College Prep
College Supplemental Essay Prompts 2026-27
The 2026-27 supplemental essay prompts for 30 colleges Northern Virginia families apply to most, quoted word for word from each college's own admissions website, with the word limit and whether each one is required. First-year applicants only.
Colleges
30 colleges. 22 have published 2026-27 prompts, 149 prompts in all.
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Brown University
"There is something distinctive about Brown students. It is a blend of intellectual curiosity, creativity, and humility. A commitment to collaboration. An openness to new ideas and perspectives. A desire to make the world better. And it is resilience: the ability to recover and thrive after experiencing difficulties." From President Christina Paxson's 2025 Convocation Address. How will you use these characteristics or others to shape your approach to the Open Curriculum?
Students entering Brown often find that making their home on College Hill naturally invites reflection on where they came from. Share how an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you, and what unique contributions this might allow you to make to the Brown community.
If you could teach a class on any one thing, whether academic or otherwise, what would it be?
Brown students care deeply about their work and the world around them. Students find contentment, satisfaction, and meaning in daily interactions and major discoveries. Whether big or small, mundane or spectacular, tell us about something that brings you joy.
Why medicine?
Why PLME?
Tell us something about yourself, beyond your interest in medicine, that you think will make you a great doctor.
The Brown | RISD Dual Degree Program draws on the complementary strengths of Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) to provide students with the opportunity to explore and engage with diverse spheres of academic and creative inquiry. Considering your understanding of the academic programs at Brown and RISD, describe how and why the specific blend of RISD's experimental, immersive art and design program and Brown's wide-ranging courses and curricula could constitute an optimal undergraduate education for you. Reflect on how you might integrate or synthesize content, approaches, and methods from these two distinct learning experiences. Additionally, how might you contribute to the Dual Degree community and its commitment to interdisciplinary work?
- Carnegie Mellon University
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Columbia University
List the titles of texts, resources and outlets that have contributed to your intellectual development outside of academic courses, including but not limited to books, journals, websites, podcasts, essays, plays, presentations, videos, museums and other content that you enjoy.
Tell us about an aspect of your life so far or your lived experience that is important to you, and describe how it has shaped the way you would learn from and contribute to Columbia's multidimensional and collaborative environment.
At Columbia, students representing a wide range of perspectives are invited to live and learn together. In such a community, questions and debates naturally arise. Please describe a time when you did not agree with someone and discuss how you engaged with them and what you took away from the interaction.
In college/university, students are often challenged in ways that they could not anticipate. Please describe a situation in which you have navigated through adversity and discuss how you changed as a result.
Why are you interested in attending Columbia University? We encourage you to consider the aspect(s) that you find unique and compelling about Columbia.
What attracts you to your preferred areas of study at Columbia College or Columbia Engineering?
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Cornell University
What interests you about the major you selected? Tell us about experiences (both in and outside of the classroom), questions, and goals that influenced your choice.
What draws you to Cornell’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS)? Reflect on the learning, community, or impact opportunities that matter most to you, and share how they align with Cornell CALS (as you understand it currently).
Describe how your interests connect to architecture. Include an example of a creative project, design experience, or personal passion that sparked your interest in pursuing a 5-year professional degree in architecture. Reflect on how this experience shaped your understanding of the field and your motivation to study architecture.
Submit an artist statement describing your creative interests and practice. Address how your work reflects your artistic voice, influences, and process, and how studying art at Cornell AAP would support and expand your practice. (You will also be prompted to upload a copy to your Slideroom portal.)
Describe your interest in urban and regional studies. Discuss experiences, ideas, or issues that have shaped your interest in cities, communities, and regional systems, and explain how URS at Cornell aligns with your academic and career goals.
At the College of Arts and Sciences, your education is yours to shape. Describe an intellectual passion, question, or idea that has captured your attention—whether it emerges from your studies or extends beyond your coursework. What specific aspects of our liberal arts curriculum would you draw on to explore and connect your varied interests?
Discuss your interest in pursuing a major in policy at the Cornell Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy and what draws you to this field of study. You are encouraged to consider including details related to your personal experiences, values, academic influences, or extracurricular activities that have shaped your perspective and future goals.
Please describe why you are interested in being considered for the Brooks School DC Start program.
What kind of a business student are you? Using your personal, academic, or volunteer/work experiences, describe the topics or issues that you care about and why they are important to you. Your response should convey how your interests align with the school to which you are applying within the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business (Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management or the Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration).
Fundamentally, engineering is the application of math, science, and technology to solve complex problems. Why do you want to study engineering?
Why do you think you would love to study at Duffield Engineering?
What brings you joy?
What do you believe you will contribute to the Duffield Engineering community beyond what you've already detailed in your application? What unique voice will you bring?
What is one activity, club, team, organization, work/volunteer experience or family responsibility that is especially meaningful to you? Please briefly tell us about its significance for you.
What is one award you have received, or achievement you have attained, that has meant the most to you? Please briefly describe its importance to you.
Think about an extracurricular/community engagement/work experience that most closely connects you to the CHE mission and your intended choice of major. Tell us what that experience taught you about your broader community and its needs, and the impact you can make. How will your intended CHE major help you make that impact?
Using your personal, academic, or volunteer/work experiences, describe the topics or issues that you care about and why they are important to you. Your response should show us that your interests align with the ILR School.
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Dartmouth College
As you seek admission to Dartmouth's Class of 2031, what aspects of the college's academic program, community, and/or campus environment attract your interest? How is Dartmouth a good fit for you?
There is a Quaker saying: Let your life speak. Describe the environment in which you were raised and the impact it has had on the person you are today.
"Be yourself," Oscar Wilde advised. "Everyone else is taken." Introduce yourself.
What excites you?
Labor leader and civil rights activist Dolores Huerta recommended a life of purpose. "We must use our lives to make the world a better place to live, not just to acquire things," she said. "That is what we are put on the earth for." In what ways do you hope to make—or are you already making—an impact? Why? How?
In an Instagram post, best-selling British author Matt Haig cheered the impact of reading. "A good novel is the best invention humans have ever created for imagining other lives," he wrote. How have you experienced such insight from reading? What did you read and how did it alter the way you understand yourself and others?
The social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees have been the focus of Dame Jane Goodall's research for decades. Her understanding of animal behavior prompted the English primatologist to see a lesson for human communities as well: "Change happens by listening and then starting a dialogue with the people who are doing something you don't believe is right." Channel Dame Goodall: Tell us about a moment when you engaged in a difficult conversation or encountered someone with an opinion or perspective that was different from your own. How did you find common ground?
Celebrate your nerdy side.
"It's not easy being green…" was the frequent refrain of Kermit the Frog. How has difference been a part of your life, and how have you embraced it as part of your identity, outlook, or sense of purpose?
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Duke University
What is your impression of Duke as a university and community, and why do you believe it is a good match for your goals, values, and interests? If there is something specific that attracts you to our academic offerings in Trinity College of Arts and Sciences or the Pratt School of Engineering, or to our co-curricular opportunities, feel free to include that, too.
We all belong to communities defined by place, faith, family, culture, interests or shared experience. Tell us about a community that has shaped who you are, any way it has set you apart, and what you’ve learned from being part of it that you hope to bring to Duke.
We believe a wide range of viewpoints and experiences is essential to maintaining Duke’s vibrant living and learning community. Please share anything in this context that might help us better understand you and your potential contributions to Duke.
Meaningful dialogue often involves respectful disagreement. Provide an example of a difference of opinion you’ve had with someone you care about. What did you learn from it?
What’s the last thing that you’ve been really excited about?
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Emory University
What academic areas are you interested in exploring at Emory University and why?
Emory University has a strong commitment to building community. Tell us about a community that you have been part of where your personal participation helped to change or shape the community for the better.
Reflect on a personal experience where you intentionally expanded your cultural awareness.
Emory University’s unique mission calls for service to humanity. Share how you might personally contribute to this mission of service to humanity.
In a scholarly community, differing ideas often collide before they converge. How do you personally navigate disagreement in a way that promotes progress and deepens meaningful dialogue?
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Georgetown University
Briefly discuss the significance to you of the school or summer activity in which you have been most involved.
In all our lives, we interact with people who hold different viewpoints than our own. Describe such an event you experienced. What did you learn from the experience?
As Georgetown is a diverse community, the Admissions Committee would like to know more about you in your own words. Please submit a brief personal or creative essay which you feel best describes you and reflects on your personal background and individual experiences, skills, and talents.
Founded in 1789, the Georgetown College of Arts & Sciences is committed to the Jesuit traditions of an integrated education and of productive research in the natural sciences, humanities, social sciences, and fine arts. Describe your interest in studying in the College of Arts & Sciences. Applicants interested in the sciences, mathematics, or languages are encouraged to make specific reference to their choice of major.
For nearly 50 years, Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy has equipped leaders and changemakers with the interdisciplinary skills to address local, national and global policy problems. Undergraduate public policy students at Georgetown will have the unique opportunity to live and study on two campuses, spending their first two years immersed on the Hilltop, before completing the second half of their time at Georgetown on the Capitol Campus, immersed in the policy world. Describe your primary motivations for studying public policy at Georgetown University and dedicating your undergraduate studies toward a future related to public service.
Through this joint program between the College of Arts & Sciences and the Earth Commons Institute, you’ll explore theories and practical skills in the classroom, in the field, and around the world, and put it all together to make a difference. Describe your primary motivations for studying environment and sustainability at Georgetown University to effect positive change in the world.
Georgetown University’s Berkley School of Nursing is committed to the formation of ethical, empathetic, and transformational nursing leaders. Describe the factors that have influenced your interest in studying Nursing at Georgetown University.
Georgetown University’s School of Health was founded to advance the health and well-being of people locally, nationally, and globally through innovative research, the delivery of interdisciplinary education, and transformative engagement of communities. Describe the factors that influenced your interest in studying health care at Georgetown University, specifically addressing your intended related major: Global Health, Health Care Management & Policy, or Human Science.
Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service was founded more than a century ago to prepare generations of leaders with the foundational skills to address global issues. Describe your primary motivations for studying international affairs at Georgetown University and dedicating your undergraduate studies toward a future in global service.
Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business provides graduates with essential global, ethical, analytical, financial, and diverse perspectives on the economies of our nation and the world. Describe your primary motivations for studying business at Georgetown University.
- Georgia Institute of Technology
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Harvard University
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?
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?
Briefly describe any of your extracurricular activities, employment experience, travel, or family responsibilities that have shaped who you are.
How do you hope to use your Harvard education in the future?
Top 3 things your roommates might like to know about you.
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Johns Hopkins University
Drawing on your own experiences, what have you learned about engaging across differences and how has it shaped the way you think about building bridges, enhancing community, and working with others?
Describe a time when you took initiative or led others toward a shared goal. What did you learn about your leadership style, and how might that experience influence how you explore the business field?
Identify a global health issue and outline a solution to a key underlying problem.
Describe your reasons for applying to the Direct Matriculation Program. What experiences have prepared you for participating in this accelerated consecutive degree program that combines undergraduate and graduate study in international affairs?
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
What field of study appeals to you the most right now? (Note: Applicants select from a drop-down list.) Reflect on what has led you to this interest.
While some reach their goals following well-trodden paths, others blaze their own trails achieving the unexpected. In what ways have you done something different than what was expected in your educational journey?
How have your personal and academic experiences influenced the types of problems you would want to tackle with an MIT education and the impact you aim to make on your community?
How did you manage a situation or challenge that you didn’t expect? What did you learn from it?
What do you do just for fun?
Who is someone you admire, whether you know them personally or look up to them from afar? Tell us why.
What’s a topic, academic or non-academic, that you could talk about for hours?
MIT values both “generalists” with varied interests and “specialists” who focus deeply on one or a few passions. Which do you think best describes you, and why?
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New York University
We are looking for students who want to be bridge builders—students who can connect people, groups, and ideas to span divides, foster understanding, and promote collaboration within a dynamic, interconnected, and vibrant global academic community. We are eager for you to tell us how your experiences have helped you understand what qualities and efforts are needed to bridge divides so that people can better learn and work together.
Please consider one or more of the following questions in your essay:
Tell us about a time you encountered a perspective different from your own. What did you learn—about yourself, the other person, or the world?
Tell us about an experience you’ve had working with others who have different perspectives. What role did you try to play in helping people to work together, and what did you learn from your efforts?
Tell us about someone you’ve observed who does a particularly good job helping people think or work together. How does this person set the stage for common exploration or work? How do they react when challenges arise? What qualities do you admire in this person?
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Northwestern University
We want to be sure we’re considering your application in the context of your personal experiences: What aspects of your background (your identity, your school setting, your community, your household, etc.) have most shaped how you see yourself engaging in Northwestern’s community, be it academically, extracurricularly, culturally, politically, socially, or otherwise?
Painting “The Rock” is a tradition at Northwestern that invites all forms of expression—students promote campus events or extracurricular groups, support social or activist causes, show their Wildcat spirit (what we call “Purple Pride”), celebrate their culture, and more. What would you paint on The Rock, and why?
Northwestern fosters a distinctively interdisciplinary culture. We believe discovery and innovation thrive at the intersection of diverse ideas, perspectives, and academic interests. Within this setting, if you could dream up an undergraduate class, research project, or creative effort (a start-up, a design prototype, a performance, etc.), what would it be? Who might be some ideal classmates or collaborators?
Community and belonging matter at Northwestern. Tell us about one or more communities, networks, or student groups you see yourself connecting with on campus.
Northwestern’s location is special: on the shore of Lake Michigan, steps from downtown Evanston, just a few miles from Chicago. What aspects of our location are most compelling to you, and why?
Northwestern is a place where people with diverse backgrounds from all over the world can study, live, and talk with one another. This range of experiences and viewpoints immeasurably enriches learning. How might your individual background contribute to this diversity of perspectives in Northwestern’s classrooms and around our campus?
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Princeton University
As a research institution that also prides itself on its liberal arts curriculum, Princeton allows students to explore areas across the humanities and the arts, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. What academic areas most pique your curiosity, and how do the programs offered at Princeton suit your particular interests?
Please describe why you are interested in studying engineering at Princeton. Include any of your experiences in or exposure to engineering, and how you think the programs offered at the University suit your particular interests.
Princeton values community and encourages students, faculty, staff and leadership to engage in respectful conversations that can expand their perspectives and challenge their ideas and beliefs. As a prospective member of this community, reflect on how your lived experiences will impact the conversations you will have in the classroom, the dining hall or other campus spaces. What lessons have you learned in life thus far? What will your classmates learn from you? In short, how has your lived experience shaped you?
Princeton has a longstanding commitment to understanding our responsibility to society through service and civic engagement. How does your own story intersect with these ideals?
What is a new skill you would like to learn in college?
What brings you joy?
What song represents the soundtrack of your life at this moment?
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Rice University
Please explain what draws you to the academic areas you selected above and how you hope to explore them at Rice University.
Based upon your exploration of Rice University, what elements of the Rice experience appeal to you?
The Residential College System is at the heart of Rice student life and is heavily influenced by the particular cultural traditions and unique life experiences each student brings. What life experiences and/or unique perspectives are you looking forward to sharing with fellow Owls in the residential college system?
Rice is strengthened by its diverse community of learning and discovery that produces leaders and change agents across the spectrum of human endeavor. What perspectives shaped by your background, experiences, upbringing, and/or cultural identity inspire you to join our community of change agents at Rice?
Why are you determined to study architecture? Please explain your motivation and describe how your past experiences have led you to apply to the Rice School of Architecture in particular. Have you had an opportunity outside of school—such as an internship, building project, architecture summer program or other experience—that strengthened your interest in the field? If so, please describe how the experience further compels you to pursue a career in architecture.
Describe a building, place, or city that you have encountered and found especially compelling. What specifically captured your attention, and why? In your response, reflect on how this experience has shaped your understanding of architecture and the built environment.
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Stanford University
What is the most significant challenge that society faces today?
How did you spend your last two summers?
What historical moment or event do you wish you could have witnessed?
Briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities, a job you hold, or responsibilities you have for your family.
List five things that are important to you.
The Stanford community is deeply curious and driven to learn in and out of the classroom. Reflect on an idea or experience that makes you genuinely excited about learning.
Virtually all of Stanford's undergraduates live on campus. Write a note to your future roommate that reveals something about you or that will help your roommate—and us—get to know you better.
Please describe what aspects of your life experiences, interests, and character would help you make a distinctive contribution as an undergraduate to Stanford University.
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
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Tufts University
Please describe how you have learned about and engaged with Tufts during your college search process
Tell us about one of your favorite school assignments in the past two years. What was the assignment and why did you enjoy it?
Tell us about an engineering or science-related project that you have helped build, design, create, or iterate in the past two years. What was the project and what was your role?
Tell us more about a specific piece in your portfolio. What were the ideas you intended to explore, and how did those ideas inform the process of making the piece?
Tell us more about a specific piece in your portfolio. How did an academic course, project, or interest inspire the ideas that you explored in this piece? Or, how did making this piece influence your academic interests?
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University of Chicago
How does the University of Chicago, as you know it now, satisfy your desire for a particular kind of learning, community, and future? Please address with some specificity your own wishes and how they relate to UChicago.
Food for thought: How do thoughts eat?
The James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021, utilized origami-inspired techniques to compactly store and deploy its sunshield in space. Choose an artistic practice and use its principles to propose an elegant solution to a problem.
Sometimes metaphors get mixed up. For one reason or another, one could say, “we'll burn that bridge when we get there” or “the world is your china shop”. Make up your own mixed metaphor. Explain how it could make sense, be understood, or even applied.
The Olympics have long celebrated the pinnacle of human athletic achievement. But what if they expanded to honor the mundane? Imagine a new Olympic event built around an everyday activity like speed dishwashing or competitive grocery bagging. How is it scored, officiated, and judged? Why is it a worthy addition?
AI: Allen Iverson. NASA, or the North American Saxophone Alliance. Share a potentially confounding, comedic, or captivating example of MIA (Mistaken Identity of Acronym) and tell us its backstory.
And, as always… the classic choose your own adventure option! In the spirit of adventurous inquiry, choose one of our past prompts (or create a question of your own). Be original, creative, thought provoking. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk, and have fun!
- University of Michigan
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University of Notre Dame
Everyone has different priorities when considering their higher education options and building their college or university list. Tell us about your “non-negotiable” factor(s) when searching for your future college home.
How does faith influence the decisions you make?
What is distinctive about your personal experiences and development (eg, family support, culture, disability, personal background, community)? Why are these experiences important to you and how will you enrich the Notre Dame community?
Notre Dame’s undergraduate experience is characterized by a collective sense of care for every person. How do you foster service to others in your community?
What would you fight for?
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University of Pennsylvania
Write a short thank-you note to someone you have not yet thanked and would like to acknowledge. (We encourage you to share this note with that person, if possible, and reflect on the experience!)
How will you explore community at Penn? Consider how Penn will help shape your perspective, and how your experiences and perspective will help shape Penn.
Penn Nursing intends to meet the health needs of society in a global and multicultural world by preparing its students to impact healthcare by advancing science. Why are you applying to Nursing, where do you see yourself professionally in the future, and how will you contribute to our mission of promoting equity in healthcare?
The College of Arts and Sciences is designed to foster discovery and connection. Describe something you are curious about—something you'd like to learn more about or find a new approach to—and how you might pursue that curiosity in the College.
Wharton prepares its students to make an impact by applying business methods and economic theory to real-world problems, including economic, political, and social issues. Discuss a current issue of importance to you and how you hope a Wharton education would help you explore it.
Penn Engineering prepares its students to become leaders in technology by combining a strong foundation in the natural sciences and mathematics with depth of study in focused disciplinary majors. Describe how you plan to pursue your engineering interests at Penn, particularly within the intended major you selected.
Describe your experience with the target language you selected. You may wish to share the length of time you’ve studied or used this language, how you’ve learned it, the skills you’ve acquired, and/or the skills you still wish to develop. Please also explain why you are interested in studying this language and the region(s) of the world where it is spoken.
The Huntsman Program supports the development of globally-minded scholars who become engaged citizens, creative innovators, and ethical leaders in the public, private, and non-profit sectors in the United States and around the world. What draws you to a dual degree in international studies and business, and how would you use what you learn to address a global issue where these two domains intersect?
The Vagelos Life Sciences & Management (LSM) program brings together two powerful modes of understanding—scientific inquiry and strategic thinking—to prepare students to engage thoughtfully and creatively with some of the most complex challenges of our time. What questions, problems, or opportunities would you hope to explore through LSM, and how might the integration of life sciences and management shape your approach to them? Focus on the ideas, values, or questions that draw you to this intersection, rather than how LSM might advance your career, and make sure this essay is distinct from your single-degree application.
Explain how you will use the M&T program to pursue problems or opportunities that require both engineering and business perspectives.
Describe something you created, designed, improved, or built. What motivated you, and what did you learn from the process?
Describe your interest in nursing and health care management, and how Penn's coordinated dual-degree program in nursing and business would help you meet your goals. Please ensure that this essay is distinct from your single-degree application, if applicable.
VIPER students pursue dual degrees in science or math and engineering. Which major combination(s) interest you most right now and why? Your response to this prompt is not binding; students often shift majors as they learn more through the program. See available VIPER majors on our website.
Describe your interest in the VIPER program, including how any past experiences (academic, research, extracurricular, etc.) have shaped your interest in energy science and technology, and how you envision participation in VIPER fitting into your future goals.
Discuss how your interests align with the Visual and Interactive Computing (VIC) program at the University of Pennsylvania
- University of Southern California
- University of Virginia
- Vanderbilt University
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Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Virginia Tech's motto is "Ut Prosim" which means 'That I May Serve'. Share how you contribute to a community that is important to you. How long have you been involved? What have you learned and how would you like to share that with others at Virginia Tech?
Have you had an experience when you or someone you know were not being included? Did you reach out to anyone for assistance, direction, or resources? Were you able to affect change and/or influence others? Did this experience change your perspective and if so, how?
Share a time when you were most proud of yourself either as a role model or when you displayed your leadership. What specific skills did you contribute to the experience? How did others rely on you for guidance? What did you learn about yourself during this time?
Describe a goal that you have set and the steps you will take to achieve it. What made you set this goal for yourself? What is your timeline to achieve this goal? Who do you seek encouragement or guidance from and how do they support your progress as you work on this goal?
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Washington University in St. Louis
Please tell us what you are interested in studying at college and why.
- William & Mary
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Yale University
Tell us about a topic or idea that excites you and is related to one or more academic areas you selected above. Why are you drawn to it?
If you could teach any college course, write a book, or create an original piece of art of any kind, what would it be?
What is one aspect of yourself that you hope to grow or develop during college?
What is something about you that is not included anywhere else in your application?
Reflect on a time you discussed an issue important to you with someone holding an opposing view. Why did you find the experience meaningful?
Reflect on your membership in a community to which you feel connected. Why is this community meaningful to you? You may define community however you like.
Reflect on an element of your personal experience that you feel will enrich your college. How has it shaped you?
No college matches. Clear the search or pick another prompt type.
What each prompt type is really asking
From our supplemental essay guide. One line per type, so you can see the job a prompt has before you start drafting.
- Why us
- Have you done real research, and can you connect it to your actual path?
- Community
- How do you define community, and how will you behave in ours?
- Activity
- What values, problems or responsibilities sit behind the activity list?
- Intellectual curiosity
- How does your mind move when no one is handing you points?
- Short answers
- Can you be precise, human and specific without trying to sound profound?
- Background and identity
- What lived detail shapes your perspective, choices or contribution?
About these prompts
Every prompt is in the college's own words, from its admissions website or the Common App, with a link to the source. A college whose 2026-27 prompts are not yet confirmed will show them once they are.
The library covers first-year applicants. It does not include transfer essays or questions that appear only inside the application portal, such as program or gap-year questions. Your application portal is the final word on what to submit.
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Common Questions
Where do these prompts come from?
Each college's own admissions website, or the Common App, quoted word for word. Every college's page links to its source.
Why does a college say "not yet confirmed"?
The college's website and the Common App's public pages do not yet show prompts labeled for 2026-27. Last year's prompts often change, so the page stays empty until this year's are confirmed. Some colleges show their prompts only inside the Common App, after you add the college to your list.
Can the prompts change during the year?
Yes. Colleges sometimes edit a prompt or a word limit during the year. The prompts inside your application portal are the final word, so check them there before you submit.