The University of Michigan asks two required essays: one of 100-300 words on how you are prepared to contribute to developing leaders and citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future, and one of 100-550 words on what attracts you to the specific U-M college or school you are applying to and how its curriculum supports your interests.
U-M's advice for these questions: highlight faculty, courses and research opportunities that attracted you, programs you took part in that are affiliated with the university, and your interest in an upper-level program if you are applying for preferred admission.
Michigan's questions at a glance
| Question | Limit | Who answers it | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leaders and citizens | 100-300 words | Required | Community |
| Why your college or school at Michigan | 100-550 words | Required | Why this college |
How to plan the Michigan supplement
- 1Do the research for the long essay first: the curriculum of your specific college (LSA, Engineering, Ross and so on), not U-M in general.
- 2Use the 300-word essay for a story about you as a leader or citizen; it can come from school, family, work or community.
- 3Keep the two essays from repeating each other.
1. Leaders and citizens
Michigan's wording · 100-300 words · Required“At the University of Michigan, we are focused on developing leaders and citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future. In your essay, share with us how you are prepared to contribute to these goals. This could include the people, places, experiences, or aspirations that have shaped your journey and future plans.”
What it is really asking. How you are prepared to contribute to developing leaders and citizens who challenge the present and enrich the future, through the people, places, experiences or aspirations that shaped you.
How to approach it
- 1Pick one experience where you challenged something or improved something for others.
- 2Show your part in it with specifics.
- 3Connect it to the kind of citizen you want to be at Michigan.
Mistakes to avoid
- Titles and positions as proof of leadership.
- Big claims about changing the world.
Full guide: How to Write Michigan's "Leaders and Citizens" Essay
2. Why your college or school at Michigan
Michigan's wording · 100-550 words · Required“Describe the unique qualities that attract you to the specific undergraduate college or school (including preferred admission and dual degree programs) to which you are applying at the University of Michigan. How would that curriculum support your interests?”
What it is really asking. The qualities that attract you to the specific undergraduate college or school you are applying to, and how its curriculum would support your interests. U-M suggests faculty, courses, research and programs.
How to approach it
- 1Name the college or school in your first sentence.
- 2Pick two or three curriculum features (courses, requirements, research, programs) and tie each to an interest you have shown.
- 3Use the extra length for depth on fewer things, not a longer list.
Mistakes to avoid
- Writing about U-M in general (football, Ann Arbor) instead of the college.
- A list of course numbers with no reason.
Full guide: How to Write Michigan's "Why This College or School" Essay
What our grader checks in your Michigan answers
Every answer is judged against a checklist for its kind of question plus one check written for Michigan'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 | Michigan's own check |
|---|---|
| Leaders and citizens | Shows how the applicant is prepared to contribute to developing leaders and citizens, through people, places, experiences or aspirations. |
| Why your college or school at Michigan | Names the specific U-M college or school and the qualities of its curriculum (courses, faculty, research, programs) that support the applicant's interests. |
The type checklists are on the supplemental essay grader page.
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