Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 09:12     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
I’m am hoping this essay signals university priorities. My kid is mid range and Michigan for GPA and test scores (1450 SAT and 4.1 at rigorous school). I have no doubt she can handle the work but I am hoping they are looking for kids who meaningfully contribute to their communities and have held a lot of leadership positions. It is one thing to get great grades and test scores and another to do it while you are juggling the lead in the play, team captain and yearbook editor. I hope they are also looking for kids who want to contribute to society beyond their bubble. That is what I am hoping will come through with this essay.

But I also agree there are a million ways to get at this besides being president or captain. Bottom line, I think they want to see that your kid does more than the bare minimum to get good grades and/or has some interpersonal skills.

And yes, most of you disagree that anything beyond grades, test scores and national awards matter but I am hoping this is a chance to demonstrate they do. Because I think those skills matter for jobs, life etc.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 09:07     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I look down on any institution who talks about leadership. It's entirely meaningless. You can be successful and productive without showing "leadership abilities" at 17 or being a "leader" at work.

I think your child could write a reflection on "what is a leader?" and push back against conventional notions of leadership, which are restrictive and unhelpful. And take examples from their life.

Because in the end, what matters is being noticed and standing out.


This post sounds as though you don’t think it’s important to be a part of and give to a community. It sounds as though all you care about is yourself and your own success.

A lot of colleges would pick up on that kind of an attitude.

It’s entirely possible to be a contributing member of a community without being a leader. In fact, most people are — who do you think those leaders are leading?


The prompt includes: citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future


You don't have to be a leader. You DO have to desire to make the future better.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 09:05     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I look down on any institution who talks about leadership. It's entirely meaningless. You can be successful and productive without showing "leadership abilities" at 17 or being a "leader" at work.

I think your child could write a reflection on "what is a leader?" and push back against conventional notions of leadership, which are restrictive and unhelpful. And take examples from their life.

Because in the end, what matters is being noticed and standing out.


This post sounds as though you don’t think it’s important to be a part of and give to a community. It sounds as though all you care about is yourself and your own success.

A lot of colleges would pick up on that kind of an attitude.

It’s entirely possible to be a contributing member of a community without being a leader. In fact, most people are — who do you think those leaders are leading?
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 08:59     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
The 550 word essay is where you tell them why you and Michigan are meant to be. That's the why that major at (specifically) Michigan matters. BTDT & received feedback that backed this up.

The leadership essay must have replaced the community essay. They are looking for how you are going to make an impact. It's not as important as the 550 essay, but do not sleep on it. UM takes the idea of leadership and bettering the commiunity very seriously. https://www.instagram.com/leadersandbest/?hl=en
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 08:58     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:How serious should it be? It talks about future plans? Are they referring to career goals?

Here's the prompt:

At the University of Michigan, we are focused on developing leaders and citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future. In your essay, share with us how you are prepared to contribute to these goals. This could include the people, places, experiences, or aspirations that have shaped your journey and future plans. (Required for all applicants; 100 word minimum; 300 word maximum.)


When DD was writing supplementals last year, it was helpful to research each school’s motto/slogan to get a sense of what individual schools prioritized. For gu, it was “cura personalis”; for Cornell, it was “any person any study”. For Michigan, it’s “leaders and best”. So she tried to tailor her essays to demonstrate fit. When your DC graduates, how will their leadership make UM proud? Can be big or small but should be unique to DC.


Leaders and the best is a line from the fight song. Michigan’s motto is Arts, Knowledge and Truth.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 08:25     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:This is a really hard essay. It is easy to make it a “Why Michigan” essay, but they already have that essay. It is also easy to make it an activities essay, but that doesn’t seem to be what it is about. My DC is struggling on this one.


Not that hard with copilot and a few good prompts.


Please do that. So when the AI that the admissions office uses for first screening, your applicant's essay will get flagged.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 08:24     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:This is a really hard essay. It is easy to make it a “Why Michigan” essay, but they already have that essay. It is also easy to make it an activities essay, but that doesn’t seem to be what it is about. My DC is struggling on this one.


OK, here I go again after having my advice called horrible and gibberish. Probably by kids who are stressed out and overthinking this essay.

Make it more about leadership. Has the applicant ever made a difference in a small or big way, and how as a college-educated person are they going to extend that learning to their adult life?

The reason this seems hard is because the instructions leave a ton of room to do whatever with this essay. As I said above, the word on the street is to use it to convince that the candidate is a "leader". And the definition of a leader can also be open-ended so that it's not just limited to student body presidents, etc.

If your kid has been the student director of a play, or been on student council, or done some meaningful volunteering, tutoring, anything...see what they can do with that. It's not about the activity (or a laundry list of them) as much as the difference they made by participating in the activity.

Yes, this is not the "Why Michigan" essay. Presumably you could still make the same difference in the world by executing your life plan at a different university. Or offer the same unique perspective based on all the elements that shaped you, at a different school. So it's not Michigan-specific, other than that leadership ties into one of the Michigan slogans.


It can be about rescuing a cat from a tree. Literally, this can be anything where someone acted on a decision. Stop overthinking it.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 08:23     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:I look down on any institution who talks about leadership. It's entirely meaningless. You can be successful and productive without showing "leadership abilities" at 17 or being a "leader" at work.

I think your child could write a reflection on "what is a leader?" and push back against conventional notions of leadership, which are restrictive and unhelpful. And take examples from their life.

Because in the end, what matters is being noticed and standing out.


Except Michigan specifically has a culture around leadership. It has been part of their ethos forever.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 07:17     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:How serious should it be? It talks about future plans? Are they referring to career goals?

Here's the prompt:

At the University of Michigan, we are focused on developing leaders and citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future. In your essay, share with us how you are prepared to contribute to these goals. This could include the people, places, experiences, or aspirations that have shaped your journey and future plans. (Required for all applicants; 100 word minimum; 300 word maximum.)


When DD was writing supplementals last year, it was helpful to research each school’s motto/slogan to get a sense of what individual schools prioritized. For gu, it was “cura personalis”; for Cornell, it was “any person any study”. For Michigan, it’s “leaders and best”. So she tried to tailor her essays to demonstrate fit. When your DC graduates, how will their leadership make UM proud? Can be big or small but should be unique to DC.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 05:50     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:This is a really hard essay. It is easy to make it a “Why Michigan” essay, but they already have that essay. It is also easy to make it an activities essay, but that doesn’t seem to be what it is about. My DC is struggling on this one.


Not that hard with copilot and a few good prompts.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 05:00     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:How serious should it be? It talks about future plans? Are they referring to career goals?

Here's the prompt:

At the University of Michigan, we are focused on developing leaders and citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future. In your essay, share with us how you are prepared to contribute to these goals. This could include the people, places, experiences, or aspirations that have shaped your journey and future plans. (Required for all applicants; 100 word minimum; 300 word maximum.)


It is basically a why Michigan essay, that will be part of a “holistic” review and when the lawsuit(s) come will demonstrate that admission to the university was not solely based on GPA and test scores.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 03:47     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
These essays show demonstrated interest. That’s what Michigan is looking for; students who genuinely want to attend the school in Ann Arbor.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 01:23     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:They can talk about aspirations or they can talk about experience they had on a team or with an activity. This isn't complicated.


But what if the team isn’t related to your career or future plans? It was just a team? Do you actually have to connect the dots for everything?


Yes, you can have unrelated essays, but better applications are more thematically consistent. Connecting the dots is rhetorically convincing.

I find that "Doing the best you can" and "being honest" produces the best essays. So if you think your best example is something that doesn't match the other essays, use it anyway.

This is a good example of why being yourself works better than faking being someone else.

Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 01:18     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:This is a really hard essay. It is easy to make it a “Why Michigan” essay, but they already have that essay. It is also easy to make it an activities essay, but that doesn’t seem to be what it is about. My DC is struggling on this one.


OK, here I go again after having my advice called horrible and gibberish. Probably by kids who are stressed out and overthinking this essay.

Make it more about leadership. Has the applicant ever made a difference in a small or big way, and how as a college-educated person are they going to extend that learning to their adult life?

The reason this seems hard is because the instructions leave a ton of room to do whatever with this essay. As I said above, the word on the street is to use it to convince that the candidate is a "leader". And the definition of a leader can also be open-ended so that it's not just limited to student body presidents, etc.

If your kid has been the student director of a play, or been on student council, or done some meaningful volunteering, tutoring, anything...see what they can do with that. It's not about the activity (or a laundry list of them) as much as the difference they made by participating in the activity.

Yes, this is not the "Why Michigan" essay. Presumably you could still make the same difference in the world by executing your life plan at a different university. Or offer the same unique perspective based on all the elements that shaped you, at a different school. So it's not Michigan-specific, other than that leadership ties into one of the Michigan slogans.
Anonymous
Post 10/07/2025 01:14     Subject: New Michigan leadership essay
Anonymous wrote:I look down on any institution who talks about leadership. It's entirely meaningless. You can be successful and productive without showing "leadership abilities" at 17 or being a "leader" at work.

I think your child could write a reflection on "what is a leader?" and push back against conventional notions of leadership, which are restrictive and unhelpful. And take examples from their life.

Because in the end, what matters is being noticed and standing out.


This post sounds as though you don’t think it’s important to be a part of and give to a community. It sounds as though all you care about is yourself and your own success.

A lot of colleges would pick up on that kind of an attitude.