In this article, we’ll cover how to write the NYU essays as a CAS Economics major. We will also share two NYU Economics application essays that worked and helped our client get accepted.
Additionally, if you’re interested in working with us and receiving help with your application essay, consider reaching out for a free consultation! We provide services in college consulting, academic advising, college essay writing, and more. And, our students have been accepted into top business programs such as Penn Wharton, NYU Stern, Berkeley Haas, and more.
Table of Contents
- How to Write the NYU Essays for CAS Economics
- NYU College of Arts and Science (CAS) Economics Essays That Worked
- Conclusion
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How to Write the NYU Essays for CAS Economics
Don’t Use Business/Economics Jargon
Resist the urge to use sophisticated business/economics jargon in your college essay. This doesn’t just apply to NYU for CAS Economics or NYU STERN. This rule applies to students applying to practically any business school such as UPenn Wharton, Berkeley Haas, Cornell Dyson, etc.
Admissions officers are prioritizing your authenticity above all during the college essay review process. Your readers must know they can trust you. Convoluted business language (especially for the sole purpose of impressing) is the opposite of trust.
At best, they will look at it and chuckle to themselves.
At worst, they may think you’re trying to use your language to manipulate them into thinking you’re smarter than you truly are.
Make no mistake: your readers are on high alert. While they may not be out for blood, they’re certainly scanning to see whether your words are trustworthy. And, in the world of business, (especially consulting) convoluted words are often used to artificially posture expertise.
Don’t do this. They will see through it.
Now, there are exceptions to this.
In some cases, students may find themselves naturally using 1-2 business-related words in their writing simply out of habit. For instance, someone may casually drop “summary judgment” or “B2B” in their essay.
Admissions officers understand that sometimes students are exposed to more business and economics principles than other students. And, it’s actually quite natural for students to demonstrate this wildly diverse vocabulary simply from growing up or living around an area with people who work in business and finance.
A student who grew up in a family that works in finance in New York is likely going to casually throw out business and consulting terms that most students their age don’t use. Similarly, it’s not unusual for an 18-22-year-old student to use terminology that only those in the police force use if they grew up in a family steeped in law enforcement jobs.
Ultimately, a little bit of jargon is acceptable within reason; but, don’t use too much. Best case scenario: your readers think you’re a bit of a know it all. Worst case scenario: they think you’re trying to manipulate them into thinking you’re smarter than you really are.
Be Confident and Hit Hard
Again, this rule doesn’t just apply to NYU CAS or NYU Stern. It applies to all business schools: be confident and hit hard.
Don’t be afraid of having a strong stance. Don’t be a fence-sitter.
This is often a major problem not just in undergrad business applications, but in MBA admissions as well. Students are often unable to stand their ground on strong opinions they know they can back.
Remember: as a student aspiring to enter the world of business and economics, you may be tasked with taking on strong stances that you can’t be a weak noodle about.
This means you can’t be afraid of having a strong stance that is open to disagreement. Consider this: one of the most common fields business and economics students choose to pursue at NYU CAS is consulting. When you’re consulting in the real world with genuine, ambitious, and hard working businesses that require your expertise, they cannot afford weak answers. They need honest, upfront, and sometimes even brutal answers to help them make the right decision.
If you’re going to stand out from the rest of the admissions pool as a CAS Economics applicant at NYU, it pays dividends to be strong in your beliefs. Admissions officers will know that you’re someone who will succeed in the field of business and econ that you’re vying for, and you’ll have the guts needed to survive.
Even for students outside of business who are more interested in the Liberal Arts will need to adhere to this rule. You can’t survive in the real world with weak, non-committal answers. And that’s especially true for those pursuing law, criminal justice, and social justice.
Be confident, and hit hard. Show your admissions officers that you’re someone who can be trusted with a solid and firm stance.
Don’t Treat CAS as Just a Lower-Ranked Version of NYU STERN
Here at PenningPapers, we’re well aware of the prejudices that occur within certain campuses. And, NYU STERN has certainly had its prejudices against students pursuing Economics at CAS.
Is NYU STERN harder to get into than CAS?
Sure.
But, make no mistake: just because you’re applying to CAS does not mean you’re off the hook. You’re still applying to a top institution. And, students at CAS are afforded many opportunities to enter top positions in investment banking, consulting, and more (just like STERN students.) Thus, the competition here is going to be fierce.
In other words, NYU CAS wants to know you’re committed to their school rather than just thinking of them as “the safe option because STERN is too hard.”
One way you can do this is to really take your time to think of solid, creative ways to answer the bridge building essay. If you’re showing that you’re not just giving a surface level answer and you actually have a thorough philosophy woven in between your essay, you’ll show admissions officers that you’re committed. After all, what better way to show true commitment and demonstrate genuine interest in a school than to take the time to curate a creative answer?
In the example we’ve provided below, you can see that our example essay is clean, straightforward, but certainly not lazy. The essay demonstrates that being a bridge builder is actually, against what many may believe, actually easier than they think. In fact, the frisbee club it talks about started off small and simply grew organically from there (a natural course of action for any business.) However, it takes a certain commitment and daring to admit to admissions officers that the real answer is truly much more simple and straightforward than what most posturing responses from other students could give.
Hmm. It’s almost as if one must be confident and hard hitting in their temperament to truly have the guts to commit to an honest answer like that! *Wink wink, nudge nudge.*
Don’t be afraid of risks. Sometimes the strangest, most unconventional answers are also the best. Likewise, sometimes the simplest are also the best!
NYU College of Arts and Science (CAS) Economics Essays That Worked
Successful NYU Common App Essay
“Lunar New Year: red envelopes, family gatherings, oranges, and fruits everywhere.
For me? The red envelopes —or, hong bao— were interrogations. The money tucked inside each envelope seemed to “buy” permission to ask prying, often uncomfortable, questions.
Where are your internships? Why haven’t you gotten any scholarships? Maybe you can be more like Trevor.
Despite this, perhaps I can find solace in my Indian side of the family, right?
Unfortunately, amid the cacophony of sights, sounds, and the aroma of street-side vendors peppered across India, the phalanx of curious aunties question everything from my weight to whether I want to be a doctor.
“I’m training for cross-country.”
“I’m not sure.”
“Mmhm.”
“Are you in debate?” I hear in response. “What about straight A’s?” Their noses wrinkle as they proceed to question me about my SATs.
The cultural expectations of my Chinese and Indian heritage are unbending. There’s a certain contract between generations and their posterity that demands academic excellence, respect, and unquestionable filial piety. Deviating from these commandments invites harsh judgment that doesn’t just critique your choices but your existence. I felt this constantly as I grew up. In everything I did, achievement or failure, there was an invisible scale; the measure of how well I conformed to familial norms down to the nanometer.
I always brushed off the comments and judging looks, praying that my agreement would buy some relief before they found another target. After years, you become a veteran. My fellow Asian brothers and sisters-in-arms know it —they too deal with the indictment and gavel of judgment.
Over time, one learns it’s a losing game. For, within the Asian-American child’s life is a subtle narcissistic pathology: that one’s elders —whom children must worship— will conjure a version in their heads that fits their ideal molds. And, when these children exercise the inevitable breaking of that mold, they’re to have their very existence ostracized. Aunty Lisa’s favorite pastime would be to ask why I was still in a “meaningless” sport and chuckling before moving to her next victim, my cousins.
So, what does one do in this seemingly hopeless situation?
Well, I had a strange solution. Instead of justifying why I didn’t meet their expectations, I would respond with why I needed to be that way. I reflected the questions. It wasn’t meant with malice. Rather, it would show them why their entitlement to control my life wasn’t justified.
Why does my SAT score matter to you?
Why does it matter to you whether I choose a sport I’ve fallen in love with?
Why was my worth being measured by standards that I didn’t create?
The change wasn’t immediate. Most traditional Asian households are like that. Saying, “I don’t do ‘x’ because…” is a justification; unconsciously, it puts me on trial for being true to myself. I was invited to faulty questions that if engaged in with good faith —and I would, as I’m pressured to do so— are destined to concede to faulty presuppositions. So, by making them rethink the backward blame games, I don’t breathe life into their interrogations. Not only did I begin a solution to this problem for my younger cousins, but I also found freedom for myself. I learned not to feel guilty about what I do and stick out my chest when discussing my latest race. I stopped searching for validation from others and cared about what made me feel fulfilled. I hold no resentment toward my family, I’m almost proud of how when I explained their mistakes, my relatives understood and attempted to be better not only to me but to my younger cousins. And I was proud that I undid generations of judgment. Even though there will always be people who try to take you down, I have gained the clarity to define myself, do what makes me fulfilled, and love who I am with no regrets.”
NYU CAS Common App Economics Essay That Worked –PenningPapers
Successful NYU Supplemental Bridge-Building Essay
Prompt:
“In a world where disconnection seems to often prevail, we are looking for students who embody the qualities of bridge builders—students who can connect people, groups, and ideas to span divides, foster understanding, and promote collaboration within a dynamic, interconnected, and vibrant global academic community. We are eager to understand how your experiences have prepared you to build the bridges of the future. Please consider one or more of the following questions in your essay:
- What personal experiences or challenges have shaped you as a bridge builder?
- How have you been a bridge builder in your school, community, or personal life?
- What specific actions have you taken to build bridges between diverse groups, ideas, or cultures?
- How do you envision being a bridge builder during your time at our university and beyond?
Essay
“When you’re little, it’s hard not to venerate people older than you. You mimic what they do, repeat what they say, and for some reason, never question what they do.
Now that I look back on it, the social hierarchical structuring was kind of cringey and inorganic. The unnecessary borders and obsession with social status actually gave me the idea of starting the frisbee club. It didn’t start off as an altruistic passion for creating a safe space for the socially disaffected. Rather, it was just a club I created that would be a nice space for anyone regardless of background.
However, we weren’t anything special: really, we weren’t. We were called the frisbee club. Guess what we did? Frisbee. The disc leaves our hands, ascends into the air, and falls into another person’s hand. That’s it.
Inexorably, this nurtured a safe space for introverted and socially-isolated students to meet others, make meaningful connections, and feel safe just by really doing… nothing.
It’s strange. In some ways I always thought we must’ve had some magical idea of what makes a great club. Maybe it’s activities. Maybe it’s fun. But, oddly, there was no formula. It was just a place to hang out with no expectations or social rules. No hierarchies of power or popularity. Just simple everyday activities. There’s nothing special about it; and, it doesn’t have to be. Creating the bridge across the social gap didn’t require effort, all it needed was an organic thought.”
NYU CAS Economics Bridge Building Essay That Worked –PenningPapers
Conclusion
Ultimately, the NYU CAS Economics essays are not easy to write, especially with such fierce competition.
Avoid the temptation of business jargon. A little bit is fine. But, a lot won’t make you sound smart.
Stand out by having the guts to own up to your beliefs. Be confident. And, be hard hitting. Don’t be afraid of have daring, strong stance. The world of investment banking, corporate law, and finance consulting needs people who have that kind of grit.
Additionally, don’t underestimate the world of CAS and presume it’s an easy way to laze out during the essay. You’ll need to show admission officers that you’re putting your 110% into the responses, and the best way to do that is to have a creative answer.
Also, if you’re looking to get accepted into top business schools like NYU CAS or STERN, feel free to reach out via a free consultation! Our college consulting services have helped students get accepted into top business schools such as Penn Wharton, Berkely Haas, HBS, Cornell Dyson, UChicago Economics, and more.