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What Should I Write My College Essay About?

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What Should I Write My College Essay About?
2025/10/02

Lauren P.

Head of Essay Mentoring @ Crimson

Summary

Finding a college essay topic starts with reflection, not just description. Prompts about family, childhood, values, and challenges help uncover meaningful stories. Short exercises and self-check questions guide you from surface memories to deeper insights, making your essay both authentic and distinct

When the students I work with start brainstorming their personal statements, the initial excitement wears off and they are left with the daunting question of: how do I find my story?
It’s not that they don’t have stories, far from it. I’ll never forget Sazi’s essay about rediscovering the meaning of belonging in his grandfather’s village or Ryan’s essay about how we found the meaning of connection behind the drums. 
The main struggle I see time and time again is how do I both find and tell my story. If it feels daunting, take a deep breath. I promise you that it’s not as bad as it seems. 
If prompts like “write about love” or “write your life story in a page,” make you want to run away from your computer screen, there’s a way you can make that painless and, dare I say… even fun. 
Think of finding the right topic like going on a road trip that has so many unexpected twists and turns. You want to take in all the good stuff while avoiding any unnecessary detours that lead us away from our destination. 
In the brainstorming phase, the biggest trap is “writing to describe” instead of “writing to reflect.”

Why does writing to reflect matter?

When I ask my students to “write about a scar,” “write about your old street,” or “write an apology,” it’s easy in the brainstorming stage to focus on the “what happened” rather than the “why behind it.”
The best essay makes meaning from the moment and connects a small, specific experience to something larger. That’s why the best essays aren’t just stories, they’re reflections of who you are and how you’ve grown.
So we’ve taken some of the best creative essay prompts you might hear from a teacher, workshop, or college counselors, and broken down how to approach them so they actually work in your personal statement or supplemental essays.
Key Reminder

The best essays make meaning from moments. Don’t just describe what happened—reflect on why it mattered and how it shaped you.

Prompts That Reveal Who You Are Under Pressure

Think of these as opportunities to show admissions officers not just what happened when life got hard, but how you changed because of it.
Examples of these sorts of prompts:
Write about a scar
Write about anger management
Write an apology
Write about a lie
Write about something you know for sure
Try this approach

Instead of focusing on what happened, focus on what changed. Ask yourself:

  • What belief did this experience challenge?

  • Did I react the way I wish I had?

  • How has this moment stuck with me?

Exercise: Pressure Reflection Exercise

Write for 10 minutes about a time you lost your temper, made a mistake, or faced a challenge. When you finish, underline where your perspective changed. That shift, not the event itself is where your essay lives.

One student wrote about breaking a window during a tantrum in middle school. On the surface, it seemed like a story about losing control. But as the essay unfolded, it became about learning emotional regulation and how that shifted their relationship with their father.
– Lauren

Prompts About Family & Origin

Family stories are powerful because they don’t just show who our loved ones are. They also reveal how we’ve been shaped by them, and how we’re starting to define ourselves on our own terms.
Examples of these sorts of prompts:
Write your mother’s life story
Write about how your parents met
Write about a sibling, aunt, or cousin
Tell your life story from your mother’s or father’s point of view
Write about your parent’s best friend
Write about your great-grandmother
Try this approach

Think of your family member as a window into your own growth. Ask yourself:

  • What do I admire or fear in this person?

  • How have they influenced who I am or who I don’t want to become?

  • What values or questions have I inherited from them?

Exercise: Family Influence Mapping

Draw a quick family tree. Next to three names, jot one value, habit, or lesson you associate with that person. Circle the one that feels most complicated or meaningful. That’s your best essay starting point.

A student wrote their mother’s life story, but told it through objects she kept in a junk drawer. Each item sparked a memory, and those memories revealed the student’s own questions about resilience and sacrifice.
– Lauren

Prompts About Childhood and Memory

Some of the most meaningful essays grow out of our earliest memories. Childhood stories might seem small on the surface, but they often carry the big emotions we experienced, such as wonder, fear, joy, or discovery, that still echo years later.
Examples of these sorts of prompts:
Write about when you were eight years old
Write your first memory
Write from a child’s point of view
Write about a babysitter
Write about something your parents don’t know about you
Try this approach

Zoom in on one day or one detail. Don’t just describe what happened. Show how it felt and why it still lingers with you now.

Exercise: Memory Snapshot Drill

List three early memories. For each, write down one smell, one sound, and one feeling you remember. Pick the memory with the strongest details and explore how it connects to who you are now.

One student wrote about trying to build a zipline in their backyard as a kid. What started as a funny childhood story turned into a reflection on risk, trust, and the early beginnings of their love for engineering.
– Lauren

Prompts That Engage Values and Belief Systems

Essays that touch on values and beliefs can be especially revealing. They bring to light how you think, what you question, and the moral compass that guides you.
Examples of these sorts of prompts:
Write about one of the Ten Commandments
Write about one of the Seven Deadly Sins
Write about someone you greatly dislike
Write about popularity
Write about a goddess
Try this approach

Start with a personal story that complicates or questions the value in question. Ask yourself:

  • When was a time I thought I was right and realized I wasn’t?

  • What’s a belief I’ve had to revaluate?

  • Where have I encountered a moral gray area?

Exercise: Values Check

Write down five beliefs you hold strongly. Now, star the one you’ve ever doubted, bent, or changed. Draft a short paragraph on what shifted—that’s where your essay becomes honest and revealing.

A student wrote about growing up idolizing academic success—until they realized they had started to equate self-worth with GPA. The “sin” they explored was Pride, but the real story was about how their perspective on achievement began to shift.
– Lauren

Prompts That Invite Creativity and Risk

Some of the most memorable essays come from taking a creative leap by experimenting with style, imagery, or metaphor. The key is to make sure the creativity serves the story, not the other way around.
Examples of these sorts of prompts:
Write a list of instructions on how to love
Write about the sea
Write about gardening
Write about the view from your window
Write in the second person
Try this approach

Let metaphor lead the first draft but ground it in real moments. Ask yourself:

  • What larger feeling or idea does this image represent?
  • Can I pair this abstract idea with a story?
  • Is the style enhancing the content or distracting from it?
Exercise: Metaphor Builder

Choose an everyday object around you (a shoe, a plant, a snack). Write three sentences comparing it to a bigger idea love, fear, growth, or identity. The best metaphors come from the ordinary.

A student wrote “Instructions on How to Love a Goldfish,” but it was actually about their fear of losing people they care about. It was quirky, vulnerable, and moving and gave admissions officers a real glimpse into their emotional depth.
– Lauren

Prompts That Explore Journey and Place

Sometimes a place, or the journey through it, leaves an imprint that goes far beyond the setting itself. These essays work well when the location becomes a lens for personal change, not just scenery in the background..
Examples of these sorts of prompts:
Write about a road trip or vacation
Write about your old street or first house
Write about a hotel or camping
Try this approach

Choose a setting that changed you—not just a place you liked. Ask yourself:

  • What happened there that wouldn’t have happened anywhere else?

  • How do I view this place differently now than I did at the time?

Exercise: Place as Symbol

Pick a location tied to a strong memory. Write two lists: how you saw the place then, and how you see it now. Compare the lists, the differences reveal the story you need to tell.

One student wrote about moving into a basement apartment after their parents’ divorce. The space itself became symbolic of emotional change: its smallness made them feel safe, while its darkness taught them to listen more closely.
– Lauren

Combine Prompts for Unexpected Essays

Some of the most unexpectedly original essays come from pairing two prompts that don’t seem to belong together at first. The tension between them can create surprising connections and lead you somewhere no single prompt would have taken you.
Pairing Ideas:
“Write about a scar” + “Write an apology” = forgiveness, resilience
“Write about the sea” + “Write from a child’s point of view” = wonder, fear, inheritance
“Write about your mother” + “Write a list of instructions” = love as a verb, not a feeling
“Write about gardening” + “Write about anger management” = patience, self-discipline, and growth.”
This kind of blending not only helps you avoid clichés, it also gives your essay a structure that feels uniquely your own.

Final Thoughts

Admissions officers aren’t keeping a checklist of what kind of story you’re telling. They want to see how you think, feel, and reflect. Whether you’re writing about a babysitter or your great-grandmother, what matters is that the essay sounds like YOU. Your voice, your insight, your complexity.
So when you choose a prompt, ask not just “What happened?” but:
Why do I still think about this?
What did this moment teach me?
How can I help someone feel what I felt?
That’s the story worth telling. But here’s the catch: even the most heartfelt essays can lose their impact if they tread the same well-worn paths admissions officers have read hundreds of times. 
In the next section, we’ll explore how to sidestep common cliché topics and craft an essay that feels unmistakably, distinctively yours.

Editor

Lauren P.

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