Davidson College's wording, checked October 26, 2026“There are just under 4,000 four-year colleges and universities in the United States. Being as specific as possible, what interests you most about Davidson College?”
How to approach it
- 1Choose two or three Davidson specifics you would actually use.
- 2Tie each to you.
- 3Cut anything any small college could claim.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1The Davidson specific that interests you most, and why.
- 2A second specific, tied to your experience.
- 3What you would do at Davidson.
Where the 300 words go
| Part | Words |
|---|---|
| Your first, most specific reason | about 110 |
| A second reason, tied to your experience | about 110 |
| What you would do or add there | about 90 |
Mistakes to avoid
- "Small classes and close professors" with no specifics.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Davidson 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 250-300 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. |
| Davidson's ask | Is as specific as Davidson asks: concrete aspects of Davidson, not ones shared by any small college. |
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Questions
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