Cornell University's wording, checked October 26, 2026“At the College of Arts and Sciences, your education is yours to shape. Describe an intellectual passion, question, or idea that has captured your attention—whether it emerges from your studies or extends beyond your coursework. What specific aspects of our liberal arts curriculum would you draw on to explore and connect your varied interests?”
How to approach it
- 1Start with the question, not the subject.
- 2Show how you have pursued it in and beyond class.
- 3Name the parts of the curriculum (departments, courses, combinations) that would let you connect it to your other interests, and check them on Cornell's site.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1The idea or question that has captured you, introduced through a moment.
- 2How you have pursued it so far.
- 3The interests it connects to.
- 4The specific parts of the A&S curriculum you would use to connect them.
Where the 650 words go
| Part | Words |
|---|---|
| Where the interest comes from | about 230 |
| How you think about the subject | about 200 |
| Your path at this college | about 230 |
Mistakes to avoid
- A list of every interest.
- Praise of the liberal arts with no plan.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Cornell 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 650 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. |
| Where the interest comes from | A specific, preferably recent experience (a class, project, job, reading, problem) shows the interest is real, not a stated passion. |
| How you think about it | The reader sees the applicant's own thinking: a question they pursue, a connection they made, a view of the field. |
| Your path at this college | It names how this school's curriculum, structure or opportunities fit the plan, specifically enough that it would not fit another school unchanged. |
| Cornell's ask | Names specific parts of the Arts and Sciences liberal arts curriculum the applicant would use to connect their interests. |
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Questions
More on Cornell and this kind of question
- Princeton: Academic interests (A.B.) · 250 words
- Princeton: Why engineering at Princeton (B.S.E.) · 250 words
- Columbia: Your preferred areas of study · 150 words
- Penn: College of Arts and Sciences · 50-200 words
- Penn: The Wharton School · 50-200 words
- Penn: Penn Engineering · 50-200 words