Supplemental essays · 2026–27 application
Harvard University supplemental essays.
All 5 essay questions Harvard University asks this year, word for word, with the word limits and how to approach each one.
Checked against college.harvard.edu on October 17, 2026
What you write: Answer all five.
How you'd contribute
Harvard has long recognized the importance of enrolling a student body with a diversity of perspectives and experiences. How will the life experiences that shaped who you are today enable you to contribute to Harvard?
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 strong disagreement
Describe a time when you strongly disagreed with someone about an idea or issue. How did you communicate or engage with this person? What did you learn from this experience?
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.
What shaped you
Briefly describe any of your extracurricular activities, employment experience, travel, or family responsibilities that have shaped who you are.
How to approach it
- Pick one activity, not your whole resume.
- Show one moment of what you actually did.
- Say why it matters to you, not only what it is.
Using your Harvard education
How do you hope to use your Harvard education in the future?
How to approach it
- Start with the moment the interest began.
- Show what you’ve already done about it: a class, a project, a book, a job.
- Say where you want to take it, even if you’re not sure yet.
For your roommates
Top 3 things your roommates might like to know about you.
How to approach it
- Each item should say something about you that the rest of the application doesn’t.
- Mix serious and small. A list of only big ideals reads like a poster.
- Use the exact format asked for. Don’t write sentences if it wants a list.
Want a mentor on your essays?
Clarity Prep members get a mentor who reads every draft with them, knows their whole application and checks in every week until it’s done.