Babson College 2023-24 Supplemental Essay Prompt Guide

Babson College 2023-24 Application Essay Question Explanations 

The Requirements: One essay of 500 words; one essay of 250 words (or a video submission instead)

Supplemental Essay Type(s): Why, Community

The Babson education prepares students for all types of careers across business, entrepreneurship, social innovation, and more. Tell us about your interest in this area of study and in Babson specifically. (500 words maximum)

There’s only one trick to generating a straightforward explanation of your academic interests: be honest. Don’t waste time trying to think of what admissions “wants” you to say! Try to tell a story about your choices and intended area of study. How can you use your life experiences to reveal something about what you value and what excites you intellectually? The essays that stick with us are the ones that jump off the page with concrete descriptions from real life. What interests you and why? Connect your intended major to some prior experience and/or passion; how have you gone about learning more about your subject of interest? Finally, connect your interest to Babson, specifically. Spend about a half hour doing some research on the school’s website to identify courses, clubs, or other aspects of the campus and city that will enrich your education and experience there as a student. 

We invite you to submit your answer in either essay OR video format. If you choose to submit a video, please limit your response to a 1-minute video, which can be submitted via a shared link to YouTube or another video hosting website. Please ensure your video is set to public and is accessible to the Admission Committee.

A defining element of the Babson experience is learning and thriving in an equitable and inclusive community with a wide range of perspectives and interests. Please share something about your background, lived experiences, or viewpoint(s) that speaks to how you will contribute to and learn from Babson’s collaborative community. (250 words maximum)

Odds are that this isn’t the first Diversity Essay prompt you’ve come across this year—even if the prompt doesn’t explicitly use the word. If it is, however, please read on. Babson wants to accept students from a range of backgrounds who will contribute to a collaborative university community, so tell admissions about what makes you you and how you will engage with others on campus. Think about times when people have been intrigued by or curious about your identity, skillset, or background. Maybe your mom was the first female VP at the brokerage she works for, and you want to follow in her footsteps, breaking ground for women in the finance industry. Perhaps you lived abroad for a few years, which imbued you with a uniquely international perspective on the American economy, and you hope to explore that topic with your roommates. What do you hope to share with others about your lived experience? How will you incorporate this element of your identity into your college years? Show admissions that you’re eager to contribute to their inclusive campus community. Bonus points if you can reference a specific component of the Babson experience (think clubs, classes, volunteer opportunities, etc.) to show you’ve done your due diligence.

If you decide to record a video instead of writing an essay, make sure you write an outline so you don’t waste 15 seconds with “ums” and “uhs”! Everyone is different; maybe a list of bullets is enough for you or maybe you want to write an entire script and have your sibling hold it up for you like a cue card. You can record in either landscape or portrait mode, just make sure your entire face is visible in the frame and that you look tidy, but no need to go full glam or to do a full-body shot. Just be your natural self!