Claremont McKenna College's wording, checked October 26, 2026“CMC’s mission is to prepare students for thoughtful and productive lives and responsible leadership in business, government, and the professions. With this mission in mind, please explain why you want to attend Claremont McKenna College.”
CMC's page prints no word limit: use the limit shown in your application.
How to approach it
- 1Show how you already practice responsible leadership.
- 2Name what at CMC would develop it, and check it on CMC's site.
- 3Connect to the field you want to lead in.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1What responsible leadership looks like in your life.
- 2What at CMC would develop it.
- 3Where you want to lead, and why CMC fits.
Mistakes to avoid
- Leadership titles as evidence.
- Ignoring the mission the prompt names.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Claremont McKenna 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 no set limit 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. |
| Claremont McKenna's ask | Ties the reasons for attending to CMC's mission of responsible leadership in business, government and the professions. |
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Questions
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