Are We Alone?… and Other Wacky College Essay Topics

There’s no doubt about it. Writing college essays is stressful! After all, it’s no easy task to answer questions like “describe the world you come from … and how (it) has shaped your dreams and aspirations.”  (University of California). But what if you were asked, “How do you feel about Wednesday?” (University of Chicago) or “What outrages you?” (Wake Forest University) or even “Are we alone?” (Tufts). Katie Naymon, a junior at the Laurel School in Cleveland, blogs about these and other offbeat college essay topics on Mental Floss, and includes her own commentary about what motivates admissions officers to take such an unconventional approach. One insight: universities like to use unusual questions to draw in students that are both intellectual and a bit eclectic. See a list of other offbeat topics that have popped up on college applications this year.