Updated August 10, 2026

How to Write Villanova Supplemental Essays for 2026-2027

Bonus Material: PrepMaven’s 50+ Real Supplemental Essays for Ivy+ Schools

Expert guidance provided by Mike Kleynman (PhD in English, 10+ years’ experience coaching admissions) and reviewed by Kevin Wong (co-founder PrepMaven, 20+ years’ experience coaching admissions).

During the last application cycle, Villanova had an acceptance rate of 29.6%, making it a very selective school. 

That means a good way of standing out from the 25,000+ other applicants is to write a compelling and successful essay for Villanova. 

Fortunately, at PrepMaven, we’ve helped thousands of students craft compelling college application essays.  We’ve also summarized that expertise in our Ultimate Guide to College Supplemental Essays.

It doesn’t hurt that many of our expert tutors have been admitted to elite schools like Princeton, Yale, and Harvard themselves, and so they know exactly what works for the most selective schools. 

In this guide, we’ll break down how to write the Villanova supplemental essay for the upcoming admissions cycle, explaining how to maximize your chances of acceptance. 

As you read on, check out our free resource linked below: it contains real, successful examples of supplemental essays written for Ivies and other top schools!

Jump to section:
Villanova’s 2026-2027 Essay Prompts
How to Choose Which Prompt to Answer
9 Tips for Writing Villanova’s Supplemental Essay
Next steps

Villanova’s 2026-2027 Supplemental Essay Prompts

Currently, Villanova only requires 1 supplemental essay — but you have to choose which one of 5 essay prompts you want to respond to. 

The word count for this essay is around 250 words.

Here all of the prompts for Villanova’s supplemental essay:

Prompt One:
As Pope Leo XIV (Villanova Class of 1977) has said, “no one can single-handedly bear the weight of the challenges the world is facing, just as no one is so weak that they cannot play their part.” What have you done to play your part in advancing equity and justice in your community?

Prompt Two:
What is a lesson in life that you have learned that you would want to share with others at Villanova? 

Prompt Three:
“Villanova” means “new home.” Why do you want to call Villanova your new home?

Prompt Four:
Villanova embraces Artificial Intelligence (AI) with a commitment to thoughtful, ethical use rooted in our Augustinian mission and values. How do you see technology helping you to lead, serve, and contribute to the common good?

Prompt Five:
At Villanova, we often say “each of us strengthens all of us.” Please detail a time when someone has borrowed some of your strength in their time of need.

Below, we’ll dive deep into how to approach this supplemental essay, laying out the tips, tricks, and strategies to help your essay stand out from thousands of others. 

As you read on, we’ll often be encouraging you to spend time looking through as many real supplemental essays for Ivy League schools as possible. Writing is easiest when you have a model! 

Below, we’ve collected over 50 real supplemental essays that got students accepted to Ivy+ schools. Many of those essays are similar to the one you’ll have to write for Villanova!

You can download that collection for free by clicking the link below. 

How to Choose Which Prompt to Answer 

When you have 5 different prompts to choose from, it’s reasonable to wonder whether there’s a “right” choice. 

In fact, there is! But the right prompt depends entirely on you. Here’s how to think about it:

Your goal with all college essays, as we’ve written in our comprehensive guide to writing the college essay, is to tell the most interesting, most compelling story from your life. 

When it comes to choosing what you’ll write your Villanova essay about, think about the story you’d like to tell. 

These prompts are broad enough that you can make one of them fit for almost any story. So, start with what you want to convey, then simply pick the prompt that matches best. 

Are you active in your community, with a meaningful service experience you’d like to recount? Pick Prompt 1. 

Do you instead want to tell the story of an artistic pursuit? Great: with a little tweaking, you can make that work for Prompt 2. 

The other consideration here is what other supplemental essays you have to write for other schools. 

We always recommend reusing large parts of your supplemental essays to send to other schools. So, is there another supplemental essay you’ve written that you already love? If so, find a way to make it fit (with minor changes) one of the prompts here. 

 9 Tips for Writing Villanova’s Supplemental Essay

Before even writing, take some time to get to know Villanova. What are their values, what does the university pride itself on? You can find a lot of that information here: Villanova’s Values. 

Then, as you think about how to connect your story to those values, consider the advice Villanova’s admissions department offers applicants: 

  1. Speak your truth
  2. Relax
  3. There are no right or wrong answers
  4. Seriously proofread and proofread seriously
  5. Ask for a second opinion, not a rewrite. 

All of this advice is a bit general, but it does show you what Villanova wants. Like most universities, Villanova is looking for honest, informal, and engaging stories. Well-written and carefully proofread, sure, but most importantly interesting! 

Here are our 4 biggest tips for how to accomplish that: 

  1. Make sure your essay is introspective

Whatever story you tell, be sure that it shows you thinking critically about your life and your place in the world. 

If your essay is introspective, admissions officers at Villanova should actually be able to track your thought process as you reflect on the experiences you recount. 

It’s not just the story that matters: it’s what you make of it, and how you interpret it!

  1. Use your own voice

It’s not just about telling your story; it’s about telling it in your voice!

A big problem in college essays, whether supplemental essays or personal statements, is that many students try to sound like someone they’re not. 

Read your Villanova supplemental out loud. Does it sound like you? Are the words in the essay words you’d actually use? Do the sentences flow the way your speech does? 

Don’t try to sound overly smart or mature: too many students try that, and so too many college application essays sound the same. 

Admittedly, writing in your own voice can be tough if you’re not used to it. If you’re struggling, we recommend working with one of our college essay tutors, who will help you capture your unique style without making you sound like someone else. 

  1. Be honest

Vulnerability can work wonders in this essay. Villanova’s admissions committee makes that clear when they tell you to “speak your truth.”  

Instead of writing what you think they want to hear, write that truth, even if it’s uncomfortable. Sometimes, admitting something about yourself that might not put you in the best light can actually be a strong, advantageous move in college admissions. 

  1. Don’t be generic or cliche

Nothing sinks an essay faster than it being boring or cliche. 

As soon as you catch yourself writing a sentence, description, or reflection that someone else could have written, delete it. You need every sentence here to be specific to you, using the details from your life that only you can provide. 

Rule number 4 can be rephrased more bluntly: don’t be boring. 

For over 50 examples of supplemental essays that do this successfully, check out the free collection below–it includes essays written for Ivy+ schools, organized by university and prompt. 

 

Next Steps

Once you’re ready to start writing supplemental essays for Villanova and your other schools, we have two main pieces of advice. 

First: read real, successful sample supplemental essays that helped get students into elite schools like Villanova.

Most people don’t really know what college admissions officers actually want from the supplemental essays, and the best solution is to spend lots of time reviewing real essays. We’ve collected over 50 of these essays in the free resource below. 

Second: get expert help. Whether you’re a brilliant writer or just an okay one, you’ll benefit tremendously from the advice of someone who’s already successfully navigated the high-stakes college application process. 

Unfortunately, not all college essay tutors are created equal: picking the right one can be the difference between getting into your dream school or just wasting your money. 

That’s why we had our experts come up with the definitive ranking of the 14 Best College Essay Services, evaluating everything from tutor credentials to customer reviews. Check out that list, and make sure you only work with the best.

And when you’re ready to work with our team of college essay experts–who earned admission to elite schools like Princeton and Yale before undergoing a rigorous training process–contact us to get matched with a tutor! 

Top College Essay Posts

Mike

Mike Kleynman is an expert test prep tutor (SAT/ACT/LSAT) and college essay consultant, with over a decade of experience and industry-leading results.

With average final scores of 34+ on the ACT and 1500+ on the SAT, nearly all of Mike’s test prep students score in the top percentiles. They also routinely earn admission to the most selective universities: just last year, Mike had students accepted to Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, UC Berkeley, USC, and Carnegie Mellon. The average final LSAT score of his students is over 172, and his law school application coaching students have been accepted to Harvard, Yale, and Columbia Law.

Mike holds a PhD in English from Duke University.

applying college essay