New York University, better known as NYU, is an iconic university in the heart of downtown New York City, and private universities in the country. When people dream of going to school in the ‘big city,’ this is what they are picturing. Cobblestone streets, leading professors, and amazing career opportunities, NYU has it all. There are programs in the arts, business, STEM, humanities, and basically anything else you can dream of pursuing in college — and the university isn’t limited to New York City. There are campuses in New York City, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai. The acceptance rate has plummeted in recent years from nearly 20% to where it sits now, .
When you apply to NYU, you can select which campus you’d like to be considered for, along with a second or third choice if you have them. Ultimately, you will only be admitted to one campus. Remember, not all majors are available at all campuses, so you’ll want to verify that the program you are interested in is offered in the city you hope to be. No matter which campus you apply to, NYU first-year admission is . They don’t require an ACT or SAT score as part of your application, but it’s worth sending one if you’ve scored very well. Don’t stress too much if standardized tests aren’t your cup of tea. Through the Common Date Set, we can see that less than 40% of accepted and enrolled first-years in the fall of 2023 had submitted scores. This signals that there isn’t a strong emphasis or reliance on standardized tests in the admissions office when they are making their decisions.
In this post, we’ll be breaking down the NYU supplement, which is short and sweet but oh-so-important. If you have questions that come up about the NYU admissions process after reading, remember to email us or leave them in the comment section.
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The NYU supplement only consists of one question, but it has a few different questions and approaches baked into it.
In a world where disconnection seems to often prevail, we are looking for students who embody the qualities of bridge builders—students who can connect people, groups, and ideas to span divides, foster understanding, and promote collaboration within a dynamic, interconnected, and vibrant global academic community. We are eager to understand how your experiences have prepared you to build the bridges of the future. Please consider one or more of the following questions in your essay (250 words maximum):
What personal experiences or challenges have shaped you as a bridge builder?
How have you been a bridge builder in your school, community, or personal life?
What specific actions have you taken to build bridges between diverse groups, ideas, or cultures?
How do you envision being a bridge builder during your time at our university and beyond?
First, let’s break down the meaty first sentence. The only things you need take away from that sentence are two words: collaboration and community. File those away in your mind and keep reading.
Next, they set up the actual prompt. How have your experiences in life so far prepared you to collaborate and build community? We’ve paraphrased, of course.
They follow this up with a series of bullets for you to ‘keep in mind’, but each is really just reiterating the initial prompt in other ways. We’re not entirely sure why they’ve included these, as it makes it a bit complicated, but perhaps they are trying to be helpful? Let’s mostly ignore them, though, unless one resonates super strongly with you.
The most important step in writing a successful response to this prompt is careful brainstorming. You need to identify a story (yes, one story) from your lived experience so far that is an amazing example of collaboration and community-building. You may immediately want to pick a story where you were in the lead, but we encourage students to look instead for something where you were part of a leadership team, or took a leading role without necessarily getting validation or recognition. This story will serve as representative of key character traits and aspects of your identity without you having to pack a number of stories into a small amount of space.
You only have 250 words, but there needs to be another layer to your response beyond simply telling a story. You need to look beyond what you’ve done in the past to what you’ll do in the future at NYU. Don’t simply say “I’ll build community at NYU.” Instead, be specific. Share at least one or two specific clubs, community initiatives, or service organizations you’ll contribute to at NYU to build bridges, foster community, and collaborate with others.
NYU is an immensely popular and deeply impressive global university rooted in New York City and with global reach. To stand out as an applicant, you need to show them that you are more than just an academically-gifted student, but an internally driven, passionate, and community-minded person who will give as much back to the school community as you gain.
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