If you’re here looking for a guide on how to write the Virginia Tech supplemental essays, you’re in luck! This guide deconstructs everything you need to know to answer each of the Virginia Tech prompts well and stand out from the rest of the admissions pool.
But, before we get to that, we’ll need to cover some important statistics.
In particular, we want to demonstrate just how important the Virginia Tech supplemental essays are to the admissions process.
Here’s a hint: it’s more important now than ever before.
We’ll be using two points: the acceptance rate through the Data Commons and the Common Data Set.
First, let’s see what the VT Data Commons has to say about acceptance rates over time.
| Admissions | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 |
| Applied | 27423 | 31936 | 31974 | 30770 | 42054 | 45321 |
| Offered | 19212 | 20709 | 22393 | 20239 | 23749 | 25825 |
| Enrolled | 6836 | 6285 | 7651 | 6608 | 6758 | 7166 |
| Offered Rate | 70.1 | 64.8 | 70 | 65.8 | 56.5 | 57 |
| Yield | 35.6 | 30.3 | 34.2 | 32.6 | 28.5 | 27.7 |
Within the past 5 years, the admissions rate for Virginia Tech decreased by 13.1%. They also received 17,898 more applications.
In the past 2 years, the number of students applying has spiked up significantly; so, you can be sure that you’ll be competing against more students now than ever before.
With that said, the essays are going to be one of the only parts of the application where you can truly use your words to stand out from the admissions process.
Think about it like this: practically every part of your application is going to be based on numbers and letter grades. One of the only parts showing who you are beyond grades is your VT supplemental essays and descriptions in your extracurricular list.
If you want to have a solid shot at getting accepted, you’re going to need to write solid essays. And, we’re going to show you exactly how to do that below.
Table of Contents
- Virginia Tech Essay Prompts
- Tips on How to Write Each of the Virginia Tech Supplemental Essays.
- Virginia Tech Essay Examples.
Professional College Application Help.
Contact us. We'll get to you within 24 hours.
Virginia Tech Essay Prompts
One of the interesting things you’ll notice is that Virginia Tech has a very, very short word count for each of its essay prompts.
This limits you in how much you can really say.
Now, does that detract from its importance in the application process? No. Does it mean you’ll have a much harder time writing an essay that will stand out from the rest of the admissions pool? Yes.
That’s why you can’t stand out in the Virginia Tech supplemental essays without also writing something creative and unique for each of the prompts.
It’s going to take a little bit of work. But, it’s certainly worth it.
Each of the Ut Prosim Profile questions are required with a limit of 120 words in length per answer. Once you submit your application, your responses to the questions are final and cannot be updated.
Virginia Tech Ut Prosim Supplemental Essay Prompts.
- Virginia Tech’s motto is “Ut Prosim” which means ‘That I May Serve’. Share how you contribute to a community that is important to you. How long have you been involved? What have you learned and how would you like to share that with others at Virginia Tech?
- Resilience is defined as the ability to adapt and learn from a difficulty. Reflect on a time that you have exhibited resilience. What growth did you see in yourself after this experience?
- Share a time when you were most proud of yourself either as a role model or when you displayed your leadership. What specific skills did you contribute to the experience? How did others rely on you for guidance? What did you learn about yourself during this time?
- Describe a goal that you have set and the steps you will take to achieve it. What made you set this goal for yourself? What is your timeline to achieve this goal? Who do you seek encouragement or guidance from as you work on this goal?
Tips on How to Write Each of the Virginia Tech Supplemental Essays.
How to Answer Virginia Tech’s Ut Proism Prompt.
The keywords here are “serve” and “community.”
Often, students will approach this far too simply. They’ll think of “serve” as “helping” and “community” as their physical location’s population such as their residential city or town.
But, remember: you need to approach the admissions essays from an unconventional and unorthodox perspective in order to stand out. This is the best way to stand out.
So, perhaps “serving” can mean more than just planting trees or donating to the homeless. You may want to think of some of the other ways your activities come to “serve” the community. Chances are, your actions have served the community more than just what you’ve done on the outside.
For instance, if you planted trees, you’ve served your community not just saving the environment. You’ve also beautified your city and contributed to the artistic vision of your area. In addition, your work also helps the overall atmosphere feel more alive and positive for students, parents, business owners, and future residents to come. Think and consider all the dimensions that your work benefits the community.
Secondly, there’s the word “community.”
Again, you’re not just limited to the physical community in you’re area. It can also include the community in abstraction. Do you belong to a group of people who all enjoy or like a certain group of musicians such as K-pop groups? Or, perhaps, you belong to the gaming community. They may be more abstract and span across the whole world. But, they’re still a community and not limited to the physical restraints that so commonly constitute college essays.
Also, if you do in fact belong to these two communities, you may want to consider reading our sister articles on writing your college essays about K-Pop here and gaming here.
How to Answer Virginia Tech’s Resilience Prompt.
This essay prompt is more straightforward. However, we believe this is one of the stronger essay prompts to answer.
We would argue that this topic is an easier one to write about compared to the other ones because it gives you both a moment of adversity and growth to write about. This is fantastic, as the admissions office can therefore see how you adapt to challenges over time and use that as a measurement of your success in their school.
Now, that also presents you with a problem. Other students will also write fantastic resilience essays.
Therefore, the question is this: how do we show our resilience is stronger than that of other students?
Well, you don’t!
Resilience is not an objective measurement that can be compared in the same way that the level of adversity and difficulty can’t be compared between others. Everyone endures adversity differently.
For instance, one may find cleaning their room to be a simple mundane chore; but, a person with depression may see it as a monumental task that requires an overwhelming level of mental fortitude.
With adversities being incomparable in magnitude due to their relativity, it’s important to know that you’ll need to instead explain what your resilience felt like in as specific of a manner as you can. This can be a bit hard. But, you’ll need to find the right words which describe the feeling you went through when overcoming obstacles.
For some, it’s like a physical level of excruciating. For others, it’s a matter of mental fortitude. And, if you want to get creative, it can be a mental obstacle so difficult it hurts you physically.
How to Answer Virginia Tech’s Role Model and Leadership Prompt.
As with the other Virginia Tech essay prompts, the role model and leadership prompt can be approached creatively through the choice of diction.
What does being a role model mean? To whom? What does being a leader mean?
You can get creative with what these words mean in the prompt.
Does being a leader mean that you need to be the smartest in a group, and therefore take the front rows whilst others follow your lead? Or, could it also mean that you’re the least competent; and, therefore rely on others’ talents whilst they rely on your management skills?
You’ll find that there are a lot of directions you can take with this prompt.
But, if there’s one element we would highly recommend incorporating into the application essay, it’s humility.
Often, students have a hard time answering the leadership or role model essay without being too humble or not being humble enough.
We get it: the balance is hard. But, you need to know how to answer the prompt in a manner that balances your strengths and humility in a manner that is impressive (especially to admissions officers who will also be judging you for your character and compatibility with the VT community.)
To do this, we recommend tying the definition of humility into your words. So, for instance: one cannot be a role model unless they are humble. Or, one cannot truly lead without first being humble. This is but one way of balancing between bragging and being humble. How you decide to keep that balance is up to you.
How to Answer Virginia Tech’s Goal and Plan to Achieve it Prompt.
This is perhaps one of the most important Virginia Tech supplemental essay prompts.
For one, the Virginia Tech Goal and Plan supplemental essay prompt answers one of the questions AOs are vying to know. When an admissions officer is thinking about your application, they want to know about your future plans.
Note: this does NOT mean you have to know what you want to do for certain. Instead, they want to know that you have a mature and wise form of planning.
Now, why is this? Wouldn’t admissions officers value students who know what they want for their futures more than those who don’t?
Well, sort of.
It’s a bit more complex than that.
Sure, college essays that have a clear goal or career path in mind will intrinsically be more impressive than those that don’t have a clear goal.
However, there’s a lot you can write about in your Virginia Tech supplemental essay even if you don’t know what you want to do in the future.
For instance, there are some who don’t know what kind of major they want to get into. But, they are determined to get into a career that has a good work-life balance, scalability, and intellectual challenges. So, students may make the plan and goal of networking with other students and exploring their curiosity whilst in college.
This is a fantastic response because it is honest. It’s open to the idea that students your age can still be uncertain about what they want; and, they don’t have to pretend otherwise.
In addition, it’s a great way of showing intellectual curiosity for things beyond your initial interest. This is a fantastic trait for admissions officers and shows AOs that you have the kind of character they need to constitute a good incoming class.
Virginia Tech Essay Examples.
Virginia Tech Resilience Essay Example:
Resilience is defined as the ability to adapt and learn from a difficulty. Reflect on a time that you have exhibited resilience. What growth did you see in yourself after this experience?
“We often hear from the victories; but, what of the defeats?
My most significant challenge: having it easy.
Homework? Minimal effort. Tests? Minimal studying. Sports? Long legs compensated. Life was good. That is, until I met Diana.
Diana would be my Speech and Debate tournament competitor; and, she was proof I wasn’t as strong as I thought I was. She had a counter to everything… and more. She saw angles I never even conceived… and more.
Despite how terrifying it was, this experience made me both resilient to failiure and even excited about meeting other equally interesting people. I’ve never felt so impassioned to meet others like Diana; and, I plan to do so at VT.”
Virginia Tech Resilience Essay Example: PenningPapers
Virginia Tech Role Model and Leadership Essay Example:
Share a time when you were most proud of yourself either as a role model or when you displayed your leadership. What specific skills did you contribute to the experience? How did others rely on you for guidance? What did you learn about yourself during this time?
“My first management heuristic: channel Wednesday Addams. She’s the embodied cool, collected, and scary intelligence of Netflix’s show Wednesday.
Last year, we were at an impasse. Club members couldn’t agree on a worthy business project. Digital marketing research? Great. Social media affiliate? Fair.
I too was in doubt. But, I channeled Wednesday Addams.
Slow breathing. Lowering the chin. Think.
Funnily enough, it’s the calm amongst a storm of ideas that got everyone to settle. It’s that calm during uncertainty that helped me decide. It’s that calm that showed me logic is one thing; but, personality is another.
“Organic Search Engine marketing it is, then; we’ll test AI copywriting efficacy along the way. Oh, and no piranhas.”
“No what?”
“What?””
Virginia Tech Role Model and Leadership Essay Example: PenningPapers
Got any more questions about the Virginia Tech supplemental essay prompts? Don’t worry; we’re here to help. Schedule a free consultation with us, and our expert college admissions advisors and editors will help you craft a winning essay that stands out from the rest of the admissions pool. We’ll get back to you within 24 hours!