How to Write the Washington University in St. Louis Supplemental Essays

While this prompt is listed as optional, you should take advantage of this opportunity to share more about your identity with the admissions committee. Both prompts encourage you to reflect on your identity and experiences and connect those elements of who you are to the values and mission of WashU. The first prompt requires you to consider a community you are a part of—this could be a racial group, religious community, family unit, or a club or organization—and what your distinct role was within that community. Consider this question in light of its framing: the prompt notes that WashU considers itself a university for the city of St. Louis. Your response should demonstrate your alignment with this mission by showing your active participation in a particular community. How have you sought to make a positive impact within the groups that have shaped you? The second question is more broad, providing you the opportunity to share how your experiences have shaped your story. As you answer this question, be careful not to fall into the trap of trying to write your autobiography in 250 words. Instead, focus on one or two emblematic experiences that shed light on how you have grown and matured over the years.

Regardless of the prompt you choose, your ultimate goal in writing this essay should be to present yourself as a dynamic person and a committed community member. If you choose to answer the first prompt, be specific about your active participation in a community you are a part of—don’t simply tell the admissions committee how you will give back to the St. Louis community as a WashU student, show them by pointing to your demonstrated history of leadership and service. If you choose to answer the second prompt, share an aspect of your identity that you have not included elsewhere in your application. What should the admissions committee know about you that isn’t reflected in your other materials?

Selected Prompt: WashU supports engagement in the St. Louis community by considering the university as “In St. Louis, For St. Louis.” What is a community you are a part of and your place or impact within it?

Power, planning and precision are all deeply embedded into my “school after school,” my Kuk Sool Won dojo, and the habits that have shaped me. As I’ve watched icons in the dojo reach higher heights of flexibility, strength and speed, I’ve dug deeply into my own reasons for competing—seven years of dedication without a single medal would be confusing to most.

It’s the community that gave me stability after my injury, and the confidence to imagine a future of fulfillment after my body became devastatingly unrecognizable to me years ago. They taught me that medals can be distributed, but true internal growth cannot be measured in objective terms. Whether I’m telling jokes on the way to competition, baking post-practice treats, or offering words of encouragement to young athletes, I’m leaning into the healing aspect of community that helped me internally rehabilitate. It simultaneously has enabled me to embrace two additional dimensions of my identity, the nuances of my ability and my Korean heritage as I rediscover who I am in the company of others, reclaiming my physical and mental fortitude post-injury.

My community has taught me that good posture is not just the uprightness of the spine, but the graciousness through which you navigate the world, and I hope to share this perspective with the multifaceted and supportive WashU community.