essay prompts for university of south carolina

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How to Write the University of South Carolina Essays 2019-2020

The University of South Carolina is a public research university in Columbia, South Carolina. UofSC offers over 320 degrees of study, as well as an Honors College, the Top Scholars Program, and Capstone Scholars Program. 

In the 2018-2019 admissions cycle, UofSC received 30,778 applications and ultimately accepted around 63%. The middle 50% GPA of those enrolled students was 3.78-4.5, and for SAT scores, it was 1200-1350. 

UofSC has one required prompt for all applicants, with 3 options. Applicants to the Music Composition Program have an additional prompt, and those invited to apply to the Honors College or Top Scholars Programs will have an additional two prompts. 

For All Applicants

Required: Respond to one of the personal statement prompts. (100-500 words)

The most important thing here—besides sticking to the word count—is choosing a prompt that speaks the most to you. Since you have choices, your essay should be as strong as possible. Think about how you might answer each prompt, and choose the story that is the strongest and conveys the most positive qualities about yourself, especially if it’s a trait you haven’t been able to discuss at all in the rest of your application! 

Option 1: Who in your life is depending on you? How are they depending on you? (100-500 words)

To answer this question, think about the people in your life—your family, your friends, your peers. How do you interact with them? You likely depend on your parents, but do your parents depend on you too? Your siblings? Remember that there are lots of ways to “depend” on someone. It could mean depending on a person for food and shelter, or for support and leadership. 

• Your sports team might depend on you to be a reliable, motivating captain who encourages everyone and pushes the team to be their best.
• Your younger siblings might depend on you for their after-school care—like snacks, rides and homework help—if your parents/guardians work during the day. 
• Your parents might depend on you to work hard in your education because they made sacrifices for you to have those opportunities. 

The best way for you to write this essay is to tell a story. Show your readers who depends on you and how they depend on you. Pick a snapshot in time and paint a picture with descriptive details and imagery. Try not to say “This person depends on me because…” It will make for bland writing, and you want admissions officers to be fully engaged in your interesting story. 

You have 500 words to tell this story—that’s plenty of space to not only describe who depends on you and how, but also how this impacts you. Show us your feelings and emotions; does their dependency overwhelm you? Are you honored by it? Do you feel like it has made you a more responsible person? Even though the prompt asks about someone else who depends on you, admissions officers still want to know who you are. 

Option 2: Tell us something about yourself that we have not already asked. (100-500 words)

This is a very open-ended essay, but a fantastic opportunity for you to present something about yourself that you haven’t been able to share in other parts of your application. This open-endedness means there are many different things you could write about:

• You play a sport that you haven’t written about.
• You come from a unique family dynamic (many siblings, multiple parents, same-sex parents, etc.) that has shaped you in some way.
• You speak more than one language.
• You have a medical condition that you have to deal with every day.
• You once summited a mountain. 

To write this, you want to tell a story. Show us what we don’t know about you. Use descriptions and details to place us in the same environment as you. Avoid explicitly stating “I am…” because that becomes dull to read. You want to ensure that admissions officers will hang on to every word you say because they’re so captivated by your story. 

It’s very important that any trait or activity you present here does not have any negative connotations. Saying that you binge watched five different TV shows in the last two months can have negative connotations for an admissions officer, as it suggests you might be more interested in Netflix than engaging with UofSC. Discussing how you failed a class is negative if you don’t show us how you grew and learned from it, but if you show us how you became a better student because of that failure, it shows your determination.

Think about a story about yourself that you want to tell! This is a chance to show that you’re a well-rounded person and offer insight to a side of you that we haven’t seen yet. 

Option 3: What advice would you give your 13-year-old self? (100-500 words)

The first thing to do is think about who you were as a thirteen-year-old. Reflect on how you’ve changed since then. Is there something you wish you would’ve realized earlier? Something you did that you shouldn’t have done? Something you didn’t do that you should have? 

• Maybe there was a year when you tried to do too many different activities and couldn’t devote proper time to any of them and you’d advise yourself to scale it back.
• Perhaps you said something unkind to someone and, looking back, realized that you shouldn’t have said so. 
• Maybe you tried to be someone else to fit in with a group of people who, ultimately, didn’t stick around. In that case, you might advise your younger self to not waste time pretending to be someone else. 

Avoid anything particularly juvenile or negative. Advising your thirteen-year-old self “don’t date that person” is likely to come off as trivial, unless you can back that advice up with an incredibly powerful and compelling story. Similarly, try not to be too cliche; offering advice to “study harder” is quite generic and, again, would require an extremely compelling story for an admissions officer to consider a strong essay. 

Whatever advice you choose to give your younger self, make sure to first give some context as to who you were as a thirteen-year-old. For your readers to understand why the advice you’re giving is important, we need to see details about who you were and how you behaved. This is especially important to show in the context of the advice—we need to see why you feel like you have to give this advice. 

Music Composition Program

Within the University of South Carolina’s School of Music, the composition major begins freshman year with an introductory class on the development of individual work. Upper-level composition classes focus on one-on-one private instruction, and weekly composition seminars allow students to connect with professionals regularly. Applicants are also required to submit a portfolio of written musical examples.

The statement of purpose should take the form of a short letter addressed to the coordinator of composition, Dr. Rogers, that describes why you wish to major in composition, what you hope to accomplish as a composition major, and what you plan to do with your degree when you graduate. (250 words)

You have three things to discuss in this short essay: why composition, what will you do in college, and what will you do post-college? It’s possible for you to merge your answers to the first two questions by explaining how you’ll be pursuing your passion for composition in college. 

Additionally, it’s okay if you don’t know exactly what you want to do following graduation—most freshmen don’t! However, you should have a general idea of how you want to use your composition major after college. 

Be sure to open your essay with a direct address to Dr. Rogers. From there, think about why you want to major in composition, and what you ultimately hope to get out of pursuing that field.

• You may have grown up surrounded by and writing music, so now you want to pursue composition as a career because you love it.
• Maybe you struggled with finding your passion until you discovered composition, and now you dream of composing music for other people who haven’t found their passions.

Your essay will stand out if you are authentic and true to yourself. Think about why you’ve chosen this path and how you intend for it to shape your future. Be straightforward and honest, because admissions officers really want to see that you would be an enthusiastic fit for the program. 

Honors College/Top Scholars Essay Prompts

Beginning September 1, students who are invited to apply to the Honors College will receive an email with additional instructions after submitting the general University of South Carolina application and application fee. Students who apply for the Honors College will also be considered for the Top Scholars Program. Honors College/Top Scholars applicants are strongly encouraged to submit the general admissions application by October 15, 2019. This gives you at least one month to complete the Honors College/Top Scholars application for the November 15, 2019 deadline. 

Doing: How are you doing? What have you accomplished and where do you seem to be heading? We’re not looking for a particular answer. What we are looking for is a thoughtful, vivid, well-written, detailed essay that reveals you think insightfully about yourself.

This prompt provides you with an opportunity to showcase one of your greatest accomplishments in high school. Strong responses to this prompt will address each of the following:

First, why was what you did important? Including achievements that touched a lot of people or left a lasting impact helps demonstrate that your actions extended beyond your own short-term interests.

Next, what did you bring to the table specifically? Lots of people make some impact on their community, but a truly talented leader, artist, mentor, etc. is irreplaceable. They bring something of themselves to the role that no one else has to offer. Use this essay as a space to unpack part of what would make you a unique contributor to UofSC’s campus culture.

Finally—and most important of all—what does this accomplishment reveal about your long-term purpose? Admissions officers want to know who you are and who you will be as you complete your undergraduate degree. 

As an example, a student who’s an avid violinist and who has made all-state orchestra might share the passion and dedication they have to music. They also enjoy using music as a way to evoke emotions, promote healing, and bring people together. After starting an organization in high school dedicated to playing music to hospice patients, the student hopes to continue combining music and community engagement. Academically, they hope to study the connection between music and psychology, to discover new ways music can be incorporated into healthcare.

This would be a strong topic choice, as the student clearly demonstrates what they’ve accomplished, why it’s important, and how they plan to grow from that accomplishment.

Thinking: What’s on your mind? Pick one thing that is particularly exciting, exasperating, moving, alarming—something that has captured your attention and intellect in some strong way—and tell us about it.

This prompt provides you with another great opportunity to share a bit more about yourself, specifically your inner life. Topic ideas include discussing a favorite podcast, cause you care about, or cultural experience. This prompt is extremely open-ended, so you can basically choose whatever you want.

The one caveat: if you hold any controversial opinions, avoid addressing those in your essay. You don’t want to accidentally offend an admissions officer by stumbling upon some cultural tripwires. 

Overall, try to make each of your essays feature different aspects of your profile and personality. You want to seem mature, thoughtful, and nuanced no matter what your essay topics wind up being.

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How to answer the 2018-19 university of south carolina application essay prompt, school supplements.

UPDATE!  The University of South Carolina application essay prompt has changed for 2019-20.   Take a look at our new guide!

Although the University of South Carolina application essay prompt is somewhat open-ended in terms of what you can write about, it does offer you guidance about the general subject matter: your potential for academic success in college .

At around 250 words, the University of South Carolina application essay isn’t very long as personal statements go. So how do you say something meaningful about yourself in the space that you have?

First, let’s check out the University of South Carolina supplemental essay prompt.

Tell us something that you have not already told us in this application that will help us to better understand your potential for academic success as a college student. Type your personal statement here. Statement limit is 2000 characters, which is approximately 250 words.

Follow this guide to develop material for a personal statement that concisely highlights your key strengths.

Step 1: Find potential topics

Brainstorm at least 5 things about yourself that make you (or will make you) a great student

• You might list specialized skills or knowledge, unique interests, relevant values or aspects of your character, or outstanding achievements.
• Here are some examples from a hypothetical student:
• Taught myself computer programming (Javascript, Java, and Python)
• Interested in artificial intelligence, especially machine learning
• Want to develop computer systems to make medical diagnoses more accurate
• Never give up until a problem is solved
• Built website for my family’s business

Step 2: Identify “what’s missing” from your application

• For each item you listed in step 1, look over your application and see if you’ve already addressed this particular topic. If so, cross it off your list.
• You’ll want to pick the most meaningful and exciting topic from what remains, but if one isn’t leaping out to you, move on to step 3 and complete the brainstorming steps for all of them. If a particular topic gives you a lot to write about, that’s a sign it’s a compelling choice!

Step 3: Make connections from your past to your future

• For each topic, think of 1-2 moments when it made a significant difference in your life or significantly affected your thinking—when you learned a valuable lesson or grew as a person.
• Now take the lessons you came up with and extrapolate how you’ll apply what you’ve learned in the future. Write down 1-2 ways these moments will impact your life, goals, and especially your academic potential.
• Keep in mind the values and ideals that U of SC cherishes. The school is big on leadership, experiential learning, and educating well-rounded students who will apply what they’ve learned outside of the classroom to make a difference in the “real world.” You don’t want to say things just because you think they’ll impress U of SC admissions, but it could help to touch on how your strengths and lessons will help you exemplify these core U of SC ideals.
• For example, the sample student above might note how making a website for the family business taught her how satisfying it is to use her coding knowledge to make a difference in people’s lives. Looking to the future, she might mention her goal of learning how to create AI software that hospitals can use to improve diagnoses.

Once you’ve completed these steps, you’ll have lots of compelling material for your University of South Carolina application essay. Begin by sharing a moment from step 3 that illustrates your academic strength, and discuss how you grew. Then, consider the potential impact of these moments in college and beyond.

If you’ve already written a Common App personal statement , you might be able to use some material from that. However, simply editing down a 650-word essay to 250 words is unlikely to work. Instead, take your Common App essay topic and apply the brainstorming process in step 3 above. If you borrow details (such as key moments or lessons learned) from your Common App material, make sure that they relate directly to your academic potential in college.

a general 250-word count essay- what's tricky is it's way shorter than the CA, so I think the guidance here might need to address saying something meaningful quickly

University of South Carolina Application Essay Prompt (note- as long as you use the full version in the title, you can use "University of South Carolina Application Essay" elsewhere if you need to- you should be able to get it into the title and once in the text.

How to (Answer) (Successfully Answer) the University of South Carolina Application Essay Prompt

At around 250 words, the University of South Carolina application essay really isn’t very long as personal statements go. So how do you say something meaningful about yourself in this many words?

Follow this guide to craft/develop material for a (concise) personal statement that (directly/concisely) highlights your key strengths (in a concise format/structure).

Step 1: Identify your key (academic) strengths

• Brainstorm to come up with 3-5 things about yourself that make you (or will make you) a great student
• You might list specialized skills or knowledge, unique interests, relevant values or aspects of your character, outstanding achievements.
• Examples? (probably not needed) (General advice: Be specific and make sure your list highlights aspects/qualities that make you stand out. If an item sounds like it might apply to lots of other people, look for something more unique and surprising to replace it.)
• For each item you listed in step 1, look over your application and see if you’ve already covered/addressed this strength of yours. If so, cross it off your list.
• If you cross everything out, go back to step 1 and keep digging for personal strengths.
• If you have more than one strength still on your list, that’s fine! Pick (1-2) (1-3) items from your list to focus on; the best ones are those that are most meaningful and exciting to you and that you can write the most about.

Step 3: (Connect your strengths) (Make (a) connection(s)) from your past to the future

• For each specific strength, come up with/think of 1-2 moments/times when it made a significant difference in your life or significantly affected your thinking—when you learned a valuable lesson or grew as a person.
• Now take the lessons/moments you came up with and extrapolate how you’ll apply what you’ve learned in the future—how these moments will affect your life, goals, and especially your academic potential. Write down 1-2 ways these lessons and this growth will impact you going forward.
• Keep in mind the values and ideals that U of SC cherishes. The school is big on promoting leadership, well-rounded students (??? diversity, world cultures, art, etc), experiential learning, and applying your education/what you’ve learned outside of the classroom to make a difference in the “real world.” You don’t want to sound/say things just because you think they’ll impress U of SC admissions, but it could help to touch on how your strengths and lessons will help you adhere to/exemplify these U of SC touchstones/foundations/these core U of SC ideals.
• Examples? (maybe helpful here….)

Once you’ve completed these steps, you’ll have lots of compelling material for/to write/for writing your University of South Carolina application essay. Open/Begin by sharing/Share the moments from step 3 that illustrate your main strength(s); bring the reader into the moment, show your thinking/thought processes, and discuss what you learned and how you grew. Then, discuss the potential impact of these moments in college and beyond.

(If you’ve already written a Common App personal statement, you might be able to use some of the material from that. Go through and look for (parts that mention) (specific details pertaining to) key strengths, significant moments, and future impacts. You can plug these details right into the steps provided here. But remember, the strengths and key moments in your U of SC essay must relate directly to your academic potential in college.)

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University of South Carolina Undergraduate College Application Essays

These University of South Carolina college application essays were written by students accepted at University of South Carolina. All of our sample college essays include the question prompt and the year written. Please use these sample admission essays responsibly.

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College Application Essays accepted by University of South Carolina

Stick with me amanda craig hudson, university of south carolina.

As I sit staring with droopy eyes at my computer, the mere thought of having to write another 1000 word essay describing the “most influential person in my life” or “a time that I made a bad decision” makes me cringe. With seven essays down, and...

The Performance Changed the Performer Anonymous

Two flamboyant characters sat in the center of the first row; I saw their hands dancing wildly in the air while I tiptoed quietly into the theatre so as not to pop their bubble of eccentricity. However, the heavy door’s loud click as it closed...

Kolbe Francis Roy Graham

Some of the most heroic people are those who aren’t tremendously famous. In 1941, after three prisoners had escaped a work camp, the SS selected ten men to die of starvation in an underground bunker in order to discourage escape attempts. Among...

Dream to Race Paige Dougherty

Turning around the sharp corner and onto the straightway, the car next to me, number 32, inched closer and closer to the inside of the track, forcing me to move to the outside. While trying to speed up my pace around the next curve, my car’s front...

Good ole days Jake Galante

"I think I'm ready to go home now," I inform my roommate Patrick, yet again, as we mix cement and shovel rocks for hours upon hours under the beating Mexican sun. It is Tuesday of our week-long mission trip to Nuevo Durango, and I already feel...

The Pastor's Daughter Lauren DeRoco

I nervously sat down to the computer and started typing. Creating an Evite wouldn’t seem like a big deal to most people, but it was to me. Always having been too shy to reach out to my teammates from soccer, I had never been included in their...

Selfishness Anonymous

I slowed my car outside of the soup kitchen and looked at the parking lot. There was one space left, and the only way I could park was to back up into it, which I was terrible at. My heart dropped into my stomach.

Nervously, I put my car in...

No Pain, No Gain Anonymous

First, it was my leg. I was three years old, running around the grassy backyard in my sparkly purple leotard, quietly catching glances of my neighbors flying up and down from across the lawn. With a misguided confidence, I determined that I,...

Recent Questions about University of South Carolina

The Question and Answer section for University of South Carolina is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

What does this tell us about Atticus when Heck says it is a one shot job?

Heck's comment tells us that there won't be another shot.... that killing Tim Johnson has to be accomplished by the best shot.... "One-Shot Finch".

Univ of South Carolina

I'm sorry, this question will require you to contact the University directly. This is a short-answer literature forum, I do not have that information. You might begin by looking at the University's website.

What are your top majors?

I'm not sure I understand the question. If you are seeking information about majors at the University of South Carolina, I'd advise you to go directly to the University's website.

USC Supplemental Essays 2023-24 Prompts and Tips

September 1, 2023

When applying to a school like the University of Southern California, it is important to grasp that their acceptance rate in 2023 is lower than Harvard’s back in the late 1990s. Last cycle, USC received roughly 80,000 applications and admitted just 9% from that pool (their first time in the single digits). We don’t bring up these numbers or the Friends -era Harvard comparison to cause future applicants unnecessary fear. Rather, we want aspiring Trojans to realize that in addition to strong high school grades and standardized test scores, they need to excel in other critical areas of their application as well. This brings us to the topic of the USC supplemental essays.

(Want to learn more about How to Get Into the University of Southern California? Visit our blog entitled:  How to Get Into USC: Admissions Data and Strategies   for all of the most recent admissions data as well as tips for gaining acceptance.)

The supplemental essay section offered by USC is a fairly epic one and presents just such an opportunity for students to differentiate themselves from swarms of other qualified applicants. In addition to several short essays, you are also required to answer 10 short answer questions. Below are the USC’s supplemental prompts for the 2023-24 admissions cycle along with tips about how to address each one.

2023-24 USC Supplemental Essays – Required Prompt #1

Describe how you plan to pursue your academic interests and why you want to explore them at USC specifically. Please feel free to address your first- and second-choice major selections. (Approximately 250 words)

This is part “Why Us?” and part “Explain Your Major” and your aim is to seamlessly touch on both topics in a tightly woven 250-word composition. For a deeper dive, let’s examine a list of characteristics of a winning USC “Why Us?” essay:

• How did your interest in your major of choice begin and how has it matured over the years?
• While pursuing your majors(s)/interest(s) of choice, how will you take advantage of the university’s immense resources both inside and outside of the classroom? Be sure to cite specific  academic programs ,  professors ,  research opportunities ,  internship/externship programs , and  study abroad programs . Discuss why they pique your interest.
• Feel free to touch on  student-run organizations  related to your field of study that you would like to join.
• Lastly, don’t ignore your second-choice major in this essay.

In any “Why Us?” composition, you need to show that you’ve done your homework on a given school, but you don’t want it to read like a robotic list of items that you Googled ten minutes before writing the essay (even if the timing of the Google search is roughly accurate). In addition to the pure research element, a lot of the time and skill required in creating a stellar USC essay will involve connecting the classes, professors, opportunities, etc. of interest that you have uncovered to your distinct values, talents, aims, proficiencies, and future goals.

USC Supplemental Essays – Short Answers

(#1 provides 25 characters for each word, and #2-10 provide 100 characters each)

• Describe yourself in three words.
• What is your favorite snack?
• Best movie of all time
• If your life had a theme song, what would it be?
• What TV show will you binge watch next?
• Which well-known person or fictional character would be your ideal roommate?
• Favorite book
• If you could teach a class on any topic, what would it be?

USC Supplemental Essays (Continued)

It would be a bit silly to try to advise you on what your favorite snack is. Obviously, the USC admissions committee wants to hear “Pepperoni Pizza Combos” but will also accept “Ranch-flavored Bugles.” As such, we’ll keep our advice on these a bit broader:

• This is a chance to make a personal connection with an admissions officer. Don’t overthink these or pick movies, books, songs, or trips that you think an admissions officer will find impressive. Just be genuine.
• For #1, try to avoid words like “interesting” that are…well, not very  interesting , or words that could describe most of USC’s applicant pool, like “hard-working” or “dedicated.”
• For #10, don’t pick a general topic in a traditional discipline. Instead, pick something about which you are passionate. This could be a blend of pop culture and academics or a highly esoteric topic that you happen to be obsessed with (e.g., the Beatles 1965-67 mid-career era, the history of jai-alai, or how to groom a ferret).
• You have 100 characters to utilize, so do include some short explanations that infuse your answers with extra personality. For example, you could jazz up Ranch-flavored Bugles as follows: “Ranch-flavored Bugles, me and my mom’s go-to Jeopardy snack.”
• Final tip: if you feel stuck, try brainstorming a few options for each one before choosing your favorite.

USC Supplemental Essays – School-Specific Prompts

In addition to the required essays noted above, you’ll also need to answer at least one additional essay question that is dependent on the school or college you are applying to at USC. Below, we’ve broken down the most popular options:

Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Many of us have at least one issue or passion that we care deeply about – a topic on which we would love to share our opinions and insights in hopes of sparking intense interest and continued conversation. If you had ten minutes and the attention of a million people, what would your talk be about? (250 words)

What makes you tick? What keeps you up at night? Which subjects could (and do) you talk about for hours if given the opportunity? If you could address one problem in the world, large or small, what would it be? Here’s your chance to tell us all about it. You’ll then want to explain “why”—why will (or should) your passion/topic of choice be made relevant to a wider audience? Why is it so important that others hear your message? Your answer will give admissions readers greater insight into what type of issues are most important to you.

Viterbi School of Engineering

The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and their 14 Grand Challenges go hand-in-hand with our vision to engineer a better world for all humanity. Engineers and computer scientists are challenged to solve these problems in order to improve life on the planet. Learn more about the NAE Grand Challenges at  http://engineeringchallenges.org  and tell us which challenge is most important to you, and why. (250 words)

The NAE Grand Challenges list is expansive and includes a number of pressing issues, like clean water access, solar energy, and nuclear terrorism. Basically, you are 100% guaranteed to find at least one item on this list that resonates with you. After reviewing the options, which one are you most passionate about, and why? Is there something from your personal background or experiences that inspired your interest in this area? Alternatively, have you engaged with this topic either inside or outside of school, and if so, how? What would you still like to learn about it? If you choose an issue that you are genuinely interested in and clearly convey your reasoning for doing so, you’ll be well on your way to a compelling response.

The student body at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering is a diverse group of unique engineers and computer scientists who work together to engineer a better world for all humanity. Describe how your contributions to the USC Viterbi student body may be distinct from others. Please feel free to touch on any part of your background, traits, skills, experiences, challenges, and/or personality in helping us better understand you. (250 words)

Take note of the wide-open nature of this prompt. You are essentially invited to talk about any of the following topics:

• A perspective you hold
• An experience/challenge you had
• A community you belong to
• Your cultural background
• Your family background
• A personality trait
• A skill you hold

Although this prompt’s open floor plan may feel daunting, a good tactic is to first consider what has already been communicated within your Common App personal statement, activities list, and other USC essays. What important aspects of yourself have not been shared (or sufficiently discussed)? The admissions officer reading your essay is hoping to connect with you through your written words, so—within your essay’s reflection—be open, humble, thoughtful, inquisitive, emotionally honest, mature, and/or insightful about what you learned and how you grew. No matter what type of story you tell, the goal is to have the reader come away saying, “I can definitely see this applicant as a contributing member of our talented and engaged Viterbi community.”

How important are the USC supplemental essays?

There are five factors that USC considers to be “very important” to their candidate evaluation process and the essay section is one of them. Along with GPA, standardized test scores, rigor of high school coursework, and recommendations, the Common App and supplement essays play a huge role in the USC admissions staff’s decision-making.

Want personalized assistance?

Lastly, if you are interested in working with one of College Transitions’ experienced and knowledgeable essay coaches as you craft your USC supplemental essays, we encourage you to  get a quote  today.

• College Essay

Dave Bergman

Dave has over a decade of professional experience that includes work as a teacher, high school administrator, college professor, and independent educational consultant. He is a co-author of the books The Enlightened College Applicant (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016) and Colleges Worth Your Money (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).

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University of South Carolina--Greenville - Secondary Essay Prompts

Access our complete list of all Secondary Essay Prompts from University of South Carolina--Greenville in Greenville , SC for the 2018 - 2023 admissions cycles.

1 . Please consider sharing experiences, challenges, family or personal circumstances, interests, etc. that you believe would bring added value and unique lived experience to the learning community at USC School of Medicine Greenville.

2 . If you are not a South Carolina resident, what relationships, bonds, or other interests or connections do you have to the state? (If not applicable, please write N/A)

3 . Is there any additional information you would like the Admissions Committee to consider that has not been previously addressed? (If not applicable, please write N/A)

4 . Why have you chosen to apply to USC School of Medicine Greenville and how do you think your education at USCSOM Greenville will prepare you to become a physician in the future?

5 . At USCSOM Greenville we are committed to Transforming Medicine One Doctor at a Time. Share how, as a physician, you will seek to transform medicine.

6 . Please describe a personal work, social or educational experience which felt inclusive and welcoming.

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• Secondary Essay Prompts

Secondary Essay Prompts – Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine

Secondary Essay Prompts for the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine

Below are the secondary essay prompts for the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine in Charleston, SC.

2019 – 2020

• What are your medical practice goals? (2000 characters)
• If it has been more than six months since you completed your bachelor’s degree, please describe your employment status since that time (part-time, full-time, and dates). (2000 characters)
• In what region of the country do you want to practice medicine? Why? (2000 characters)
• What areas of medicine are you interested in at this time, or what areas do you plan to pursue? (2000 characters)
• Do you have any accomplishments or experiences that make you a unique applicant? (2000 characters)

Secondary essay webcast with Dr. Jessica Freedman, founder and president of MedEdits Medical Admissions.   Read more about Dr. Freedman.

Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine

Topics covered in this presentation:

• When should I submit my secondary essays?
• Pay attention to the word/character limits.
• Can I recycle secondary essay prompts for multiple schools?
• Identify topics that you left out of your primary application.
• And, much more.

Below are the secondary essay prompts for the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine.

2017 – 2018.

• The Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine strives to ensure that its students become respectful physicians who embrace all dimensions of caring for the whole person. Please describe how your personal characteristics or life experiences will contribute to the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine community and bring educational benefits to our student body. (1000 characters)
• Is there any further information that you would like the Committee on Admissions to be aware of when reviewing your file that you were not able to notate in another section of this or the AMCAS Application? (1000 characters)
• Why have you chosen to apply to the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine and how do you think your education at Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine will prepare you to become a physician for the future? (1 page, formatted at your discretion, upload as PDF)

2016 – 2017

• There were no essay prompts in the secondary application for the 2016-2017 cycle.

Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine Admissions Requirements

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*Data collected from MSAR 2022-2023, 2022 Osteopathic Medical College Information Book, and institution website.

Disclaimer: The information on this page was shared by students and/or can be found on each medical school’s website. MedEdits does not guarantee it’s accuracy or authenticity.

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Medical University of South Carolina Secondary Essay Prompts

These are the secondary application essay prompts for Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) College of Medicine. To put your best foot forward and maximize your chance of an interview invitation, visit our secondary application editing page .

about Medical University of South Carolina 

Secondary Deadline : December 15, 2023 Secondary Fee : $95 FAP Waiver : Case by Case Basis CASPer Required : No Screens Applications : No Accepts Application Updates : Yes/MUSC Website

The College of Medicine, as an integral part of the Medical University of South Carolina, is dedicated to the University’s education, research and service missions. In doing so, the College is committed to maintaining an educational environment for all students that prepares them for a career of excellence in the practice of medicine and in the service to their communities. We recognize the need to engender and support life-long learning to sustain and expand competence and performance throughout the physician’s career and we acknowledge the importance of interdisciplinary and interprofessional education in the provision of accessible, high-quality health services. To support these educational goals, the College is committed to the continued development and expansion of biomedical research to extend the boundaries of health care for all people. Further, we support enhancement of research directed to improving access, enhancing quality and controlling costs of health care. These commitments are manifest through active participation in a medical center with broad capabilities and responsibility for the provision of primary, as well as tertiary/quaternary health services for citizens in the state. We continue to nurture strong programs in primary health care to support current and future educational, research and service requirements. We believe that these objectives are best obtained through ensuring optimal opportunities for all constituents-students, faculty and administration, including all backgrounds and levels of diversity, to achieve full potential. Additionally, the College is committed to the development and prudent use of resources to achieve its mission. ​

Apparently there are no essay questions to write for the MUSC MD secondary process. When you get an email from them, click on a link in that email called either “Cost to Apply” or “Start your Application” and you should see what you need to do.

OOS applicants are asked to complete the: Close Ties Declaration Form

MSTP Applicant instructions: The resume/CV should be a file attachment, and the essay portion has no defined char/word limit.

1. For the Resume/Personal History below, provide the following information in resume or curriculum vitae format:

• education with dates
• past employment
• undergraduate or summer research experience(s) including number of hours in each publication
• academic honors, awards
• extracurricular/community/professional activities
• membership in professional organizations

2. For the Essay section, write a paragraph that includes discussion of the following:

• why do you want to come to MUSC – MUST RESPOND TO THIS
• research you want to pursue in graduate school

There were no secondary application essay prompts for this application cycle.

Disclaimer: The information on this page was shared by students and/or can be found on the medical school’s website. Med School Insiders does not guarantee the accuracy of the information on this page.

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South Carolina Senate approves $15.4B budget after debate on bathrooms and conference switching

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina Senate approved its budget Wednesday after debating items like requiring school children use the bathrooms of their sex assigned at birth and whether universities can spend state money to move to another athletic conference.

The $15.4 billion budget for next fiscal year raises salaries for state employees and teachers, sets aside more money to improve and repair roads and bridges and doubles a planned income tax cut to 0.2%.

It also sets up a showdown with the House over the next month or beyond as the House's $500 million property tax rebate is not in the Senate plan.

A group of three House members and three senators — likely including the leaders of each chamber's budget committee — is going to have to sort out the differences . Last year, there was a monthlong showdown over how much money should be given to a new veterinary school at Clemson University.

Late Wednesday, senators added a one-year provision to the budget requiring students use the bathroom of their sex assigned at birth and stay during overnight field trips in rooms of people of the same sex.

All the Republicans voting supported the proposal. Democrats said passing the idea over just a few minutes of debate instead of through a regular bill was dangerous.

“This will clearly subject our state to legal action. We are willfully wasting taxpayer dollars to defend against something that will be found unconstitutional,” said Democratic Sen. Tameika Isaac Devine of Columbia

Senators also on Wednesday night took up what many see as a problem with charter school operators using state money for themselves instead of education, limiting to 2% the amount schools can use for administration.

“They are hiring employees of the schools they authorize as consultants,” Democratic Sen. Nikki Setzler of West Columbia said. “It is wrong what is going on. And they don’t think this General Assembly is going to do anything.”

Senators debated small parts of the spending plan for well over a dozen hours over two days as the main framework of the spending plan for the 2024-25 fiscal year was hammered out in the Senate Finance Committee earlier this month.

They approved an amendment prohibiting universities from spending state money on entry fees, exit fees or outside attorney expenses if they try to change conferences. Clemson University is suing the Atlantic Coast Conference — its home for sports for 71 years — challenging what the school calls the league's “exorbitant $140 million” exit fee.

Senators also required county libraries to provide detailed plans on how they will keep inappropriate material out of the hands of children or lose any state funding. Supporters said they won't punish libraries if a child sees adult material.

“They need to certify they have a plan. They aren’t throwing this stuff on the shelf and saying have at it,” said Republican Sen. Josh Kimbrell of Spartanburg, the amendment's sponsor.

Instead of $500 million in a property tax rebate, the Senate plan chooses to spend $100 million to knock the income tax rate most people pay in the state from 6.4% to 6.2% The state is in the middle of a five-year effort to cut its top income tax rate from 7% to 6% and this cuts the time to four years.

Senators would spend the rest of that money on roads and bridges, local water and sewer system repairs, and other items.

The $500 million comes from an account meant to provide property tax relief. Sales tax goes into the fund, and a boom in spending during and after the COVID-19 pandemic has left the account flush with cash.

The House budget suggested giving the money back as a property tax rebate. But county officials worry property tax bills will snap back next year and homeowners will be angry at them.

Another difference in the House and Senate budgets is how much of a raise is given to state employees. The Senate plan would give state employees making less than $50,000 a raise of $1,375 a year. Workers making more than that would get a 2.75% boost in pay. The House plan gives a $1,000 raise to workers making less than $66,667 and a 1.5% raise to those who make more.

Items both chambers agreed on including $200 million in teacher raises. Every teacher would get a pay bump and the minimum salary for a starting teacher would be increased to $47,000 a year. The budget also would allow teachers to get a yearly raise for each of their first 28 years instead of their first 23.

The debate ran so long that senators brought in dinner Wednesday night. After a 40-minute break to eat sandwiches, a few senators withdrew their amendments, including Democratic Sen. Margie Bright Matthews of Walterboro, who had a weight loss drug proposal.

"Since we’ve eaten I would move to withdraw that,” Matthews said to laughter.

“If I had known that, we would have eaten earlier,” Republican Senate President Thomas Alexander of Walhalla responded.

• WEATHER ALERT Freeze Warning Full Story

South Carolina residents alarmed by loud noises outside as cicadas emerge

SOUTH CAROLINA (WPVI) -- For months, scientists have been warning much of the country that cicadas were coming.

Now they have arrived in some states and people are freaking out about the noise.

Trillions of cicadas are emerging in states including Illinois and Georgia and they are extremely loud.

In one South Carolina county, residents are calling the sheriff's office or flagging down deputies asking why they can hear sirens or a loud roar.

The Newberry County Sheriff's Office had to put out a Facebook message this week letting people know that the sound is just the male cicada singing to attract a mate after more than a decade of being dormant.

Two different broods are appearing for the first time in 200 years. One appears every 17 years, while the other appears every 13 years.

Thankfully, they're concentrated primarily in the Midwest and Southeast parts of the country.

If you travel to those parts of the country and hear a loud hum, do not call police.

Apparently, the cicadas are as loud as a jet engine and scientists even wear earmuffs when studying them.

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• PETS & ANIMALS
• SOUTH CAROLINA
• NOISE COMPLAINT

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Anderson University (South Carolina)

• Cost & scholarships
• Essay prompt

Want to see your chances of admission at Anderson University (South Carolina)?

We take every aspect of your personal profile into consideration when calculating your admissions chances.

Anderson University (South Carolina)’s 2023-24 Essay Prompts

Common app personal essay.

The essay demonstrates your ability to write clearly and concisely on a selected topic and helps you distinguish yourself in your own voice. What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores? Choose the option that best helps you answer that question and write an essay of no more than 650 words, using the prompt to inspire and structure your response. Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don‘t feel obligated to do so.

Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you‘ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

What will first-time readers think of your college essay?

Pei named to national board on first-year student experience

Katharine Pei, director of Student Transitions & Family Programs at Washington University in St. Louis, has been appointed to a four-year term on the national advisory board of the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition at the University of South Carolina. 

As a member, Pei will help advise the center on best practices and relevant research. At WashU, Pei supports the orientation, transition and retention of new students and their families through the Bear Beginnings: Fall Welcome and other programs. 

Established in 1986, the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition is a recognized leader and clearinghouse for scholarship, policy and programs. The center hosts conferences and workshops and produces scholarly publications and research reports.

Comments and respectful dialogue are encouraged, but content will be moderated. Please, no personal attacks, obscenity or profanity, selling of commercial products, or endorsements of political candidates or positions. We reserve the right to remove any inappropriate comments. We also cannot address individual medical concerns or provide medical advice in this forum.

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Rental textbooks are due by end of finals

If you rented a textbook this semester, it must be returned to the Russell House Bookstore no later than May 1.  

These books cannot be returned through Thomas Cooper Library or any of its drop boxes around campus.  Rentals that are not returned to the bookstore on time will be considered missing, resulting in fees. 

Shipping details can be found by navigating to "Course Materials and Textbooks" then "Return My Rental" on the bookstore website .

If you have books to sell back, bring your Carolina Card and books to the textbook department in the Russell House Bookstore.  Buyback occurs year-round, so stop in anytime.  

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