Under the Button is part of a student-run nonprofit.

Please support us by disabling your ad blocker on our site.

Need A Penn Application Supplement Essay? Use This One!

November 1st is nearly upon us, which means that the early decision deadline is all but here. If you're behind and you need a supplement essay, just copy and paste this one into the field! Be sure to fill in the blanks for the undergraduate school to which you're applying, and for your name. 

Question: How will you explore your intellectual and academic interests at the University of Pennsylvania? Please answer this question given the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying. (400-650 words)

Dear Dr. Gutmann,

Ever since I was born, I have wanted to go to school in Philadelphia. My first word was “cheesesteak” and I’ve been sighing every time someone says “76ers” since I was 8 months old. I have always believed that my real father is Jon M. Huntsman, and that my parents are lying to me because they are ashamed of my mother’s infidelity.

I’m applying to _________________(undergraduate school name), because I love to help people. I think that you can help people in many ways, and I definitely want to use one of those ways to help some of those people. World hunger can be ended. Cancer can be cured. Racism can be stopped. People are all the same color when you close your eyes.

Am I a dreamer? Yes. But so was Benjamin Franklin, who founded the University of Pennsylvania many decades ago. I’m like Benjamin Franklin. When I sat on the bench with his statue on a visit, everyone who walked by was laughing. I think it’s because we looked so similar-- like we are twins.

I love to read, write, speak foreign languages, and also do math. That’s why __________(undergraduate school name) is the school for me. There is nowhere else in the country, or the world, or the universe (I think civilian space travel is achievable within our lifetime and I plan to make it so), where I would fit better, in terms of intellectual interests and in terms of academic interests.

I’m a fifteen year old programming prodigy and I play the violin. I helped bring Taco Bell to Mongolia, bridging a cultural divide. I am ten years old and I speak nine languages and I also play the cello. I am five years old and I overcame being born 8 months prematurely, eventually managing to trademark the phrase “A Sharper Cheddar.” I also play the viola.

Penn is a place that has something for everyone, but it especially has everything for me. I love buildings, because I love shelter, and Penn has many. I love hospitals because I fear death and injury, and Penn has great ones. The food offerings are unmatched, from the humble Commons to the decadent Beefsteak.

I love to learn and I love to gain knowledge, which is the same thing as learning. I want to go to office hours and say thank you to my professors and then leave, so I don't bother them. I plan to turn in every essay with seven Blockbuster gift cards attached to the front as a bribe, and expect good grades. 

My dad donated a building to the school so you have to let me in.

Best,

_____________ (your name)

PennConnects