, genderfluid, or genderqueer, the college admissions experience can be especially tough. If you or someone you love is in one of those groups, you know that these students face additional challenges at home and at school – and that certainly extends to college admissions as well. I’m not only an admissions professional, but also a mother of three children. My middle child is trans, and I’ve learned a lot by watching and supporting her as she has navigated transition and her law school applications and experiences. (She is currently a student at Berkeley Law!)

In honor of Transgender Visibility Day today, here are some tips for our trans, non-binary, genderqueer, and genderfluid friends on applying to college.

Four Things to Consider When Applying to College As a Trans Student:

When and how to use your preferred name.

Many colleges ask for your preferred name on applications. Starting in 2021-2022, the Common App now provides the option for students to:

• Share their preferred first name.
• Select multiple pronouns or add a new one.
• Report their “legal sex” instead of “sex”

If your name hasn’t been legally changed yet, you might need to use it on some parts of your applications though, including test-score submissions, transcripts and on any financial aid forms. This can ensure that all your paperwork and files don't get lost or disorganized. If you mark your preferred name in the application, it’s most likely fine to use it in your essays, letters of recommendation, and other more personal parts of the application, but as with all things college admissions, check with the colleges where you’re applying to confirm so your paperwork doesn’t get discombobulated..

State Laws in the States You’re Applying

I got this amazing advice from a fellow mom of a nonbinary child: “It’s worth checking the state laws where the college is located—the most supportive campus in the world can’t help your student if the state doesn’t guarantee access to health care, makes name/marker change incredibly difficult, etc.” If you are moving to a new state for college, consider choosing a state with a trans-friendly environment, and laws that reflect that.

Ask Specific Questions During the Admissions Process

Be sure to ask colleges specific questions when doing your research or reaching out or on tours/visits/info sessions. The more specific your questions, the more you’ll be able to get a sense of how inclusive and welcoming the environment is for trans students. Write down your questions before attending information sessions. If you’d prefer to ask these questions in private, reach out to admissions to set up a time to talk to an admissions officer one-on-one. You may want to ask:

• What options are there for gender-inclusive housing?
• What is the nondiscrimination policy for trans/queer students?
• Are students allowed to change their names on campus records/ ID cards?
• What resources and opportunities do they have to support trans/queer students?
• Do the schools' health clinics and health plans cover trans medical care – if that’s something you are interested in?

College Essays: To Come Out or Not to Come Out?

You don’t have to write about being transgender in your essays, but you certainly can if it’s a story you want to tell. But coming out is a lifelong and personal process , and it’s up to you to decide what you share, when, and with who. If there is another topic you’d rather write about, you should not feel like you don’t have the space to share about other things that are important to you. Also, if you choose not to write about your transition in your personal essay, but you’d like to address your journey, you can use the Additional Info section to write about your experiences with transitioning there. Essays may not be your only chance to discuss your gender identity. Both the Common App and the Coalition App provide space for students to describe their own gender identity. In 2020-2021, almost 70,000 students provided clarifying information in this box in the Common App box, which was one of the reasons they decided to add more space for students to share pronouns and other gender information the following year.

If you’re worried that being trans might hurt you in admissions, ask yourself this question: Do I want to attend a college that would deny me because of who I am? There are many colleges that are known for being trans-friendly environments; view a list here.

"Your lives matter. Your voice matters. Your stories matter." ~ Laverne Cox

Take care. Be yourself. Love who you are.

For more information, check out these helpful resources:

• MIT's Blog: Applying While Transgender
• FAQ About Transgender Students at Colleges and Universities
• Campus Pride Trans Policy Clearinghouse
• Supporting Transgender Transitioning Students in the College Application Process
• Recordings from NJCAC LGBTQ+ College Fair and Info Sessions
• LGBTQ+ Youth - HRC - Human Rights Campaign

Looking for college suggestions?

View the college collection a created for a list of colleges that are known for having trans-friendly environments:

Colleges with Trans-Friendly Environments

Carolyn allison caplan (she/her).

Carolyn Allison Caplan (aka AdmissionsMom) is an Independent Educational Consultant (IEC) focused on using mindfulness in the college admissions journey. She is also a mother of three college graduates ( Vanderbilt , Harvard , and Tufts ) and a sought-after voice on topics related to the college admissions process. She earned a College Counseling Certificate (w/Distinction) from UCLA and is a member of HECA | IECA | TACAC | NACAC.

Admissions Journey  |  AdmissionsMom

CC Community | YouTube  

Instagram  | Twitter  |  Reddit  |

More on Applying to College

Authentic Voice in College Essays

That’s why you want to use your authentic voice when writing any college essay .

So what’s the problem? A student has shared an ess…

College Interview Prep Tips: Brainstorm, Research, Analyze, Generalize

I recently visited Washington University in Saint Louis and was lucky enough to set up an interview. By speaking with peers of mi…

Academic Index Scores: Why They Matter and How They're Calculated

Note: Click here for 10 Summer Programs You Can Still Apply For or keep reading to learn more about academic index scores.

7 Podcasts for Students Going Through the Admissions Process

Podcasts can offer a wealth of information to busy students, particularly when it comes to the college admissions process. We…

Avoid College Application Regrets: Tips For Getting It Right the First Time

Decision Day occurs each year on May 1st and is the deadline for students to inform the college of their choice of their intent t…

Get a student loan that goes beyond tuition.

Ascent offers cosigned and non-cosigned student loans with exclusive benefits that set students up for success.

Find Your Scholarship

Want to find money for school that doesn’t need to be paid back? Access insights and advice on how to search and apply for scholarships!

We use cookies to enhance our website for you. Proceed if you agree to this policy or learn more about it.

• Essay Database >
• Essays Samples >
• Essay Types >
• College Essay Example

Transgender College Essays Samples For Students

61 samples of this type

Do you feel the need to check out some previously written College Essays on Transgender before you begin writing an own piece? In this free directory of Transgender College Essay examples, you are provided with an exciting opportunity to discover meaningful topics, content structuring techniques, text flow, formatting styles, and other academically acclaimed writing practices. Adopting them while crafting your own Transgender College Essay will surely allow you to complete the piece faster.

Presenting high-quality samples isn't the only way our free essays service can help students in their writing ventures – our authors can also create from point zero a fully customized College Essay on Transgender that would make a strong basis for your own academic work.

Hormone Replacement Therapy Essays Examples

Good two spirited individuals essay example, example of essay on the concept of normal that affects the, transgender and intersex individual.

Don't waste your time searching for a sample.

Get your essay done by professional writers!

Just from $10/page

Example Of How Different Sexual Cultures Can Operate To Reproduce Or Challenge Heteronormativity Essay

Free transgender: treatment or transitional category essay example, free essay on gender relevance for work and organisation, introduction, transgender individuals should serve openly in the military {type) to use as a writing model, good essay about transgender issues, concluding the necessary details for joining the military while transgender. essay template for faster writing.

The transgender policy was created through a comprehensive and inclusive process involving the leadership of all armed services, members of transgender services, medical experts, advocacy groups, and the Rand Corporation (Defense.gov, 2017). It was to serve members openly so that they may no longer be discharged, and isolated from the military because of being transgender people. Moreover, the policies were to be implemented in stages by addressing the needs of the present service members, commanders as well as the whole force, and ultimately, the forces were to recruit based on transgender.

Transgender Safety In Public Restrooms Essay Template For Faster Writing

Good example of transgender essay, lgbt struggles essays example, gender neutral bathrooms and lgbtq issues essay samples, how do you feel about gender neutral bathrooms essay, example of essay on democracy now, learner's full name.

Assignment Title

Targeting Transgender Children, South Dakota Passes Transphobic School Bathroom Bill

Guest Presenters: Chase Strangio, staff attorney, ACLU- LGBT & HIV Project. The show debates a bill likely to be passed by the South Dakota that prevents transgender students in public schools from using bathrooms that do not correspond to their own gender identity. Chase Santiago, Staff attorney for American Civil Liberties Union is the guest presenter and discuss with Amy Goodman as to how the passage of the bill would mean more persecution for the transgender children.

Write By Example Of This LGBT Rights In The United States Essay

Looking into the various aspects of the transgender bathroom controversy essay samples, sexual orientation essay examples, gender fluidity essay examples.

Gender Fluidity is Sound

Transgender Dilemma: Example Essay By An Expert Writer To Follow

Lgbt parenting essay.

GLBT refers to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals in the society who have the zeal to undertake parenthood responsibilities. In this regard, people who are engrossed in LGBT parenting would have a preference of parenting one or more children. It is important to note as Mallon (269) has done that GLBT parents have got the same reasons behind parenting as heterosexual people. He furthers this idea explaining why a significant number of GLBT parents get into parenthood when they are single with an intention of creating a family.

Example Of Transgender Essay

Sexual prejudice essay, proper essay example about gender and sex, lgbt children and youth essay, lgbt children and youth, individual/cultural diversity issue and its relevance to workplace dynamics essay sample, houston bathroom ordinance analysis essay samples, learn to craft essays on relevance of martin luther king’s speech in today’s society with this example, homosexuality essay samples, sexual reassignment essay to use for practical writing help.

Making a decision to undergo Sex reassignment surgery takes a lot of courage and commitment. Besides, the patient usually has a lot of expectations now that the very part of the body is changed permanently. During the various stages of transition, the patient experiences numerous psychological and physical challenges. If not addressed efficiently, these challenges may have a critical impact on the life of the patient after the transgender surgical procedure.

Challenges before SRS – Pre-operative stage

Good diversity and discrimination on law enforcements essay example, diversity and discrimination, example of essay on accommodating gender identity, universityaccommodating gender identity, essay on orange is the new black: a gender revolution, good example of employment non-discrimination act (enda) strategic triangle analysis essay, the social making of gender article review essay example.

In this discussion two articles have been selected for reflection. They are ‘Prisons for our Bodies: Closets for our Minds by Patricia Hill Collins (2004) and Keeping Sex in Bounds by Abby Ferber (2004). First a summary of both articles will be presented. Afterwards an interpretive analysis of gender and intersections will be explained. Thirdly, my personal reflections will be offered and finally an evaluation of how both articles articulate contemporary gender issues will be highlighted.

Summary of Articles

Learn to craft essays on the continuing impact of the civil rights act with this example, example of sexually oriented behavior scenario essay.

After hearing such negative sexist talk directed towards a colleague, I would take several measures aimed at ensuring that the perpetrators of the act know that their actions are wrong and should not be repeated. I would also put effort in supporting Jim, who in this case is the victim, encouraging him and urging him to stay strong in a bid to make sure that he comes out a much stronger individual. The best means of communicating would be face-to-face communication as it is a rich channel that enables instant feedback and suitable for personal conversations (Cameron, p.68).

Meeting the Coworkers

Curbing sexual orientation discrimination essays examples, example of essay on a report on major resorts and restaurants operating in las vegas.

(Tutor’s Name)

Free The Relationship Between Gender And Sexuality. Essay Example

Good essay about employment law and gender equality.

(Institution Name) The state chosen where there exists effective legislation for the protection of rights of people belonging to all sexual orientations from discrimination is Illinois. In the state, sexual orientation and freedom of practice of same-sex marriage was legal since 1962 till 1996 when it was finally banned. In November 2013, same-sex marriage once again regained legal recognition.

Free Psychodynamic Psychology Essay Example

Agng 100 final paper essay samples, lgbt aging and their health care needs, dominant culture and theoretical perspectives essay sample, comparison of the dominant culture and where those of lesbians, gays, bisexual, and transgender fits in, essay on gender and sexuality issue of transexualism, good example of how is sexuality implicated in or influenced by, contemporary social transformations – globally essay, essay on third- wave feminism, the colorful importance of diversity essay example, example of gender and culture: the impact of gender roles on culture essay, expertly crafted essay on orientalism, american nationalism, and gay and feminists movements, good example of listening log essay, the ted talk show is called “why we need gender-neutral bathrooms” presented by ivan coyote in november, 2015., example of law to ensure gender equality in educational institutions essay, example of essay on lgbt trend impacts in hospitality industry, foundation course – name, syracuse university essay examples, gender and identity - cause and effect essays examples, good essay about diversity organizations, managing diversity in the workplace essays examples, good example of essay on diversity, chapter 1 thinking journal topic:, free essay on lgbtq rights: a call for social justice, sociology essays sample, ten american values are as found in the text.

Password recovery email has been sent to [email protected]

Use your new password to log in

You are not register!

By clicking Register, you agree to our Terms of Service and that you have read our Privacy Policy .

Now you can download documents directly to your device!

Check your email! An email with your password has already been sent to you! Now you can download documents directly to your device.

or Use the QR code to Save this Paper to Your Phone

The sample is NOT original!

Short on a deadline?

Don't waste time. Get help with 11% off using code - GETWOWED

No, thanks! I'm fine with missing my deadline

Read our research on: Abortion | Podcasts | Election 2024

Regions & Countries

The Experiences, Challenges and Hopes of Transgender and Nonbinary U.S. Adults

Findings from pew research center focus groups, table of contents, introduction.

Transgender and nonbinary people have gained visibility in the U.S. in recent years as celebrities from  Laverne Cox  to  Caitlyn Jenner  to  Elliot Page  have spoken openly about their gender transitions. On March 30, 2022, the White House issued a proclamation  recognizing Transgender Day of Visibility , the first time a U.S. president has done so.  

More recently, singer and actor Janelle Monáe  came out as nonbinary , while the U.S. State Department and Social Security Administration announced that Americans  will be allowed to select “X” rather than “male” or “female” for their sex  marker on their passport and Social Security applications. 

At the same time, several states have enacted or are considering legislation that would  limit the rights of transgender and nonbinary people . These include bills requiring people to use public bathrooms that correspond with the sex they were assigned at birth, prohibiting trans athletes from competing on teams that match their gender identity, and restricting the availability of health care to trans youth seeking to medically transition. 

A new Pew Research Center survey finds that 1.6% of U.S. adults are transgender or nonbinary – that is, their gender is different from the sex they were assigned at birth. This includes people who describe themselves as a man, a woman or nonbinary, or who use terms such as gender fluid or agender to describe their gender. While relatively few U.S. adults are transgender, a growing share say they know someone who is (44% today vs.  37% in 2017 ). One-in-five say they know someone who doesn’t identify as a man or woman. 

In order to better understand the experiences of transgender and nonbinary adults at a time when gender identity is at the center of many national debates, Pew Research Center conducted a series of focus groups with trans men, trans women and nonbinary adults on issues ranging from their gender journey, to how they navigate issues of gender in their day-to-day life, to what they see as the most pressing policy issues facing people who are trans or nonbinary. This is part of a larger study that includes a survey of the general public on their attitudes about gender identity and issues related to people who are transgender or nonbinary.

The terms  transgender  and  trans  are used interchangeably throughout this essay to refer to people whose gender is different from the sex they were assigned at birth. This includes, but is not limited to, transgender men (that is, men who were assigned female at birth) and transgender women (women who were assigned male at birth). 

Nonbinary adults  are defined here as those who are neither a man nor a woman or who aren’t strictly one or the other. While some nonbinary focus group participants sometimes use different terms to describe themselves, such as “gender queer,” “gender fluid” or “genderless,” all said the term “nonbinary” describes their gender in the screening questionnaire. Some, but not all, nonbinary participants also consider themselves to be transgender.

References to  gender transitions  relate to the process through which trans and nonbinary people express their gender as different from social expectations associated with the sex they were assigned at birth. This may include social, legal and medical transitions. The social aspect of a gender transition may include going by a new name or using different pronouns, or expressing their gender through their dress, mannerisms, gender roles or other ways. The legal aspect may include legally changing their name or changing their sex or gender designation on legal documents or identification.  Medical care  may include treatments such as hormone therapy, laser hair removal and/or surgery. 

References to  femme  indicate feminine gender expression. This is often in contrast to “masc,” meaning masculine gender expression.

Cisgender  is used to describe people whose gender matches the sex they were assigned at birth and who do not identify as transgender or nonbinary. 

Misgendering  is defined as referring to or addressing a person in ways that do not align with their gender identity, including using incorrect pronouns, titles (such as “sir” or “ma’am”), and other terms (such as “son” or “daughter”) that do not match their gender. 

References to  dysphoria  may include feelings of distress due to the mismatch of one’s gender and sex assigned at birth, as well as a  diagnosis of gender dysphoria , which is sometimes a prerequisite for access to health care and medical transitions.

The acronym  LGBTQ+  refers to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (or, in some cases, questioning), and other sexual orientations or gender identities that are not straight or cisgender, such as intersex, asexual or pansexual. 

Pew Research Center conducted this research to better understand the experiences and views of transgender and nonbinary U.S. adults. Because transgender and nonbinary people make up only about 1.6% of the adult U.S. population, this is a difficult population to reach with a probability-based, nationally representative survey. As an alternative, we conducted a series of focus groups with trans and nonbinary adults covering a variety of topics related to the trans and nonbinary experience. This allows us to go more in-depth on some of these topics than a survey would typically allow, and to share these experiences in the participants’ own words.

For this project, we conducted six online focus groups, with a total of 27 participants (four to five participants in each group), from March 8-10, 2022. Participants were recruited by targeted email outreach among a panel of adults who had previously said on a survey that they were transgender or nonbinary, as well as via connections through professional networks and LGBTQ+ organizations, followed by a screening call. Candidates were eligible if they met the technology requirements to participate in an online focus group and if they either said they consider themselves to be transgender or if they said their gender was nonbinary or another identity other than man or woman (regardless of whether or not they also said they were transgender). For more details, see the  Methodology . 

Participants who qualified were placed in groups as follows: one group of nonbinary adults only (with a nonbinary moderator); one group of trans women only (with a trans woman moderator); one group of trans men only (with a trans man moderator); and three groups with a mix of trans and nonbinary adults (with either a nonbinary moderator or a trans man moderator). All of the moderators had extensive experience facilitating groups, including with transgender and nonbinary participants. 

The participants were a mix of ages, races/ethnicities, and were from all corners of the country. For a detailed breakdown of the participants’ demographic characteristics, see the  Methodology .

The findings are not statistically representative and cannot be extrapolated to wider populations.

Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity or to remove identifying details. In this essay, participants are identified as trans men, trans women, or nonbinary adults based on their answers to the screening questionnaire. These words don’t necessarily encompass all of the ways in which participants described their gender. Participants’ ages are grouped into the following categories:  late teens; early/mid/late 20s, 30s and 40s; and 50s and 60s (those ages 50 to 69 were grouped into bigger “buckets” to better preserve their anonymity).

These focus groups were not designed to be representative of the entire population of trans and nonbinary U.S. adults, but the participants’ stories provide a glimpse into some of the experiences of people who are transgender and/or nonbinary. The groups included a total of 27 transgender and nonbinary adults from around the U.S. and ranging in age from late teens to mid-60s. Most currently live in an urban area, but about half said they grew up in a suburb. The groups included a mix of White, Black, Hispanic, Asian and multiracial American participants. See  Methodology  for more details.

Identity and the gender journey

Most focus group participants said they knew from an early age – many as young as preschool or elementary school – that there was something different about them, even if they didn’t have the words to describe what it was. Some described feeling like they didn’t fit in with other children of their sex but didn’t know exactly why. Others said they felt like they were in the wrong body. 

“I remember preschool, [where] the boys were playing on one side and the girls were playing on the other, and I just had a moment where I realized what side I was supposed to be on and what side people thought I was supposed to be on. … Yeah, I always knew that I was male, since my earliest memories.” – Trans man, late 30s

“As a small child, like around kindergarten [or] first grade … I just was [fascinated] by how some people were small girls, and some people were small boys, and it was on my mind constantly. And I started to feel very uncomfortable, just existing as a young girl.” – Trans man, early 30s

“I was 9 and I was at day camp and I was changing with all the other 9-year-old girls … and I remember looking at everybody’s body around me and at my own body, and even though I was visually seeing the exact shapeless nine-year-old form, I literally thought to myself, ‘oh, maybe I was supposed to be a boy,’ even though I know I wasn’t seeing anything different. … And I remember being so unbothered by the thought, like not a panic, not like, ‘oh man, I’m so different, like everybody here I’m so different and this is terrible,’ I was like, ‘oh, maybe I was supposed to be a boy,’ and for some reason that exact quote really stuck in my memory.” – Nonbinary person, late 30s

“Since I was little, I felt as though I was a man who, when they were passing out bodies, someone made a goof and I got a female body instead of the male body that I should have had. But I was forced by society, especially at that time growing up, to just make my peace with having a female body.” – Nonbinary person, 50s

“I’ve known ever since I was little. I’m not really sure the age, but I just always knew when I put on boy clothes, I just felt so uncomfortable.” – Trans woman, late 30s

“It was probably as early as I can remember that I wasn’t like my brother or my father [and] not exactly like my girl cousins but I was something else, but I didn’t know what it was.” – Nonbinary person, 60s

Many participants were well into adulthood before they found the words to describe their gender. For those focus group participants, the path to self-discovery varied. Some described meeting someone who was transgender and relating to their experience; others described learning about people who are trans or nonbinary in college classes or by doing their own research.  

“I read a Time magazine article … called ‘Homosexuality in America’ … in 1969. … Of course, we didn’t have language like we do now or people were not willing to use it … [but] it was kind of the first word that I had ever heard that resonated with me at all. So, I went to school and I took the magazine, we were doing show-and-tell, and I stood up in front of the class and said, ‘I am a homosexual.’ So that began my journey to figure this stuff out.” – Nonbinary person, 60s

“It wasn’t until maybe I was 20 or so when my friend started his transition where I was like, ‘Wow, that sounds very similar to the emotions and challenges I am going through with my own identity.’ … My whole life from a very young age I was confused, but I didn’t really put a name on it until I was about 20.” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“I knew about drag queens, but I didn’t know what trans was until I got to college and was exposed to new things, and that was when I had a word for myself for the first time.” – Trans man, early 40s

“I thought that by figuring out that I was interested in women, identifying as lesbian, I thought [my anxiety and sadness] would dissipate in time, and that was me cracking the code. But then, when I got older, I left home for the first time. I started to meet other trans people in the world. That’s when I started to become equipped with the vocabulary. The understanding that this is a concept, and this makes sense. And that’s when I started to understand that I wasn’t cisgender.” – Trans man, early 30s

“When I took a human sexuality class in undergrad and I started learning about gender and different sexualities and things like that, I was like, ‘oh my god. I feel seen.’ So, that’s where I learned about it for the first time and started understanding how I identify.” – Nonbinary person, mid-20s

Focus group participants used a wide range of words to describe how they see their gender. For many nonbinary participants, the term “nonbinary” is more of an umbrella term, but when it comes to how they describe themselves, they tend to use words like “gender queer” or “gender fluid.” The word “queer” came up many times across different groups, often to describe anyone who is not straight or cisgender. Some trans men and women preferred just the terms “man” or “woman,” while some identified strongly with the term “transgender.” The graphic below shows just some of the words the participants used to describe their gender.

The way nonbinary people conceptualize their gender varies. Some said they feel like they’re both a man and a woman – and how much they feel like they are one or the other may change depending on the day or the circumstance. Others said they don’t feel like they are either a man or a woman, or that they don’t have a gender at all. Some, but not all, also identified with the term transgender. 

“I had days where I would go out and just play with the boys and be one of the boys, and then there would be times that I would play with the girls and be one of the girls. And then I just never really knew what I was. I just knew that I would go back and forth.” – Nonbinary person, mid-20s

“Growing up with more of a masculine side or a feminine side, I just never was a fan of the labelling in terms of, ‘oh, this is a bit too masculine, you don’t wear jewelry, you don’t wear makeup, oh you’re not feminine enough.’ … I used to alternate just based on who I felt I was. So, on a certain day if I felt like wearing a dress, or a skirt versus on a different day, I felt like wearing what was considered men’s pants. … So, for me it’s always been both.” – Nonbinary person, mid-30s

“I feel like my gender is so amorphous and hard to hold and describe even. It’s been important to find words for it, to find the outlines of it, to see the shape of it, but it’s not something that I think about as who I am, because I’m more than just that.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“What words would I use to describe me? Genderless, if gender wasn’t a thing. … I guess if pronouns didn’t exist and you just called me [by my name]. That’s what my gender is. … And I do use nonbinary also, just because it feels easier, I guess.” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

Some participants said their gender is one of the most important parts of their identity, while others described it as one of many important parts or a small piece of how they see themselves. For some, the focus on gender can get tiring. Those who said gender isn’t a central – or at least not the most central – part of their identity mentioned race, ethnicity, religion and socioeconomic class as important aspects that shape their identity and experiences.

“It is tough because [gender] does affect every factor of your life. If you are doing medical transitioning then you have appointments, you have to pay for the appointments, you have to be working in a job that supports you to pay for those appointments. So, it is definitely integral, and it has a lot of branches. And it deals with how you act, how you relate to friends, you know, I am sure some of us can relate to having to come out multiple times in our lives. That is why sexuality and gender are very integral and I would definitely say I am proud of it. And I think being able to say that I am proud of it, and my gender, I guess is a very important part of my identity.” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“Sometimes I get tired of thinking about my gender because I am actively [undergoing my medical transition]. So, it is a lot of things on my mind right now, constantly, and it sometimes gets very tiring. I just want to not have to think about it some days. So, I would say it’s, it’s probably in my top three [most important parts of my identity] – parent, Black, queer nonbinary.” – Nonbinary person, mid-40s

“I live in a town with a large queer and trans population and I don’t have to think about my gender most of the time other than having to come out as trans. But I’m poor and that colors everything. It’s not a chosen part of my identity but that part of my identity is a lot more influential than my gender.” – Trans man, early 40s

“My gender is very important to my identity because I feel that they go hand in hand. Now my identity is also broken down into other factors [like] character, personality and other stuff that make up the recipe for my identity. But my gender plays a big part of it. … It is important because it’s how I live my life every day. When I wake up in the morning, I do things as a woman.” – Trans woman, mid-40s

“I feel more strongly connected to my other identities outside of my gender, and I feel like parts of it’s just a more universal thing, like there’s a lot more people in my socioeconomic class and we have much more shared experiences.” – Trans man, late 30s

Some participants spoke about how their gender interacted with other aspects of their identity, such as their race, culture and religion. For some, being transgender or nonbinary can be at odds with other parts of their identity or background. 

“Culturally I’m Dominican and Puerto Rican, a little bit of the macho machismo culture, in my family, and even now, if I’m going to be a man, I’ve got to be a certain type of man. So, I cannot just be who I’m meant to be or who I want myself to be, the human being that I am.” – Trans man, mid-30s

“[Judaism] is a very binary religion. There is a lot of things like for men to do and a lot of things for women to do. … So, it is hard for me now as a gender queer person, right, to connect on some levels with [my] religion … I have just now been exposed to a bunch of trans Jewish spaces online which is amazing.” – Nonbinary person, mid-40s

“Just being Indian American, I identify and love aspects of my culture and ethnicity, and I find them amazing and I identify with that, but it’s kind of separated. So, I identify with the culture, then I identify here in terms of gender and being who I am, but I kind of feel the necessity to separate the two, unfortunately.” – Nonbinary person, mid-30s

“I think it’s really me being a Black woman or a Black man that can sometimes be difficult. And also, my ethnic background too. It’s really rough for me with my family back home and things of that nature.” – Nonbinary person, mid-20s

Navigating gender day-to-day

For some, deciding how open to be about their gender identity can be a constant calculation. Some participants reported that they choose whether or not to disclose that they are trans or nonbinary in a given situation based on how safe or comfortable they feel and whether it’s necessary for other people to know. This also varies depending on whether the participant can easily pass as a cisgender man or woman (that is, they can blend in so that others assume them to be cisgender and don’t recognize that they are trans or nonbinary).

“It just depends on whether I feel like I have the energy to bring it up, or if it feels worth it to me like with doctors and stuff like that. I always bring it up with my therapists, my primary [care doctor], I feel like she would get it. I guess it does vary on the situation and my capacity level.” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“I decide based on the person and based on the context, like if I feel comfortable enough to share that piece of myself with them, because I do have the privilege of being able to move through the world and be identified as cis[gender] if I want to. But then it is important to me – if you’re important to me, then you will know who I am and how I identify. Otherwise, if I don’t feel comfortable or safe then I might not.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“The expression of my gender doesn’t vary. Who I let in to know that I was formerly female – or formerly perceived as female – is kind of on a need to know basis.” – Trans man, 60s

“It’s important to me that people not see me as cis[gender], so I have to come out a lot when I’m around new people, and sometimes that’s challenging. … It’s not information that comes out in a normal conversation. You have to force it and that’s difficult sometimes.” – Trans man, early 40s

Work is one realm where many participants said they choose not to share that they are trans or nonbinary. In some cases, this is because they want to be recognized for their work rather than the fact that they are trans or nonbinary; in others, especially for nonbinary participants, they fear it will be perceived as unprofessional.

“It’s gotten a lot better recently, but I feel like when you’re nonbinary and you use they/them pronouns, it’s just seen as really unprofessional and has been for a lot of my life.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“Whether it’s LinkedIn or profiles [that] have been updated, I’ve noticed people’s resumes have their pronouns now. I don’t go that far because I just feel like it’s a professional environment, it’s nobody’s business.” – Nonbinary person, mid-30s

“I don’t necessarily volunteer the information just to make it public; I want to be recognized for my character, my skill set, in my work in other ways.” – Trans man, early 30s

Some focus group participants said they don’t mind answering questions about what it’s like to be trans or nonbinary but were wary of being seen as the token trans or nonbinary person in their workplace or among acquaintances. Whether or not they are comfortable answering these types of questions sometimes depends on who’s asking, why they want to know, and how personal the questions get.

“I’ve talked to [my cousin about being trans] a lot because she has a daughter, and her daughter wants to transition. So, she always will come to me asking questions.” – Trans woman, early 40s

“It is tough being considered the only resource for these topics, right? In my job, I would hate to call myself the token nonbinary, but I was the first nonbinary person that they hired and they were like, ‘Oh, my gosh, let me ask you all the questions as you are obviously the authority on the subject.’ And it is like, ‘No, that is a part of me, but there are so many other great resources.’” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“I don’t want to be the token. I’m not going to be no spokesperson. If you have questions, I’m the first person you can ask. Absolutely. I don’t mind discussing. Ask me some of the hardest questions, because if you ask somebody else you might get you know your clock cleaned. So, ask me now … so you can be educated properly. Otherwise, I don’t believe it’s anybody’s business.” – Trans woman, early 40s

Most nonbinary participants said they use “they/them” as their pronouns, but some prefer alternatives. These alternatives include a combination of gendered and gender-neutral pronouns (like she/they) or simply preferring that others use one’s names rather than pronouns. 

“If I could, I would just say my name is my pronoun, which I do in some spaces, but it just is not like a larger view. It feels like I’d rather have less labor on me in that regard, so I just say they/them.” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“For me personally, I don’t get mad if someone calls me ‘he’ because I see what they’re looking at. They look and they see a guy. So, I don’t get upset. I know a few people who do … and they correct you. Me, I’m a little more fluid. So, that’s how it works for me.” – Nonbinary person, mid-30s

“I use they/she pronouns and I put ‘they’ first because that is what I think is most comfortable and it’s what I want to draw people’s attention to, because I’m 5 feet tall and 100 pounds so it’s not like I scream masculine at first sight, so I like putting ‘they’ first because otherwise people always default to ‘she.’ But I have ‘she’ in there, and I don’t know if I’d have ‘she’ in there if I had not had kids.” – Nonbinary person, late 30s

“Why is it so hard for people to think of me as nonbinary? I choose not to use only they/them pronouns because I do sometimes identify with ‘she.’ But I’m like, ‘Do I need to use they/them pronouns to be respected as nonbinary?’ Sometimes I feel like I should do that. But I don’t want to feel like I should do anything. I just want to be myself and have that be accepted and respected.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“I have a lot of patience for people, but [once someone in public used] they/them pronouns and I thanked them and they were like, ‘Yeah, I just figure I’d do it when I don’t know [someone’s] pronouns.’ And I’m like, ‘I love it, thank you.’” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

Transgender and nonbinary participants find affirmation of their gender identity and support in various places. Many cited their friends, chosen families (and, less commonly, their relatives), therapists or other health care providers, religion, or LGBTQ+ spaces as sources of support.

“I’m just not close with my family [of origin], but I have a huge chosen family that I love and that fully respects my identity.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“Before the pandemic I used to go out to bars a lot; there’s a queer bar in my town and it was a really nice place just being friends with everybody who went and everybody who worked there, it felt really nice you know, and just hearing everybody use the right pronouns for me it just felt really good.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“I don’t necessarily go to a lot of dedicated support groups, but I found that there’s kind of a good amount of support in areas or groups or fandoms for things that have a large LGBT population within them. Like certain shows or video games, where it’s just kind of a joke that all the gay people flock to this.”  – Trans woman, late teens

“Being able to practice my religion in a location with a congregation that is just completely chill about it, or so far has been completely chill about it, has been really amazing.” – Nonbinary person, late 30s

Many participants shared specific moments they said were small in the grand scheme of things but made them feel accepted and affirmed. Examples included going on dates, gestures of acceptance by a friend or social group, or simply participating in everyday activities.

“I went on a date with a really good-looking, handsome guy. And he didn’t know that I was trans. But I told him, and we kept talking and hanging out. … That’s not the first time that I felt affirmed or felt like somebody is treating me as I present myself. But … he made me feel wanted and beautiful.” – Trans woman, late 30s

“I play [on a men’s rec league] hockey [team]. … I joined the league like right when I first transitioned and I showed up and I was … nervous with locker rooms and stuff, and they just accepted me as male right away.” – Trans man, late 30s

“I ended up going into a barbershop. … The barber was very welcoming, and talked to me as if I was just a casual customer and there was something that clicked within that moment where, figuring out my gender identity, I just wanted to exist in the world to do these natural things like other boys and men would do. So, there was just something exciting about that. It wasn’t a super macho masculine moment, … he just made me feel like I blended in.” – Trans man, early 30s

Participants also talked about negative experiences, such as being misgendered, either intentionally or unintentionally. For example, some shared instances where they were treated or addressed as a gender other than the gender that they identify as, such as people referring to them as “he” when they go by “she,” or where they were deadnamed, meaning they were called by the name they had before they transitioned. 

“I get misgendered on the phone a lot and that’s really annoying. And then, even after I correct them, they keep doing it, sometimes on purpose and sometimes I think they’re just reading a script or something.” – Trans man, late 30s

“The times that I have been out, presenting femme, there is this very subconscious misgendering that people do and it can be very frustrating. [Once, at a restaurant,] I was dressed in makeup and nails and shoes and everything and still everyone was like, ‘Sir, what would you like?’ … Those little things – those microaggressions – they can really eat away at people.” – Nonbinary person, mid-40s

“People not calling me by the right name. My family is a big problem, they just won’t call me by my name, you know? Except for my nephew, who is of the Millennial generation, so at least he gets it.” – Nonbinary person, 60s

“I’m constantly misgendered when I go out places. I accept this – because of the way I look, people are going to perceive me as a woman and it doesn’t cause me huge dysphoria or anything, it’s just nice that the company that I keep does use the right pronouns.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

Some participants also shared stories of discrimination, bias, humiliation, and even violence. These experiences ranged from employment discrimination to being outed (that is, someone else disclosing the fact that they are transgender or nonbinary without their permission) without their permission to physical attacks.

“I was on a date with this girl and I had to use the bathroom … and the janitor … wouldn’t let me use the men’s room, and he kept refusing to let me use the men’s room, so essentially, I ended up having to use the same bathroom as my date.” – Trans man, late 30s

“I’ve been denied employment due to my gender identity. I walked into a supermarket looking for jobs. … And they flat out didn’t let me apply. They didn’t even let me apply.” – Trans man, mid-30s

“[In high school,] this group of guys said, ‘[name] is gay.’ I ignored them but they literally threw me and tore my shirt from my back and pushed me to the ground and tried to strip me naked. And I had to fight for myself and use my bag to hit him in the face.” – Trans woman, late 20s

“I took a college course [after] I had my name changed legally and the instructor called me out in front of the class and called me a liar and outed me.” – Trans man, late 30s 

Seeking medical care for gender transitions 

Many, but not all, participants said they have received  medical care , such as surgery or hormone therapy, as part of their gender transition. For those who haven’t undergone a medical transition, the reasons ranged from financial barriers to being nervous about medical procedures in general to simply not feeling that it was the right thing for them.

“For me to really to live my truth and live my identity, I had to have the surgery, which is why I went through it. It doesn’t mean [that others] have to, or that it will make you more or less of a woman because you have it. But for me to be comfortable, … that was a big part of it. And so, that’s why I felt I had to get it.” – Trans woman, early 40s

“I’m older and it’s an operation. … I’m just kind of scared, I guess. I’ve never had an operation. I mean, like any kind of operation. I’ve never been to the hospital or anything like that. So, it [is] just kind of scary. But I mean, I want to. I think about all the time. I guess have got to get the courage up to do it.” – Trans woman, early 40s

“I’ve decided that the dysphoria of a second puberty … would just be too much for me and I’m gender fluid enough where I’m happy, I guess.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“I’m too old to change anything, I mean I am what I am. [laughs]” – Nonbinary person, 60s

Many focus group participants who have sought medical treatment for their gender transition faced barriers, although some had positive experiences. For those who said there were barriers, the cost and the struggle to find sympathetic doctors were often cited as challenges. 

“I was flat out turned down by the primary care physician who had to give the go-ahead to give me a referral to an endocrinologist; I was just shut down. That was it, end of story.” – Nonbinary person, 50s

“I have not had surgery, because I can’t access surgery. So unless I get breast cancer and have a double mastectomy, surgery is just not going to happen … because my health insurance wouldn’t cover something like that. … It would be an out-of-pocket plastic surgery expense and I can’t afford that at this time.” – Nonbinary person, 50s

“Why do I need the permission of a therapist to say, ‘This person’s identity is valid,’ before I can get the health care that I need to be me, that is vital for myself and for my way of life?” – Nonbinary person, mid-40s

“[My doctor] is basically the first person that actually embraced me and made me accept [who I am].” – Trans woman, late 20s

Many people who transitioned in previous decades described how access has gotten much easier in recent years. Some described relying on underground networks to learn which doctors would help them obtain medical care or where to obtain hormones illegally. 

“It was hard financially because I started so long ago, just didn’t have access like that. Sometimes you have to try to go to Mexico or learn about someone in Mexico that was a pharmacist, I can remember that. That was a big thing, going through the border to Mexico, that was wild. So, it was just hard financially because they would charge so much for testosterone. And there was the whole bodybuilding community. If you were transitioning, you went to bodybuilders, and they would charge you five times what they got it [for], so it was kind of tough.” – Trans man, early 40s

“It was a lot harder to get a surgeon when I started transitioning; insurance was out of the question, there wasn’t really a national discussion around trans people and their particular medical needs. So, it was challenging having to pay everything out of pocket at a young age.” – Trans man, early 30s

“I guess it was hard for me to access hormones initially just because you had to jump through so many hoops, get letters, and then you had to find a provider that was willing to write it. And now it’s like people are getting it from their primary care doctor, which is great, but a very different experience than I had.” – Trans man, early 40s

Connections with the broader LGBTQ+ community

The discussions also touched on whether the participants feel a connection with a broader lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) community or with other people who are LGBTQ+. Views varied, with some saying they feel an immediate connection with other people who are LGBTQ+, even with those who aren’t trans or nonbinary, and others saying they don’t necessarily feel this way. 

“It’s kind of a recurring joke where you can meet another LGBT person and it is like there is an immediate understanding, and you are basically talking and giving each other emotional support, like you have been friends for 10-plus years.” – Trans woman, late teens 

“I don’t think it’s automatic friendship between queer people, there’s like a kinship, but I don’t think there’s automatic friendship or anything. I think it’s just normal, like, how normal people make friends, just based on common interests.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s 

“I do think of myself as part of the LGBT [community] … I use the resources that are put in place for these communities, whether that’s different health care programs, support groups, they have the community centers. … So, I do consider myself to be part of this community, and I’m able to hopefully take when needed, as well as give back.” – Trans man, mid-30s

“I feel like that’s such an important part of being a part of the [LGBTQ+] alphabet soup community, that process of constantly learning and listening to each other and … growing and developing language together … I love that aspect of creating who we are together, learning and unlearning together, and I feel like that’s a part of at least the queer community spaces that I want to be in. That’s something that’s core to me.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“I identify as queer. I feel like I’m a part of the LGBT community. That’s more of a part of my identity than being trans. … Before I came out as trans, I identified as a lesbian. That was also a big part of my identity. So, that may be too why I feel like I’m more part of the LGB community.” – Trans man, early 40s

While many trans and nonbinary participants said they felt accepted by others in the LGBTQ+ community, some participants described their gender identity as a barrier to full acceptance. There was a sense among some participants that cisgender people who are lesbian, gay or bisexual don’t always accept people who are transgender or nonbinary.  

“I would really like to be included in the [LGBTQ+] community. But I have seen some people try to separate the T from LGB … I’ve run into a few situations throughout my time navigating the [LGBTQ+] community where I’ve been perceived – and I just want to say that there’s nothing wrong with this – I’ve been perceived as like a more feminine or gay man in a social setting, even though I’m heterosexual. … But the minute that that person found out that I wasn’t a gay man … and that I was actually a transgender person, they became cold and just distancing themselves. And I’ve been in a lot of those types of circumstances where there’s that divide between the rest of the community.” – Trans man, early 30s

“There are some lesbians who see trans men as being traitors to womanhood. Those are not people that I really identify with or want to be close to.” – Trans man, early 40s 

“It’s only in the past maybe dozen or so years, that an identity like gender fluid or gender queer was acceptable even within the LGBTQ+ community. … I tried to go to certain LGBTQ+ events as a trans man and, you know, I was not allowed in because I looked too female. The gay men would not allow me to participate.” – Nonbinary person, 50s 

“Technically based on the letters [in the acronym LGBTQ+] I am part of that community, but I’ve felt discrimination, it’s very heavily exclusive to people who are either gay or lesbian and I think that’s true … for queer or bisexual or asexual, intersex … anybody who’s not like exclusively hardcore gay or lesbian. It’s very exclusive, like excluding to those people. … I feel like the BTQ is a separate group of people…. So, I identify with the second half of the letters as a separate subset.” – Trans man, late 30s

Policy and social change

When asked to name the most important policy or political issues facing transgender and nonbinary people in the United States today, many participants named basic needs such as housing, employment, and health care. Others cited recent legislation or policies related to people who are transgender that have made national news.

“Housing is a huge issue. Health care might be good in New York, it might be good in California, but … it’s not a national equality for trans folks. Health care is not equal across the states. Housing is not equal across the states. So, I think that the issues right now that we’re all facing is health care and housing. That’s the top, the most important things.” – Trans woman, early 40s 

“Definitely education. I think that’s very important … Whether you identify as trans or not as a young child, it’s good to understand and know the different things under the umbrella, the queer umbrella. And it is also just a respect thing. And also, the violence that happens against trans and nonbinary people. I feel like educating them very young, that kind of helps – well, it is going to help because once you understand what’s going on and you see somebody that doesn’t identify the same as you, you’ll have that respect, or you’ll have that understanding and you’re less likely to be very violent towards them.” – Nonbinary person, mid-20s 

“Employment is a big one. And I know that some areas, more metropolitan progressive-leaning areas, are really on top of this, but they’re trans people everywhere that are still being discriminated against. I think it’s a personal thing for me that goes back to my military service, but still, it’s just unfortunate. It’s an unfortunate reality.” – Trans man, early 30s

“I think just the strong intersectionality of trans people with mental health issues, or even physical health issues. … So in that way, accessing good health care or having good mental health.” – Trans man, late 30s

“I honestly think that the situation in Texas is the most pressing political and policy situation because it is a direct attack on the trans community. … And it is so insidious because it doesn’t just target bathrooms. This is saying that if you provide medical care to trans youth it is tantamount to child abuse. And it is so enraging because it is a known proven fact that access to gender affirming medical care saves lives. It saves the lives of trans youth. And trans youth have the highest suicide rate in the country.” – Nonbinary person, mid-40s 

Participants had different takes on what gets in the way of progress on issues facing transgender and nonbinary people. Some pointed to the lack of knowledge surrounding the history of these issues or not knowing someone who is transgender or nonbinary. Others mentioned misconceptions people might have about transgender and nonbinary people that influence their political and policy perspectives. 

“People who don’t know trans people, honestly … that’s the only barrier I can understand because people fear what they don’t know and then react to it a lot of the time.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“Sometimes even if they know someone, they still don’t consider them to be a human being, they are an ‘other,’ they are an ‘it,’ they are a ‘not like me,’ ‘not like my family,’ person and so they are put into a place socially where they can be treated badly.” – Nonbinary person, 50s

“Just the ignorance and misinformation and this quick fake social media fodder, where it encourages people who should not be part of the conversation to spread things that are not true.” – Trans man, late 30s

“Also, the political issues that face nonbinary people, it’s that people think nonbinary is some made-up thing to feel cool. It’s not to feel cool. And if someone does do it to feel cool, maybe they’re just doing that because they don’t feel comfortable within themselves.” – Nonbinary person, mid-30s

“There’s so much fear around it, and misunderstanding, and people thinking that if you’re talking to kids about gender and sexuality, that it’s sexual. And it’s like, we really need to break down that our bodies are not inherently sexual. We need to be able to talk with students and children about their bodies so that they can then feel empowered to understand themselves, advocate for themselves.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

When asked what makes them hopeful for the future for trans and nonbinary people, some participants pointed to the way things in society have already changed and progress that has been made. For example, some mentioned greater representation and visibility of transgender and nonbinary people in entertainment and other industries, while others focused on changing societal views as things that give them hope for the future. 

“I am hopeful about the future because I see so many of us coming out and being visible and representing and showing folks that we are not to stereotype.” – Trans woman, early 40s

“Also, even though celebrity is annoying, it’s still cool when people like Willow [Smith] or Billie Eilish or all these popstars that the kids really love are like, ‘I’m nonbinary, I’m queer,’ like a lot more progressive. … Even just more visibility in TV shows and movies, the more and more that happens the more it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, we are really here, you can’t not see us.’” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“We shouldn’t have to look to the entertainment industry for role models, we shouldn’t have to, we should be able to look to our leaders, our political leaders, but I think, that’s what gives me hope. Soon, it’s going to become a nonissue, maybe in my lifetime.” – Trans man, 60s

“I have gotten a little bit into stand-up comedy in the last few weeks, and it is like the jokes that people made ten years ago are resurfacing online and people are enraged about it. They are saying like, ‘Oh, this is totally inappropriate.’ But that comes with the recognition that things have changed, and language has changed, and people are becoming more intolerant of allowing these things to occur. So that is why I am hopeful, is being able to see that progression and hopeful continued improvement on that front.” – Nonbinary person, late 20s

“I think because of the shift of what’s happening, how everything has become so normal, and people are being more open, and within the umbrella of queerness so many different things are happening, I think as we get more comfortable and we progress as a society, it’s just going to be better. So, people don’t have to hide who they are. So, that gives me hope.” – Nonbinary person, mid-20s

For many, young people are a source of hope. Several participants talked about younger generations being more accepting of those who are transgender or nonbinary and also being more accepted by their families if they themselves are trans or nonbinary. 

“And then the other portion that gives me hope are the kids, because I work now with so many kids who are coming out as trans earlier and their families are embracing them and everything. … So I really am trusting in the young generation.” – Nonbinary person, 60s

“I mean kids don’t judge you the same way as adults do about gender, and they’re so expansive and have so much creativity. … So it’s just the kids, Gen Z, and it just makes me feel really, really hopeful.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“The youth, the youth. They understand almost intrinsically so much more about these things than I feel like my generation did. They give me so much hope for the future.” – Nonbinary person, early 30s

“I think future generations, just seeing this growing amount of support that they have, that it’s just going to keep improving … there’s an increase in visibility but there’s also an increase in support … like resources for parents where they can see that they don’t have to punish their kids. Their kids can grow up feeling like, ‘This is okay to be this way.’ And I feel like that’s not something that can be stopped.” – Trans man, late 30s

Additional materials

• Acknowledgments
• Methodology

Lead photo: (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)

Social Trends Monthly Newsletter

Sign up to to receive a monthly digest of the Center's latest research on the attitudes and behaviors of Americans in key realms of daily life

About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts .

• Testimonials

This Post is for our Trans, Non-binary, Genderqueer, and Genderfluid friends

Some of you may or may not know this about me, but I’m the mom of three amazing kids — my middle is transgender/non-binary.  Applying to college and trying to figure out a good fit for you is hard enough, but when you’re applying to college and you’re trans, non-binary, genderfluid, or genderqueer, it can be especially tough. And, if you’re in one of those groups, you know that these students face additional challenges at home and at school — and that certainly extends to college admissions as well.

Five Quick Tips:

• Keep up with the Forms: While many colleges ask for your preferred name, you may still need to use your birth name, if it hasn’t been legally changed yet, so that all your paperwork and files won’t get lost or disorganized.
• Think about Your Essays: To come out or not to come out? You don’t have to write about being transgender in your essays, but you certainly can if it’s a story you want to tell. If you’re worried that being trans might hurt you in admissions, ask yourself this question:  Do I want to attend a college that would deny me because of who I am?
• I got this amazing advice from a fellow mom of a nonbinary child: “It’s worth checking the state laws where the college is located—the most supportive campus in the world can’t help your student if the state doesn’t guarantee access to health care, makes name/marker change incredibly difficult, etc.”
• Do they have gender-inclusive housing?

Do they have a nondiscrimination policy for trans/queer students?

Do they allow students to change their names on campus records?

What resources and opportunities do they have to support trans/queer students?

Do the schools’ health clinics and health plans cover trans medical care if that’s something you are interested in?

MIT’s Blog: Applying While Transgender  ( https://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/applying-while-transgender/ )

FAQ About Transgender Students at Colleges and Universities  ( https://www.lambdalegal.org/know-your-rights/article/trans-in-college-faq )

Campus Pride Trans Policy Clearinghouse  ( https://www.campuspride.org/tpc/ )

Supporting Transgender Transitioning Students in the College Application Process

Looking for college suggestions?

Here are some colleges that have been suggested to me or that I’ve heard have trans-friendly environments:

Virginia Commonwealth

Ithaca College

Claremont McKenna

UC Santa Barbara

Pacific University of Oregon

Oregon State

University of Montana

Editing to add as I hear of more from various sources:

Washington State

U Washington

Western Washington

Clark U in Massachusetts

SUNY New Paltz

Sarah Lawrence

Northern Arizona U

“Your lives matter. Your voice matters. Your stories matter.” ~ Laverne Cox

Take care. Be yourself. Love who you are.

If you want to learn more about college admissions for LGBTQ+ students, check out my book, Hey AdmissionsMom: Real Talk from Reddit . 

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

I was really nervous about this because I identifies non binary. My parents don’t know when I’m OK with that but I was nervous about my school knowing. I was worried that it might affect my application and they might say no. But you saying that do I really wanna go to a school where I would feel unsafe really hit me. I thought about it and I changed it on my application. I’m still really nervous about it but I feel a little better now that I think about it.

I’m so glad that you found the post to be reassuring!

I’m so glad you found the post.

Leave A Comment Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Transgender College Students Are Up to Four Times as Likely to Experience Mental Health Problems

Sarah Ketchen Lipson, a BU School of Public Health professor, says there has never been a more important time for colleges and universities to protect and support trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary students. Photo by Cydney Scott

Surveying 71 US universities, BU researchers say colleges must make mental health a priority, especially for students in the gender minority

Jessica colarossi.

The largest and most comprehensive mental health survey of college students in the United States reveals that students who identify as transgender, gender nonconforming, genderqueer, and nonbinary face enormous mental health disparities relative to their peers. In a first-of-its-kind study published on Friday, August 16, in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine , Boston University researchers and collaborators found that gender minority students whose gender identity differs from the sex assigned them at birth, are between two and four times more likely to experience mental health problems than the rest of their peers. 

“There has never been a more important time for colleges and universities to take action to protect and support trans, genderqueer, and nonbinary students on campus,” says study lead author Sarah Ketchen Lipson , a Boston University School of Public Health assistant professor of health law, policy, and management. 

The research team—which also included Julia Raifman , an SPH assistant professor of health law, policy, and management, Sari Reisner of Harvard Medical School and the Fenway Institute, and Sara Abelson of the University of Michigan School of Public Health—looked at rates of depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-injury, and suicidality in a sample of over 1,200 gender minority students from 71 colleges and universities. About 78 percent of the gender minority students included in the study met the criteria for one or more mental health problems, with nearly 60 percent of gender minority students screening positive for clinically significant depression, compared to 28 percent of cisgender students, whose sex assigned at birth aligns with their current gender identity. 

Those findings stemmed from analysis of two waves of data collected between fall 2015 and spring 2017 through the Healthy Minds Study, an annual national survey about campus mental health that Lipson coleads with University of Michigan colleague Daniel Eisenberg. 

The Healthy Minds Study , which more than 300,000 US college students have voluntarily taken since its launch in 2007, uses clinically validated methods of screening for symptoms of depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and other mental health concerns. The survey includes space for participants to fill in their assigned gender at birth as well as their current gender identity, which allowed the researchers to filter their analysis and focus on the collective mental health of gender minority students. The Healthy Minds Study is part of the Healthy Minds Network , a larger effort dedicated to improving the mental well-being of young adults, based out of the University of Michigan and Boston University. 

A disproportionate burden 

“Reports that more than 40 percent of transgender people have attempted suicide in their lifetimes suggested, to me, that there is a large and disproportionate burden of disease among [people in the gender minority] that public health research can contribute to addressing,” says Raifman.

The Healthy Minds Study results reinforce the disparities facing gender minority students revealed by other research, which has shown that college dropout rates are higher among transgender students, and that they experience near-constant discrimination and harassment . Bathrooms and housing are some of the most stressful areas on college campuses for transgender students, with research showing that transgender college students are at significantly higher risk for suicide and attempted suicide when denied access to gender-appropriate bathrooms and housing on college campuses. 

Along with a significantly higher prevalence of self-reported mental health issues among the gender minority community, the researchers also found that transgender men and genderqueer students are particularly vulnerable groups, a statistic that warrants further research, Lipson says.

“Mental health outcomes, as well as negative educational outcomes like dropping out, are preventable,” says Lipson. “The most effective way to prevent them would be, from my perspective, through policy changes. Inclusive policies are necessary to advance equity. And that’s what I really want these data to speak to.” 

Slowly, gender-neutral bathrooms and housing options are becoming the norm . The researchers hope that leaders in higher education will use these results as a springboard for much more urgent action, such as addressing gender minority needs in housing policies, creating or revising policies that allow students to change their name in campus records, improving mental health resources on campuses, and raising awareness of gender minority issues. 

“As a cisgender woman working on this topic, I think a lot about allyship and how I can conduct and disseminate research to advance advocacy efforts. First and foremost, allies on campus need to listen to, and make space for, the voices of trans people,” Lipson says. Peers, friends, and colleagues on college campuses should be “upstanders,” speaking up to call out hateful rhetoric, discrimination, microaggressions, and transphobic policies, she adds.

The researchers plan to continue using data from the Healthy Minds Study, with the eventual goal of recording longitudinal data that follows gender minority students throughout their college experience, examining mental health alongside individual, institutional, and societal factors. They say additional research is also needed to explore the intersectionality of gender identities with other identities, such as race or religious beliefs.

“We are in a time when transgender people are being denied equal rights—to jobs, to housing, to healthcare, and to participation in the military. These data suggest that new policies eliminating equal rights for transgender people are affecting a population that already experiences a disproportionate burden of disease,” says Raifman, referring to recent actions initiated by the Trump administration, such as banning transgender individuals from serving in the military and rolling back Obama-era rules intended to protect transgender individuals from discrimination. “As next steps, it will be important to evaluate whether equal rights or the elimination of equal rights for transgender people affects mental health disparities,” she says.

This study was supported in part by the National Institute of Mental Health.

Explore Related Topics:

• Community Health Sciences
• Gender Studies
• Public Policy
• Share this story
• 2 Comments Add

Science Writer Twitter Profile

Jessica Colarossi is a science writer for The Brink . She graduated with a BS in journalism from Emerson College in 2016, with focuses on environmental studies and publishing. While a student, she interned at ThinkProgress in Washington, D.C., where she wrote over 30 stories, most of them relating to climate change, coral reefs, and women’s health. Profile

Comments & Discussion

Boston University moderates comments to facilitate an informed, substantive, civil conversation. Abusive, profane, self-promotional, misleading, incoherent or off-topic comments will be rejected. Moderators are staffed during regular business hours (EST) and can only accept comments written in English. Statistics or facts must include a citation or a link to the citation.

There are 2 comments on Transgender College Students Are Up to Four Times as Likely to Experience Mental Health Problems

I find this interesting…. As a Soldier I have watched our military wrestle with the opportunities and challenges related to transgender issues. I think you have hit on a very important facet that needs to be considered. With the concept of “Soldier for Life” governing our policies, I consider it a very significant conversation for those who fund the military to consider issues that might increase the likelihood of needing increased mental health and medical care for the decades that remain after military service. Serving in a combat zone, or even dealing with the day to day stress of facing such an eventuality, already creates a need for many to receive lifelong care. Perhaps our society needs to fully integrate the transgender population before the military takes on the challenge.

I found it very interesting your article, I hope that the government stop blocking help for young people, I’m a mature Latino transgender woman, living in the backbay(most of residents are rich, white, conservative and the pour residents are 2× worsted) this is terrible for me, I’m a low income with housing voucher, so property manager had the power to make strategies against me, m aintnance guys just stolen my savings that I was saving in my closet(police ask me for evidence, like recorder them on a secure camera, internet is expensive for me) also I ‘ve to deal with stigma, hate, jealousy,racism,gender discrimination) I do ‘ve a formal complaint with MCAD, the housing investigator it’s super transphobic, so probably my only logical option could be suicide…I hope everything goes well with this younger generation, keep educate them self and given them support by them self and enjoy life! We don’t do anything bad to no body, we are just looking for happines!

Post a comment. Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest from The Brink

Stunning new image shows black hole’s immensely powerful magnetic field, it’s not just a pharmacy—walgreens and cvs closures can exacerbate health inequities, how does science misinformation affect americans from underrepresented communities, what causes osteoarthritis bu researchers win $46 million grant to pursue answers and find new treatments, how to be a better mentor, how the design of hospitals impacts patient treatment and recovery, all americans deserve a healthy diet. here’s one way to help make that happen, bu cte center: lewiston, maine, mass shooter had traumatic brain injury, can cleaner classroom air help kids do better at school, carb-x funds 100th project—a milestone for bu-based nonprofit leading antimicrobial-resistance fightback, is covid-19 still a pandemic, what is language and how does it evolve, how to save for retirement—and why most of us haven’t (or can’t) save enough, the ingredients of unequal aging: housing, income, and health, 10 things to do in your 20s to help ensure you’ll enjoy your 80s, their second acts, rethinking our idea of “old age”, can we find a cure for alzheimer’s disease, the secrets of living to 100, three bu scholars receive 2024 sloan research fellowships.

85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best transgender topic ideas & essay examples, ⭐ simple & easy transgender essay titles, 📌 most interesting transgender topics to write about, 👍 good research topics about transgender.

• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Subculture The pioneers of such campaigns disagree with the ideas and behaviors associated with the LGBT Subculture. These celebrations “have also made it easier for different members of the subculture to network and exchange their views”.
• Transgender Bathroom Policies in Schools The topic of why transgender pupils cannot simply utilize private rooms designated for such gender identification, given that individuals who identify as boys and girls have their washrooms, is at the heart of the discussion […] We will write a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts 808 writers online Learn More
• Aspects of Equality for Transgender Athletes The authors of the article claim that transgender athletes deserve equal representation and the right to participate in competitions in the divisions of the gender they identify themselves by referring to social structures and justice.
• Equality of Transgender and LGBTQ+ Populations The principles of the struggle for the transgender and LGBTQ+ populations should include respect for the choice and self-identification of a person.
• Transgender Student-Athlete Participation Policy The updated regulations place the decision to let transgender sportsmen take part in the competition in the hands of the national governing body or, in the absence of such, of a sport’s international federation.
• Health Disparities in the Transgender Community The purpose of the research study is to improve health disparities in the transgender community by eliminating financial barriers, discrimination, lack of cultural competence of providers, and socioeconomic and health system barriers that will increase […]
• The Transgender Teens Policy Issues Problem recognition involves recognizing that policies serving to protect the interests of transgender teens need proper enforcement or even proper formulation to ensure effectiveness in protecting and ensuring the best interests of the children.
• The Issue of Transgender in Sporting Activities Transgender women’s increased body strength and mass make it unfair for them to compete with cisgender women in the same sporting categories. The IOC sets the recommended testosterone level for transgender women to participate in […]
• Transgender Women in Sports: Is the Threat Real? In this regard, it can be argued that the advantages of transgender women are a barrier to women’s sports. However, the topic of transgender people has received the most discussion in the last few years […]
• The Advantages of Transgender Women Are a Barrier to Women’s Sports The main counterargument of proponents of transpeople participation in women’s sports is that there is no proven link between biology and endurance.
• The Article “The Transgender Threat to Women’s Sports” by Abigail Shrier Abigail Shrier’s article The Transgender Threat to Women’s Sports provides a series of arguments and evidence that support the idea of excluding transgender people from women’s sports.
• Transgender Women Take Part in Sports Competitions The issues that support this statement are unequal muscular mass of men and women unchanged by transgender therapy; and unequal height and length of the body needed in game sports and jumping.
• Transgender Participation in Sports Among the successes in resolving the subject of transgenderism in society, medicine, psychology and sports, scientists include the exclusion of transgender issues from the sections of psychiatric diseases, and their inclusion in the section of […]
• Transgender Teenagers and Obstacles They Face Transgender teens are one of the most vulnerable groups of people due to the enormous amount of discrimination and everyday challenges they face.
• Aspects of Identity: Transgender Status, Gender Identity In many countries in Europe and the rest of the world, the whites always obtain more benefits at the expense of the people of color and other races.
• Transgender Women Should Be Allowed to Compete in Olympic Sports It is all due to the higher level of testosterone in their bodies and that some of them can pretend to be transgender to compete against women.
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Families’ Issues In tendency for this, it is essential to analyze issues faced by such families in the community and thus provide recommendations on approaches to adopt during counseling sessions of LGBTQ families.
• Considering Social Acceptability of Transgender and Transracial Identities This essay will examine two articles providing different views on transgender and transracial identities and argue that considerations used to support the transgender community are not transferable to the issue of transracial.
• Transgender Athletes in Female Sports Teams Thus, there are two contrasting views: to allow transgender people to compete in the women’s competition or organize separate competitions for them.
• Anti-Transgender and Anti-LGBQ Violence Crisis in the US The vicious circle of minority stress that leads to marginalization and the marginalization that contributes to the stigma has to be broken.
• LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) in Canada, Japan and China With a perfect understanding of the LGBTQ issue in Canada, my team and I started to compare LGBTQ in Canada, China, and Japan.
• Why LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) Is Becoming Popular In the context of the continuity of experience, morality, and moral values, it is appropriate to emphasize one of the most apparent global trends, namely the gradual recognition of the inalienable rights of the LGBTQ+ […]
• Harassment of Young Adults Who Are Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning According to the professional code of ethics, it is the duty of a social worker to help people in need and with problems.
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Ideation, Correlations With ‘Suicidality’ In addition, experience of verbal ill-treatment and physical assault intensified feeling suicidal for both heterosexual and gay or bisexual men, not just for homosexual men alone as contained in many research findings, and that social […]
• Transgender in Jewish Religion Transsexual people identify as or desire to live and be accepted as a member of the gender opposite to that assigned at birth.
• Ethical Issues of the Transgender Rights One of the most significant burdens transgender people experience is the recognition of their identity. Therefore, to increase the chances for transgender adults’ health care, it is important to pay thorough attention to any signs […]
• Growing Up Transgender: Malisa’s Story on NBC News It is essential to develop a better understanding of the concept of gender in relation to children and their development to ensure the protection of the interests of all people and, thus, improve their lives.
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for Transgenders The representatives of the EEOC are able to investigate each case of discrimination in different organizations using the law and the intentions of people to leave in an equal society.
• Transgender Bathroom Rights and Legal Reforms One of the themes that deserve discussion is the possibility of creating transgender baths and the rights that can be given to this category of the population.
• Health Care for Transgender Individuals However, the medicalization of transsexualism made it more difficult to receive the treatment as individuals have to prove that they have such problems, and it is not just a temperate state of their mind that […]
• Racism in Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgenders Instead of supporting one another as members of a minority group, these people arrange internal arguments within the society of LGBT that leads to the increased feeling of depression and psychological pressure on behalf of […]
• Cancer Screening in Lesbians, Gays, Transgenders Moreover, one of the diseases that are the burden of American society as a whole and the LGBT population, in particular, is cancer.
• Transgender Issues in Modern Society The legalization of gay marriage in many countries did not lead to the eradication of homophobia, protection of women’s rights did not eliminate sexism and gender inequality present in many aspects of life, and the […]
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender at Life Stages In general, all people are claimed to be equal in the USA, however, there is a high possibility to lose a job or fail to be applied to it if one is a representative of […]
• Transgender Bathroom Rights and Needed Policy In both articles, the subject of the study is the right of transgenders to access bathrooms according to the preferences of these people.
• Women in Sports: Policy for Transgender Players Drawing from this elucidation, the proposed policy statement on transgender participation in mixed leagues will not require transgender athletes to prove their gender identity through the testimony of professional experts and psychologists; on the contrary, […]
• Transgender People in the USA The statistics are impressive and, no matter how unpleasant it is to some of us, we have to face the reality that quite a large number of people in our society can be classified as […]
• Transgender Inclusivity in Higher Education The individuals and organizations opposing trans inclusion in higher education stress that one of the main purposes of all-female colleges is to ensure the safety of the female students.
• Xaniths as a Transgender in Omani Culture The Xaniths are the third gender within the Omani social system. The Xaniths represents the transsexuals and homosexuals within the Omani society.
• Transgender Students on Colleges: Needs and Challenges In order to accommodate all the involved groups of people, there is no attributed definition of transgender due to the diversity of the subject.
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Sexuality in the Hispanic Culture Men are the breadwinners of the family, a duty that requires men to play the father figure role in the family.
• Transgender Issues in “The Crying Game” and “M. Butterfly” The acceptance of the phenomenon of transgender status in contrast to widely spread stereotypes on it is one of the central themes and moral messages of the 1992 movie The Crying Game and the 1993 […]
• Leslie Feinberg: Transgenders in “Stone Butch Blues” On one hand, traditionally, the transgenders have never assumed the authority held by men in the society and on the other hand, there is the issue that arises in a situation comprising of families composed […]
• Transgender People and the Rights Act of 1964
• Bathroom Discrimination Against the Transgender Community
• Unjust and Inhumane Transgender Discrimination
• Understanding Transgender People and the Discrimination They Face Today
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights
• Treatment and Support for Transgender Children
• Transgender Individuals and Sex Reassignment Therapy
• Violence Against Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgender
• Women, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights
• Transgender Sexuality and The Transgender Rights Movement
• Philosophy: Transgender and Radical Freedom
• Transgender People Face Harassment and Discrimination
• Transgender Sexuality and the Transgender Rights Movement
• Oppression and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Persons
• Understanding the Transgender Phenomenon
• Stigma and Discrimination That Transgender Individuals Experience
• Hate Crimes Against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender
• Discrimination Against Transgender Individuals Within Society
• Building Relationships With Transgender Individuals
• Domestic Violence and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Relationships
• Beyond Depression and Suicide: The Mental Health of Transgender College Students
• Transgender Rights and Representation in Sports
• Gender Dysphoria and the Persecution of Transgender People
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Inclusion
• Critical Race Studies Program Panel Detention Conditions Facing Queer and Transgender Immigrants
• U.S. Politics and Society: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Political Identity
• The Health and Well Being of Transgender High School Students
• The Pros and Cons of Transgender and Gender Nonconforming
• Comparing Intersex and Transgender Females
• Capitalism and Its Impact on the Transgender Movement
• Transgender Surgery and the Separation Between Mind and Body
• Gender Differences Between Effeminate Boys and Transgender
• How Schools Can Support Transgender Students and Improve School Climate
• The Transgender Community For Hate Based Crimes of Violence
• Public Bathroom Controversies Due to Transgender Issue in America
• The First Transgender Woman to Speak at a Major Party Convention in America
• The Causes and Solutions to the Mental Health Issues of Transgender Youth
• Sexual Orientation, Sexual, And Transgender Orientation
• Researching and Working for Transgender Youth: Contexts, Problems and Solutions
• Transgender Orientation and The Transgender Community
• Why Transgender People Should Use the Public Restroom that Matches Their Gender Identity
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, March 2). 85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/transgender-essay-topics/

"85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." IvyPanda , 2 Mar. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/topic/transgender-essay-topics/.

IvyPanda . (2024) '85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples'. 2 March.

IvyPanda . 2024. "85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." March 2, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/transgender-essay-topics/.

1. IvyPanda . "85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." March 2, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/transgender-essay-topics/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "85 Transgender Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." March 2, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/transgender-essay-topics/.

• Bisexual Essay Titles
• Gynecology Research Ideas
• Lesbian Research Ideas
• Oppression Research Topics
• Puberty Titles
• Segregation Research Topics
• Workplace Discrimination Research Topics
• Sexism Essay Ideas
• Homophobia Topics
• Same Sex Marriage Questions
• Parenting Research Topics
• Subculture Research Topics
• Masculinity Topics
• Stereotype Topics
• Tolerance Essay Ideas

Transgender Students in Higher Education

• Full Report

This report reviews previous research and presents new findings from interviews, surveys, and focus groups conducted with transgender students. It provides recommendations for institutions of higher education regarding the creation of transgender-inclusive communities.

• Abbie E. Goldberg Affiliated Scholar

Introduction

In 1960, only 45% of youth recently completing high school entered a two- or four-year college (U.S. Department of Education, 2018). In the Fall of 2015, almost 70% of high school graduates were enrolled in college (U.S. Department of Labor, 2018). About 10.5 million undergraduate students (62%) attend 4-year institutions, and 6.5 million (38%) attend 2-year institutions (National Center for Education Statistics, 2018), with only about 60% of students who initially enroll in four-year institutions completing a degree within 150% of normal time from their initial institution (Kena et al., 2016). Institutions of higher education serve learners who are diverse in terms of race, class, ability status, sexual orientation, and gender identity, and may face challenges in effectively meeting the needs of, and retaining, such diverse students. Institutions of higher education may struggle in particular with addressing the needs of students who identify as transgender (trans) or gender nonconforming (TGNC) (Beemyn, 2003, 2016).

Many trans students experience discrimination and harassment at college, which may have implications for their academic success and retention. The U.S. Transgender Survey (USTS), a survey of over 27,000 trans adults, found that 24% of respondents who were out as or perceived as trans in college reported being verbally, physically, or sexually harassed at that time—with 16% of those who experienced harassment having left college because of the harassment (James et al., 2016). The National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS; Grant et al., 2017), which surveyed nearly 6,500 trans respondents, found that individuals attending college, graduate school, professional school, or technical school reported high rates of negative treatment by students, teachers and staff, including harassment and bullying (35%). According to the NTDS, participants experienced a variety of barriers to attendance in school—including harassment, financial issues related to transition, and lack of financial aid—that in some cases forced them to leave (i.e., K-12 or higher education). Students of color and trans women were especially likely to highlight these barriers (Grant et al., 2017).

Stolzenberg and Hughes (2017) found that almost 19% of trans first-year students reported major concerns about financing their college education, compared to 12% of a national sample—concerns that are supported by data showing that these trans students (a) came from families with lower annual parental income, and (b) received more financial aid, compared to the national sample. 2

Experiences of harassment and bullying within the higher educational setting may be preceded by even worse treatment in secondary school. Estimates indicate that as many as 75% of trans students report feeling unsafe in high school because of their gender expression, and 50% of trans students report being prevented (e.g., by school officials) from using the name or pronoun that match their gender, highlighting how structural and interpersonal forms of stigma intersect (Movement Advancement Project & GLSEN, 2017). National survey data suggest high rates of harassment (78%) and physical assault (35%) perpetrated against trans students during grade school (i.e., K-12), causing nearly one in six students to leave school (Grant et al., 2017). 3

In turn, many trans students—especially those who were out as trans in high school—may begin college with a history of victimization. College has the capacity to reinforce the gendered and transphobic treatment that many students have already experienced in school and in society, leading to poor academic and psychosocial outcomes; or, to support and empower these students (who already show signs of resilience, in that they have completed high school and enrolled in college), thus enhancing academic and personal success. For students who were not out as trans in high school, college can play an important role in facilitating gender identity exploration—such as by providing the supports and resources needed to allow students to navigate this process while staying in college.

The current report reviews research on trans students’ experiences in higher education with the goal of informing knowledge and practice by higher education administrators as well as policymakers. In this report, attention is paid to the institutional structures and interpersonal contexts that reify and enforce biased treatment towards trans students, or which serve as sources of support and transformation. The report concludes with recommendations to institutions of higher education regarding the creation of more trans-inclusive communities.

The report draws in particular from a multi-stage, multi-pronged project conducted by the author, which involved (a) focus groups with seven nonbinary (e.g., agender, genderqueer) trans college students, which in turn informed the development of (b) a large-scale survey disseminated to over 500 trans college and graduate students, about three-quarters of whom were nonbinary trans, and one-quarter of whom were binary trans (e.g., trans man, trans woman) and (c) interviews with trans students, nine of whom were binary trans and five of whom were nonbinary identified. All quotes are from participants in this multi-pronged project. 4

Colleges and Universities as Gendered Institutions

Colleges and universities typically reflect and reinforce societal genderism in practices, policies, and norms (Marine & Nicolazzo, 2014). Trans students seeking to express their gender identities encounter pressures to conform to socially constructed gender norms in terms of appearance, dress, and pronouns (Catalano, 2015), which affects all trans students but especially nonbinary students. Nonbinary students may struggle with presenting themselves in ways that are consonant with their gender identity (e.g., using pronouns other than “she/her/hers” or “he/him/his”) inasmuch as they face particular scrutiny for not seeking to conform to or be seen as “either” gender (Goldberg & Kuvalanka, 2018; McGuire, Kuvalanka, Catalpa, & Toomey, 2016). Cisnormativity and genderism are evident in multiple domains within the higher education microsystem, from physical structures to official records to policies to curricula to classroom practices (Bilodeau, 2005)—and, over time, may create chronic stress for gender minorities actively navigating their identity within such restrictive and potentially alienating structures. According to gender minority stress theory (Hendricks & Testa, 2012), structural forms of stigma create stressful environments for trans people, which may contribute to problematic affective, cognitive, and behavioral responses, and result in compromised well-being (Perez-Brumer, Day, Russell, & Hatzenbuehler, 2017).

Sex-segregated restrooms represent one institutional feature that excludes trans people and/or exposes them to harassment, which causes them significant stress (Seelman, 2014a, 2014b, 2016; Singh, Meng, & Hansen, 2013). Gender-inclusive and/or single-stall restrooms are rare or nonexistent on many campuses (Goldberg, Beemyn, & Smith, 2018a; Seelman, 2014b). Sex-segregated housing represents another institutional feature that contributes to exclusion, invisibility, and discomfort for trans students (Goldberg et al., 2018a; Seelman, 2014b). As one white college student who identified as a trans man said: “Most of our university dorms are split by sex so I was forced to live for three years on the half of the building that related to the sex on my ID rather than how I identify. It made me very uncomfortable, and considering how I present, I’m not sure anyone else was comfortable with it either” (Goldberg et al., 2018a). Nonbinary students face particular challenges with regard to accessing housing options that are safe and comfortable. As a white nonbinary student in Goldberg et al. (2018a) said:

I only have one issue: Gender-blind housing. Currently, students are assigned housing based on a binary choice of M/F. I believe it is easy to change your official university gender, but housing only sees those two options. Students are automatically randomly assigned a roommate of the “same” gender, unless they request “gender-neutral housing.” But “gender-neutral housing” just means that you have to specify a particular person of the “opposite” gender that you want to live with. There is no option to just be randomly assigned a roommate of any gender. For a nonbinary person, this is very othering.

Significantly, some colleges and universities have adopted gender-inclusive housing policies, but these are considerably diverse. For example, some allow students to live in the same room with one or more roommates of any legal sex or gender identity, and others offer apartment-style housing wherein each student is given a room with a locking door within a larger apartment (Krum, Davis, & Galupo, 2013).

Forms, documents, and records can also be alienating for trans students, who routinely confront paperwork that only allows male and female as gender options, does not differentiate between sex and gender, and provides no means for students to change their gender marker without legally changing their “sex.” In addition, few institutions enable trans students to use the name they go by, rather than their “dead” (i.e., birth, or legal) name, on records and documents, and the institutions that do offer this option do not always advertise it effectively or make the process easy (Beemyn & Brauer, 2015; Campus Pride, 2018; Seelman, 2014a, 2014b). In their study of over 500 trans students, Goldberg, Beemyn, and Smith (2018a) found that some respondents reported that their colleges and universities had instituted a chosen name process, but described it as incomplete or inefficient. As one white trans man said: “The preferred name option is not utilized for anything except the school login, leaving the email that everybody sees, and your name on school documents, as the birth name, which needs to be fixed.”

Colleges and universities also vary greatly in the extent to which they have policies that protect trans students, staff, and faculty from harassment, with community colleges and religiously affiliated institutions typically offering fewer protections (Campus Pride, 2018; Goldberg et al., 2018a). Despite the fact that, over the past decade, more than a thousand colleges and universities have added “gender identity” to their nondiscrimination policies (Campus Pride, 2018), such policies are not always enforced, wherein faculty, staff, and students who engage in transphobic language and acts are not always held accountable (Goldberg et al., 2018a; Seelman, 2014a, 2014b). Similarly, institutions’ health insurance policies are often trans-exclusionary: they do not cover counseling, hormones, and/or surgery for trans students or staff (Campus Pride, 2018 5 ; Goldberg, Kuvalanka, Budge, Benz, & Smith, 2018b), despite evidence that such coverage would ultimately be cost-effective for insurance companies (Padula, Heru, & Campbell, 2016).

Cisnormativity and genderism are also evident in the context of the classroom (Pryor, 2015; Pusch, 2005). Trans students often experience avoidance or antagonism from faculty and other students, leading them to feel anxious, uncomfortable, and possibly threatened (Bilodeau, 2005). Often, faculty do not take seriously students’ requests to use their affirmed (as opposed to birth or legal) name, creating anxiety and discomfort for trans students (Goldberg et al., 2018a).

Download the full report

Related Publications

Age of individuals who identify as transgender in the united states, gender expression, violence, and bullying victimization, suicide thoughts and attempts among transgender adults.

Stolzenberg and Hughes (2017) conducted an analysis of data from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Freshman Survey (see: http://heri.ucla.edu/cirp-freshman-survey), which was modified in 2015 to allow students to indicate whether they identify as transgender. That change allowed them to disaggregate data for a sample of incoming first-year students consisting of 678 transgender students from 209 colleges and universities, which they then compared to the national norms for all incoming first-time, full-time college students. See: https://www.aacu.org/liberaleducation/2017/spring/stolzenberg_hughes

Gender identity, assigned sex at birth, and race were all important factors in determining risk for sexual assault, physical assault, and harassment and bullying. For example, multiracial students reported a higher incidence of physical assault than students of other races; respondents identifying as trans men who were assigned female at birth reported especially high rates of harassment and bullying; and respondents identifying as trans women who were assigned male at birth reported especially high rates of physical and sexual assault (Grant et al., 2017).

A series of papers related to this project are published, in press, and in preparation. See, for example: Goldberg & Kuvalanka, 2018; Goldberg, Beemyn, & Smith, 2018a; Goldberg, Kuvalanka, Budge, Benz, & Smith, 2018b; Goldberg, Kuvalanka, & dickey, 2018c; Goldberg, Smith, & Beemyn, 2018d.

According to Campus Pride, a total of 86 colleges and university currently cover gender transition related medical expenses (e.g., hormones; gender affirming surgery); see https://www.campuspride.org/tpc/student-health-insurance/

How to Support Transgender Students

Explore more.

• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
• Perspectives
• Student Support

I n recent years, the percentage of young people who identify as transgender or nonbinary has risen dramatically . At the same time, many US states are debating and passing laws that target lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people—including bans on teaching children at the K-12 level about gender identity or asking students about the pronouns they use. In some cases, these laws are framed as part of a larger attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives at all levels of education.

In this climate, many professors may be unsure how to provide trans students with the support they need to excel both in the classroom and as part of the student community.

To find out how faculty can do a better job making trans students feel welcome and comfortable on campus, we asked Genny Beemyn, director of the UMass Amherst Stonewall Center and one of the first college administrators to openly identify as nonbinary twenty-five years ago, to share their knowledge on the experiences and needs of trans students.

Q: Who are trans students?

Beemyn: Typically, “trans” [the term now more commonly used than “transgender”] is defined as anyone whose gender identity or expression does not match the gender they were assigned at birth. Historically, trans was associated with individuals who transitioned medically from one gender “extreme” to another (female to male or male to female). The term has thus not always been inclusive of nonbinary people, so there are some nonbinary folks who do not identify as being trans. But I look at “trans” as encompassing everyone who is gender diverse. In terms of numbers, the American College Health Association’s survey of college students last spring found that nearly six percent identified as trans or nonbinary.

Q: What challenges do trans students encounter at colleges and universities?

Beemyn: Research shows that because of institutional and individual discrimination, many trans students experience a hostile climate on college campuses and do not feel much of a sense of belonging. Without that belonging, many trans students are not going to want to stay at their institution . They are not going to put energy into succeeding academically and are going to suffer a lot of negative mental health effects from feeling that the college does not care about them.

Q: Can you share an example of a cisnormative structure that’s prevalent on college campuses, and its impact on students?

Beemyn: A really good example is the lack of a sufficient number of gender-inclusive bathrooms on most campuses. The result is that nonbinary students must decide whether to face the possibility of harassment and discrimination in a gendered bathroom; hold it, which can lead to health issues; or go out of their way to get to a gender-inclusive bathroom, which can make them late for class or otherwise disrupt their lives.

More colleges today are recognizing the issue, though, and are creating more gender-inclusive bathrooms, often by simply changing the signs on single-user gendered bathrooms. Some colleges are changing the signs on a number of multi-stall gendered bathrooms as well, but typically, gender-inclusive multi-stalls are developed through renovations to create stalls that offer greater privacy.

Another issue is that students need to know where these gender-inclusive bathrooms are located, and they have been pushing colleges to include this information on the institution’s website. According to my count, more than 400 colleges now do so.

Q: What can professors do to ensure that their trans students have access to bathrooms they can use?

Counting the steps to the bathroom.

At Boston University, nearly half of bathrooms are now designated as all-gender, according to a January 2022 article in the university’s student newspaper, The Daily Free Press .

Even so, the article notes that trans students may feel unsafe or experience slurs and other aggressive behaviors when using non-gender-neutral bathrooms.

One student related that they carry around a “mental list” of gender-inclusive bathrooms as they navigate campus so they know how long it will take to reach such a bathroom on foot.

Another trans student said that having access to more gender-inclusive bathrooms would mean no longer having “to think about the bathroom as a stressor.”

At the very least, faculty members should indicate the location of the nearest gender-inclusive bathroom, if some exist on campus, on the class syllabus and not penalize students who come late to class because the nearest gender-inclusive bathroom was out of the way or they had to wait to use it. If there are not any gender-inclusive bathrooms on campus, faculty should work with students to demand that such facilities be developed immediately.

Q: What are some of the best ways professors can support trans students in their classrooms?

Beemyn: Many trans students say that they are misgendered by faculty and other students. Colleges need to have policies that give students the ability to indicate the name and pronouns they use for themselves on campus records, including course rosters. Institutions also need to be clear that repeated misgendering, whether intentional or not, is harassment and a violation of Title IX .

In the absence of a pronoun and chosen name policy, it is especially important for faculty members to give students the option of indicating their pronouns and the name they wish to use in the classroom. I stress “option” because the point is to create a space for students to share their pronouns, if they wish, so that they are appropriately gendered. But students should not feel forced to indicate their pronouns because they may not feel comfortable coming out as trans or nonbinary in a particular class.

When students do indicate their pronouns, faculty have a responsibility to use those pronouns. Of course, we’re all going to make mistakes at times, but faculty should have a policy on their syllabi stating that they expect everyone in the class to respect the names and pronouns that people use for themselves.

Q: You noted that we all make mistakes from time to time. What do you feel is the appropriate response if a professor accidentally misgenders a student?

Use this language to avoid misgendering people.

To be gender inclusive, faculty members can avoid gendered language. Here are some examples:

Say “Hello, everyone!” or “Hey, folks!” instead of “Hello, ladies and gentlemen!” or “Hi, guys!”

Keep it simple with “Can I help you?” instead of “Can I help you, sir/miss?”

Use “they” as a default instead of referring to people of unknown gender as the binary “he or she.”

Use clothing or other non-gendered descriptors to refer to third parties. For instance, “the person in the blue sweater” as opposed to “the man over there.”

Some people tend to issue a lengthy apology. I’ve experienced this myself when I have been misgendered. The other person will say, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t grow up with this. I’m just trying to learn this now . . . ”

Don’t do that. Process the mistake on your own time and in your own space. An elaborate explanation can make the situation worse and cause embarrassment to both parties. Just sincerely apologize and make a note to yourself not to repeat the mistake.

Faculty must learn their students’ pronouns. Getting a student’s name and pronouns correct may require some practice outside the classroom, but it’s critical that faculty use the right names and pronouns so that they don’t misgender students, which can make them feel terrible. Keep in mind that whether misgendering occurs deliberately or accidentally, the student still feels the same: marginalized, invisible, and hurt.

Q: How can faculty support trans students through their course material?

The mental health reality for trans students.

Trans and nonbinary youth face serious risk of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, according to a recent study :

More than half of trans and nonbinary youth seriously considered suicide in the past year.

LGBTQ+ youth who live in accepting communities were significantly less likely to attempt suicide.

More than three-quarters of trans and nonbinary youth reported symptoms of anxiety .

Nearly two-thirds of trans and nonbinary youth reported experiencing symptoms of depression.

91 percent of trans and nonbinary youth said they worry about being denied access to bathrooms due to state or local laws.

Source: The Trevor Project, 2022 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health

At the same time, professors shouldn’t expect trans students to educate their classmates on trans issues. While some trans people might want to share their stories, others may feel uncomfortable being on the spot and asked to talk about themselves. It’s really the faculty member’s role to be the educators in these situations.

Q: How should educators respond when they notice trans students experiencing intentional disrespect by other students or faculty?

Beemyn: If another faculty person is not treating a trans student in accordance with their gender identity, that is discrimination and a clear violation of Title IX. Faculty members, as mandatory reporters, are obligated to inform institutional authorities of such a situation.

They should also seek to provide support to the trans student. If a trans student is being mistreated by a cisgender student, that could be a violation of the student code of conduct, so the situation should likewise be reported, and faculty members should again offer their support to the trans student.

Q: Does it make more sense to have institution-wide policies in support of trans students as opposed to having each professor write their own rules?

Beemyn: Of course. You want supportive policies to be institution-wide and not have individual faculty members deciding which groups should have their rights protected. The good news is that many colleges now have trans-supportive policies. I have been tracking the colleges that have trans-inclusive policies since 1996, when I was a grad student at the University of Iowa and helped get “gender identity” added to its nondiscrimination policy. It was the first college in the country to have a trans-inclusive policy. Today, a majority of colleges have added “gender identity” to their nondiscrimination policies.

And just a decade ago, there were not any colleges that gave students the ability to indicate their pronouns on course rosters. Today, there are about 300 colleges that offer students that option and more than 800 colleges have chosen-name policies.

The bad news is that with nearly 4,000 colleges in the country, we are still talking about a relatively small number of colleges that provide trans-supportive policies around chosen name and pronouns; gender marker change; housing, bathrooms, and locker rooms; physical and mental healthcare access; and intramural athletic participation.

Q: What can allied faculty do if they are at an institution that is not accepting of trans students or at which trans students feel unsafe at large?

Beemyn: For trans students to be able to stick it out at a hostile institution, they need to have places where they get support. Mostly, students will turn to other students, so faculty members should help connect trans students to other trans and trans-supportive students and to affirming student spaces, which could be in person or online.

Faculty members can also be part of trans students’ support networks—people they trust, who they can go to when they have experienced mistreatment or are struggling with the effects of it. To gain that trust, faculty members must not only indicate that they are supportive (such as by attending an LGBTQ+ training session or displaying a trans-affirming symbol on their office door), but also show it through their actions (such as by how they address gender in the classroom). In other words, walking the walk and not just talking the talk.

Genny Beemyn , PhD, is the director of the UMass Amherst Stonewall Center and the coordinator of Campus Pride’s Trans Policy Clearinghouse . They have published and spoken extensively on the experiences and needs of trans college students, including writing some of the first articles on the topic. Among the more than dozen books and journal issues that Beemyn has written or edited are The Lives of Transgender People (with Sue Rankin, 2011); A Queer Capital: A History of Gay Life in Washington, D.C. (2014); and the anthology Trans People in Higher Education (2019).

Related Articles

We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience, including personalizing content. Learn More . By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies and revised Privacy Policy .

These 12 Transgender Americans Would Love You to Mind Your Own Business

By Patrick Healy and Adrian J. Rivera Feb. 9, 2023

• Share full article

These days, “transgender” has become a charged word, associated with arguments over identity, gender, pronouns, sports, puberty blockers and civil rights. But for many of the approximately 1.3 million transgender Americans today, the word isn’t a topic for debate; it’s who they are. And the questions and fights over being transgender often feel beside the point. Why are so many nontrans Americans judging and opining about trans adults and children rather than listening to them?

We spoke with 12 transgender Americans from across the country and the political spectrum to try to better understand what their lives are like. In the course of our conversation, it became clear that while our participants had some common experiences — 11 of them said they’d experienced discrimination or harassment as a consequence of their trans identity, several said they’d had fraught experiences choosing which restroom to use, and some knew they were trans at a very young age — no two trans experiences are exactly the same. Some participants had families supportive of who they are; others did not. There was no uniform perspective on when or whether children should be allowed to transition or on whether there was too much or not enough media coverage of trans issues (and whether that coverage was getting it right).

But fundamentally, all participants wanted basic respect — to be seen as people, not stereotypes or caricatures or a minority to be lectured to. “I think people might assume that I am unwilling to see our shared humanity,” said Forest, a 26-year-old in the group. “In reality, I’m actually trying really hard to see people who I disagree with as also human, just like me, who have positives and negatives, who have different experiences but who might still be able to change their minds and care about other people, too. I’m trying to.”

In a word, describe your biggest concern about the country.

Xenophobia.

I was also going to say “divided.”

Tell me a little bit about words like “xenophobia,” “racism,” “division.”

There’s no middle ground. It’s conservative versus liberal, Christian versus non-Christian, Fox News or MSNBC, black or white. There’s not a spectrum anymore. We’re forced to choose a side in a lot of situations.

We’re using identity politics and racial politics against each other. There are no real ideas to bring us together. And if you look at the Biden administration, it’s a total disaster.

Black, brown and Indigenous folks are under attack. We continue to be put at the bottom of issues, especially Black trans women — right? — who are usually the ones who are most in dangerous situations.

Wyatt, what did you mean by “yikes”?

We’re in a bit of a mess in general. With the environment, it sometimes feels like we’re doomed.

For those of you who didn’t raise their hand, tell me a little bit about why not.

We have made some change, but when you think about it, we really haven’t.

I feel like we haven’t progressed enough as a society in order for me to say that we have best days ahead of us. It’s just a very slow progress.

The word “progress” doesn’t go with how I feel. I just feel like we’ve given people basic human rights. Have we actually progressed?

We’ll take a step forward, and they’ll take a step and a half back at the same time.

All of you said you identified as part of the transgender community. How does that word, “transgender,” feel to you? Do you prefer a different word to describe yourself?

I just go by “queer.”

I use lots of words. “Trans” definitely has a political resonance for me, in terms of the history of trans rights developing into a queer liberation movement crosscutting into antiracist movements, Black Power movements, queer Latinx, Chicanx in America.

I may use “transmasculine” if I’m trying to be more specific.

When did you realize you were trans?

I always pretty much knew. Since I was 5, I used to dress in my mom’s stuff. I tried to suppress it. I went in the Army, tried all the macho stuff. I said, “This ain’t right,” because I was brought up in a stricter time. One day, I just couldn’t do it anymore. I woke up and told my wife. She went ballistic. I thought maybe this is something we could work out together, and she didn’t want to. She said, “I don’t want to live with another woman.” And I said, “Well, this is what I want to do. I’m going to transition fully, and I plan to in the next five years.” Slow and steady. I’m still working on the voice and everything else, but I’m getting there. I got ridiculed and everything else from my neighbors and all this stuff. They hide themselves with their kids and stuff. I don’t think of myself as a threat to nobody, but they think I am. So I’m getting ready to move, trying to go someplace else.

Michelle, thank you for sharing that. I know these are very personal stories.

I came out as bisexual at first. Then I started seeing other trans people, and I had kind of a conflict. I wondered, “Am I attracted to these people, or do I want to be these people?” And then, wanting to transition, I asked myself, “Am I doing this because I want the privilege of passing as a man?” My partner was not supportive, interestingly enough, even though she was a very big L.G.B.T.Q. advocate where I lived. When I went for my first shot, she asked, “Should I say goodbye to this person now?” We broke up. But it wasn’t until I started immersing myself into the queer community that I really started to feel who I actually was. I think I knew for a while before, though, because I was in a pretty bad, deep depression for probably about three or four years before but I just couldn’t figure out why. Trans people were not a part of my life at that time.

I knew really early, as far back as I can remember. So 2, 3? People would ask me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I’d say, “A man.” I just assumed that that’s what I would be when I grew up, that it was going to change. It didn’t. I made the best of it. When I was with my first girlfriend, in 11th grade, at 17, I told her I wanted to transition. Information wasn’t really available then. I guess that’s part of the reason why I don’t go by “transgender” unless I’m hanging out with my transgender friends or my transgender group, because it might be confusing to people. I still have long hair and such. I tried transitioning. I had my testosterone up in the 900s, and I said to my doctor, “When am I going to look other than prepubescent?” And he said I waited too long. Some people just can’t. So yeah, I won’t be able to. But yeah, I just — I always knew.

C.J. and Kayla and Michelle talked about those moments of first realizing and expressing identity. I’d love to know what word people would use to describe how you felt at the beginning of that journey.

I felt shame. My parents were really strict Roman Catholic. I was trying on my mom’s stuff, and basically that’s how it started.

Confident and certain.

Angry that people were putting stuff on me that I didn’t want.

What kind of stuff?

Expectations, stereotypes. I just never really thought that male, female, woman, man were such clear distinctions.

I felt relieved.

Trepidation.

I’m going to have to say “confusion.”

I felt invalidated by the people around me. I felt like they weren’t taking my transness seriously.

Joseph, you said “hollow,” and Amber, you said “relieved.”

When I first realized how different I felt compared to how I actually looked, there was an emptiness. I started feeling whole and complete when I actually first started hormone replacement therapy, and that’s where I first started actually seeing myself and seeing, “OK, I’m going to actually do this.” I’m going to be, and people were going to start realizing and recognizing it outwardly. I wouldn’t have to hide so much.

I was relieved because I think I’ve always known, even as a young child. I was always the jock, but I think pretty much everybody just knew. So it was just more of a release — a relief. I’m more comfortable now than I have ever been. I’ve gone through everybody else’s reasoning. I’ve gone through the confusion. This is who I am. You can’t fight it.

What do people assume about you that they get wrong?

I think a lot of people assume that I am extremely masculine. They look at my appearance, and they just automatically assume, which is not the case.

I feel like people romanticize a certain version of me like in their head. Maybe it’s because I mask a lot. I just feel very misunderstood by a lot of people. I’m that friend that’s always there for people. I wish people would respect me and my feelings more.

People assume that I’m stuck up and I’m full of myself and I’m just so confident, and actually it’s the total opposite. I’m very shy. I have insecurities. And kind of like how Phunky was saying, people expect me to be on all the time, be a psychologist, so they expect me to be their relationship therapist.

I get it. I understand.

I think people might assume that I am unwilling to see our shared humanity. I don’t shave my armpits, I have a mustache, and I have short hair — physical aspects of my appearance, which I think have been used as a tool by conservative media to paint people like me as, like, politically correct Nazis. In reality, I’m actually trying really hard to see people who I disagree with as also human, just like me, who have positives and negatives, who have different experiences but who might still be able to change their minds and care about other people, too. I’m trying to.

Is this something that happens frequently? Has it happened recently?

Just, like, dumb bathroom stuff. I’ve been harassed in the bathroom before for going to the “wrong” one. But what do you want me to do? Should I just go in between the bathrooms?

I pass as what society would consider a man. I’ve been to a bar in D.C. where the men’s bathroom just had urinals, and there was a long line for the women’s. I hate when I have to out myself just to relieve myself. I get so much anxiety. If I walk in and there’s not a stall or not a door on the stall, I pray someone doesn’t walk in. That’s where a lot of the harassment for myself happens. But that’s also in a way because I pass as what this world or society would consider a man.

I definitely agree. The times where I have been harassed, I’ve been trying to use the restroom. I’m on active-duty military. I’m in the Navy, so we all share a ship. To be politically correct, my sex marker hasn’t changed, so I have to shower and use the restroom that the females use, and that’s a bit of a challenge.

My friends and I are all very visibly queer. A lot of times I dress up very, very visibly queer, and people are constantly looking at me, constantly taking pictures of me, constantly making comments, you know?

I wish I could have said zero. I have actively been harassed, had graffiti and all that on my apartment, my lockers at work. I’ve been chased by pickup trucks when I was walking home at night and had beer bottles smashed up against my head just because of who I am.

Chanel, you were at a 1.

I think for me, it’s psychological. I am a Black trans woman. Knowing the amount of Black trans women who are murdered each year and me being at the age past which many trans women are not expected to live, it brings me a lot of fear. And I think it’s more fear of me just being Black in a very white cis society.

How many people say that they feel supported by their families of origin?

My family’s on board. They said it made sense. When I was a teenager, they wouldn’t let me shave my head when I wanted to. And then they were like, “We’re sorry we didn’t let you shave your head when you were a teenager — is this why you wanted to do that?” And yes, that was why.

Same. I wanted to shave my head when I was younger, couldn’t, but then they later found out, and it was an aha moment for them.

My mom doesn’t really acknowledge that I’m trans. She’s not supportive at all. My dad’s not really in my life. But my parents still deadname me and my trans friends. I try and correct them, but literally yesterday, my mom said, “I’m never going to understand that, so stop correcting me.” I’m never going to be supported.

I’m in a small town in the South, so kind of superconservative down here. Nobody knows I’m trans.

My mom and stepdad didn’t know how to place me if I couldn’t be within the binary. There’s a lot of pressure to transition so that they’d know what to tell other people, because they didn’t know how to deal with something outside of that. But I feel a lot more support now with growth in education and time.

If you had to choose one word for what it’s like being trans in America today, what word would you use?

I would have to agree with Michelle. I would say “easier.”

Misunderstood.

In the last couple of years, do you think things are getting better or worse for trans Americans?

I’m comparing from the Trump administration to now, so I think the bar is low. There’s a little bit more openness from this administration.

So I live in New York, and there’s a lot of accessibility for being trans. A lot of surgeries can get covered with your insurance, and I feel like there’s a big queer community here, so it’s very easy to be accepted and to find trans friends and queer friends. And I feel like getting to things like H.R.T. is also really accessible here and it’s very easy to get covered. Mutual aid is really big here, too. Social media has made it very easy for trans people to get help. There’s things like Trans Santa , Trans Lifeline , where they have centers for trans people to call if they’re feeling down. I feel like there are a lot more resources than — I would say, I don’t know — in the ’90s.

I think that’s a tricky question, though, Patrick. Because like somebody mentioned, it got really dicey when Trump was in. And we still have some politicians acting like juveniles.

When it comes to the politics, I pretty much keep to myself. I’m more concerned with the finances. That’s what I do for a living. So I see the numbers, and it’s going to take a few years for the economy to roll back. I think that once that happens, things will definitely change for the better. When it comes to safety, I feel like I’m in a moderate to safe zone.

Joseph, could I ask you what you consider to be the biggest challenges facing transgender Americans today?

I don’t want to be a whole downer, but it almost feels like we’re losing the ground we’ve gained. We continue to get more acceptance and visibility. But when Roe v. Wade was taken away by the courts — I’m honestly terrified that they’re going to find a way to take even more away in some way.

What do people think is standing in the way of progress, of things getting better on issues facing transgender people?

Cis white men. That’s who makes up our government. That’s who’s there. That’s who’s making all these dumb decisions. They’re focusing on the wrong things as well, the whole anti-trans legislation across several states.

Kayla, what’s a specific example of a stupid decision — kind of a specific example — that you see?

The most dangerous, I think, was the one in Texas when they were reporting parents to C.P.S. for supporting their trans kid. Everyone on social media was like, “Well, why can’t they wait until 18?” And I kept having to say to people, “You want them to wait until 18, but the reality, actual, is that they may not actually make it to that age to have that freedom.” These kids actually have supportive parents, and now the state is trying to take that away from them?

Well, there’s too much negative coverage and not enough positive coverage.

Is there something that the news media is missing when it talks about trans issues?

They’re not reporting on the right things, or they report on something, and things just get completely twisted. Facts are wrong, deadnaming people. It’s just not actually information, I guess. Like they’re not actually spreading actual facts or actual news. I feel like a lot of it ends up supporting a lot of misconceptions about trans people. If anything decent comes out about trans people in the news, I’m surprised.

Is there anything about trans people you’ve seen over the last year or two in the papers, on the news, on the radio, on TikTok that you thought got it really wrong about trans people or that you felt was unfair or fearmongering?

Well, I’m very conservative. I did vote for Trump, OK, in 2016. The truth is that Republicans do care about equal rights for everybody. But a lot of people don’t believe that because they’ve been brainwashed by the media.

When you hear political debates over bathroom choice, trans athletes in high school sports, protections against discrimination, what goes through your mind?

I think it’s just sensationalized. It’s a trendy topic to be used as a divisive tool. It’s a sort of dog whistle that you can use to garner more votes and create more fear and more division.

I agree. I think that whenever we are not knowledgeable about something, we tend to be fearful of it. Fear rules the world.

Sometimes when I speak with groups of people who don’t consider themselves part of the transgender community, they say they are worried they might get in trouble if they say the wrong thing or use the wrong pronoun. What do you think when people say these things?

I would rather somebody actually make the effort to try and fail and be corrected at it and actually go, “OK, sorry,” and just move on. Put in the effort.

People say they’re worried about saying the wrong thing. I know that you’re worried. I can feel it. And I can’t make you understand. But if you try to see from my perspective, then I’m pretty sure your imagination will allow you to see from my perspective.

If you’re scared of saying the wrong thing, go educate yourself. And if you do say something wrong, don’t get defensive after. It’s not my job to then carry your feelings. Within my community, people know that I’m a person that they can come to if they want to talk or if they want more information. But not every trans person is that person. So don’t expect an education lesson.

Sometimes people say they support people identifying however they choose, but they don’t believe that federally funded health care should be required to cover medical transitioning. What would you want to say to people who have that position?

Why would you not want trans people to have health care? Why are we not of equal value to anyone else? I don’t get it. No one chose to be trans. People say things like that and then say, “I support trans people.” But no, you don’t. You don’t think I’m equal to you or the same as you. If you want me to die, just say that.

They just don’t understand.

I’m currently on hormones and wish my surgery was covered. For my own spiritual sanity, I would not be able to say anything to someone who doesn’t think the surgery should be covered. I would have to walk away. I just can’t be the convincer. Not right now.

As somebody who has had to pay for medical treatments out of my own pocket, including up to a couple hundred thousand dollars in cancer treatments, why the hell isn’t medical care of all sorts already covered? Why is it even a question at this point? It’s to help us live longer, to have better lives.

Well, I don’t want the government in the middle of my business. Yes, I’m taking money out of my pocket to pay for my care. I’m working and saving to do that, but I’m doing what I want to do. The government can’t run the country. Why would I trust them to run my health care?

How, if at all, do you think ideas around gender identity should be discussed and taught in schools — elementary school, junior high school, high school?

I think it should be taught early on because some kids may not be aware of how they’re feeling. It would have helped me if it had been taught early on.

Yeah. I mean there are lots of kids books that are totally appropriate that just talk about gender in a general way. “ Red: A Crayon’s Story ” is a good one. Don’t separate your class into boys over here and girls over here. That’s a small thing that teachers can do at any classroom age that can make it more comfortable for trans kids to be themselves.

Yeah, I think the sooner, the better. I taught elementary for 10 years, and it was something that I always tied into my lessons. I don’t think a lot of people recognize that racism, transphobic, homophobic thoughts are learned behaviors that are taught to young children from their parents.

I see where Chanel is coming from, but I also think that gender identity should not be taught prior to maybe high school. I just feel like the younger, the more impressionable. Not only will they be trying to figure out other things, aside from themselves, but adding in gender identity is just a bit too much for younger kids, I think.

Do you have any thoughts on the question of when young people with gender dysphoria should be allowed to begin transitioning?

I guess between the age of 13 and maybe 18, somewhere around there. It’s a confusing time, so I think that it starts with family first. They got to decide for their child. If their child comes up to them and says, “Look, something’s not right here,” then have a discussion with that child first. I really don’t think there’s any place for school here because, to me, it’s more of a personal medical issue, a political or social issue.

Family is going to be your main support. It’s going to be up to the family, the parents. And for the child —

Amber, sorry to interrupt, but how do you think parents should approach a young person or teenager who says they’re interested in transitioning?

Get your sources, get your information, get your education. I’m in my late 40s now. If I would have known about these groups much sooner, like when I was even in my — when I was coming out — I know I would have stepped up and taken those actions before I told my mom.

I don’t know how I feel about children medically transitioning at a young age. That’s based on their individual situation. There are things they could do that could help them affirm their gender, like changing their clothes or hairstyle or things like that, physical appearances. But if the child doesn’t have a supportive family, I feel like the school should have some type of peer counseling where these kids could be able to talk about this in a safe space because they’re not being provided with that at home. They should be able to talk about this somewhere, because it needs to be discussed, especially when you feel like no one’s supporting you and your family is invalidating you. There needs to be some type of resource.

Is there an age that’s too young?

As long as there’s nothing irreversible, as long as you can go back on it, your child should be able to transition. I see a lot of children that do transition at a young age, and they don’t detransition or start questioning their gender. But I do feel like it should be more of a one-on-one thing.

If I could have had the chance to actually transition or even just start H.R.T. from a younger age, I would have taken it and not had a second thought. Far too many kids are out there without information about transitioning, and some even consider taking their own lives because they get in a situation where they don’t have any support.

Joseph, do you think there is an age that’s too young for a young person to begin transitioning?

Exactly what Phunky said. I think it should be a very rare, case-by-case basis if they’re going to go ahead and actually do an irreversible change. If you’re talking about going on hormone blockers, especially for teenagers, that can help you buy time to eventually make a bigger decision yourself. But it’s also that gray area I get into: How much do we have to prove to make a decision for ourselves? Some states and some places make it a lot harder for us, so I don’t think there’s a clear-cut answer.

What would you say to parents who say they’re conflicted or uncomfortable with teenagers taking puberty blockers?

I’m 19. I feel like people should be able to have more responsibility, and I feel like it’s very important to affirm your child and your teenager. You don’t know what your child is going through. You don’t know what your teenager is going through. There’s so many trans people that would have loved to be on H.R.T. when they were a teen, would have loved to start their transition. And I feel like there’s not enough recognition around that. There’s not enough supportive parents around that, either, so I feel like they should be able to. There’s not enough cases of people detransitioning versus, like, people that wanted to transition earlier.

Why did you have a kid? Did you have a child so that you could model that child after you, or did you have a child so that you could bring a person into the world who is capable of and confident in making their own decisions? And are you willing to support them as they navigate that?

I believe if the child believes that they want to be that way, they should go to a psychiatrist, talk to counselors, maybe talk to someone in the trans community and everything else first before you even start that. Because once it starts, it’s a slippery slope.

As a parent, you’re responsible for that child until they’re 18, and the frontal lobe’s not developed until 24. That being said, I knew who I was my entire life. Being supported and being able to be who I was was great. I could have done it at 17 or 18, had I known how and had the resources. Then it wouldn’t have been the parent’s responsibility.

Let’s say we were doing a focus group with trans Americans 20 years from now. What do you think it’s going to be like?

Unfortunately, they will probably be talking about a lot of the same issues. I think until there’s more education, we might still be talking about bathrooms. We might still be talking about whether or not we have a right to health care protection.

I think we’re going to be looking back and saying, “Oh, we had this conversation 20 years ago. What’s changed?”

I don’t think it’s going to be different. I hope it is, but there’s too many conservative people and too many people who support them.

We’re really not talking about the true roots of why we have division and why this division continues to happen. We’re going in a circle.

I feel like things could kind of go either way, given how our country is. It’s bad, and it’s only going to get worse is kind of how I feel. But the more I get to know the generation that’s coming up — I’ve got faith in those kids.

My friends who have kids, their little friends came out gay in elementary school, and everybody was fine with it. So unless things keep going sideways politically, I think the younger people coming up — I just have hope, because I’ve seen all this growth in the gay and trans communities.

Is there anything that you would want to leave New York Times readers with, as just a final thought?

Trans people are just people. Not pedophiles and not perverts.

Stop trying to understand us. If you’re not trans, you never will. I feel like a lot of times, people are just trying to make sense of us in their head, and I need you to stop trying to make sense and just respect us as people. We’re human beings, and we’re just going to live our lives just like you are living your lives. Stop trying to understand and interject yourself and just listen.

Just love everybody and let everybody be who they want to be.

I have a quote up in my living room. It says, “I was a woman born with a male defect. After decades of pressure to live with it, I finally fixed it. So why are people so hung up on transitioning? It was a revelation. I didn’t become female. I’ve always been female.” We are who we are, and you don’t need to understand it. It’s not meant for you to understand. What you need to do is learn and just be quiet and listen.

I think we all have a right to self-determination and to self-actualization. The more we just respect each other and trust that we are doing what’s right for ourselves, I think it’s just a happier society and a more loving community that we can create.

Two words: I belong.

Just listen.

Nothing changes if nothing changes, and let’s stop the generational trauma. Let’s all listen and change.

Stop using us as political tools in your campaigns. Every four years, we’re being used. That’s where all the divisiveness and the hate and everything else comes from because they pawn us against everybody.

If we do not make the change that should occur in the world, the next generation is going to do it, and they are not going to be nearly as nice as we have been. So do it, or they are never going to forgive you.

You don’t know someone else’s personal truth better than they do, even if you’re their parent. So just let people make their own decisions.

Advertisement

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, 177 college essay examples for 11 schools + expert analysis.

College Admissions , College Essays

The personal statement might just be the hardest part of your college application. Mostly this is because it has the least guidance and is the most open-ended. One way to understand what colleges are looking for when they ask you to write an essay is to check out the essays of students who already got in—college essays that actually worked. After all, they must be among the most successful of this weird literary genre.

In this article, I'll go through general guidelines for what makes great college essays great. I've also compiled an enormous list of 100+ actual sample college essays from 11 different schools. Finally, I'll break down two of these published college essay examples and explain why and how they work. With links to 177 full essays and essay excerpts , this article is a great resource for learning how to craft your own personal college admissions essay!

What Excellent College Essays Have in Common

Even though in many ways these sample college essays are very different from one other, they do share some traits you should try to emulate as you write your own essay.

Visible Signs of Planning

Building out from a narrow, concrete focus. You'll see a similar structure in many of the essays. The author starts with a very detailed story of an event or description of a person or place. After this sense-heavy imagery, the essay expands out to make a broader point about the author, and connects this very memorable experience to the author's present situation, state of mind, newfound understanding, or maturity level.

Knowing how to tell a story. Some of the experiences in these essays are one-of-a-kind. But most deal with the stuff of everyday life. What sets them apart is the way the author approaches the topic: analyzing it for drama and humor, for its moving qualities, for what it says about the author's world, and for how it connects to the author's emotional life.

Stellar Execution

A killer first sentence. You've heard it before, and you'll hear it again: you have to suck the reader in, and the best place to do that is the first sentence. Great first sentences are punchy. They are like cliffhangers, setting up an exciting scene or an unusual situation with an unclear conclusion, in order to make the reader want to know more. Don't take my word for it—check out these 22 first sentences from Stanford applicants and tell me you don't want to read the rest of those essays to find out what happens!

A lively, individual voice. Writing is for readers. In this case, your reader is an admissions officer who has read thousands of essays before yours and will read thousands after. Your goal? Don't bore your reader. Use interesting descriptions, stay away from clichés, include your own offbeat observations—anything that makes this essay sounds like you and not like anyone else.

Technical correctness. No spelling mistakes, no grammar weirdness, no syntax issues, no punctuation snafus—each of these sample college essays has been formatted and proofread perfectly. If this kind of exactness is not your strong suit, you're in luck! All colleges advise applicants to have their essays looked over several times by parents, teachers, mentors, and anyone else who can spot a comma splice. Your essay must be your own work, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting help polishing it.

And if you need more guidance, connect with PrepScholar's expert admissions consultants . These expert writers know exactly what college admissions committees look for in an admissions essay and chan help you craft an essay that boosts your chances of getting into your dream school.

Check out PrepScholar's Essay Editing and Coaching progra m for more details!

Want to write the perfect college application essay? Get professional help from PrepScholar.

Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. We'll learn your background and interests, brainstorm essay topics, and walk you through the essay drafting process, step-by-step. At the end, you'll have a unique essay that you'll proudly submit to your top choice colleges.

Don't leave your college application to chance. Find out more about PrepScholar Admissions now :

Links to Full College Essay Examples

Some colleges publish a selection of their favorite accepted college essays that worked, and I've put together a selection of over 100 of these.

Common App Essay Samples

Please note that some of these college essay examples may be responding to prompts that are no longer in use. The current Common App prompts are as follows:

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. 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? 3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome? 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? 5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. 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?

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.

Now, let's get to the good stuff: the list of 177 college essay examples responding to current and past Common App essay prompts. 

Connecticut college.

• 12 Common Application essays from the classes of 2022-2025

Hamilton College

• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2026
• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2022
• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2018
• 8 Common Application essays from the class of 2012
• 8 Common Application essays from the class of 2007

Johns Hopkins

These essays are answers to past prompts from either the Common Application or the Coalition Application (which Johns Hopkins used to accept).

• 1 Common Application or Coalition Application essay from the class of 2026
• 6 Common Application or Coalition Application essays from the class of 2025
• 6 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2024
• 6 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2023
• 7 Common Application of Universal Application essays from the class of 2022
• 5 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2021
• 7 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2020

Essay Examples Published by Other Websites

• 2 Common Application essays ( 1st essay , 2nd essay ) from applicants admitted to Columbia

Other Sample College Essays

Here is a collection of essays that are college-specific.

Babson College

• 4 essays (and 1 video response) on "Why Babson" from the class of 2020

Emory University

• 5 essay examples ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ) from the class of 2020 along with analysis from Emory admissions staff on why the essays were exceptional
• 5 more recent essay examples ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ) along with analysis from Emory admissions staff on what made these essays stand out

University of Georgia

• 1 “strong essay” sample from 2019
• 1 “strong essay” sample from 2018
• 10 Harvard essays from 2023
• 10 Harvard essays from 2022
• 10 Harvard essays from 2021
• 10 Harvard essays from 2020
• 10 Harvard essays from 2019
• 10 Harvard essays from 2018
• 6 essays from admitted MIT students

Smith College

• 6 "best gift" essays from the class of 2018

Books of College Essays

If you're looking for even more sample college essays, consider purchasing a college essay book. The best of these include dozens of essays that worked and feedback from real admissions officers.

College Essays That Made a Difference —This detailed guide from Princeton Review includes not only successful essays, but also interviews with admissions officers and full student profiles.

50 Successful Harvard Application Essays by the Staff of the Harvard Crimson—A must for anyone aspiring to Harvard .

50 Successful Ivy League Application Essays and 50 Successful Stanford Application Essays by Gen and Kelly Tanabe—For essays from other top schools, check out this venerated series, which is regularly updated with new essays.

Heavenly Essays by Janine W. Robinson—This collection from the popular blogger behind Essay Hell includes a wider range of schools, as well as helpful tips on honing your own essay.

Analyzing Great Common App Essays That Worked

I've picked two essays from the examples collected above to examine in more depth so that you can see exactly what makes a successful college essay work. Full credit for these essays goes to the original authors and the schools that published them.

Example 1: "Breaking Into Cars," by Stephen, Johns Hopkins Class of '19 (Common App Essay, 636 words long)

I had never broken into a car before.

We were in Laredo, having just finished our first day at a Habitat for Humanity work site. The Hotchkiss volunteers had already left, off to enjoy some Texas BBQ, leaving me behind with the college kids to clean up. Not until we were stranded did we realize we were locked out of the van.

Someone picked a coat hanger out of the dumpster, handed it to me, and took a few steps back.

"Can you do that thing with a coat hanger to unlock it?"

"Why me?" I thought.

More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window's seal like I'd seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame. Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I'd been in this type of situation before. In fact, I'd been born into this type of situation.

My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally. My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed. "The water's on fire! Clear a hole!" he shouted, tossing me in the lake without warning. While I'm still unconvinced about that particular lesson's practicality, my Dad's overarching message is unequivocally true: much of life is unexpected, and you have to deal with the twists and turns.

Living in my family, days rarely unfolded as planned. A bit overlooked, a little pushed around, I learned to roll with reality, negotiate a quick deal, and give the improbable a try. I don't sweat the small stuff, and I definitely don't expect perfect fairness. So what if our dining room table only has six chairs for seven people? Someone learns the importance of punctuality every night.

But more than punctuality and a special affinity for musical chairs, my family life has taught me to thrive in situations over which I have no power. Growing up, I never controlled my older siblings, but I learned how to thwart their attempts to control me. I forged alliances, and realigned them as necessary. Sometimes, I was the poor, defenseless little brother; sometimes I was the omniscient elder. Different things to different people, as the situation demanded. I learned to adapt.

Back then, these techniques were merely reactions undertaken to ensure my survival. But one day this fall, Dr. Hicks, our Head of School, asked me a question that he hoped all seniors would reflect on throughout the year: "How can I participate in a thing I do not govern, in the company of people I did not choose?"

The question caught me off guard, much like the question posed to me in Laredo. Then, I realized I knew the answer. I knew why the coat hanger had been handed to me.

Growing up as the middle child in my family, I was a vital participant in a thing I did not govern, in the company of people I did not choose. It's family. It's society. And often, it's chaos. You participate by letting go of the small stuff, not expecting order and perfection, and facing the unexpected with confidence, optimism, and preparedness. My family experience taught me to face a serendipitous world with confidence.

What Makes This Essay Tick?

It's very helpful to take writing apart in order to see just how it accomplishes its objectives. Stephen's essay is very effective. Let's find out why!

An Opening Line That Draws You In

In just eight words, we get: scene-setting (he is standing next to a car about to break in), the idea of crossing a boundary (he is maybe about to do an illegal thing for the first time), and a cliffhanger (we are thinking: is he going to get caught? Is he headed for a life of crime? Is he about to be scared straight?).

Great, Detailed Opening Story

More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window's seal like I'd seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame.

It's the details that really make this small experience come alive. Notice how whenever he can, Stephen uses a more specific, descriptive word in place of a more generic one. The volunteers aren't going to get food or dinner; they're going for "Texas BBQ." The coat hanger comes from "a dumpster." Stephen doesn't just move the coat hanger—he "jiggles" it.

Details also help us visualize the emotions of the people in the scene. The person who hands Stephen the coat hanger isn't just uncomfortable or nervous; he "takes a few steps back"—a description of movement that conveys feelings. Finally, the detail of actual speech makes the scene pop. Instead of writing that the other guy asked him to unlock the van, Stephen has the guy actually say his own words in a way that sounds like a teenager talking.

Turning a Specific Incident Into a Deeper Insight

Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I'd been in this type of situation before. In fact, I'd been born into this type of situation.

Stephen makes the locked car experience a meaningful illustration of how he has learned to be resourceful and ready for anything, and he also makes this turn from the specific to the broad through an elegant play on the two meanings of the word "click."

Using Concrete Examples When Making Abstract Claims

My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally.

"Unpredictability and chaos" are very abstract, not easily visualized concepts. They could also mean any number of things—violence, abandonment, poverty, mental instability. By instantly following up with highly finite and unambiguous illustrations like "family of seven" and "siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing," Stephen grounds the abstraction in something that is easy to picture: a large, noisy family.

Using Small Bits of Humor and Casual Word Choice

My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed.

Obviously, knowing how to clean burning oil is not high on the list of things every 9-year-old needs to know. To emphasize this, Stephen uses sarcasm by bringing up a situation that is clearly over-the-top: "in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed."

The humor also feels relaxed. Part of this is because he introduces it with the colloquial phrase "you know," so it sounds like he is talking to us in person. This approach also diffuses the potential discomfort of the reader with his father's strictness—since he is making jokes about it, clearly he is OK. Notice, though, that this doesn't occur very much in the essay. This helps keep the tone meaningful and serious rather than flippant.

An Ending That Stretches the Insight Into the Future

But one day this fall, Dr. Hicks, our Head of School, asked me a question that he hoped all seniors would reflect on throughout the year: "How can I participate in a thing I do not govern, in the company of people I did not choose?"

The ending of the essay reveals that Stephen's life has been one long preparation for the future. He has emerged from chaos and his dad's approach to parenting as a person who can thrive in a world that he can't control.

This connection of past experience to current maturity and self-knowledge is a key element in all successful personal essays. Colleges are very much looking for mature, self-aware applicants. These are the qualities of successful college students, who will be able to navigate the independence college classes require and the responsibility and quasi-adulthood of college life.

What Could This Essay Do Even Better?

Even the best essays aren't perfect, and even the world's greatest writers will tell you that writing is never "finished"—just "due." So what would we tweak in this essay if we could?

Replace some of the clichéd language. Stephen uses handy phrases like "twists and turns" and "don't sweat the small stuff" as a kind of shorthand for explaining his relationship to chaos and unpredictability. But using too many of these ready-made expressions runs the risk of clouding out your own voice and replacing it with something expected and boring.

Use another example from recent life. Stephen's first example (breaking into the van in Laredo) is a great illustration of being resourceful in an unexpected situation. But his essay also emphasizes that he "learned to adapt" by being "different things to different people." It would be great to see how this plays out outside his family, either in the situation in Laredo or another context.

Want to build the best possible college application?

We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies . We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools , from state colleges to the Ivy League.

We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools .

Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.

Example 2: By Renner Kwittken, Tufts Class of '23 (Common App Essay, 645 words long)

My first dream job was to be a pickle truck driver. I saw it in my favorite book, Richard Scarry's "Cars and Trucks and Things That Go," and for some reason, I was absolutely obsessed with the idea of driving a giant pickle. Much to the discontent of my younger sister, I insisted that my parents read us that book as many nights as possible so we could find goldbug, a small little golden bug, on every page. I would imagine the wonderful life I would have: being a pig driving a giant pickle truck across the country, chasing and finding goldbug. I then moved on to wanting to be a Lego Master. Then an architect. Then a surgeon.

Then I discovered a real goldbug: gold nanoparticles that can reprogram macrophages to assist in killing tumors, produce clear images of them without sacrificing the subject, and heat them to obliteration.

Suddenly the destination of my pickle was clear.

I quickly became enveloped by the world of nanomedicine; I scoured articles about liposomes, polymeric micelles, dendrimers, targeting ligands, and self-assembling nanoparticles, all conquering cancer in some exotic way. Completely absorbed, I set out to find a mentor to dive even deeper into these topics. After several rejections, I was immensely grateful to receive an invitation to work alongside Dr. Sangeeta Ray at Johns Hopkins.

In the lab, Dr. Ray encouraged a great amount of autonomy to design and implement my own procedures. I chose to attack a problem that affects the entire field of nanomedicine: nanoparticles consistently fail to translate from animal studies into clinical trials. Jumping off recent literature, I set out to see if a pre-dose of a common chemotherapeutic could enhance nanoparticle delivery in aggressive prostate cancer, creating three novel constructs based on three different linear polymers, each using fluorescent dye (although no gold, sorry goldbug!). Though using radioactive isotopes like Gallium and Yttrium would have been incredible, as a 17-year-old, I unfortunately wasn't allowed in the same room as these radioactive materials (even though I took a Geiger counter to a pair of shoes and found them to be slightly dangerous).

I hadn't expected my hypothesis to work, as the research project would have ideally been led across two full years. Yet while there are still many optimizations and revisions to be done, I was thrilled to find -- with completely new nanoparticles that may one day mean future trials will use particles with the initials "RK-1" -- thatcyclophosphamide did indeed increase nanoparticle delivery to the tumor in a statistically significant way.

A secondary, unexpected research project was living alone in Baltimore, a new city to me, surrounded by people much older than I. Even with moving frequently between hotels, AirBnB's, and students' apartments, I strangely reveled in the freedom I had to enjoy my surroundings and form new friendships with graduate school students from the lab. We explored The Inner Harbor at night, attended a concert together one weekend, and even got to watch the Orioles lose (to nobody's surprise). Ironically, it's through these new friendships I discovered something unexpected: what I truly love is sharing research. Whether in a presentation or in a casual conversation, making others interested in science is perhaps more exciting to me than the research itself. This solidified a new pursuit to angle my love for writing towards illuminating science in ways people can understand, adding value to a society that can certainly benefit from more scientific literacy.

It seems fitting that my goals are still transforming: in Scarry's book, there is not just one goldbug, there is one on every page. With each new experience, I'm learning that it isn't the goldbug itself, but rather the act of searching for the goldbugs that will encourage, shape, and refine my ever-evolving passions. Regardless of the goldbug I seek -- I know my pickle truck has just begun its journey.

Renner takes a somewhat different approach than Stephen, but their essay is just as detailed and engaging. Let's go through some of the strengths of this essay.

One Clear Governing Metaphor

This essay is ultimately about two things: Renner’s dreams and future career goals, and Renner’s philosophy on goal-setting and achieving one’s dreams.

But instead of listing off all the amazing things they’ve done to pursue their dream of working in nanomedicine, Renner tells a powerful, unique story instead. To set up the narrative, Renner opens the essay by connecting their experiences with goal-setting and dream-chasing all the way back to a memorable childhood experience:

This lighthearted–but relevant!--story about the moment when Renner first developed a passion for a specific career (“finding the goldbug”) provides an anchor point for the rest of the essay. As Renner pivots to describing their current dreams and goals–working in nanomedicine–the metaphor of “finding the goldbug” is reflected in Renner’s experiments, rejections, and new discoveries.

Though Renner tells multiple stories about their quest to “find the goldbug,” or, in other words, pursue their passion, each story is connected by a unifying theme; namely, that as we search and grow over time, our goals will transform…and that’s okay! By the end of the essay, Renner uses the metaphor of “finding the goldbug” to reiterate the relevance of the opening story:

While the earlier parts of the essay convey Renner’s core message by showing, the final, concluding paragraph sums up Renner’s insights by telling. By briefly and clearly stating the relevance of the goldbug metaphor to their own philosophy on goals and dreams, Renner demonstrates their creativity, insight, and eagerness to grow and evolve as the journey continues into college.

An Engaging, Individual Voice

This essay uses many techniques that make Renner sound genuine and make the reader feel like we already know them.

Technique #1: humor. Notice Renner's gentle and relaxed humor that lightly mocks their younger self's grand ambitions (this is different from the more sarcastic kind of humor used by Stephen in the first essay—you could never mistake one writer for the other).

My first dream job was to be a pickle truck driver.

I would imagine the wonderful life I would have: being a pig driving a giant pickle truck across the country, chasing and finding goldbug. I then moved on to wanting to be a Lego Master. Then an architect. Then a surgeon.

Renner gives a great example of how to use humor to your advantage in college essays. You don’t want to come off as too self-deprecating or sarcastic, but telling a lightheartedly humorous story about your younger self that also showcases how you’ve grown and changed over time can set the right tone for your entire essay.

Technique #2: intentional, eye-catching structure. The second technique is the way Renner uses a unique structure to bolster the tone and themes of their essay . The structure of your essay can have a major impact on how your ideas come across…so it’s important to give it just as much thought as the content of your essay!

For instance, Renner does a great job of using one-line paragraphs to create dramatic emphasis and to make clear transitions from one phase of the story to the next:

Suddenly the destination of my pickle car was clear.

Not only does the one-liner above signal that Renner is moving into a new phase of the narrative (their nanoparticle research experiences), it also tells the reader that this is a big moment in Renner’s story. It’s clear that Renner made a major discovery that changed the course of their goal pursuit and dream-chasing. Through structure, Renner conveys excitement and entices the reader to keep pushing forward to the next part of the story.

Technique #3: playing with syntax. The third technique is to use sentences of varying length, syntax, and structure. Most of the essay's written in standard English and uses grammatically correct sentences. However, at key moments, Renner emphasizes that the reader needs to sit up and pay attention by switching to short, colloquial, differently punctuated, and sometimes fragmented sentences.

Even with moving frequently between hotels, AirBnB's, and students' apartments, I strangely reveled in the freedom I had to enjoy my surroundings and form new friendships with graduate school students from the lab. We explored The Inner Harbor at night, attended a concert together one weekend, and even got to watch the Orioles lose (to nobody's surprise). Ironically, it's through these new friendships I discovered something unexpected: what I truly love is sharing research.

In the examples above, Renner switches adeptly between long, flowing sentences and quippy, telegraphic ones. At the same time, Renner uses these different sentence lengths intentionally. As they describe their experiences in new places, they use longer sentences to immerse the reader in the sights, smells, and sounds of those experiences. And when it’s time to get a big, key idea across, Renner switches to a short, punchy sentence to stop the reader in their tracks.

The varying syntax and sentence lengths pull the reader into the narrative and set up crucial “aha” moments when it’s most important…which is a surefire way to make any college essay stand out.

Renner's essay is very strong, but there are still a few little things that could be improved.

Connecting the research experiences to the theme of “finding the goldbug.”  The essay begins and ends with Renner’s connection to the idea of “finding the goldbug.” And while this metaphor is deftly tied into the essay’s intro and conclusion, it isn’t entirely clear what Renner’s big findings were during the research experiences that are described in the middle of the essay. It would be great to add a sentence or two stating what Renner’s big takeaways (or “goldbugs”) were from these experiences, which add more cohesion to the essay as a whole.

Give more details about discovering the world of nanomedicine. It makes sense that Renner wants to get into the details of their big research experiences as quickly as possible. After all, these are the details that show Renner’s dedication to nanomedicine! But a smoother transition from the opening pickle car/goldbug story to Renner’s “real goldbug” of nanoparticles would help the reader understand why nanoparticles became Renner’s goldbug. Finding out why Renner is so motivated to study nanomedicine–and perhaps what put them on to this field of study–would help readers fully understand why Renner chose this path in the first place.

4 Essential Tips for Writing Your Own Essay

How can you use this discussion to better your own college essay? Here are some suggestions for ways to use this resource effectively.

#1: Get Help From the Experts

Getting your college applications together takes a lot of work and can be pretty intimidatin g. Essays are even more important than ever now that admissions processes are changing and schools are going test-optional and removing diversity standards thanks to new Supreme Court rulings .  If you want certified expert help that really makes a difference, get started with  PrepScholar’s Essay Editing and Coaching program. Our program can help you put together an incredible essay from idea to completion so that your application stands out from the crowd. We've helped students get into the best colleges in the United States, including Harvard, Stanford, and Yale.  If you're ready to take the next step and boost your odds of getting into your dream school, connect with our experts today .

#2: Read Other Essays to Get Ideas for Your Own

As you go through the essays we've compiled for you above, ask yourself the following questions:

• Can you explain to yourself (or someone else!) why the opening sentence works well?
• Look for the essay's detailed personal anecdote. What senses is the author describing? Can you easily picture the scene in your mind's eye?
• Find the place where this anecdote bridges into a larger insight about the author. How does the essay connect the two? How does the anecdote work as an example of the author's characteristic, trait, or skill?
• Check out the essay's tone. If it's funny, can you find the places where the humor comes from? If it's sad and moving, can you find the imagery and description of feelings that make you moved? If it's serious, can you see how word choice adds to this tone?

Make a note whenever you find an essay or part of an essay that you think was particularly well-written, and think about what you like about it . Is it funny? Does it help you really get to know the writer? Does it show what makes the writer unique? Once you have your list, keep it next to you while writing your essay to remind yourself to try and use those same techniques in your own essay.

#3: Find Your "A-Ha!" Moment

All of these essays rely on connecting with the reader through a heartfelt, highly descriptive scene from the author's life. It can either be very dramatic (did you survive a plane crash?) or it can be completely mundane (did you finally beat your dad at Scrabble?). Either way, it should be personal and revealing about you, your personality, and the way you are now that you are entering the adult world.

Check out essays by authors like John Jeremiah Sullivan , Leslie Jamison , Hanif Abdurraqib , and Esmé Weijun Wang to get more examples of how to craft a compelling personal narrative.

#4: Start Early, Revise Often

Let me level with you: the best writing isn't writing at all. It's rewriting. And in order to have time to rewrite, you have to start way before the application deadline. My advice is to write your first draft at least two months before your applications are due.

Let it sit for a few days untouched. Then come back to it with fresh eyes and think critically about what you've written. What's extra? What's missing? What is in the wrong place? What doesn't make sense? Don't be afraid to take it apart and rearrange sections. Do this several times over, and your essay will be much better for it!

For more editing tips, check out a style guide like Dreyer's English or Eats, Shoots & Leaves .

What's Next?

Still not sure which colleges you want to apply to? Our experts will show you how to make a college list that will help you choose a college that's right for you.

Interested in learning more about college essays? Check out our detailed breakdown of exactly how personal statements work in an application , some suggestions on what to avoid when writing your essay , and our guide to writing about your extracurricular activities .

Working on the rest of your application? Read what admissions officers wish applicants knew before applying .

Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points? We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

The recommendations in this post are based solely on our knowledge and experience. If you purchase an item through one of our links PrepScholar may receive a commission.

Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

Student and Parent Forum

Our new student and parent forum, at ExpertHub.PrepScholar.com , allow you to interact with your peers and the PrepScholar staff. See how other students and parents are navigating high school, college, and the college admissions process. Ask questions; get answers.

Ask a Question Below

Have any questions about this article or other topics? Ask below and we'll reply!

Improve With Our Famous Guides

• For All Students

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points

How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 800 on Each SAT Section:

Score 800 on SAT Math

Score 800 on SAT Reading

Score 800 on SAT Writing

Series: How to Get to 600 on Each SAT Section:

Score 600 on SAT Math

Score 600 on SAT Reading

Score 600 on SAT Writing

Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests

What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For?

15 Strategies to Improve Your SAT Essay

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points

How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 36 on Each ACT Section:

36 on ACT English

36 on ACT Math

36 on ACT Reading

36 on ACT Science

Series: How to Get to 24 on Each ACT Section:

24 on ACT English

24 on ACT Math

24 on ACT Reading

24 on ACT Science

What ACT target score should you be aiming for?

ACT Vocabulary You Must Know

ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score

How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League

How to Get a Perfect 4.0 GPA

How to Write an Amazing College Essay

What Exactly Are Colleges Looking For?

Is the ACT easier than the SAT? A Comprehensive Guide

Should you retake your SAT or ACT?

When should you take the SAT or ACT?

Stay Informed

Get the latest articles and test prep tips!

Looking for Graduate School Test Prep?

Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here:

GRE Online Prep Blog

GMAT Online Prep Blog

TOEFL Online Prep Blog

Holly R. "I am absolutely overjoyed and cannot thank you enough for helping me!”

What are your chances of acceptance?

Calculate for all schools, your chance of acceptance.

Your chancing factors

Extracurriculars.

16 Strong College Essay Examples from Top Schools

What’s Covered:

• Common App Essays
• Why This College Essays
• Why This Major Essays
• Extracurricular Essays
• Overcoming Challenges Essays
• Community Service Essays
• Diversity Essays
• Political/Global Issues Essays
• Where to Get Feedback on Your Essays

Most high school students don’t get a lot of experience with creative writing, so the college essay can be especially daunting. Reading examples of successful essays, however, can help you understand what admissions officers are looking for.

In this post, we’ll share 16 college essay examples of many different topics. Most of the essay prompts fall into 8 different archetypes, and you can approach each prompt under that archetype in a similar way. We’ve grouped these examples by archetype so you can better structure your approach to college essays.

If you’re looking for school-specific guides, check out our 2022-2023 essay breakdowns .

Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized. 

Note: the essays are titled in this post for navigation purposes, but they were not originally titled. We also include the original prompt where possible.

The Common App essay goes to all of the schools on your list, unless those schools use a separate application platform. Because of this, it’s the most important essay in your portfolio, and likely the longest essay you’ll need to write (you get up to 650 words). 

The goal of this essay is to share a glimpse into who you are, what matters to you, and what you hope to achieve. It’s a chance to share your story. 

Learn more about how to write the Common App essay in our complete guide.

The Multiple Meanings of Point

Prompt: 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. (250-650 words)

Night had robbed the academy of its daytime colors, yet there was comfort in the dim lights that cast shadows of our advances against the bare studio walls. Silhouettes of roundhouse kicks, spin crescent kicks, uppercuts and the occasional butterfly kick danced while we sparred. She approached me, eyes narrowed with the trace of a smirk challenging me. “Ready spar!” Her arm began an upward trajectory targeting my shoulder, a common first move. I sidestepped — only to almost collide with another flying fist. Pivoting my right foot, I snapped my left leg, aiming my heel at her midsection. The center judge raised one finger. 

There was no time to celebrate, not in the traditional sense at least. Master Pollard gave a brief command greeted with a unanimous “Yes, sir” and the thud of 20 hands dropping-down-and-giving-him-30, while the “winners” celebrated their victory with laps as usual. 

Three years ago, seven-thirty in the evening meant I was a warrior. It meant standing up straighter, pushing a little harder, “Yes, sir” and “Yes, ma’am”, celebrating birthdays by breaking boards, never pointing your toes, and familiarity. Three years later, seven-thirty in the morning meant I was nervous. 

The room is uncomfortably large. The sprung floor soaks up the checkerboard of sunlight piercing through the colonial windows. The mirrored walls further illuminate the studio and I feel the light scrutinizing my sorry attempts at a pas de bourrée, while capturing the organic fluidity of the dancers around me. “Chassé en croix, grand battement, pique, pirouette.” I follow the graceful limbs of the woman in front of me, her legs floating ribbons, as she executes what seems to be a perfect ronds de jambes. Each movement remains a negotiation. With admirable patience, Ms. Tan casts me a sympathetic glance.   

There is no time to wallow in the misery that is my right foot. Taekwondo calls for dorsiflexion; pointed toes are synonymous with broken toes. My thoughts drag me into a flashback of the usual response to this painful mistake: “You might as well grab a tutu and head to the ballet studio next door.” Well, here I am Master Pollard, unfortunately still following your orders to never point my toes, but no longer feeling the satisfaction that comes with being a third degree black belt with 5 years of experience quite literally under her belt. It’s like being a white belt again — just in a leotard and ballet slippers. 

But the appetite for new beginnings that brought me here doesn’t falter. It is only reinforced by the classical rendition of “Dancing Queen” that floods the room and the ghost of familiarity that reassures me that this new beginning does not and will not erase the past. After years spent at the top, it’s hard to start over. But surrendering what you are only leads you to what you may become. In Taekwondo, we started each class reciting the tenets: honor, courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, courage, humility, and knowledge, and I have never felt that I embodied those traits more so than when I started ballet. 

The thing about change is that it eventually stops making things so different. After nine different schools, four different countries, three different continents, fluency in Tamil, Norwegian, and English, there are more blurred lines than there are clear fragments. My life has not been a tactfully executed, gold medal-worthy Taekwondo form with each movement defined, nor has it been a series of frappés performed by a prima ballerina with each extension identical and precise, but thankfully it has been like the dynamics of a spinning back kick, fluid, and like my chances of landing a pirouette, unpredictable. 

The first obvious strength of this essay is the introduction—it is interesting and snappy and uses enough technical language that we want to figure out what the student is discussing. When writing introductions, students tend to walk the line between intriguing and confusing. It is important that your essay ends up on the intentionally intriguing side of that line—like this student does! We are a little confused at first, but by then introducing the idea of “sparring,” the student grounds their essay.

People often advise young writers to “show, not tell.” This student takes that advice a step further and makes the reader do a bit of work to figure out what they are telling us. Nowhere in this essay does it say “After years of Taekwondo, I made the difficult decision to switch over to ballet.” Rather, the student says “It’s like being a white belt again — just in a leotard and ballet slippers.” How powerful! 

After a lot of emotional language and imagery, this student finishes off their essay with very valuable (and necessary!) reflection. They show admissions officers that they are more than just a good writer—they are a mature and self-aware individual who would be beneficial to a college campus. Self-awareness comes through with statements like “surrendering what you are only leads you to what you may become” and maturity can be seen through the student’s discussion of values: “honor, courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, courage, humility, and knowledge, and I have never felt that I embodied those traits more so than when I started ballet.”

Sparking Self-Awareness

Prompt: 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? (250-650 words)

Was I no longer the beloved daughter of nature, whisperer of trees? Knee-high rubber boots, camouflage, bug spray—I wore the garb and perfume of a proud wild woman, yet there I was, hunched over the pathetic pile of stubborn sticks, utterly stumped, on the verge of tears. As a child, I had considered myself a kind of rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees, who could glide through tick-infested meadows and emerge Lyme-free. I knew the cracks of the earth like the scars on my own rough palms. Yet here I was, ten years later, incapable of performing the most fundamental outdoor task: I could not, for the life of me, start a fire. 

Furiously I rubbed the twigs together—rubbed and rubbed until shreds of skin flaked from my fingers. No smoke. The twigs were too young, too sticky-green; I tossed them away with a shower of curses, and began tearing through the underbrush in search of a more flammable collection. My efforts were fruitless. Livid, I bit a rejected twig, determined to prove that the forest had spurned me, offering only young, wet bones that would never burn. But the wood cracked like carrots between my teeth—old, brittle, and bitter. Roaring and nursing my aching palms, I retreated to the tent, where I sulked and awaited the jeers of my family. 

Rattling their empty worm cans and reeking of fat fish, my brother and cousins swaggered into the campsite. Immediately, they noticed the minor stick massacre by the fire pit and called to me, their deep voices already sharp with contempt. 

“Where’s the fire, Princess Clara?” they taunted. “Having some trouble?” They prodded me with the ends of the chewed branches and, with a few effortless scrapes of wood on rock, sparked a red and roaring flame. My face burned long after I left the fire pit. The camp stank of salmon and shame. 

In the tent, I pondered my failure. Was I so dainty? Was I that incapable? I thought of my hands, how calloused and capable they had been, how tender and smooth they had become. It had been years since I’d kneaded mud between my fingers; instead of scaling a white pine, I’d practiced scales on my piano, my hands softening into those of a musician—fleshy and sensitive. And I’d gotten glasses, having grown horrifically nearsighted; long nights of dim lighting and thick books had done this. I couldn’t remember the last time I had lain down on a hill, barefaced, and seen the stars without having to squint. Crawling along the edge of the tent, a spider confirmed my transformation—he disgusted me, and I felt an overwhelming urge to squash him. 

Yet, I realized I hadn’t really changed—I had only shifted perspective. I still eagerly explored new worlds, but through poems and prose rather than pastures and puddles. I’d grown to prefer the boom of a bass over that of a bullfrog, learned to coax a different kind of fire from wood, having developed a burn for writing rhymes and scrawling hypotheses. 

That night, I stayed up late with my journal and wrote about the spider I had decided not to kill. I had tolerated him just barely, only shrieking when he jumped—it helped to watch him decorate the corners of the tent with his delicate webs, knowing that he couldn’t start fires, either. When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.

First things first, this Common App essay is well-written. This student is definitely showing the admissions officers her ability to articulate her points beautifully and creatively. It starts with vivid images like that of the “rustic princess, a cradler of spiders and centipedes, who was serenaded by mourning doves and chickadees, who could glide through tick-infested meadows and emerge Lyme-free.” And because the prose is flowery (and beautiful!), the writer can get away with metaphors like “I knew the cracks of the earth like the scars on my own rough palms” that might sound cheesy without the clear command of the English language that the writer quickly establishes.

In addition to being well-written, this essay is thematically cohesive. It begins with the simple introduction “Fire!” and ends with the following image: “When the night grew cold and the embers died, my words still smoked—my hands burned from all that scrawling—and even when I fell asleep, the ideas kept sparking—I was on fire, always on fire.” This full-circle approach leaves readers satisfied and impressed.

While dialogue often comes off as cliche or trite, this student effectively incorporates her family members saying “Where’s the fire, Princess Clara?” This is achieved through the apt use of the verb “taunted” to characterize the questioning and through the question’s thematic connection to the earlier image of the student as a rustic princess. Similarly, rhetorical questions can feel randomly placed in essays, but this student’s inclusion of the questions “Was I so dainty?” and “Was I that incapable?” feel perfectly justified after she establishes that she was pondering her failure.

Quite simply, this essay shows how quality writing can make a simple story outstandingly compelling. 

Why This College?

“Why This College?” is one of the most common essay prompts, likely because schools want to understand whether you’d be a good fit and how you’d use their resources.

This essay is one of the more straightforward ones you’ll write for college applications, but you still can and should allow your voice to shine through.

Learn more about how to write the “Why This College?” essay in our guide.

Prompt: How will you explore your intellectual and academic interests at the University of Pennsylvania? Please answer this question given the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying (650 words).

Sister Simone Roach, a theorist of nursing ethics, said, “caring is the human mode of being.” I have long been inspired by Sister Roach’s Five C’s of Caring: commitment, conscience, competence, compassion, and confidence. Penn both embraces and fosters these values through a rigorous, interdisciplinary curriculum and unmatched access to service and volunteer opportunities.

COMMITMENT. Reading through the activities that Penn Quakers devote their time to (in addition to academics!) felt like drinking from a firehose in the best possible way. As a prospective nursing student with interests outside of my major, I value this level of flexibility. I plan to leverage Penn’s liberal arts curriculum to gain an in-depth understanding of the challenges LGBT people face, especially regarding healthcare access. Through courses like “Interactional Processes with LGBT Individuals” and volunteering at the Mazzoni Center for outreach, I hope to learn how to better support the Penn LGBT community as well as my family and friends, including my cousin, who came out as trans last year.

CONSCIENCE. As one of the first people in my family to attend a four-year university, I wanted a school that promoted a sense of moral responsibility among its students. At Penn, professors challenge their students to question and recreate their own set of morals by sparking thought- provoking, open-minded discussions. I can imagine myself advocating for universal healthcare in courses such as “Health Care Reform & Future of American Health System” and debating its merits with my peers. Studying in an environment where students confidently voice their opinions – conservative or liberal – will push me to question and strengthen my value system.

COMPETENCE. Two aspects that drew my attention to Penn’s BSN program were its high-quality research opportunities and hands-on nursing projects. Through its Office of Nursing Research, Penn connects students to faculty members who share similar research interests. As I volunteered at a nursing home in high school, I hope to work with Dr. Carthon to improve the quality of care for senior citizens. Seniors, especially minorities, face serious barriers to healthcare that I want to resolve. Additionally, Penn’s unique use of simulations to bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world application impressed me. Using computerized manikins that mimic human responses, classes in Penn’s nursing program allow students to apply their emergency medical skills in a mass casualty simulation and monitor their actions afterward through a video system. Participating in this activity will help me identify my strengths and areas for improvement regarding crisis management and medical care in a controlled yet realistic setting. Research opportunities and simulations will develop my skills even before I interact with patients.

COMPASSION. I value giving back through community service, and I have a particular interest in Penn’s Community Champions and Nursing Students For Sexual & Reproductive Health (NSRH). As a four-year volunteer health educator, I hope to continue this work as a Community Champions member. I am excited to collaborate with medical students to teach fourth and fifth graders in the city about cardiology or lead a chair dance class for the elders at the LIFE Center. Furthermore, as a feminist who firmly believes in women’s abortion rights, I’d like to join NSRH in order to advocate for women’s health on campus. At Penn, I can work with like-minded people to make a meaningful difference.

CONFIDENCE. All of the Quakers that I have met possess one defining trait: confidence. Each student summarized their experiences at Penn as challenging but fulfilling. Although I expect my coursework to push me, from my conversations with current Quakers I know it will help me to be far more effective in my career.

The Five C’s of Caring are important heuristics for nursing, but they also provide insight into how I want to approach my time in college. I am eager to engage with these principles both as a nurse and as a Penn Quaker, and I can’t wait to start.

This prompt from Penn asks students to tailor their answer to their specific field of study. One great thing that this student does is identify their undergraduate school early, by mentioning “Sister Simone Roach, a theorist of nursing ethics.” You don’t want readers confused or searching through other parts of your application to figure out your major.

With a longer essay like this, it is important to establish structure. Some students organize their essay in a narrative form, using an anecdote from their past or predicting their future at a school. This student uses Roach’s 5 C’s of Caring as a framing device that organizes their essay around values. This works well!

While this essay occasionally loses voice, there are distinct moments where the student’s personality shines through. We see this with phrases like “felt like drinking from a fire hose in the best possible way” and “All of the Quakers that I have met possess one defining trait: confidence.” It is important to show off your personality to make your essay stand out. 

Finally, this student does a great job of referencing specific resources about Penn. It’s clear that they have done their research (they’ve even talked to current Quakers). They have dreams and ambitions that can only exist at Penn.

Prompt: What is it about Yale that has led you to apply? (125 words or fewer)

Coin collector and swimmer. Hungarian and Romanian. Critical and creative thinker. I was drawn to Yale because they don’t limit one’s mind with “or” but rather embrace unison with “and.” 

Wandering through the Beinecke Library, I prepare for my multidisciplinary Energy Studies capstone about the correlation between hedonism and climate change, making it my goal to find implications in environmental sociology. Under the tutelage of Assistant Professor Arielle Baskin-Sommers, I explore the emotional deficits of depression, utilizing neuroimaging to scrutinize my favorite branch of psychology: human perception. At Walden Peer Counseling, I integrate my peer support and active listening skills to foster an empathetic environment for the Yale community. Combining my interests in psychological and environmental studies is why I’m proud to be a Bulldog. 

This answer to the “Why This College” question is great because 1) the student shows their excitement about attending Yale 2) we learn the ways in which attending Yale will help them achieve their goals and 3) we learn their interests and identities.

In this response, you can find a prime example of the “Image of the Future” approach, as the student flashes forward and envisions their life at Yale, using present tense (“I explore,” “I integrate,” “I’m proud”). This approach is valuable if you are trying to emphasize your dedication to a specific school. Readers get the feeling that this student is constantly imagining themselves on campus—it feels like Yale really matters to them.

Starting this image with the Beinecke Library is great because the Beinecke Library only exists at Yale. It is important to tailor “Why This College” responses to each specific school. This student references a program of study, a professor, and an extracurricular that only exist at Yale. Additionally, they connect these unique resources to their interests—psychological and environmental studies.

Finally, we learn about the student (independent of academics) through this response. By the end of their 125 words, we know their hobbies, ethnicities, and social desires, in addition to their academic interests. It can be hard to tackle a 125-word response, but this student shows that it’s possible.

Why This Major?

The goal of this prompt is to understand how you came to be interested in your major and what you plan to do with it. For competitive programs like engineering, this essay helps admissions officers distinguish students who have a genuine passion and are most likely to succeed in the program. This is another more straightforward essay, but you do have a bit more freedom to include relevant anecdotes.

Learn more about how to write the “Why This Major?” essay in our guide.

Why Duke Engineering

Prompt: If you are applying to the Pratt School of Engineering as a first year applicant, please discuss why you want to study engineering and why you would like to study at Duke (250 words).

One Christmas morning, when I was nine, I opened a snap circuit set from my grandmother. Although I had always loved math and science, I didn’t realize my passion for engineering until I spent the rest of winter break creating different circuits to power various lights, alarms, and sensors. Even after I outgrew the toy, I kept the set in my bedroom at home and knew I wanted to study engineering. Later, in a high school biology class, I learned that engineering didn’t only apply to circuits, but also to medical devices that could improve people’s quality of life. Biomedical engineering allows me to pursue my academic passions and help people at the same time.

Just as biology and engineering interact in biomedical engineering, I am fascinated by interdisciplinary research in my chosen career path. Duke offers unmatched resources, such as DUhatch and The Foundry, that will enrich my engineering education and help me practice creative problem-solving skills. The emphasis on entrepreneurship within these resources will also help me to make a helpful product. Duke’s Bass Connections program also interests me; I firmly believe that the most creative and necessary problem-solving comes by bringing people together from different backgrounds. Through this program, I can use my engineering education to solve complicated societal problems such as creating sustainable surgical tools for low-income countries. Along the way, I can learn alongside experts in the field. Duke’s openness and collaborative culture span across its academic disciplines, making Duke the best place for me to grow both as an engineer and as a social advocate.

This prompt calls for a complex answer. Students must explain both why they want to study engineering and why Duke is the best place for them to study engineering.

This student begins with a nice hook—a simple anecdote about a simple present with profound consequences. They do not fluff up their anecdote with flowery images or emotionally-loaded language; it is what it is, and it is compelling and sweet. As their response continues, they express a particular interest in problem-solving. They position problem-solving as a fundamental part of their interest in engineering (and a fundamental part of their fascination with their childhood toy). This helps readers to learn about the student!

Problem-solving is also the avenue by which they introduce Duke’s resources—DUhatch, The Foundry, and Duke’s Bass Connections program. It is important to notice that the student explains how these resources can help them achieve their future goals—it is not enough to simply identify the resources!

This response is interesting and focused. It clearly answers the prompt, and it feels honest and authentic.

Why Georgia Tech CompSci

Prompt: Why do you want to study your chosen major specifically at Georgia Tech? (300 words max)

I held my breath and hit RUN. Yes! A plump white cat jumped out and began to catch the falling pizzas. Although my Fat Cat project seems simple now, it was the beginning of an enthusiastic passion for computer science. Four years and thousands of hours of programming later, that passion has grown into an intense desire to explore how computer science can serve society. Every day, surrounded by technology that can recognize my face and recommend scarily-specific ads, I’m reminded of Uncle Ben’s advice to a young Spiderman: “with great power comes great responsibility”. Likewise, the need to ensure digital equality has skyrocketed with AI’s far-reaching presence in society; and I believe that digital fairness starts with equality in education.

The unique use of threads at the College of Computing perfectly matches my interests in AI and its potential use in education; the path of combined threads on Intelligence and People gives me the rare opportunity to delve deep into both areas. I’m particularly intrigued by the rich sets of both knowledge-based and data-driven intelligence courses, as I believe AI should not only show correlation of events, but also provide insight for why they occur.

In my four years as an enthusiastic online English tutor, I’ve worked hard to help students overcome both financial and technological obstacles in hopes of bringing quality education to people from diverse backgrounds. For this reason, I’m extremely excited by the many courses in the People thread that focus on education and human-centered technology. I’d love to explore how to integrate AI technology into the teaching process to make education more available, affordable, and effective for people everywhere. And with the innumerable opportunities that Georgia Tech has to offer, I know that I will be able to go further here than anywhere else.

With a “Why This Major” essay, you want to avoid using all of your words to tell a story. That being said, stories are a great way to show your personality and make your essay stand out. This student’s story takes up only their first 21 words, but it positions the student as fun and funny and provides an endearing image of cats and pizzas—who doesn’t love cats and pizzas? There are other moments when the student’s personality shines through also, like the Spiderman reference.

While this pop culture reference adds color, it also is important for what the student is getting at: their passion. They want to go into computer science to address the issues of security and equity that are on the industry’s mind, and they acknowledge these concerns with their comments about “scarily-specific ads” and their statement that “the need to ensure digital equality has skyrocketed.” This student is self-aware and aware of the state of the industry. This aptitude will be appealing for admissions officers.

The conversation around “threads” is essential for this student’s response because the prompt asks specifically about the major at Georgia Tech and it is the only thing they reference that is specific to Georgia Tech. Threads are great, but this student would have benefitted from expanding on other opportunities specific to Georgia Tech later in the essay, instead of simply inserting “innumerable opportunities.”

Overall, this student shows personality, passion, and aptitude—precisely what admissions officers want to see!

Extracurricular Essay

You’re asked to describe your activities on the Common App, but chances are, you have at least one extracurricular that’s impacted you in a way you can’t explain in 150 characters.

This essay archetype allows you to share how your most important activity shaped you and how you might use those lessons learned in the future. You are definitely welcome to share anecdotes and use a narrative approach, but remember to include some reflection. A common mistake students make is to only describe the activity without sharing how it impacted them.

Learn more about how to write the Extracurricular Essay in our guide.

A Dedicated Musician

My fingers raced across the keys, rapidly striking one after another. My body swayed with the music as my hands raced across the piano. Crashing onto the final chord, it was over as quickly as it had begun. My shoulders relaxed and I couldn’t help but break into a satisfied grin. I had just played the Moonlight Sonata’s third movement, a longtime dream of mine. 

Four short months ago, though, I had considered it impossible. The piece’s tempo was impossibly fast, its notes stretching between each end of the piano, forcing me to reach farther than I had ever dared. It was 17 pages of the most fragile and intricate melodies I had ever encountered. 

But that summer, I found myself ready to take on the challenge. With the end of the school year, I was released from my commitment to practicing for band and solo performances. I was now free to determine my own musical path: either succeed in learning the piece, or let it defeat me for the third summer in a row. 

Over those few months, I spent countless hours practicing the same notes until they burned a permanent place in my memory, creating a soundtrack for even my dreams. Some would say I’ve mastered the piece, but as a musician I know better. Now that I can play it, I am eager to take the next step and add in layers of musicality and expression to make the once-impossible piece even more beautiful.

In this response, the student uses their extracurricular, piano, as a way to emphasize their positive qualities. At the beginning, readers are invited on a journey with the student where we feel their struggle, their intensity, and ultimately their satisfaction. With this descriptive image, we form a valuable connection with the student.

Then, we get to learn about what makes this student special: their dedication and work ethic. The fact that this student describes their desire to be productive during the summer shows an intensity that is appealing to admissions officers. Additionally, the growth mindset that this student emphasizes in their conclusion is appealing to admissions officers.

The Extracurricular Essay can be seen as an opportunity to characterize yourself. This student clearly identified their positive qualities, then used the Extracurricular Essay as a way to articulate them.

A Complicated Relationship with the School Newspaper

My school’s newspaper and I have a typical love-hate relationship; some days I want nothing more than to pass two hours writing and formatting articles, while on others the mere thought of student journalism makes me shiver. Still, as we’re entering our fourth year together, you could consider us relatively stable. We’ve learned to accept each other’s differences; at this point I’ve become comfortable spending an entire Friday night preparing for an upcoming issue, and I hardly even notice the snail-like speed of our computers. I’ve even benefitted from the polygamous nature of our relationship—with twelve other editors, there’s a lot of cooperation involved. Perverse as it may be, from that teamwork I’ve both gained some of my closest friends and improved my organizational and time-management skills. And though leaving it in the hands of new editors next year will be difficult, I know our time together has only better prepared me for future relationships.

This response is great. It’s cute and endearing and, importantly, tells readers a lot about the student who wrote it. Framing this essay in the context of a “love-hate relationship,” then supplementing with comments like “We’ve learned to accept each other’s differences” allows this student to advertise their maturity in a unique and engaging way. 

While Extracurricular Essays can be a place to show how you’ve grown within an activity, they can also be a place to show how you’ve grown through an activity. At the end of this essay, readers think that this student is mature and enjoyable, and we think that their experience with the school newspaper helped make them that way.

Participating in Democracy

Prompt: Research shows that an ability to learn from experiences outside the classroom correlates with success in college. What was your greatest learning experience over the past 4 years that took place outside of the traditional classroom? (250 words) 

The cool, white halls of the Rayburn House office building contrasted with the bustling energy of interns entertaining tourists, staffers rushing to cover committee meetings, and my fellow conference attendees separating to meet with our respective congresspeople. Through civics and US history classes, I had learned about our government, but simply hearing the legislative process outlined didn’t prepare me to navigate it. It was my first political conference, and, after learning about congressional mechanics during breakout sessions, I was lobbying my representative about an upcoming vote crucial to the US-Middle East relationship. As the daughter of Iranian immigrants, my whole life had led me to the moment when I could speak on behalf of the family members who had not emigrated with my parents.

As I sat down with my congresswoman’s chief of staff, I truly felt like a participant in democracy; I was exercising my right to be heard as a young American. Through this educational conference, I developed a plan of action to raise my voice. When I returned home, I signed up to volunteer with the state chapter of the Democratic Party. I sponsored letter-writing campaigns, canvassed for local elections, and even pursued an internship with a state senate campaign. I know that I don’t need to be old enough to vote to effect change. Most importantly, I also know that I want to study government—I want to make a difference for my communities in the United States and the Middle East throughout my career. 

While this prompt is about extracurricular activities, it specifically references the idea that the extracurricular should support the curricular. It is focused on experiential learning for future career success. This student wants to study government, so they chose to describe an experience of hands-on learning within their field—an apt choice!

As this student discusses their extracurricular experience, they also clue readers into their future goals—they want to help Middle Eastern communities. Admissions officers love when students mention concrete plans with a solid foundation. Here, the foundation comes from this student’s ethnicity. With lines like “my whole life had led me to the moment when I could speak on behalf of the family members who had not emigrated with my parents,” the student assures admissions officers of their emotional connection to their future field.

The strength of this essay comes from its connections. It connects the student’s extracurricular activity to their studies and connects theirs studies to their personal history.

Overcoming Challenges

You’re going to face a lot of setbacks in college, so admissions officers want to make you’re you have the resilience and resolve to overcome them. This essay is your chance to be vulnerable and connect to admissions officers on an emotional level.

Learn more about how to write the Overcoming Challenges Essay in our guide.

The Student Becomes the Master

”Advanced females ages 13 to 14 please proceed to staging with your coaches at this time.” Skittering around the room, eyes wide and pleading, I frantically explained my situation to nearby coaches. The seconds ticked away in my head; every polite refusal increased my desperation.

Despair weighed me down. I sank to my knees as a stream of competitors, coaches, and officials flowed around me. My dojang had no coach, and the tournament rules prohibited me from competing without one.

Although I wanted to remain strong, doubts began to cloud my mind. I could not help wondering: what was the point of perfecting my skills if I would never even compete? The other members of my team, who had found coaches minutes earlier, attempted to comfort me, but I barely heard their words. They couldn’t understand my despair at being left on the outside, and I never wanted them to understand.

Since my first lesson 12 years ago, the members of my dojang have become family. I have watched them grow up, finding my own happiness in theirs. Together, we have honed our kicks, blocks, and strikes. We have pushed one another to aim higher and become better martial artists. Although my dojang had searched for a reliable coach for years, we had not found one. When we attended competitions in the past, my teammates and I had always gotten lucky and found a sympathetic coach. Now, I knew this practice was unsustainable. It would devastate me to see the other members of my dojang in my situation, unable to compete and losing hope as a result. My dojang needed a coach, and I decided it was up to me to find one. 

I first approached the adults in the dojang – both instructors and members’ parents. However, these attempts only reacquainted me with polite refusals. Everyone I asked told me they couldn’t devote multiple weekends per year to competitions. I soon realized that I would have become the coach myself.

At first, the inner workings of tournaments were a mystery to me. To prepare myself for success as a coach, I spent the next year as an official and took coaching classes on the side. I learned everything from motivational strategies to technical, behind-the-scenes components of Taekwondo competitions. Though I emerged with new knowledge and confidence in my capabilities, others did not share this faith.

Parents threw me disbelieving looks when they learned that their children’s coach was only a child herself. My self-confidence was my armor, deflecting their surly glances. Every armor is penetrable, however, and as the relentless barrage of doubts pounded my resilience, it began to wear down. I grew unsure of my own abilities.

Despite the attack, I refused to give up. When I saw the shining eyes of the youngest students preparing for their first competition, I knew I couldn’t let them down. To quit would be to set them up to be barred from competing like I was. The knowledge that I could solve my dojang’s longtime problem motivated me to overcome my apprehension.

Now that my dojang flourishes at competitions, the attacks on me have weakened, but not ended. I may never win the approval of every parent; at times, I am still tormented by doubts, but I find solace in the fact that members of my dojang now only worry about competing to the best of their abilities.

Now, as I arrive at a tournament with my students, I close my eyes and remember the past. I visualize the frantic search for a coach and the chaos amongst my teammates as we competed with one another to find coaches before the staging calls for our respective divisions. I open my eyes to the exact opposite scene. Lacking a coach hurt my ability to compete, but I am proud to know that no member of my dojang will have to face that problem again.

This essay is great because it has a strong introduction and conclusion. The introduction is notably suspenseful and draws readers into the story. Because we know it is a college essay, we can assume that the student is one of the competitors, but at the same time, this introduction feels intentionally ambiguous as if the writer could be a competitor, a coach, a sibling of a competitor, or anyone else in the situation.

As we continue reading the essay, we learn that the writer is, in fact, the competitor. Readers also learn a lot about the student’s values as we hear their thoughts: “I knew I couldn’t let them down. To quit would be to set them up to be barred from competing like I was.” Ultimately, the conflict and inner and outer turmoil is resolved through the “Same, but Different” ending technique as the student places themself in the same environment that we saw in the intro, but experiencing it differently due to their actions throughout the narrative. This is a very compelling strategy!

Growing Sensitivity to Struggles

Prompt: The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? (650 words)

“You ruined my life!” After months of quiet anger, my brother finally confronted me. To my shame, I had been appallingly ignorant of his pain.

Despite being twins, Max and I are profoundly different. Having intellectual interests from a young age that, well, interested very few of my peers, I often felt out of step in comparison with my highly-social brother. Everything appeared to come effortlessly for Max and, while we share an extremely tight bond, his frequent time away with friends left me feeling more and more alone as we grew older.

When my parents learned about The Green Academy, we hoped it would be an opportunity for me to find not only an academically challenging environment, but also – perhaps more importantly – a community. This meant transferring the family from Drumfield to Kingston. And while there was concern about Max, we all believed that given his sociable nature, moving would be far less impactful on him than staying put might be on me.

As it turned out, Green Academy was everything I’d hoped for. I was ecstatic to discover a group of students with whom I shared interests and could truly engage. Preoccupied with new friends and a rigorous course load, I failed to notice that the tables had turned. Max, lost in the fray and grappling with how to make connections in his enormous new high school, had become withdrawn and lonely. It took me until Christmas time – and a massive argument – to recognize how difficult the transition had been for my brother, let alone that he blamed me for it.

Through my own journey of searching for academic peers, in addition to coming out as gay when I was 12, I had developed deep empathy for those who had trouble fitting in. It was a pain I knew well and could easily relate to. Yet after Max’s outburst, my first response was to protest that our parents – not I – had chosen to move us here. In my heart, though, I knew that regardless of who had made the decision, we ended up in Kingston for my benefit. I was ashamed that, while I saw myself as genuinely compassionate, I had been oblivious to the heartache of the person closest to me. I could no longer ignore it – and I didn’t want to.

We stayed up half the night talking, and the conversation took an unexpected turn. Max opened up and shared that it wasn’t just about the move. He told me how challenging school had always been for him, due to his dyslexia, and that the ever-present comparison to me had only deepened his pain.

We had been in parallel battles the whole time and, yet, I only saw that Max was in distress once he experienced problems with which I directly identified. I’d long thought Max had it so easy – all because he had friends. The truth was, he didn’t need to experience my personal brand of sorrow in order for me to relate – he had felt plenty of his own.

My failure to recognize Max’s suffering brought home for me the profound universality and diversity of personal struggle; everyone has insecurities, everyone has woes, and everyone – most certainly – has pain. I am acutely grateful for the conversations he and I shared around all of this, because I believe our relationship has been fundamentally strengthened by a deeper understanding of one another. Further, this experience has reinforced the value of constantly striving for deeper sensitivity to the hidden struggles of those around me. I won’t make the mistake again of assuming that the surface of someone’s life reflects their underlying story.

Here you can find a prime example that you don’t have to have fabulous imagery or flowery prose to write a successful essay. You just have to be clear and say something that matters. This essay is simple and beautiful. It almost feels like having a conversation with a friend and learning that they are an even better person than you already thought they were.

Through this narrative, readers learn a lot about the writer—where they’re from, what their family life is like, what their challenges were as a kid, and even their sexuality. We also learn a lot about their values—notably, the value they place on awareness, improvement, and consideration of others. Though they never explicitly state it (which is great because it is still crystal clear!), this student’s ending of “I won’t make the mistake again of assuming that the surface of someone’s life reflects their underlying story” shows that they are constantly striving for improvement and finding lessons anywhere they can get them in life.

Community Service/Impact on the Community

Colleges want students who will positively impact the campus community and go on to make change in the world after they graduate. This essay is similar to the Extracurricular Essay, but you need to focus on a situation where you impacted others. 

Learn more about how to write the Community Service Essay in our guide.

Academic Signing Day

Prompt: What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?

The scent of eucalyptus caressed my nose in a gentle breeze. Spring had arrived. Senior class activities were here. As a sophomore, I noticed a difference between athletic and academic seniors at my high school; one received recognition while the other received silence. I wanted to create an event celebrating students academically-committed to four-years, community colleges, trades schools, and military programs. This event was Academic Signing Day.

The leadership label, “Events Coordinator,” felt heavy on my introverted mind. I usually was setting up for rallies and spirit weeks, being overlooked around the exuberant nature of my peers. 

I knew a change of mind was needed; I designed flyers, painted posters, presented powerpoints, created student-led committees, and practiced countless hours for my introductory speech. Each committee would play a vital role on event day: one dedicated to refreshments, another to technology, and one for decorations. The fourth-month planning was a laborious joy, but I was still fearful of being in the spotlight. Being acknowledged by hundreds of people was new to me.     

The day was here. Parents filled the stands of the multi-purpose room. The atmosphere was tense; I could feel the angst building in my throat, worried about the impression I would leave. Applause followed each of the 400 students as they walked to their college table, indicating my time to speak. 

I walked up to the stand, hands clammy, expression tranquil, my words echoing to the audience. I thought my speech would be met by the sounds of crickets; instead, smiles lit up the stands, realizing my voice shone through my actions. I was finally coming out of my shell. The floor was met by confetti as I was met by the sincerity of staff, students, and parents, solidifying the event for years to come. 

Academic students were no longer overshadowed. Their accomplishments were equally recognized to their athletic counterparts. The school culture of athletics over academics was no longer imbalanced. Now, every time I smell eucalyptus, it is a friendly reminder that on Academic Signing Day, not only were academic students in the spotlight but so was my voice.

This essay answers the prompt nicely because the student describes a contribution with a lasting legacy. Academic Signing Day will affect this high school in the future and it affected this student’s self-development—an idea summed up nicely with their last phrase “not only were academic students in the spotlight but so was my voice.”

With Community Service essays, students sometimes take small contributions and stretch them. And, oftentimes, the stretch is very obvious. Here, the student shows us that Academic Signing Day actually mattered by mentioning four months of planning and hundreds of students and parents. They also make their involvement in Academic Signing Day clear—it was their idea and they were in charge, and that’s why they gave the introductory speech.

Use this response as an example of the type of focused contribution that makes for a convincing Community Service Essay.

Climate Change Rally

Prompt: What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time? (technically not community service, but the response works)

Let’s fast-forward time. Strides were made toward racial equality. Healthcare is accessible to all; however, one issue remains. Our aquatic ecosystems are parched with dead coral from ocean acidification. Climate change has prevailed.

Rewind to the present day.

My activism skills are how I express my concerns for the environment. Whether I play on sandy beaches or rest under forest treetops, nature offers me an escape from the haste of the world. When my body is met by trash in the ocean or my nose is met by harmful pollutants, Earth’s pain becomes my own. 

Substituting coffee grinds as fertilizer, using bamboo straws, starting my sustainable garden, my individual actions needed to reach a larger scale. I often found performative activism to be ineffective when communicating climate concerns. My days of reposting awareness graphics on social media never filled the ambition I had left to put my activism skills to greater use. I decided to share my ecocentric worldview with a coalition of environmentalists and host a climate change rally outside my high school.

Meetings were scheduled where I informed students about the unseen impact they have on the oceans and local habitual communities. My fingers were cramped from all the constant typing and investigating of micro causes of the Pacific Waste Patch, creating reusable flyers, displaying steps people could take from home in reducing their carbon footprint. I aided my fellow environmentalists in translating these flyers into other languages, repeating this process hourly, for five days, up until rally day.  

It was 7:00 AM. The faces of 100 students were shouting, “The climate is changing, why can’t we?” I proudly walked on the dewy grass, grabbing the microphone, repeating those same words. The rally not only taught me efficient methods of communication but it echoed my environmental activism to the masses. The City of Corona would be the first of many cities to see my activism, as more rallies were planned for various parts of SoCal. My once unfulfilled ambition was fueled by my tangible activism, understanding that it takes more than one person to make an environmental impact.

Like with the last example, this student describes a focused event with a lasting legacy. That’s a perfect place to start! By the end of this essay, we have an image of the cause of this student’s passion and the effect of this student’s passion. There are no unanswered questions.

This student supplements their focused topic with engaging and exciting writing to make for an easy-to-read and enjoyable essay. One of the largest strengths of this response is its pace. From the very beginning, we are invited to “fast-forward” and “rewind” with the writer. Then, after we center ourselves in real-time, this writer keeps their quick pace with sentences like “Substituting coffee grounds as fertilizer, using bamboo straws, starting my sustainable garden, my individual actions needed to reach a larger scale.” Community Service essays run the risk of turning boring, but this unique pacing keeps things interesting.

Having a diverse class provides a richness of different perspectives and encourages open-mindedness among the student body. The Diversity Essay is also somewhat similar to the Extracurricular and Community Service Essays, but it focuses more on what you might bring to the campus community because of your unique experiences or identities.

Learn more about how to write the Diversity Essay in our guide.

A Story of a Young Skater

​​“Everyone follow me!” I smiled at five wide-eyed skaters before pushing off into a spiral. I glanced behind me hopefully, only to see my students standing frozen like statues, the fear in their eyes as clear as the ice they swayed on. “Come on!” I said encouragingly, but the only response I elicited was the slow shake of their heads. My first day as a Learn-to-Skate coach was not going as planned. 

But amid my frustration, I was struck by how much my students reminded me of myself as a young skater. At seven, I had been fascinated by Olympic performers who executed thrilling high jumps and dizzying spins with apparent ease, and I dreamed to one day do the same. My first few months on skates, however, sent these hopes crashing down: my attempts at slaloms and toe-loops were shadowed by a stubborn fear of falling, which even the helmet, elbow pads, and two pairs of mittens I had armed myself with couldn’t mitigate. Nonetheless, my coach remained unfailingly optimistic, motivating me through my worst spills and teaching me to find opportunities in failures. With his encouragement, I learned to push aside my fears and attack each jump with calm and confidence; it’s the hope that I can help others do the same that now inspires me to coach.

I remember the day a frustrated staff member directed Oliver, a particularly hesitant young skater, toward me, hoping that my patience and steady encouragement might help him improve. Having stood in Oliver’s skates not much earlier myself, I completely empathized with his worries but also saw within him the potential to overcome his fears and succeed. 

To alleviate his anxiety, I held Oliver’s hand as we inched around the rink, cheering him on at every turn. I soon found though, that this only increased his fear of gliding on his own, so I changed my approach, making lessons as exciting as possible in hopes that he would catch the skating bug and take off. In the weeks that followed, we held relay races, played “freeze-skate” and “ice-potato”, and raced through obstacle courses; gradually, with each slip and subsequent success, his fear began to abate. I watched Oliver’s eyes widen in excitement with every skill he learned, and not long after, he earned his first skating badge. Together we celebrated this milestone, his ecstasy fueling my excitement and his pride mirroring my own. At that moment, I was both teacher and student, his progress instilling in me the importance of patience and a positive attitude. 

It’s been more than ten years since I bundled up and stepped onto the ice for the first time. Since then, my tolerance for the cold has remained stubbornly low, but the rest of me has certainly changed. In sharing my passion for skating, I have found a wonderful community of eager athletes, loving parents, and dedicated coaches from whom I have learned invaluable lessons and wisdom. My fellow staffers have been with me, both as friends and colleagues, and the relationships I’ve formed have given me far more poise, confidence, and appreciation for others. Likewise, my relationships with parents have given me an even greater gratitude for the role they play: no one goes to the rink without a parent behind the wheel! 

Since that first lesson, I have mentored dozens of children, and over the years, witnessed tentative steps transform into powerful glides and tears give way to delighted grins. What I have shared with my students has been among the greatest joys of my life, something I will cherish forever. It’s funny: when I began skating, what pushed me through the early morning practices was the prospect of winning an Olympic medal. Now, what excites me is the chance to work with my students, to help them grow, and to give back to the sport that has brought me so much happiness. 

This response is a great example of how Diversity doesn’t have to mean race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, age, or ability. Diversity can mean whatever you want it to mean—whatever unique experience(s) you have to bring to the table!

A major strength of this essay comes in its narrative organization. When reading this first paragraph, we feel for the young skaters and understand their fear—skating sounds scary! Then, because the writer sets us up to feel this empathy, the transition to the second paragraph where the student describes their empathy for the young skaters is particularly powerful. It’s like we are all in it together! The student’s empathy for the young skaters also serves as an outstanding, seamless transition to the applicant discussing their personal journey with skating: “I was struck by how much my students reminded me of myself as a young skater.”

This essay positions the applicant as a grounded and caring individual. They are caring towards the young skaters—changing their teaching style to try to help the young skaters and feeling the young skaters’ emotions with them—but they are also appreciative to those who helped them as they reference their fellow staffers and parents. This shows great maturity—a favorable quality in the eyes of an admissions officer.

At the end of the essay, we know a lot about this student and are convinced that they would be a good addition to a college campus!

Finding Community in the Rainforest

Prompt: Duke University seeks a talented, engaged student body that embodies the wide range of human experience; we believe that the diversity of our students makes our community stronger. If you’d like to share a perspective you bring or experiences you’ve had to help us understand you better—perhaps related to a community you belong to, your sexual orientation or gender identity, or your family or cultural background—we encourage you to do so. Real people are reading your application, and we want to do our best to understand and appreciate the real people applying to Duke (250 words).

I never understood the power of community until I left home to join seven strangers in the Ecuadorian rainforest. Although we flew in from distant corners of the U.S., we shared a common purpose: immersing ourselves in our passion for protecting the natural world.

Back home in my predominantly conservative suburb, my neighbors had brushed off environmental concerns. My classmates debated the feasibility of Trump’s wall, not the deteriorating state of our planet. Contrastingly, these seven strangers delighted in bird-watching, brightened at the mention of medicinal tree sap, and understood why I once ran across a four-lane highway to retrieve discarded beer cans. Their histories barely resembled mine, yet our values aligned intimately. We did not hesitate to joke about bullet ants, gush about the versatility of tree bark, or discuss the destructive consequences of materialism. Together, we let our inner tree huggers run free.

In the short life of our little community, we did what we thought was impossible. By feeding on each other’s infectious tenacity, we cultivated an atmosphere that deepened our commitment to our values and empowered us to speak out on behalf of the environment. After a week of stimulating conversations and introspective revelations about engaging people from our hometowns in environmental advocacy, we developed a shared determination to devote our lives to this cause.

As we shared a goodbye hug, my new friend whispered, “The world needs saving. Someone’s gotta do it.” For the first time, I believed that someone could be me.

This response is so wholesome and relatable. We all have things that we just need to geek out over and this student expresses the joy that came when they found a community where they could geek out about the environment. Passion is fundamental to university life and should find its way into successful applications.

Like the last response, this essay finds strength in the fact that readers feel for the student. We get a little bit of backstory about where they come from and how they felt silenced—“Back home in my predominantly conservative suburb, my neighbors had brushed off environmental concerns”—, so it’s easy to feel joy for them when they get set free.

This student displays clear values: community, ecoconsciousness, dedication, and compassion. An admissions officer who reads Diversity essays is looking for students with strong values and a desire to contribute to a university community—sounds like this student!  

Political/Global Issues

Colleges want to build engaged citizens, and the Political/Global Issues Essay allows them to better understand what you care about and whether your values align with theirs. In this essay, you’re most commonly asked to describe an issue, why you care about it, and what you’ve done or hope to do to address it. 

Learn more about how to write the Political/Global Issues Essay in our guide.

Note: this prompt is not a typical political/global issues essay, but the essay itself would be a strong response to a political/global issues prompt.

Fighting Violence Against Women

Prompt: Using a favorite quotation from an essay or book you have read in the last three years as a starting point, tell us about an event or experience that helped you define one of your values or changed how you approach the world. Please write the quotation, title and author at the beginning of your essay. (250-650 words)

“One of the great challenges of our time is that the disparities we face today have more complex causes and point less straightforwardly to solutions.” 

– Omar Wasow, assistant professor of politics, Princeton University. This quote is taken from Professor Wasow’s January 2014 speech at the Martin Luther King Day celebration at Princeton University. 

The air is crisp and cool, nipping at my ears as I walk under a curtain of darkness that drapes over the sky, starless. It is a Friday night in downtown Corpus Christi, a rare moment of peace in my home city filled with the laughter of strangers and colorful lights of street vendors. But I cannot focus. 

My feet stride quickly down the sidewalk, my hand grasps on to the pepper spray my parents gifted me for my sixteenth birthday. My eyes ignore the surrounding city life, focusing instead on a pair of tall figures walking in my direction. I mentally ask myself if they turned with me on the last street corner. I do not remember, so I pick up the pace again. All the while, my mind runs over stories of young women being assaulted, kidnapped, and raped on the street. I remember my mother’s voice reminding me to keep my chin up, back straight, eyes and ears alert. 

At a young age, I learned that harassment is a part of daily life for women. I fell victim to period-shaming when I was thirteen, received my first catcall when I was fourteen, and was nonconsensually grabbed by a man soliciting on the street when I was fifteen. For women, assault does not just happen to us— its gory details leave an imprint in our lives, infecting the way we perceive the world. And while movements such as the Women’s March and #MeToo have given victims of sexual violence a voice, harassment still manifests itself in the lives of millions of women across the nation. Symbolic gestures are important in spreading awareness but, upon learning that a surprising number of men are oblivious to the frequent harassment that women experience, I now realize that addressing this complex issue requires a deeper level of activism within our local communities. 

Frustrated with incessant cases of harassment against women, I understood at sixteen years old that change necessitates action. During my junior year, I became an intern with a judge whose campaign for office focused on a need for domestic violence reform. This experience enabled me to engage in constructive dialogue with middle and high school students on how to prevent domestic violence. As I listened to young men uneasily admit their ignorance and young women bravely share their experiences in an effort to spread awareness, I learned that breaking down systems of inequity requires changing an entire culture. I once believed that the problem of harassment would dissipate after politicians and celebrities denounce inappropriate behavior to their global audience. But today, I see that effecting large-scale change comes from the “small” lessons we teach at home and in schools. Concerning women’s empowerment, the effects of Hollywood activism do not trickle down enough. Activism must also trickle up and it depends on our willingness to fight complacency. 

Finding the solution to the long-lasting problem of violence against women is a work-in-progress, but it is a process that is persistently moving. In my life, for every uncomfortable conversation that I bridge, I make the world a bit more sensitive to the unspoken struggle that it is to be a woman. I am no longer passively waiting for others to let me live in a world where I can stand alone under the expanse of darkness on a city street, utterly alone and at peace. I, too, deserve the night sky.

As this student addresses an important social issue, she makes the reasons for her passion clear—personal experiences. Because she begins with an extended anecdote, readers are able to feel connected to the student and become invested in what she has to say.

Additionally, through her powerful ending—“I, too, deserve the night sky”—which connects back to her beginning— “as I walk under a curtain of darkness that drapes over the sky”—this student illustrates a mastery of language. Her engagement with other writing techniques that further her argument, like the emphasis on time—“gifted to me for my sixteenth birthday,” “when I was thirteen,” “when I was fourteen,” etc.—also illustrates her mastery of language.

While this student proves herself a good writer, she also positions herself as motivated and ambitious. She turns her passions into action and fights for them. That is just what admissions officers want to see in a Political/Global issues essay!

Where to Get Feedback on Your College Essays

Once you’ve written your college essays, you’ll want to get feedback on them. Since these essays are important to your chances of acceptance, you should prepare to go through several rounds of edits. 

Not sure who to ask for feedback? That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review resource. You can get comments from another student going through the process and also edit other students’ essays to improve your own writing. 

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools.  Find the right advisor for you  to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

• Search All Scholarships
• Exclusive Scholarships
• Easy Scholarships to Apply For
• No Essay Scholarships
• Scholarships for HS Juniors
• Scholarships for HS Seniors
• Scholarships for College Students
• Scholarships for Grad Students
• Scholarships for Women
• Scholarships for Black Students
• Scholarships
• Student Loans
• College Admissions
• Financial Aid
• Scholarship Winners
• Scholarship Providers

Apply to vetted scholarship programs in one click

Student-centric advice and objective recommendations.

Higher education has never been more confusing or expensive. Our goal is to help you navigate the very big decisions related to higher ed with objective information and expert advice. Each piece of content on the site is original, based on extensive research, and reviewed by multiple editors, including a subject matter expert. This ensures that all of our content is up-to-date, useful, accurate, and thorough.

Our reviews and recommendations are based on extensive research, testing, and feedback. We may receive commission from links on our website, but that doesn’t affect our editors’ opinions. Our marketing partners don’t review, approve or endorse our editorial content. It’s accurate to the best of our knowledge when posted. You can find a complete list of our partners here .

How to Write a College Transfer Essay (With Examples)

Lisa Freedland is a Scholarships360 writer with personal experience in psychological research and content writing. She has written content for an online fact-checking organization and has conducted research at the University of Southern California as well as the University of California, Irvine. Lisa graduated from the University of Southern California in Fall 2021 with a degree in Psychology.

Learn about our editorial policies

Bill Jack has over a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. Since 2008, he has worked at Colby College, Wesleyan University, University of Maine at Farmington, and Bates College.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, over 1.2 million students are enrolled in college as a transfer student. Students may transfer for a variety of reasons ranging from academics to athletics to geography.

If you are in the process of transferring colleges it’s likely that you will have to write a personal essay as part of your transfer admissions process. Ultimately, there’s no one way to write a college transfer essay. Everyone is unique, and this individuality should shine through in your essays.

However, there are some recommended things to include, and even a real example essay that was used to successfully transfer college! In this post, we’ll help you write a powerful transfer essay so you can tell your story to the admissions committee.

Jump ahead to…

• Do’s and don’ts
• Why did you choose your current school?

What are your main reasons for transferring out of your current school?

Why do you want to attend the transfer school.

• Example essay

Additional resources

• Key takeaways
• Frequently asked questions

College transfer essays: The do’s and don’ts

Before we start, we want to cover a few basics do’s and don’ts about what your transfer essays should be about.

• Elaborate on how your current school has helped you progress towards your goals. Positivity is always a good thing!
• Research your prospective school (e.g. specific classes, organizations, opportunities) for why you want to go there.
• Make sure to follow the standard/correct essay format! Transfer essay prompts may vary from college to college so you should make sure that you’re answering the exact question.
• Use up your limited word count by listing negative aspects about your current school. Instead, focus on how it has helped you grow, but how another school could further help you develop your interests/passions 
• List a group of random classes or opportunities available at your new school. Mention opportunities you’re (genuinely) interested in that relate to your goals and passions – make sure you’re telling a story through your essay.
• Copy your initial admissions essay (the one that you used when applying to colleges in high school) – you’ve changed a lot during your time in college so you will want to write a brand new essay.

Apply to these scholarships due soon

$10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship

$2,000 Sallie Mae Scholarship

Making the Leap Scholarship for Transfer Students

$40,000 BigFuture Scholarship

Herbert Lehman Education Fund Scholarship

Niche $10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship

U.S. Western Digital STEM Scholarships

Martin Achievement Scholarship

$25k “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship

What is the goal of the transfer essay.

Potential transfer students should know that not all colleges and universities require transfer essays, so when in doubt definitely check-in with the college in question for clarification. For the purposes of this article and the sample transfer essay, we’ll be using this prompt:

Please provide a statement that addresses your reasons for transferring and the objectives you hope to achieve. 

Most colleges will be interested in learning why you want to transfer and how transferring will help you achieve your goals. However, specific prompts will vary from college to college, so you should definitely pay attention to the specific prompt you are asked to respond to.

Some of the common questions you’ll come across include:

• How will your transfer school help you accomplish your goals?

Below I’ll break down how to respond to each of these questions and include an example from a successful transfer essay.

Also see: Can you transfer into an ivy league school?

Why did you choose your current school? 

To answer this question, you’ll have to go back in time when you were in 12th grade and selecting your college. Did you choose the college because it had a program you liked? Maybe you really wanted to take classes with a specific professor? Maybe you thought you wanted to attend college in a specific part of the world? Whatever the reason you should lay it out in the most factual way possible.

Here’s how I responded to this question:

Just like Jeopardy, Criminal Minds is also a show that I have watched from a very young age, and one that I continue to watch quite regularly. Being exposed to this interesting world of FBI profilers for so long inspired me to want to dive into the world of psychology myself. Due to this, I originally chose the University of Wisconsin, Madison for its amazing psychology program, and because I wanted to try something new. Being from California, this “something new” came in the form of watching snow fall from the sky, seeing cheese curds being sold in all the grocery stores, and simply living somewhere far away from home.

Also see: How to write a 250 word essay

This is always an important question for transfer admissions officers: why did your current college not work out? We recommend that students be as honest as possible and stick to the facts (as opposed to simply complaining about your current school).

Students have very different reasons for changing schools, which often depend on what type of school you’re transferring from (a 2-year or 4-year). While many community college students transfer because their plans did work out and they’ve accomplished what they wanted to at their school, those transferring from four-year universities often do so for less positive reasons (which was my experience).

If the situation at your college didn’t exactly pan out as you thought it would, you should also try to talk about some of the ways you are making the most of the situation. This shows the admissions officers that despite the less-than-ideal circumstances, you have continued to learn, grow, and contribute to your community.

Here’s how I accomplished this:

Arriving in Wisconsin, I got exactly what I wanted: an amazing psychology program and the experience of being somewhere quite different from the place I called home. My classes were interesting, my professors were helpful and caring, and experiencing the first snow was quite exciting. However, as winter progressed, walking back from class everyday under the progressively gloomier sky seemed to be a cruel reminder that I was no longer in sunny Southern California. While eating dinner in our many dining halls, I always viewed the wide array of food available: quesadillas, Chinese food, burgers, even pecan pie. The food was all delicious, but going day after day without even seeing Korean food once made me miss those fun dinners with my family. Back at my dorm, my “home away from home”, it started to feel like anything but being at home. To feel more comfortable where I was, I decided to pursue things I liked, and that I was familiar with. My passion for psychology led me to join the university’s Psychology Club, where I was able to learn about recent revelations within the field of psychology, furthering my interest in the subject. 

Going through the admissions process as a transfer student is interesting, because you have learned a lot about yourself and your preferences at your first college. This should provide you with a great perspective on what you are looking for next.

The two major things you’ll want to accomplish when answering this question are why the transfer college in question is a good fit for you and how it can help you accomplish your goals as a student.

Specificity is always more ideal here so you can show that you have spent some time thinking about what you want and also how the new college fits.

Here’s how I did this:

I plan on using the knowledge I gain in psychology, either from organizations or classes, to help people. I want to one day apply this knowledge to research, to discover possible methods to help the people suffering from the psychological problems I study. Alternatively, I hope to use this knowledge as a criminal profiler, using my understanding of psychology to narrow down pools of suspects.  To be able to accomplish either of these, I need to develop a much deeper understanding of both people’s motivations for the things they do as well as of the many psychological issues people face. For these reasons, I am very excited at the prospect of exploring and enrolling in the classes offered by USC’s Department of Psychology. In particular, Psych 360: Abnormal Psychology would be an amazing introduction to psychological disorders and their causes. Psych 314L: Research Methods would then help me put this knowledge about disorders to good use by teaching me how to properly conduct research and find possible solutions for people’s problems.

College transfer essays: an example

Here we go! Throughout this article, I’ve shown you my college essay divided into sections, and now’s time for the full thing. I can honestly say that this essay had a 100% success rate! Without further ado, here is my full college transfer essay (and prompt):

Prompt: Please provide a statement that addresses your reasons for transferring and the objectives you hope to achieve. 

I wake up from my daily after-school nap to realize that it is already dinner time. As I walk downstairs, I smell the delicious fragrance coming from my mom’s samgyetang (Korean ginseng chicken soup), one of my favorite meals. Soon enough, everyone sits down to watch the newest episode of Jeopardy , a tradition we’ve had going on for as long as I can remember. As I take that first sip of samgyetang, and miss yet another geography question on Jeopardy – and wait for my family to inevitably tease me about it – I feel at home, like I am somewhere that I belong. Wherever I go, I hope I can encounter that same warm feeling. Just like Jeopardy , Criminal Minds is also a show that I have watched from a very young age, and one that I continue to watch quite regularly. Being exposed to this interesting world of FBI profilers for so long inspired me to want to dive into the world of psychology myself. Due to this, I originally chose the University of Wisconsin, Madison for its amazing psychology program, and because I wanted to try something new. Being from California, this “something new” came in the form of watching snow fall from the sky, seeing cheese curds being sold in all the grocery stores, and simply living somewhere far away from home. Arriving in Wisconsin, I got exactly what I wanted: an amazing psychology program and the experience of being somewhere quite different from the place I called home. My classes were interesting, my professors were helpful and caring, and experiencing the first snow was quite exciting. However, as winter progressed, walking back from class everyday under the progressively gloomier sky seemed to be a cruel reminder that I was no longer in sunny Southern California. While eating dinner in our many dining halls, I always viewed the wide array of food available: quesadillas, Chinese food, burgers, even pecan pie. The food was all delicious, but going day after day without even seeing Korean food once, it made me miss those fun dinners with my family. Back at my dorm, my “home away from home,” it started to feel like anything but being at home. To feel more comfortable where I was, I decided to pursue things I liked, and that I was familiar with. My passion for psychology led me to join the university’s Psychology Club, where I was able to learn about recent revelations within the field of psychology, furthering my interest in the subject. I plan on using the knowledge I gain in psychology, either from organizations or classes, to help people. I want to one day apply this knowledge to research, to discover possible methods to help the people suffering from the psychological problems I study. Alternatively, I hope to use this knowledge as a criminal profiler, using my understanding of psychology to narrow down pools of suspects.  To be able to accomplish either of these, I need to develop a much deeper understanding of both people’s motivations for the things they do as well as of the many psychological issues people face. For these reasons, I am very excited at the prospect of exploring and enrolling in the classes offered by USC’s Department of Psychology. In particular, Psych 360: Abnormal Psychology would be an amazing introduction to psychological disorders and their causes. Psych 314L: Research Methods would then help me put this knowledge about disorders to good use by teaching me how to properly conduct research and find possible solutions for people’s problems. With so many opportunities available at USC, I hope to not only help others feel more comfortable, but to find a second home for myself after all.

And that’s it! This essay touches on all of the tips listed above, and should serve as helpful inspiration as you begin your writing. Hopefully, it gives you an idea of how to integrate everything you should mention in a cohesive essay. With that, I wish you good luck with your college transfer essays (and applications)!

Don’t miss: What looks good on a college application?

If you finish your essay and still have questions about the transfer process, consider checking out these Scholarships360 resources:

• How to transfer colleges
• How to transfer from a community college
• Top scholarships for transfer students
• How to choose a college
• What’s the difference between a private and public university?

Key Takeaways

• Explain why you want to transfer, what you need that you are not getting at your current school, and why you chose your current school to begin with
• Always present things in a positive light
• Share how the transfer school will help you achieve your goals and why you are a good fit for the school

Frequently asked questions about writing college transfer essays 

How are college transfer essays different from regular application essays, do all schools require transfer essays, can i reuse my old college essays for a transfer, what should you not say in a transfer essay, scholarships360 recommended.

10 Tips for Successful College Applications

Coalition vs. Common App: What is the difference?

College Application Deadlines 2023-2024: What You Need to Know

Trending now.

How to Convert Your GPA to a 4.0 Scale

PSAT to SAT Score Conversion: Predict Your Score

What Are Public Ivy League Schools?

3 reasons to join scholarships360.

• Automatic entry to our $10,000 No-Essay Scholarship
• Personalized matching to thousands of vetted scholarships
• Quick apply for scholarships exclusive to our platform

By the way...Scholarships360 is 100% free!