<p>If not, are these prompts usually the same? They seem pretty basic. Is it probable that I can go ahead and write on one of these topics (like the one about a travel experience) and it will still be applicable come August when the updated application comes out?</p>
<p>You don’t HAVE to write an additional essay, but they offer you the ability to do so. It seems to be essentially another personal statement. I believe they want to give you the opportunity to write about another part of you that the personal statement doesn’t show. From what I gather, it seems to be an optional thing.
I’m not really sure, though.</p>
<p>There is absolutely no reason to begin your applications before the Common App is opened for your application year. It’s silly and is a waste of your summer.</p>
<p>You will have plenty of time to get your applications finished months ahead of the early application deadlines if you start in August.</p>
<p>Why?</p>
<p>The Common App (minus the essays) takes about an hour to fill out. Each supplement (minus the essays) takes about 10-15 minutes at most. Compiling a resume to attach takes about 30 minutes.</p>
<p>The essays will take up the bulk of the time you spend on the application process, and even if they took months to write, you have months with which to write them if you start in August (which, trust me, is getting a head start).</p>
<p>Further, the number of essays you have to write becomes a lot less intimidating when you realize that you only need to write a handful of essays and then simply adapt them to each particular topic. I ultimately used my Common App essay about 5 times in various forms (obviously not elsewhere on the Common App…) and reused many of my supplement essays on other supplements.</p>