Boston College's wording, checked October 26, 2026“In her July 2009 Ted Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie warned viewers against assigning people a “single story” through assumptions about their nationality, appearance, or background. Discuss a time when someone defined you by a single story. What challenges did this present and how did you overcome them?”
How to approach it
- 1Name the single story and who told it.
- 2Show its effect.
- 3Show how you responded and what the fuller story is.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1The moment you were defined by a single story.
- 2What it cost you.
- 3How you responded and what the fuller story is.
Where the 400 words go
| Part | Words |
|---|---|
| The moment or example | about 160 |
| What it shows or changed | about 140 |
| Why it matters, or what you bring | about 100 |
Mistakes to avoid
- Only the injustice, without your response.
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. |
| One lived experience | It focuses on one specific aspect of the applicant's life or background, shown through a moment or detail, not a list of labels. |
| How it shaped you | It shows how that experience changed what the applicant thinks, does or notices, with evidence rather than a claim. |
| What classmates will gain | It makes clear what the applicant would bring to conversations, classes or campus life because of it. |
| Boston College's ask | Covers a time the applicant was defined by a single story, the challenges it presented and how they overcame them. |
Check your Boston College answers
Paste this answer (and any other Boston College answers you have). One report covers all of them: the checklist above for each, a note on every sentence, coaching questions and a revision plan. Half a token, or your first review free. We never write a word of it.
Check your college supplemental essays
Your first full review is free. Every answer reviewed in one report.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by Common App or any college.
Open the picker and search for a college to see its 2026–27 supplemental questions.
No card needed · one free full review per student · we never write your answers
Questions
More on Boston College and this kind of question
- Harvard: Life experiences you will contribute · 150 words
- Yale: Essay: your personal experience · 400 words
- Princeton: Your voice: lived experience · 400-500 words
- Columbia: Your lived experience · 150 words
- Brown: An aspect of your growing up · 150-250 words
- Dartmouth: Let your life speak · 250 words