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How to Write the Tufts University Essays 2024-2025

Tufts University is consistently ranked in among the top 30 universities and wants to admit students who demonstrate a genuine interest in Tufts. One of the best ways to demonstrate interest is through your supplemental essays.

All applicants will answer two prompts, but the prompts will depend on the school you’re applying to within Tufts.

The college applications process may seem overwhelming, but don’t worry⁠—CollegeVine is here to help you tackle Tufts’ supplemental essays!

Read these Tufts essay examples written by real students to inspire your own writing!

Tufts Supplemental Essay Prompts

Applicants to the school of arts and sciences and school of engineering.

Prompt 1: Please complete the following statement: “I am applying to Tufts because…” (50-100 words)

Prompt 2: Now we’d like to know a little more about you. Please respond to one of the following three questions. (200-250 words)

Option A: It’s cool to love learning. What excites your intellectual curiosity, and why?
Option B: How have the environments or experiences of your upbringing – your family, home, neighborhood, or community – shaped the person you are today?
Option C: Using a specific example or two, tell us about a way that you contributed to building a collaborative and/or inclusive community.

Applicants to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts (BFA or 5-Year BFA+BA/BS Combined Degree)

Prompt 1: Please complete the following statement: “I am applying to SMFA at Tufts because…” (50-100 words)

Prompt 2: Please answer the following question – we encourage you to think outside the box. Be serious if the moment calls for it but feel comfortable being playful if that suits you, too. Your response must be between 200-250 words. Art has the power to disrupt our preconceptions, shape public discourse, and imagine new ways of being in the world. What are the ideas you’d like to explore in your work? (200-250 words)

Please complete the following statement: “I am applying to Tufts because…” (50-100 words)

When first approaching this textbook “Why School?” prompt , take a step back and think about why you added Tufts to your school list. Location, size, and prestige may contribute to your desire to apply to Tufts, however you must dig deeper into why and how you, as an individual, are a good fit for the Tufts community.

As stated on their website , Tufts students are often described as:

Interdisciplinary
Multidimensional
Intellectually playful
Collaborative
Civically engaged
Globally minded

With only 100 words, you won’t have a ton of space to delve into every way you embody the characteristics of a Tufts student or list everything you love about Tufts. Instead of using generalities such as “great location near Boston” or “strong math major” or trying to squeeze all your ideas into 100 words, be sure to pick just 2-3 specific reasons you want to apply to Tufts.

Remember that attending college is not only about academics, but also what you do outside the classroom. So, make sure to mention at least one extracurricular/social factor that drew you to Tufts, along with at least one academic aspect.

Reflect on your life, characteristics, and interests, then do your research and tie those aspects of yourself to Tufts’ values and traditions (refer to bullets above).

Maybe you’re a passionate, civically engaged environmentalist who is drawn to Tufts’ Food Systems and Nutrition minor, as you want to learn more about ways to increase sustainability in the food industry.
Or, maybe the 1+4 Bridge Year caught your eye, as you’re globally minded and want to live and intern abroad in Mexico before beginning your studies at Tufts, to better understand the border crisis and explore your interest in immigration law.
Or, perhaps the Traveling Treasure Trunk theatre group caught your eye, as you love being collaborative and putting on imaginative plays for children.
Or, maybe you’re multidimensional and have completely varied interests, such as ballet and neuroscience, and are drawn to Tufts’ interdisciplinary learning style.

Regardless of your interests, whether academic or extracurricular, be sure to use them as an opportunity to form a connection between yourself and the Tufts community.

Additionally, this prompt is a great place to include any notable experiences you had on any of Tufts’ campuses, or with Tufts students and faculty. You should avoid generally discussing an information session you attended or a campus tour you took, as those experiences are not unique to you and thus won’t help you stand out in the applicant pool.

However, you should definitely consider discussing a memorable conversation you had with a group of students, a particularly interesting class you sat in on, a meeting you had with a Tufts professor in the department of your intended major, or a Tufts club meeting you attended. While these experiences are not essential to your essay, they will certainly enhance your answer and further demonstrate your interest in Tufts.

Prompt 2, Option A

It’s cool to love learning. what excites your intellectual curiosity, and why (200-250 words).

To answer this prompt, you need to think about a topic that you enjoy studying and explain why you find it interesting. This prompt is great for applicants who have specific interests they want to showcase, like ancient Greek theater or quantum theory. Regardless of what you choose to write about, you need to be able to explain why this topic ignites your passion for learning and how you will continue to explore this topic at Tufts.

To start your essay off strong, begin by describing what sparked your interest in your topic. A great way to do this is by beginning your essay with an anecdote.

For example, you could explain that you became interested in civil engineering in sixth grade, when your science teacher challenged your class to break into groups and try to build the tallest structure possible using only marshmallows, tape, and uncooked spaghetti. As you worked to determine the perfect spaghetti-to-tape ratio, you realized that you had never before felt so focused on a school project. Keep in mind, your story does not have to be impressive or complicated; even the simplest stories will do as long as they reflect the origin of your interest.

From here, your essay could go in a couple of directions. You might continue the narrative of your initial anecdote as you elaborate on your passion for your topic. For instance, you could write, “After winning the spaghetti structure challenge, I continued to enter engineering competitions throughout middle and high school, like the High School Bridge Building Contest. The thrill of competing deepened my enthusiasm and sent me to the library in search of books on seismic loads and renewable building materials.”

Alternatively, you could express your intellectual curiosity by explaining what specifically about your topic you find interesting. A fan of art history may identify a special interest in Ming dynasty ceramics; a computer science scholar could describe their fascination with machine learning.The details you share here provide evidence of your interest in your topic, so feel free to show off what you know!

Now that you’ve established your topic of interest, you need to explain to the reader why your topic excites you intellectually. If you are curious about biomedical engineering, you may refer to its many life-saving and life-changing applications, such as bionic eye technology. A Shakesperean may cite how his plays, despite being centuries old, can feel distinctly modern. In explaining why you enjoy learning about your topic, you reveal more about your character and personality to the admissions committee.

Finally, anchor your response in your interest in attending Tufts by explaining how you will continue your studies during your college years. Be specific, and think about how your topic aligns with courses and activities offered at Tufts. For example, if you were writing about your passion for Meso-American archaeology, you might state your intention to further explore the subject by enrolling in Tufts’ annual Archaeology Field School in Belize. Try to think outside the classroom as well—Tufts’ value of intellectual playfulness encourages learning in unexpected ways.

Prompt 2, Option B

How have the environments or experiences of your upbringing – your family, home, neighborhood, or community – shaped the person you are today (200-250 words).

This prompt is a great opportunity for applicants who want to discuss the influence of the culture of their upbringing on their personality, interests, and values. Additionally, this can serve as an opportunity to discuss a specific event that was particularly impactful for one reason or another. Whether you want to discuss culture or a particular event, you must specifically describe not only the culture or event, but its impact on different aspects of your identity.

The first step in answering this prompt is to provide some background information. Describe what makes the culture, experience, environment, or event unique. For instance, if you’re going to discuss the caring environment of your community, you need to explain the specific scenarios that illustrate that, such as a weekly potluck.

The next portion of your essay should be dedicated to how your culture, experience, environment, or event has impacted you. Go deeper than the surface level and show what aspects of your identity have been shaped by the experience you’re discussing.

For example, if you’re writing about how you grew up in a low-income neighborhood, don’t just tell us “This experience taught me to be resourceful.” Instead, show us your resourcefulness through anecdotes and indirect details:

“Since money was tight, my siblings and I tried to ease the burden on our parents by dumpster diving for food, furniture, and toys. We scoured the streets of the city for overflowing trash bins. We figured out the delivery schedule of local grocery stores. I always looked forward to Wednesdays, when the corner shop would receive new produce shipments, and discard anything that hadn’t been sold. We’d scramble home with our arms full of perfectly-edible apples, carrots, and onions.”

Finally, you should connect the aspects of your identity that were shaped by the culture, experience, environment, or event you wrote about to the Tufts community. Discuss what values you have gained that would allow you to make a positive impact at Tufts. Whether it’s your desire to learn, care for others, collaborate, or advocate, explain how that characteristic will make you a good community member at Tufts.

In the above example, the student may wish to join the Food Rescue Collaborative at Tufts, to use their resourcefulness to rescue food and help feed people in need.

Prompt 2, Option C

Using a specific example or two, tell us about a way that you contributed to building a collaborative and/or inclusive community. (200-250 words).

The final option Tufts gives you is to write about a community you are part of. Contrary to the belief that a community essay has to be about something large like an ethnic or religious community, you can actually choose just about anything. Community can span from a club you are in to an online forum of people who share a similar hobby. Don’t let the “seriousness” of your community prevent you from picking this prompt—anyone can write a compelling and personal essay about any community.

The key to success lies within the prompt: “using a specific example or two.” In other words, tell us a story! Anecdotes that are full of imagery will be your best friend for this essay.

However, just setting the scene with an anecdote isn’t enough. Use your anecdote to explain the natural state of the community prior to your involvement—did the community exist, were members active in the community, did the community lack diversity, were people excluded from joining, etc.

Then, continue the anecdote to demonstrate your contribution. Really show the reader what you did, if you recruited members don’t just say that, explain your process for advertising and the conversations you had with prospective members. Finally, you need to highlight the positive impact you had on your community. This last part tells the admissions officers what you are capable of achieving, so don’t be afraid to brag.

Let’s look at some examples of what sample students could write:

Online Book Club: A student who loves to read always turned to online reviews and forums to find her next great read, but she wished there was a way she could talk about the book she was reading in real time with others. This inspired her to start an online book club which she shared on social media to get the word out. Within two weeks she had 10 teenagers from across the country sign up and they read Where the Crawdads Sing for their first book. Not only did she find new friends and get to experience the nuances of the book through other peoples’ perspectives, she created a sense of belonging for the other members of the club.
Jarabe Tapatio Dance Team: A student with Mexican heritage who’s part of a larger Mexican community of families felt awkward as she got older and became more distant from the other teenagers at community gatherings. Since she loved to dance, she decided to approach the other kids and suggested they learn a traditional Mexican dance, the jarabe tapatio. Every week, they would meet after school and learn the steps. She coordinated with adults planning the Hispanic Heritage month festival and arranged for the newly created dance team to perform.
Caring Older Cousin: A student with a brother his age and a bunch of younger cousins might have always been exclusive at family events and refused to play childish games with his cousins. However, one Thanksgiving he was passing a football with his brother when his 10 year old cousin asked him to teach her. Through the process of explaining how to throw a spiral and what a pass looks like, he began enjoying the company of his cousin and invited the other kids to join. Soon he was running a football clinic in his backyard and playing a touch football game with all of his cousins.

Each of these examples demonstrates how you can turn anything into an essay about community. Just keep in mind to show the before state, what you did to foster collaboration and inclusion, and the end result from your involvement.

Applicants to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts ( BFA or 5-Year BFA+BA/BS Combined Degree)

Please complete the following statement: “i am applying to smfa at tufts because…” (50-100 words).

This first question is very similar to the “Why Tufts?” essay . However, this one asks you to tie your experiences back into why you want to enroll in SMFA.

Your goal here is to make admissions officers clearly see you maintaining a presence in their SMFA program. If you don’t like being bound to the restrictions of having to be shuffled into a major, write about how the SMFA program’s freedom of delving into a specific medium or exploring a variety of options caters to your goals.

Let’s say that you are interested in both the arts and doing research in a STEM field. Instead of having to choose between one or the other, at Tufts, you can take the shuttle to SMFA in the morning and research the impact of certain elements on human cells in the evening.

Tufts is one of two schools in the nation that is affiliated with a museum. If you want to gain more insight into art history and see paintings for yourself, SMFA will allow you to do so. SMFA’s Morse Study Room even gives SMFA students access to papers that are not available to visitors. Therefore, those who wish to seek more than what is offered in the classroom and explore ranges of art will be well-suited to the program.

If there was a specific instance where you realized that you didn’t necessarily “fit in the box,” this prompt would be a good one to address that. But if you want to knock this question out of the park, ask yourself what you can contribute to the program. Tufts looks for students who want to add to the intellectual vigor of its campus. If you can convey the kind of person you will be on campus, Tufts will be able to visualize the impact you will make more clearly.

Please answer the following question – we encourage you to think outside the box. Be serious if the moment calls for it but feel comfortable being playful if that suits you, too. Your response must be between 200-250 words. Art has the power to disrupt our preconceptions, shape public discourse, and imagine new ways of being in the world. What are the ideas you’d like to explore in your work?

This prompt is asking you to reflect on the ideas and themes that you want to explore through your art. SMFA is interested in understanding how you conceptualize your work within a broader thematic framework and what impact you hope it will have on the world. Basically, they want to see your ability to think critically about your art and how it interacts with larger societal, cultural, or personal issues.

As an artist, you have most likely developed some kind of recurring theme or style. Look back through your past works. Is there a pattern that seems to repeat itself? If so, reflect on why it appears in your work so much, and write your essay about the relationship between that pattern and your identity. Then, connect your current work to Tufts, by explaining how a Tufts education will help you continue to grow as an artist.

Since the prompt encourages creativity and asks you to “think outside the box,” feel free to express a unique perspective or an aspect of your artistic philosophy. And whether serious or playful, make sure your response is imaginative and distinct. Regardless of your topic, your essay should be authentic, and reveal something about your artistic ambitions.

To brainstorm, consider these questions:

What themes or ideas do you find yourself going back to in your art?
How does your art challenge or reflect current societal norms or issues?
Are there any personal experiences or cultural backgrounds that influence the ideas you explore in your work?
How do you hope your art will impact or provoke thought in your audience?
What is your artistic process like, and how does it help you explore the ideas you’re passionate about?
Can you think of any moments when your art has already had an impact on someone’s perception or understanding of an issue?
What are some unconventional or experimental ideas you’ve explored in your art, or been eager to explore?

Compelling responses will clearly articulate the applicant’s artistic version, explaining not only what they want to explore but also how exactly they plan to do so through their art. Discussion of elements like medium, style, or process can be included, if they’re relevant to how you approach these ideas, but don’t get bogged down in technicalities–your goal is to teach Tufts about who you are, not how to sculpt (for example).

Here are some possible topics:

An aspiring multimedia artist from a multicultural background who grew up experiencing frequent misrepresentation of her culture in the media could center their work on deconstructing and reimagining these portrayals through mixed media collages and digital art. Maybe they plan to explore the tension between identity and stereotypes, by creating pieces that provoke viewers to question their preconceived notions.
A sculpture artist who grew up in a rural area is passionate about environmental issues and is fascinated by the concept of “nature’s revenge” might incorporate recycled materials in their work to explore the idea of nature reclaiming human spaces. Perhaps they want to expand on this theme by creating interactive installations that challenge viewers to consider the long-term impact of human activity on the planet.
A performance artist in the LGBTQ community interested in the concept of social norms and conformity may use their body as a canvas to challenge societal expectations around gender and identity. They might plan to design a series of costumes for their performances that explore the fluidity of identity, and invite audiences to question the rigid structures that define our lives.

As with all admissions essays, specificity and genuine insight are crucial. To make sure you’re providing these two things, ground your artistic ideas in your own experiences or worldview. Don’t just say “I aim to explore environmental issues in my work.” Instead, explain how your background, culture, or personal journey influences the themes you explore in your art.

Additionally, like in the examples above, the ideas you want to explore should be clear and detailed. “Societal issues” alone is much too broad a category–you need to specify a particular issue, and give your reader some information about why it matters to you, like the student who became passionate about the environment due to growing up in a rural area.

Finally, show your awareness of the power of art to influence thoughts, emotions, and actions. Explain the impact you hope your work will have, whether on an individual, community, or global scale.

Because this prompt is future-oriented in asking what themes you plan to explore, you should also connect your aspirations to Tufts itself. Check out SMFA’s studio resources for options pertaining to your preferred medium, opportunities for student exhibitions , and activities and organizations you can participate in.

Establishing a clear link between the work you hope to do and the offerings and resources of the university you’re applying to is always a great way to help admissions officers visualize you on campus and concretely imagine your contributions to their community.

Now that we’ve broken down the prompt, let’s take a look at a couple of excerpts from hypothetical responses.

“I’m particularly interested in the idea of memory and how it affects us. Memories can be happy or sad, and they shape who we are and how we see the world. My art will explore how people remember things and how those memories make them feel and react. I plan to create installations that represent different kinds of memories, like using light to show happy memories and darker colors for sad ones. My goal is to make people think about their own memories and how they’ve impacted their lives.”

As you can see, this response is vague and lacks depth. The concept of memory is too broad and not connected to a specific personal experience. As a result, the theme feels superficial, and doesn’t teach us anything about what distinguishes this student as an artist.

The description of the installations is also generic, with simplistic ideas like using light for happy memories and dark colors for sad ones, which lacks creativity and doesn’t present a unique perspective. The overall response fails to convey a clear artistic vision or a compelling reason why the student is drawn to this theme.

Now, read over a revised version of this response below.

“I’m fascinated by the concept of memory—how it shapes our identities and our understanding of the world. My work involves creating interactive installations that use light and sound to simulate the process of recalling memories. Inspired by my grandmother’s struggle with Alzheimer’s, I aim to explore the fragility and fluidity of memory, and how it affects not just the individual but also their loved ones. By inviting viewers to engage with my installations, I hope to evoke a personal connection to the themes of loss, remembrance, and the passage of time.”

This response is emotionally resonant and specific, with a clear personal connection to the student’s family experience. The idea of exploring memory through interactive installations using light and sound is innovative and well-suited to the themes of fragility and fluidity. The student effectively communicates their personal artistic vision and the impact they hope to make on their audience, thus making this a much more effective, engaging response.

If your first draft looks more like the first essay, that’s totally fine. Just make sure that during revision, you make your ideas more precise and specific, and connect them to your personal experiences, so that Tufts can clearly see what you have to offer as an artist that nobody else does.

Where to Get Your Tufts University Essays Edited For Free

Do you want feedback on your Tufts essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays.

Need feedback faster? Get a free, nearly-instantaneous essay review from Sage, our AI tutor and advisor. Sage will rate your essay, give you suggestions for improvement, and summarize what admissions officers would take away from your writing. Use these tools to improve your chances of acceptance to your dream school!

Tufts Blogs

Current tufts students, inside admissions, a short guide to the tufts supplemental questions.

The personal statements that high schoolers write for their college applications are an incredible way of getting to know something unique, impactful, or otherwise important about them. We understand why you spend so much time writing these, especially since nearly every college requires, at the bare minimum, a personal statement in order to apply. And we here at Tufts certainly care a lot about your personal statements, don’t get us wrong! But our supplemental short-answer questions also play a role in the application reading process in terms of us getting to know more facets of your personality.

At Tufts, we require two responses: The first is to complete, in 100 words, the following sentence: “I am applying to Tufts because…”, and one other that is your choice from three prompts (which you can read here ). These are your chance to show us that you have done your research on who we are beyond a cursory Google search, and to illuminate something else about your experiences or the way you see the world. Tufts students are kind, collaborative, and intellectually curious. The best way to stand out in this section is to show us how you embody various aspects of these broad traits.

Don’t worry, I’ve got some examples below to help you better understand what I mean.

1. Why Tufts? Why not Tufts?

I could sit here for an hour and list off the reasons why you should apply to Tufts. To be fair, it’s my job, but still! Sometimes students approach me after information sessions and ask, “well, why wouldn’t I want to go to Tufts University?” You could honestly ask this question about nearly any highly selective college or university. They will all offer you a great education, access to resources and professors, copious student organizations, and will be located in a rural, urban, or suburban environment. I know that all of that sounds basic, but every day during reading season I see multiple responses that list those exact reasons as why they want to come to Tufts. This response is a space for you to really dive into what makes Tufts unique for you. Don’t just repeat basic facts you can find on our landing page or on a Wikipedia article. Yes, we have over 350 student organizations and you can easily make your own—but what’s one that really speaks to you? Is it our Leonard Carmichael Society and its focus on service? Or maybe our Eco Arts Club which brings a socially engaged, environmentally conscious, art practice to community activism? Sure, we have a 10 to 1 student/faculty ratio. But do a deeper dive into an academic interest of yours and find a course, department, or professor’s research group that stands out to you and let us know why it engages your intellectual curiosity. The best way to stand out here is to be specific, show us that extra research you did into how what Tufts offers is right for you specifically.

2. Wait There’s More? (Yes—For Tufts, at Least)

A second supplemental question might feel daunting—didn’t you just show us what you knew about Tufts? What more could we need from you? The answer to that question is a 200-250 word response on your choice of three prompts (unless you’re applying to the SMFA at Tufts in which case there is just one question, but the advice here still holds). This second question is designed for you to provide your application readers with another way of understanding who you are. Your personal statement is likely about some moment that is unique to you and shaped who you are as a human being (a boating trip with your grandfather, your path through a high stakes sports competition, a special project you started with friends or family, etc.). But that essay is a way for us to get to know you broadly. Remember, Tufts students are kind, collaborative, and intellectually playful, civically engaged, and globally minded. Will your personal statement be specifically designed to showcase all of that? Probably not! It may illuminate one or two aspects of your personality that align with those values, but we would never expect it to perfectly outline how you would be an ideal Tufts community member. Use this second supplemental short answer response to provide insight into how you embody a different one of these values. Just make sure it is something unique from your personal statement, so that we get that fully nuanced view of who you are. A copy-and-pasted personal statement, or even a supplemental essay that is about the same topic as your personal statement, won’t help your application stand out.

Phew! That is a lot of information about two short answer responses that you will be writing for your application to Tufts. In short, the best way to look at the writing that you provide for your college applications is as a set of responses designed for us to get to know you. Use each one strategically to highlight some aspect of your personality, your academic interests, and who you are as a community member. There’s nothing more disappointing than getting to the final essay and seeing recycled content from elsewhere in the application. Feel free to reach out to your regional representative if you have any questions—we’re here to help! And always have faith in yourself and in your writing. You’ve got this!