Boston College's wording, checked October 26, 2026“Boston College’s Jesuit mission highlights “the three Be’s”: be attentive, be reflective, be loving – core to Jesuit education (see A Pocket Guide to Jesuit Education). If you could add a fourth “Be,” what would it be and why? How would this new value support your personal development and enrich the BC community?”
How to approach it
- 1Choose a "Be" that comes from your life, not a dictionary.
- 2Show it in action.
- 3Cover both halves: your growth and BC's community.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1Your fourth Be.
- 2Where it comes from in your life, shown.
- 3How it would shape your growth and BC's community.
Where the 400 words go
| Part | Words |
|---|---|
| Your first, most specific reason | about 140 |
| A second reason, tied to your experience | about 140 |
| What you would do or add there | about 120 |
Mistakes to avoid
- A clever word with no story behind it.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Boston College answers, this answer is read against these 5 areas. Each comes back Met, Partly or Missing with a quote from your draft as evidence, and together with the 400 words limit they set its readiness verdict.
| Area | What a reader looks for |
|---|---|
| Answers the question | The opening sentences answer what was asked, plainly, before background or a hook; every part of a multi-part question is answered. |
| Specific to this college | It names at least two concrete things that exist at this college (a program, course, research group, tradition, place, way of teaching) and could not survive a swap of the college's name. |
| Connected to you | Each thing named is tied to something the applicant has done, asked or wants, so the reader sees why it matters to THIS student, not why the college is good. |
| What you would do there | It shows how the applicant would use those things and what they would add (join, start, research, contribute), not only what they would receive. |
| Boston College's ask | Names the fourth "Be", why, and how it would support personal development and enrich BC. |
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Questions
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