University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's wording, checked October 26, 2026“What are your academic interests? Please include 2-3 majors you’re considering at Illinois and why.”
Illinois asks for about 150 words.
How to approach it
- 1Name the majors and what links them.
- 2The prompt asks for two or three majors at Illinois, so check its list of majors and use the exact names.
- 3A sentence of evidence per major is better than a paragraph on one.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1The two or three majors you are considering, named as Illinois names them.
- 2A reason for each, from something you have done or studied.
- 3The thread that connects them, or the question that will decide between them.
Where the 150 words go
| Part | Words |
|---|---|
| Where the interest comes from | about 50 |
| How you think about the subject | about 50 |
| Your path at this college | about 50 |
Mistakes to avoid
- Majors with no reason.
- Naming a major Illinois does not offer.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Illinois 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 150 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. |
| Illinois's ask | It ties the academic interest to what Illinois offers, not to the field in general. |
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Questions
More on Illinois 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