How to Respond to the 2023/2024 Babson College Supplemental Essay Prompts

By Cait Williams

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Maria Geiger is Director of Content at Scholarships360. She is a former online educational technology instructor and adjunct writing instructor. In addition to education reform, Maria’s interests include viewpoint diversity, blended/flipped learning, digital communication, and integrating media/web tools into the curriculum to better facilitate student engagement. Maria earned both a B.A. and an M.A. in English Literature from Monmouth University, an M. Ed. in Education from Monmouth University, and a Virtual Online Teaching Certificate (VOLT) from the University of Pennsylvania. Full Bio

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Updated: October 9th, 2023

Babson College is known for being all about business, and their essay prompts are no exception! They want to know about who you are and why you have chosen to apply to their college. Two supplemental essays may seem like a lot, but each one is an opportunity to show them why you would be a great addition to their school. So, settle in and let’s find out how you can nail each Babson supplemental essay right on the head!

A brief introduction to Babson College

Babson College is known for their emphasis on teaching students to be great entrepreneurs. Babson knows that entrepreneurial skills are not just something that people are born with, but that need to be learned and built over time. They know the importance of having skills in not just business, but in all facets of the world. Entrepreneurship is about being innovative, creative, and willing to try new ideas. In addition to the entrepreneurial degrees and opportunities they offer, they are also heavily invested in educating their students through the liberal arts and science. 

Do your Babson research first!

Before starting your first Babson supplemental essay, give yourself some time to explore the Babson website. Colleges try to give students a vivid picture of their school through their website because they know it’s how most students learn about them. If possible, it’s always a great idea to try and tour a college before you apply. Tours are free and a great way to find out what’s out there. If you can’t find the time or money to take a face-to-face tour, Babson College offers an engaging virtual tour as well! 

Supplemental essay prompt #1

#1: The Babson education prepares students for all types of careers across business, entrepreneurship, social innovation, and more. Tell us about your interest in this area of study and in Babson specifically. (500 words maximum)

We invite you to submit your answer in either essay OR video format. If you choose to submit a video, please limit your response to a 1-minute video, which can be submitted via a shared link to YouTube or another video hosting website. Please ensure your video is set to public and is accessible to the Admission Committee.

Babson isn’t trying to pull any tricks with this prompt. They really just want to get to know you. However, there are two questions to this prompt. So, let’s also break your answer into two parts. 

Part one

The first thing they want to know is why you are interested in the fields of study they have to offer. This question shouldn’t be difficult for you to answer. Start by writing out a simple answer. Maybe you’ve just always been interested in business, or you love entrepreneurship because your mom or dad runs their own company, or any number of other great reasons!  

Once you know your simple answer, you can begin to expand a bit. Connect your interest in this field to a larger picture, or future goal that you have. Remember, you don’t need to have a long elaborate answer for this question in order to get accepted by Babson, but what you do need is to be genuine. The goal is for them to get to know you! 

Part two

As for part two of this prompt, Babson wants to know why you specifically would like to study at their school. Maybe it’s a specific professor or program they offer that drew you to Babson. The key with this question is again to connect why Babson is the school for you. Try not to just rattle off facts about the university. They already know all about themselves. They want to know now why you have chosen them. Lots of schools offer similar academic interests, so it’s important for a school to know that there is a reason you have specifically chosen them.

You do have a 500 word limit for this prompt. Don’t let the word count get to your head. Write out what you want to say and then edit it down if needed. You might be able to do a lot more in 500 words than you think.

Supplemental essay prompt #2 

#2:  A defining element of the Babson experience is learning and thriving in an equitable and inclusive community with a wide range of perspectives and interests. Please share something about your background, lived experiences, or viewpoint(s) that speaks to how you will contribute to and learn from Babson’s collaborative community. (250 words maximum)

From this prompt, Babson wants to better understand how you and your experiences will fit in and contribute to their campus. So, let’s also break this prompt into two parts. 

Part one

First, what is your background? What lived experiences or viewpoints do you have? Take a few minutes to jot down some ideas and ask yourself the questions below:

• Have you always lived in the same place? 
• What is your family life like? 
• Have you ever struggled academically?
• Is there a certain religion or set of beliefs that you try to live your life by?
• Do you have any opinions or thoughts about modern issues that society faces?

There really is an unlimited amount of questions you could ask yourself, so take a minute to think of some on your own as well. 

Part two

The second part to answering this prompt requires you to have an idea of what values and beliefs Babson holds. Take some time exploring Babson’s website. Read about their history and their values. College websites usually try to be very transparent about the values their campus encompasses. 

Once you feel like you have a good feel for Babson, you should be able to draw lines between how their values and your experiences and background connect. Remember their original question, which was how you and your experiences will fit into their campus. You’ll likely find that there is a lot you could talk about, but the key here is talking about what is relevant to the prompt!

You only have 250 words to answer this prompt. So, like we said above, try writing your first draft without a word count and then begin to narrow things down, as that will likely yield a more thorough and genuine answer.

More college application essay help

If you feel like you still need some more guidance with your college application essays, we can help. Check out this guide to creating a college video response. Whether you want to know how to write a more engaging essay, just want some extra tips, or even want answers to questions like how many colleges you should apply to, we have you covered! Good luck and don’t forget we’re always here!

Frequently asked questions about Babson’s supplemental essay