Supplemental essays · 2026–27 application
Amherst College supplemental essays.
All 3 essay questions Amherst College asks this year, word for word, with the word limits and how to approach each one.
Checked against amherst.edu on October 17, 2026
What you write: Choose one option. Option A: answer one of these three prompts in up to 350 words. Option B: send a graded analytical paper instead.
Each prompt opens with a short quotation from Amherst; you don't need to research or cite it. Write a personal response, not an argument.
Curiosity
(The prompt opens with Amherst President Michael A. Elliott on hope and curiosity as foundations of the college.) What does curiosity mean to you? How do you experience curiosity in your own life?
How to approach it
- Pick one moment and stay there. Readers remember a scene, not a summary.
- Spend at least a third of the essay on what you thought and how you changed.
- Read it out loud. If a line doesn’t sound like you, it isn’t done yet.
Your experiences
(The prompt opens with a passage from Amherst's Trustee Statement on Diversity and Community.) In what ways could your unique experiences enhance our understanding of our nation and our world?
A2A applicants can use their A2A essay here.
How to approach it
- Say plainly what the community is.
- Show your place in it with one real scene.
- End with what you’d bring to campus.
A different viewpoint
(The prompt opens with a line from Amherst's presidential priorities about building a community with room for true disagreement.) Tell us about a time that you engaged with a viewpoint different from your own. How did you enter that engagement, and what did you learn about yourself from it?
How to approach it
- Pick one moment and stay there. Readers remember a scene, not a summary.
- Spend at least a third of the essay on what you thought and how you changed.
- Read it out loud. If a line doesn’t sound like you, it isn’t done yet.
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