This is part 3 of our “The Complete Guide to the Common App Personal Statement Essay” series. If you missed the first two installments, check them here. In this article, our Director of Coach Training and long-time Prompt Writing Coach will fill you in on what college admissions readers look for and how to use those five traits to inform your essay brainstorming. 

Do you have an idea of what you want to write about in your Common App personal statement essay? I hate to break it to you, but if it was your first idea, other high school students probably had the same one. We use brainstorming to go beyond familiar narratives and themes.  

The 3 T’s

Before we dive into how to brainstorm, let’s establish some brainstorming goals. Your personal statement needs three things: a core Trait, a unique Theme, and a central Topic that exemplifies the trait and theme. This concept of “The 3 T’s” is a simple but effective way to ensure that your personal statement is focused and impactful. 

• Your Traits are the defining strengths or values that admissions readers are looking for. We go further into this concept below.
• Your Topic is the narrative(s) that shows your traits in action.
• Your Theme is the overarching message that explains how your topics catalyzed, strengthened, or capitalized on your traits. 

If you can identify all three of these in your essay and how they work together, you are well on your way to a compelling personal statement! 

Let’s dig into the “Traits” a bit more… 

At Prompt, we lean heavily into what we call “The Five Traits.” This framework encapsulates what colleges are looking for so that you can connect your own story to a personality trait that will be positively transferable to your college success and impact. 

1. Drive – You push yourself to succeed no matter how long the odds are. When you’ve faced difficult or challenging situations, you have come out a better person.
2. Intellectual Curiosity – You learn just for the fun of it to gain a deeper understanding of the subjects you are most interested in. 
3. Initiative — You are not willing to accept the status quo and are always thinking of ways to improve whatever you are working on or involved with. Oftentimes, students with initiative are entrepreneurial, but they can also be passionate about launching projects without the business component.
4. Contribution – Your community —your school, organizations you are part of, your friendship circle, your family, etc.— is better because of your actions.
5. Diversity of Experiences – You’ve sought out life experiences and perspectives that differ from your own to expand your way of thinking about the world.

Your narratives and insights (Topic) should all point to one of these Traits, helping you to keep your personal statement focused on one compelling guiding message (Theme). 

The Five Traits aren't boxes you fit into. Instead, they are qualities that encompass a world of strengths and experiences, all of which point to a capacity for growth, self-awareness, and leadership potential. 

Here are some questions to consider:

• Which one or two of these traits jump out at you the most? 
• How would your teachers, family, and friends describe you? 

Jot those down. You might align with several of these traits, but you’ll want to focus on just one or two in your personal statement so that you have enough space to dig deeply into your narratives and insights. The good news is that these five traits can (should!) be evident throughout your application. Your transcripts can demonstrate intellectual curiosity and drive, while your activities lists can demonstrate your initiative and contribution to your community. Supplemental essays are also a prime vehicle for showing your diversity of experience and digging deeper into all of the other traits as well! However, the personal statement is the best opportunity for you to showcase your core trait and tell a compelling story that shows how you have developed that trait and put it into practice.

Still stuck on which trait you should focus on for your most compelling application? Make a free Prompt account and take our Five Traits quiz. It can be found under the “Brainstorm Essay Ideas” tab. Then click the first quiz titled “Application Plan.” 

How should I brainstorm?

Now that you know the five traits colleges are looking for, let’s get down to brainstorming. 

Set a timer for 20 minutes and make a list of all the narratives you could write about. In other words, what have you experienced, accomplished, and learned in high school? 

After 20 minutes, review your list and ask yourself? 

• What did I DO? If you can’t answer what you DID, then this is probably an experience that happened to you and won’t show you in action. 
• How did I step up or stand out? This question will help you identify the trait apparent in that story!
• How did I grow? How did this experience change how I act/think in other areas of my life? This will help you name your theme! 

Assessing my brainstorming 

Ask yourself: 

• Which of the five traits shows up the most? 
• Which narrative — that aligns with one of the five traits — could I talk about all day? 
• Does this narrative show personal growth and demonstrate how I might be successful in college and beyond?

Still need help with brainstorming? Stuck getting started? Check out our article on how to get unstuck and brainstorm better.

These questions will help you narrow down your list and find the narratives (topic) that best correlate to a compelling theme that centers your core trait. With your 3 T’s decided, you’ll be ready to outline with us in the next article in this series!

Want some help brainstorming and assessing if your ideas are the caliber needed for your best competitive college application? All of our essay coaching packages include unlimited brainstorming and outlining video calls with an expert Prompt Writing Coach. Check us out using the button below. 

Find the next part of our Common App essay series here: Digging Into the 2024-25 Common App Personal Statement Prompts: Which Prompt Should You Choose?