Santa Clara University

Personal statement required (250-650 words), plus two supplements:

1. Optional · 150-300 words

   At Santa Clara University, we encourage our students to be creative, embrace challenges, and become changemakers. Think about an issue you care about and believe is important to address. This can be something happening in your local community or more globally. How can an SCU education help you prepare for and address this challenge?

   This essay is NOT on the Common Application. SCU's page says it is submitted 'at any time through your SCU application portal'.

   Review my draft

2. Required · 50 words

   Why are you interested in pursuing the [Division or Major] selected above? (50 words).

   UNCONFIRMED / single source. Only College Essay Guy's 2026/2027 guide lists this. It says the question 'is tucked into the Academic Section of Santa Clara's Common App page' and appears after you pick a division/major from dropdowns, which is why it does not show on SCU's public requirements page. A human should confirm this inside the Common App before publishing it. If it is real, it is a required piece of writing that SCU's own site never mentions.