This guide will cover everything you need to know about writing the Villanova supplemental essays. Villanova University is highly competitive. Many students who are accepted have higher marks than the average student. Villanova’s competitiveness plays a big role in just how strong your essays should be. Let’s visualize this below.
Villanova University Undergraduate Class of 2026 Stats
- Admit Rate: 23%
- Students of Color: 37%
- Middle 50% Weighted GPA: 4.17 – 4.56
- Middle 50% Unweighted GPA: 3.87 – 4.05
- In Top 10% of High School Class, Where Reported: 84%
- Admitted Test-Optional: 43%
- Middle 50% SAT: 1430-1520
- Middle 50% ACT: 32-35
- Involved in Community Service: 83%
- Held Paying Jobs: 64%
- Involved in the Arts: 34%
- Played Sports 82%
As you can see, most students accepted into Villanova University had stats that were much stronger and more competitive than the average student. Many had the top percentile of academic performance; along with this, many had at least some involvement in community service or sports.
Thus, it is crucial that you answer the Villanova supplemental essay questions in a way that helps you stand out from the rest of the application pool. The school even says on their own website that the essays are a time for you to help differentiate yourself from the rest of the applicants.
“At Villanova, we view our essay as a unique opportunity for students to move beyond the transcript and introduce the individual behind the application. This section allows you to provide information regarding your interest in joining the Villanova community and your academic background and future plans.”
Villanova University Website
In this article, we will show you how to do exactly that. Keep in mind that every student has unique attributes and backgrounds that may require exceptions to the rules below. Some students may be conflicted about which prompts to answer or which topics to write about depending on their own circumstances. If you are questions about the Villanova supplemental essays, don’t be afraid to contact us for a free consultation!
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Villanova Supplemental Essay Prompts
“The questions on this page are being asked by Villanova University
Please select one of the five essay prompts listed below to fulfill the writing requirement. Please respond in about 250 words.
Prompt 1
St. Augustine states that well-being is “not concerned with myself alone, but with my neighbor’s good as well.” How have you advocated for equity and justice in your communities?
Prompt 2
What is the truest thing that you know?
Prompt 3
One of the themes in St. Augustine’s book, Confessions, is the idea of redemption. Tell us your story of being given a second chance.
Prompt 4
In the Villanova community, we believe that we all learn from one another. What is a lesson in life that you have learned that you would want to share with others?
Prompt 5
Augustine’s “Miracles are not contrary to nature but only contrary to what we know about nature.” Tell us about a societal issue that you believe the wonder of technology is well-poised to help solve.”
Villanova Why Us Essay
“In addition, the Admission Committee would like to know why you want to call Villanova your new home and become part of our community? Please respond in about 150 words.*“
Villanova University Page on the Common App
How to Answer the Villanova Essay Prompt 1
The equity and justice Villanova essay prompt can be quite problematic for certain students. This is because this prompt starts off with a diction problem that can make things quite confusing. Take a look at this part of the prompt.
…“not concerned with myself alone, but with my neighbor’s good as well.” How have you advocated for equity and justice in your communities…
The issue lies in the word equity. Depending on how you were taught in your institution, your personal political ideology, and your personal philosophy, the word “equity” can mean a whole host of things. For many students, they learned equity as a synonym for equality. Others learned that equity means the equality of outcome rather than equality of opportunity. It’s easy to get confused by this prompt as a result of the multitude of meanings
For the sake of clarity, let’s see what the Merriam-Webster Dictionary has to say about the word.
Definition of equity
1a: justice according to natural law or rightspecifically : freedom from bias or favoritism
Merriam-Webster Official Website
It is safest to assume in this context that Villanova is asking you for the general definition of equity, which would be more close to the word equality. Thus, you should follow the Merriam-Webster definition. Don’t get into the nitty-gritty of what EXACTLY equity is. It simply needs to be an instance of equitable, equal justice.
One of the other things you should consider when answering this prompt is that Villanova is using your supplemental essays as a metric of your character and fit for their school. So, you don’t want to get too involved with the actual essay topic itself. Your main focus is you.
If you get too involved with the topic you’re writing about, the admissions office may have a better understanding of your advocation for equity and justice. Though, there will be less content to understand more about you. Instead, weave the essay topic to show more of your personal attributes and character.
So, if you’re writing about your march for transgender rights, you may want to narrow your focus on what you’ve done to help the community and your fellow protestors. Did you provide first aid services for those in need during the event? Did you provide free posters and picket signs for those without them? Did you provide speeches in these protests to help articulate the issues others felt but could not speak?
Demonstrating how you provided would greatly help admissions officers see more of your character. On the other hand, talking about what the protest looked like and some of the things you saw during it would not help admissions officers understand more about you. Therefore, your essay should maximize on details discussing what you’ve done and what it says about you instead of other externalities that don’t paint a better picture for admissions officers.
How to Answer the Villanova Essay Prompt 2
This question in some ways aligns quite well with the first prompt. The Villanova essay prompt 2 not only asks what you know is true but intrinsically asks what your values are. This is because someone’s truest truth is often the thing they value most.
By asking what you know to be most true, the school can have an inside look at what you find meaningful and valuable to you. Why does someone say that the effects of racism are the most real thing they know? What about climate change? What about subatomic particles? How about the existence of tragedy in the 21st century?
What a student answers with paints a good picture of what they most value since they chose to write about that topic compared to other ones. If you say that the ability to overcome adversity is the truest thing you know, then that is what you are focused on. If your dreams and aspirations in the field of law are the truest things you know, then that is what you are focused on.
Choose what you want to write about wisely. This determines what admissions officers see as your top priority.
So, if someone writes that they know the eventual world’s end is the truest truth they know due to climate change, admissions officers may infer that the applicant values environmental safety and respect for others and the community. Whichever topic you choose, ensure that the inferences drawn from it are the ones you want. Writing about subatomic particles being the truest truth as an artist is most probably going to make things confusing for admissions officers.
How to Answer the Villanova Essay Prompt 3
This can be a rather emotional essay to answer. Hey, fair enough! It’s okay to open up and be vulnerable in the admissions essays within reason.
Though, don’t forget about the main objective: the reason Villanova’s supplemental essay prompts exist is that the admissions office uses them as a metric to determine your fit in the school. So what are Villanova’s admissions officers looking for in essay prompt 3?
Well, because the prompt asks about a case of your redemption or second chance, they are looking for instances of your ability to grow from past failures.
No matter the topic you choose as your redemptive second chance, think about what impression it would leave the admissions officers and how much it would convince them to accept you into their school. When they hear your story, are there any character traits they can infer from your writing that show you are a good fit?
Here’s a good example: let’s say you lied to your father about what to do when setting up camp during a wilderness vacation. Eventually, your father realized you had no idea what to do in the wilderness. So, you two had to make do with whatever you could to get the hang of the wilderness without proper tents, food, etc. Your father forgave you, though; from there on out, you learned to not lie just because you want to protect your masculinity. You learned instead how to tell the truth and admit ignorance. Fate would then give you a second chance months later when a friend of yours asks if you want to go on a road trip. There, you tell the truth and admit ignorance when needed.
This example works since it shows the admissions officers that you’re not just a reliable person, but you learned to adopt maturity over time and understand the value of the truth. It also shows admissions officers that you learned to straighten yourself out at a young age and adapt a skill that even most adults can’t maintain. Growing the skill of telling the truth also shows admissions officers that you let go of your sense of control, as most liars lie to control other people’s reactions.
How to Answer the Villanova Essay Prompt 4
The key points to consider in the Villanova essay prompt 4 is “we all learn from others” and “want to share with others”. Before you begin answering this prompt, consider these elements of the question. When Villanova adds that we all learn from others and want to share with others, they allude to the college learning experience.
The university lifestyle involves learning both from other people and sharing your own knowledge with others. This is a reciprocal relationship. It requires both the openness to learning and the graciousness in sharing knowledge.
Thus, it is crucial that you tie this concept into your main essay. Make sure that admissions officers understand that you’ll have this reciprocal relationship with other people in your school. It demonstrates that you’re not just one-sided in learning. You have something to learn from Villanova; yet, Villanova must have something to learn from you.
As for the lesson you choose to write about, it’s useful to choose a topic that you think is beneficial to you and makes you a stronger person over time. These are typically lessons that have rippling effects. They help you develop the character needed to take on the many challenges ahead of you. A good example of this is writing about learning the lesson of personal responsibility. Most people think of personal responsibility as a monolithic virtue. In reality, it is a virtue one could learn that would help you learn many other lessons as well such as hard work and self-respect. This may convince admissions officers that your lesson learned has more potential for success at their university than other students and what they wrote.
How to Answer the Villanova Essay Prompt 5
The Villanova essay prompt 5 is deceptive. It looks straightforward enough, right? Just look for something modern technology can do to help solve a modern problem. However, the nature of reality is more complex than that.
Modernized technologies are more complex than we think. Modern societal issues are more complex than we think. Thus, answering this question without ignorant naivety would require a sophisticated understanding of the nature of your particular societal issue and technology choice.
If you choose to answer this question, we highly suggest doing your research thoroughly. More often than not, large societal issues cannot be solved with “just doing ‘x'” or “using ‘x’ technology”. Typically, the real world is more complex than that.
Let’s take a look at a few examples.
Let’s say you want to write about fixing the atomization of modern attention spans. We technically have the technology to do this because it is our technological innovations that have resulted in limited attention spans. Social media and entertainment have evolved over time to increasingly stimulate the mind with minimal effort. Algorithms and machine learning have ensured apps like YouTube and TikTok can consistently keep one’s attention without knowing. As a result, you may notice people’s attention span has significantly reduced due to the consistent exposure to overstimulating media.
Now, it’s not as easy as just removing social media as a whole. Social media is a tool. What do we do about people who rely on social media to stay connected with others? What do we do about the small business owners who rely on social media as a medium for marketing? What happens to the shareholders? There are many elements that need to be taken into consideration when solving societal issues. Thus, showing you have a mature and sophisticated outlook will show admissions officers that you don’t think in one direction. It shows you have the skill to pivot and solve situations that are more complex than they seem.
How to Answer the Villanova Why Us Essay
Like all “Why Us” essay questions, we want to show Villanova that we have a meaningful and genuine reason for applying to the school. Many students underestimate just how much effort needs to go into answering this question. In fact, many students initially may want to say, “I want to call Villanova university my home because I just need a strong and competitive school with a prestigious name to get me through my career”.
Now, of course, don’t actually write about this. More than likely, you have a deeper and intrinsic reason for applying to Villanova. Villanova should have something to provide you that you know you cannot obtain anywhere else. Capitalize on this element, and you will show the school that you truly are dedicated to attending should you be accepted.
Next, consider what “home” is. What is your community? Who is your kin? Where is home?
Home for some is a safe space to think freely away from bigotry. For others, home is the place the nomad is always searching for. Home for others can be the place you know you will find yourself and actualize who you were always meant to be.
Whichever definition you give to the word “home”, you need to make sure that Villanova fulfills that role. This shows that you truly mean to attend Villanova and that they’re not just any other school you wanted to add to your wish list.
Showing the dedication to attending Villanova makes it easier for admissions officers to have confidence in accepting you. They know their retention rate won’t fall because they’ll know that you are dedicated to attending. A good way of thinking of this is imagining HYPSM (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, MIT). Why would you still call Villanova home even if you were accepted into all of the previously mentioned schools? If you can answer this, you most likely can answer the Villanova “Why Us” essay.
If you have any other questions about how to write the Villanova supplemental essay or need help with your list of college applications as a whole, don’t be afraid to contact us for help! We typically provide people with free consultations that cover how to write the essays for your list of colleges.