In this article, we’ll be covering how to write the Colorado College essays.

Of course, before we do that, it’s important to address one of the most commonly asked questions.

“What on Earth am I supposed to write about in the Colorado College essay prompts?”

Well, that question could be applied to pretty much any kind of college essay prompt. If you’re not sure what to write about in any of your college essays, one good rule to use is the Common Data Set. Specifically, you can use the priority list in the Common Data Set as a guide on what topics to put a heavier emphasis on when writing your college essays.

The above photo was sourced from Colorado College’s Common Data Set. In it, you can see that some factors are less important than others. Class rank and Standardized test scores are considered, but not as important as other factors like the application essay and recommendation letter.

For Colorado College, the rigor of the classes you took is the most important factor. That means taking more advanced or AP/IB courses whenever you can challenge yourself.

*Note: some high schools do not have as many AP/IB courses as others. Because some applicants will have more advanced courses due to accessibility issues, colleges such as Colorado College typically take this into account. So, don’t worry about having fewer AP/IB courses than students from other colleges. The school will keep this in mind.

Taking the Common Data Set into account, you should be focusing your essay content more on challenging yourself academically and the extracurricular activities you’ve engaged in.

That does NOT mean that you can’t write about being a first-generation student, and it does not mean you cannot write about your volunteer work. Those topics CAN be used if you believe you can spin them in a way that will help you stand out amongst other applicants. Remember: the Common Data Set is NOT a set of rules on what to write about in your Colorado College essays. It’s just a list of factors that may be more important than others; so, you should use it as a guide on what to prioritize.

In addition to this, it may be useful to know a bit about Colorado College’s acceptance rate. That is, how hard is it to get in? And, what is the general profile of students who get in?

Again, we sourced this info from Colorado College’s Common Data Set.

Page 11 of the Common Data Set indicates that the college has an average GPA of 3.85. But, as you can see, a majority of students had a GPA between 3.75 to 4.0. Only 24% of students had less than a 3.75 GPA.

In terms of SAT and ACT scores, the 50th percentile of students earned a 1380 SAT and a 32 ACT.

1. Acceptance Rate: 16.3%
2. GPA: 3.85
3. ACT: 32
4. SAT 1380

This is quite a competitive school. As such, you’re going to need to do everything you can to ensure that you write a good college essay. This is one of those schools that require you to write a fantastic essay. We understand that the essay is rather short, so this will challenge your ability to stand out among the rest in as few words as possible.

The cost of not writing a powerful essay is, of course, that you’ll be at a disadvantage compared to the other applicants with stellar marks and essays.

With that said, let’s look at the prompt and dissect some key points on how to answer the Colorado College essay prompt.

Table of Contents

1. The “Why Us?” College Essay Question
2. Short Essays; Bored Admissions Officers
3. The Block Plan: A BIG HINT

1. The “Why Us?” College Essay Question

When you read the prompt, you’ll notice that the Colorado College essay question essentially follows the same format as the “Why Us” essay format that is often used in other schools.

To put it shortly, the key to answering this question is to show how you stand out as a good candidate for the school and why attending Colorado College is a better option compared to other schools. Imagine this: you are accepted into every school in the nation including the big three (Harvard, Yale, and Princeton). Why would Colorado College still be the best choice for you?

Perhaps its economics and sciences programs are attractive to you. Maybe their professors match what you want to do. Regardless, there has to be a reason they are the ones you will attend, hence the “Why Us” format of this question.

2. Short Essays; Bored Admissions Officers

Have some sympathy for your admissions officers!

When the admissions board is reading that fat stack of admissions papers, they’re not going to be particularly pleased by the time they get to yours. They’ll be tired, bored, and ready to take a coffee break.

Because your essays are only limited to 200 words, it will be even more difficult for you to stand out among everyone else in the admissions pool! You must know how to write an interesting college essay introduction and keep their interest in you. You will also need to know how to stand out among the rest of the admissions pool such that you do not get overshadowed by other applicants.

Especially since you’ll be competing against quite a few other competitive applicants, we highly advise working with at least one college admissions expert to discuss your strategy when writing the Colorado College essay prompt.

3. The Block Plan: A BIG HINT

Have you ever seen those scenes in a cartoon when a character makes a very obvious wink at the camera to hint at something? The fact that Colorado College mentioned its Block Plan is no joke here, seriously. This is the biggest hint that you MUST take advantage of. You can even take a look at their description of what a Block Plan is here on their website:

“The Block Plan allows you to focus your energies solely on what you want to do. By taking one class at a time, typically meeting each morning from 9 a.m. until noon, your time is spent learning deeply… The singular academic focus of the Block Plan allows you to create flexibility in your schedule, pursuing your own course of study as well as traditional ones, leaving ample time each day for your passions outside of class. From volunteering, to designing your own research project anywhere in the world, to innovating and pitching your own Big Idea – at CC your time is just that – yours.”

Colorado College Website

So, what does this mean?

This means that you should show your readers you know exactly what you are going to be doing.

But wait, aren’t most applicants and even some transfer students mostly unaware of what they want to do with their time?

Yes. That is correct. However, Colorado College wants to take in pioneers and people with great projects in their minds. They may not have one single subject or niche they want to zero in on, but they surely know they want to undertake some sort of personal project in their own time.

In other words, this is no place for you to simply attend courses and get good marks. Colorado College is a place to use your time to undertake your own personal agendas and pursue your own passions through projects and perhaps even entrepreneurial endeavors. If you want to get accepted, you have to show that you will make use of the Block Plan to maximize your time management in undertaking some sort of project in your academic field of interest.

Need extra help from real college admissions experts? My team and I have helped students get accepted into some of the top schools in the nation! Contact us for a free consultation to discuss any burning questions about your essay and how my team and I can help you with the Colorado College essay prompt.