Can anyone tell me if this essay is the same each year? The wording for last year was, “What excites you about the University of Notre Dame that makes it stand out from other institutions?” My son would like to get a head start on this one if possible, but I don’t want him to waste time if it might change. I know there are additional prompts that change from year to year. Any insight is appreciated!
Fall 2018 prompts:
Thank you @northwesty, but that is from last year…for Fall 2018 “enrollment” not applications.
This question won't change too drastically. I don't think that there is really any wording that should significantly impact how you'd answer the question. It may change in length but the question it's getting at is the same. I'm a rising senior now and I think mine, nearly four years ago, was simply "Why Notre Dame?". My sister's, the next year, was "What excites you about Notre Dame?".
So for your son, answer that basic question: why has he decided that Notre Dame is a place that gives him a drive for greatness, a passion to learn and provide for the community on campus and around the globe; a place where he wants to learn about his subject, learn about himself as a person, and can teach others about what he knows as well?
Since there are so few words available, I'd focus on telling them why Notre Dame is good, and don't mention why other schools are not as good, even though the question here mentions the "other institutions". The admissions office won't care about the other institutions; write about why Notre Dame should be YOUR institution.
@WineLover – got it.
Just call up or email your regional admissions rep and ask. Better yet, have your kid do it.
The ND reps are pretty accessible, and it is good to have your kid get to know the rep anyway.
Can’t you just write a one word answer–“Football” ? 
Even if the prompt changes, it would be wise for your son to have a well thought out response to that prompt.
Hall of Famer Randy Moss literally did that on his application for Notre Dame 25 years ago and it got him rejected even though he was offered a football scholarship. That and a bar fight. And supposedly he wrote the app in crayon but that was probably not truthful.
Are you kidding me ? Randy Moss was lucky to get into West Virginia schools.
Randy was actually a pretty smart guy and always articulate. Absolutely adored ND growing up. In fact it was said that he and his brother would get into fights as to who loved ND more.
Time to get back to the OP’s question.
Like @WineLover I was hoping to make some headway on the essays this month. Last year, the essay prompts were up by about mid-July, but for whatever reason the admissions office is slower this year on releasing them. The admissions page says that the application will open on August 1, so I’m just going to wait until then. Last year’s “Why Notre Dame” essay threw in an additional qualifier about what makes ND stand out from other institutions, so each year they do phrase the question slightly differently.
The punch lines of the most recent prompts:
Fall 2017: “What excites you about the University of Notre Dame that makes it stand out from other institutions?”
Fall 2016: "What excites you about attending Notre Dame?
Both of which are basically “Why Notre Dame?”
@WineLover @GeronimoAlpaca This was the Fall 2016 prompt – “Notre Dame is an adventure that will develop more than just your intellect. Blessed Basil Moreau, founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross, believed that to provide a true education “the mind will not be cultivated at the expense of the heart.” What excites you about attending Notre Dame?”
Although it did end with “What excites you about attending Notre Dame”, I believe the rest of the prompt was there to give some general direction to the answer. I know my D took the “mind will not be cultivated at the expense of the heart” part into account when framing her response.
Whatever twist they might put to the Why ND question this year, offering examples specific to the univ is really key. For example – a professor who has ongoing (or published) research that interests you; something about their mission statement that rings true; a goal for your major/career that ND’s resources can help you achieve; causes that the university is invested in that you share a passion for, etc. All of these can answer Why ND? but in a different way. How the question is framed might determine which areas you choose to address and - of those - which you choose to highlight.
In the case of ND, I know my daughter addressed the last 2 questions, based on the tone of the prompt for that year. But for the “Why X?” question for another school, she focused on specific research/professors. It really depends. But if you want to spend the time, I imagine it wouldn’t hurt to start doing some information gathering so you have the basic building blocks prepared for when you’re ready to begin. Good luck!
@waitingmomla Thanks for providing the full context of the prompt from 2 years ago. That’s a good example of what I meant about the “Why Notre Dame?” prompt changing just a bit each year. I would definitely have framed my response to that prompt by taking into account the Moreau quote and finding ways to integrate that idea of ND helping to develop the “whole person,” etc.
Hopefully the new essay / supplement questions will be up when the ND App opens on Aug 1. Again, thanks to everyone for the helpful discussion here.
Keep an eye on what’s going on at Notre Dame. If you follow ND on facebook, they post lots of information about what’s going on there. Scour the ND website. For example, are you (any “you”) interested in environmental science? Check out all of the initiatives going on through their Office of Sustainability.
Are you interested in Engineering and community involvement? I just did a quick search and found this:
"College of Engineering announces new Center for Civic Innovation in partnership with St. Joseph, Elkhart counties
The center will facilitate partnerships between Notre Dame and local stakeholders, including schools, businesses, nonprofits and local governments, to innovate solutions around issues ranging from safe and affordable housing to lighting and stormwater management."
There is a ton of information out there. If any of it resonates with you, these are the types of things that you can use to tie in with your “Why ND” essay, in whatever form it presents itself. Let them know you’ve done a deep-dive.
@suzy100 is spot on.
I have two children who attended/currently attend Notre Dame. They each wrote very different essays, but both were very personal. That, I believe, is the key. The first one described her visit to Notre Dame and some people she met. She then went on to describe a number of things she wanted to do while at Notre Dame. This is very general advice, but she was quite specific. She went on to do all of those things while at Notre Dame. My second wrote about one topic. She was very in-depth about how she was interested in this particular thing and how Notre Dame could help her advance this interest further.
Neither one mentioned football, and both were admitted EA.
So when your child is thinking about his or her essay, make it personal. But also, think about what Notre Dame says about itself. Notre Dame describes students and alums as the Notre Dame family. I think reading the admissions article from the past few years in the ND Observer could be helpful too. This is the most recent: https://ndsmcobserver.com/2018/04/notre-dame-admits-class-of-2022/, but you may want to read several previous years to see some trends. Then look at trends you see there and match to the student’s own views in crafting the essay. Here’s is last year’s key element in admissions from this past year’s article:
“There’s a whole other dimension to Notre Dame [in addition to quality academics] that Notre Dame expects to deliver to every student,” Bishop said. “And that’s you developing a greater sense of who you are, what you’re about and how you can improve the world [and] be a force for good. So we have been hitting that point harder.”
If your student can convey what they are looking for here, with their knowledge of Notre Dame and the resources there (and not all are academic), that should be a very compelling “Why Notre Dame” essay. Make the admissions reader see you on campus.
You might not have the question handy, but if your student just starts thinking about what he wants to say, he can tailor it later to the actual question.
Writing prompts are on the website.
Why ND prompt same as last year.