Do All Universities Abroad Require a Personal Essay?

Writing a personal essay is one of the most arduous elements of applying to universities abroad. Students often spend months deciding about what to write about, drafting, and editing their essays. For international students, especially for those for whom English isn’t the first language, personal essays can be particularly daunting.

A personal essay gives admission officers some insight into who you are—your personality, background, goals, and the challenges you’ve had to overcome. It also gives them an idea of how well you’ll be able to fit in with the other students.

While many universities offer open-ended prompts for personal essays, some ask students to respond to more specific questions. For instance, they might ask questions such as “What event has shaped you into the person you are today?”, or “Who has been the most influential person to you?”

It’s common to hire a professional consultant or seek a mentor to help you write a powerful college application essay. You might be wondering, “Do all universities abroad require students to submit a personal essay?”

Fortunately, there are many universities abroad that don’t require personal essays from prospective students. Let’s explore the reasons why and how you can make your application shine, even without a personal essay.

Why Some Universities Don’t Require Personal Essays

There are several reasons why some universities abroad may not require you to write and submit a personal essay. The biggest reason is the time and money investment it takes. With universities receiving hundreds and even thousands of applications every cycle, it can be costly to dedicate staff to reading and evaluating all application essays. That is something that some universities would rather not invest in.

With cost implications in mind, some universities only require personal essays from students applying to very competitive programs or scholarships. In such cases, the additional insights from personal statements can be helpful in selecting students to admit.

In addition, some universities automatically admit all students who meet their specified criteria—which is usually a combination of GPA, standardized test scores, and/or class rank. Such schools might ask “borderline” candidates who don’t quite meet the set criteria to include personal essays in their applications. That gives you a chance to make a case for why you’re a good fit for the school despite not meeting the academic criteria.

Lastly, some universities aim at making the application process a little easier for students. By not requiring students to write essays, they encourage students from diverse backgrounds to apply.

How to Make Your Application Shine Without a Personal Essay

A personal essay allows you to show admission officers why you’ll be a great addition to their campus. If you’re not required to submit an essay, you have to maximize the other elements of your application.

Here are some tips:

Craft a Strong Resume

Some schools that don’t ask for a personal essay will require prospective students to submit a resume or CV instead.

A resume also provides you with a chance to highlight your relevant achievements. With some effort, your resume can reflect more than just your grades and professional achievements—it can show your personality.

Do some research and read powerful resumes, whose templates you can use to craft your own. Ideally, your college application resume should balance your academic and professional achievements and extracurricular activities. Even so, aim to not have your resume longer than one page. Proofread it to remove any typos and spelling or grammatical errors.

Get Great Recommendations

Recommendation letters provide an additional avenue for admission officers to learn about who you are as an individual. If you aren’t required to submit a personal essay, put more effort into finding great recommenders—who will extol your personality, achievements, and aspirations to the admission officers.

The best recommenders are teachers who taught you the core subjects required for the program you’re applying to join. Go for teachers who know you well and in whose classes you excelled. It’s advisable to ask your school advisor which teachers you should approach for recommendations.

 Provide the recommender with all the information they need to write you a strong recommendation letter—including your resume, your transcripts, a list of relevant extracurricular activities, your achievements, and an outline of your career goals.

Take Your Writing Classes Seriously

You should aim to have great grades in all your subjects—especially the core subjects for your desired university program. But excelling in classes that test your writing skills, such as literature, will show admission officers that you can write a great essay given the chance.

Schools that don’t require an application essay may look more closely at your grades in writing-intensive classes. Therefore, make sure that your grades in those classes are excellent.

Put Your Best Foot Forward During the Admission Interview

Just like a personal statement or essay, an admissions interview is meant to give you a chance to show your personality and expound on your achievements and aspirations. 

Basically, you’re invited to speak with admissions officers or alumni for them to get a feel of who you are and if you’ll fit into the school. 

If your college application process includes an interview, put your best foot forward. Dress appropriately, be polite and engaging, respond honestly,  and ask great questions. 

Top U.S Schools that Don’t Require Personal Essays from Prospective Students

Here’s a list of 64 top schools in the U.S you can apply to without a personal essay:

1. University of Alabama
2. Alabama State University
3. University of Alaska Anchorage
4. University of Alaska Fairbanks
5. Northern Arizona University
6. University of Arizona
7. Arizona State University
8. Arkansas State University
9. University of Arkansas
10. California State University
11. University of Colorado – Denver
12. University of Bridgeport
13. Delaware State University
14. University of Central Florida
15. University of South Florida
16. Georgia State University
17. University of Hawaii Manoa
18. University of Idaho
19. Illinois State University
20. Indiana Wesleyan University
21. University of Southern Indiana
22. University of Indianapolis
23. Iowa State University
24. University of Iowa
25. Kansas State University
26. University of Kansas
27. Kentucky State University
28. Louisiana State University – Baton Rouge
29. University of Louisiana – Lafayette
30. Bowie State University
31. Bridgewater State University
32. Eastern Michigan University
33. Western Michigan University
34. University of Minnesota – Twin Cities
35. University of Mississippi
36. Mississippi State University
37. University of Missouri
38. Missouri State University
39. University of Montana
40. University of Nebraska – Lincoln
41. University of Nevada Reno
42. Kean University
43. University of New Mexico
44. Siena College
45. CUNY-Baruch College
46. CUNY-Hunter College
47. West Carolina University
48. University of North Dakota
49. Ohio University
50. Oklahoma State University
51. Southern Oregon University
52. Western Oregon University
53. Eastern Oregon University
54. University of Pittsburgh
55. Clemson University
56. University of South Carolina
57. University of South Dakota
58. Tennessee State University
59. University of Utah
60. Utah State University
61. Washington State University
62. West Virginia University
63. University of Wyoming
64. McGill University (in Canada)

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