Macalester's member section has two optional essay prompts: one way its location in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul would enhance your academic, social or community experience, and how your lived experiences, perspectives or hopes connect with its four values (academic distinction, internationalism, multiculturalism and service to society).
Macalester says it wants to walk away from an essay feeling it got to know you, and that AI-generated text tends to sanitize the student voice it is looking for.
Macalester's questions at a glance
| Question | Limit | Who answers it | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Twin Cities | no set limit | Optional | Why this college |
| Macalester's mission and your experiences | no set limit | Optional | Background and identity |
How to plan the Macalester supplement
- 1The location prompt rewards one specific idea; the mission prompt rewards one value shown deeply.
The Macalester member section has two optional essay prompts.
1. The Twin Cities
Macalester's wording · no set limit · Optional“Macalester is one of the few highly selective liberal arts colleges located in the heart of a metropolitan area. Identify one way Macalester’s location in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul would enhance your academic, social, or community experience.”
What it is really asking. One way Macalester's location in the Twin Cities would enhance your academic, social or community experience.
How to approach it
- 1Choose ONE way, as the prompt says.
- 2Tie it to something you already do.
- 3Make it concrete: a place, an organization, a kind of work.
Mistakes to avoid
- Listing city attractions.
Full guide: How to Write Macalester's Twin Cities Essay
2. Macalester's mission and your experiences
Macalester's wording · no set limit · Optional“Four values guide Macalester’s mission: academic distinction, internationalism, multiculturalism, and service to society. Guided by these values, Macalester is a learning environment that affirms different identities and experiences and prepares graduates to work toward a more just and peaceful world. In what ways do your lived experiences, perspectives, or hopes for your college education connect with Macalester’s mission and community?”
What it is really asking. How your lived experiences, perspectives or hopes connect with Macalester's mission and its four values.
How to approach it
- 1Choose the value closest to your life and show it.
- 2Look forward to Macalester's community.
Mistakes to avoid
- Touching all four values briefly.
Full guide: How to Write Macalester's Mission and Values Essay
What our grader checks in your Macalester answers
Every answer is judged against a checklist for its kind of question plus one check written for Macalester's own wording. Each area comes back Met, Partly or Missing, and those verdicts (with the word limit) set the answer's readiness: Ready, Nearly there or Needs work. There is no score out of 100.
| Question | Macalester's own check |
|---|---|
| The Twin Cities | Names one way the Twin Cities location would enhance the applicant's academic, social or community experience. |
| Macalester's mission and your experiences | Connects lived experiences, perspectives or hopes to Macalester's four values. |
The type checklists are on the supplemental essay grader page.
Check your Macalester supplemental essays
Paste the answers you have, leave the rest empty. One report covers all of them: a checklist and a readiness verdict for each, a note on every sentence 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