ApplyTexas Essay Prompts: Topics A, B and C

ApplyTexas Essay Prompts: Topics A, B and C

ApplyTexas has three freshman essay topics, A, B and C. Topic A, "Tell us your story," is word for word the prompt for Texas A&M's required essay, at up to 750 words. UT Austin takes any topic at 500–650 words. Texas State makes the essay optional but recommended.

So on ApplyTexas, the topic you pick matters less than which school reads it. Our view: write one Topic A draft and keep two lengths, a full version for A&M and a version cut to 650 words for UT. If you are drafting now, a free review against the narrative craft rubric reads whether your story develops one main moment.

Every university page quoted below was checked on October 30, 2026. ApplyTexas's own essay pages did not load for us: the old essay page returned "404: Not Found" and another page showed a bot check, which we did not bypass. The topic text below is from Texas State University's admissions page, which says the topics are "the same topics found on the ApplyTexas application." Before you submit, confirm the wording inside your ApplyTexas account.

The three ApplyTexas topics, verbatim

From Texas State's Freshman Admission Essays page: "Essay topics A, B, and C below are the same topics found on the ApplyTexas application."

Texas State's page gives no word limit for these topics. Each university sets its own, as the next table shows.

ApplyTexas's home page describes the system this way: "With ApplyTexas, you can apply to any Texas public university and many Texas community colleges and private universities." The last step, in its words: "Finish your application by submitting answers to school-specific questions or essays." That is why the same topic gets read at different lengths.

What each university asks for

Sources: Texas A&M freshman application, UT Austin essays and short answers, Texas State admission essays. We list only the universities whose pages we checked.

Two details change the plan:

• UT prefers the Common App for fall. UT's freshman page says "Apply using the Common App for summer/fall admission," though it still links ApplyTexas, and its essays page says you "can submit your short answers with either your Common App or ApplyTexas application."
• A&M adds a form for ApplyTexas users. "All students who submit an ApplyTexas application will be asked to complete an additional Extracurricular Activities Form." Instructions come by email "within one week of submitting your ApplyTexas application."

Topic A: "Tell us your story"

Topic A asks about "opportunities or challenges" during your "high school career." Two limits are built into the wording: the time frame is high school, and the subject is what "shaped who you are today."

Our view: pick Topic A even if B or C appeals to you, if Texas A&M is on your list. A&M's required essay uses the Topic A text, so a Topic A draft does double duty, and UT accepts any topic. The basis is the table above. One draft covers A&M (at up to 750 words) and UT (cut to 650). Texas State accepts it too.

The countercase: if you are not applying to A&M, nothing in the pages we checked favors one topic over another. Choose the one that fits your best story. For UT and Texas State, a Topic B or C essay, or a Common App essay, works just as well.

Write about one opportunity or one challenge, not your whole life. A&M's prompt asks how experiences "have shaped who you are today," so most of the words should go to what you did and how you changed, not to describing the event. For more on keeping a challenge essay factual, see the hardship essay guide. The Texas A&M essay guide covers A&M's short answers, which you write alongside it.

Topic B: identity, interest or talent

Topic B, "an identity, an interest, or a talent that defines them in an essential way," is close to Common App prompt 1, which asks about "a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it" (from the Common App 2026-2027 prompts). An essay written for one can move to the other by adjusting its first paragraph, as long as it already names what defines you.

The word that matters is "essential." Topic B asks what defines you, so show how the identity, interest or talent shows up in your choices, not just that you have it. "I play piano" is a fact. What you practice, what you skip, and why, is the essay.

Topic C: the ticket

"You've got a ticket in your hand. Where will you go? What will you do? What will happen when you get there?" This is the creative prompt. It asks three questions, and the last one ("What will happen when you get there?") is where the essay is. A destination with no reason is a travel brochure.

Topic C works when the destination is a way to show how you think: a place tied to a question you have, a person you want to meet, a problem you want to see up close. It is a weaker choice if your list includes A&M, since A&M's essay uses the Topic A text.

Constructed example: a Topic A opening at A&M length and at UT length

Constructed example, written by us, not a real applicant statement. Context (invented): a student who started a tutoring table at a public library. Version for A&M, where the full essay can run to 750 words:

In tenth grade, the public library two blocks from my school started closing at five instead of eight, and the homework help desk disappeared with the hours. My sister was in seventh grade and failing pre-algebra. I was not a tutor. I was a student who had passed the same class two years earlier and still had my notebook. I asked the branch manager if I could sit at a table in the children's section from three to five on weekdays. She said yes if I signed a volunteer form and kept the noise down. The first week, only my sister came. By the second month, there were eleven kids, and I had to make a sign-up sheet.

Version cut for UT's 500–650 range, where every paragraph has to be shorter:

In tenth grade, our public library cut its hours, and the homework help desk disappeared. My sister was failing pre-algebra. I was not a tutor, just a student who still had my notebook from the same class. I asked the branch manager for a table in the children's section after school. The first week, only my sister came. By the second month, there were eleven kids and a sign-up sheet.

Annotation: the A&M version is 118 words and the UT version is 70 (our counts). The cut keeps the scene, the turn ("I was not a tutor") and the result, and drops detail that does not change the story: the exact hours, the volunteer form. Make the same kind of cut in every paragraph, not just the opening.

ApplyTexas vs Common App for Texas schools

• Texas A&M: asks students to apply with the Common App, accepts ApplyTexas, and allows one application per student. The Texas A&M essay guide quotes its full rule.
• UT Austin: apply with the Common App for summer or fall. Short answers can go through either application.
• Texas State: essays "may be submitted through your ApplyTexas or CommonApp account or by using our document uploader."

One ApplyTexas-only benefit, from A&M's page: "the State of Texas provides Free College Application Week during the second full week of October. Texas Residents can apply to any Texas public college or university using ApplyTexas for undergraduate admission without paying an application fee." The page lists "2026: October 12-18, 2026," which has passed, and "2027: October 11–17, 2027" for next year's applicants.

A note for transfer applicants: UT's essays page says "All transfer applicants must submit one essay responding to Topic A," and describes it as addressing "your interest and preparation for the major you’ve chosen as your first choice." That is UT's transfer topic, not the freshman ApplyTexas Topic A above.

Checklist before you submit

1. If Texas A&M is on your list, your essay answers Topic A: one opportunity or challenge from high school.
2. You have two versions: A&M (750 words or fewer) and UT (500–650).
3. Each version was cut paragraph by paragraph, not just trimmed at the end.
4. If you use Topic B, it shows how the identity, interest or talent shapes your choices.
5. If you use Topic C, it answers "What will happen when you get there?"
6. You confirmed the topic wording inside your ApplyTexas account.
7. A&M ApplyTexas applicants: the Extracurricular Activities Form is done.

Questions about ApplyTexas essays

What are the ApplyTexas essay prompts for 2026-27?

Three topics. A: "Tell us your story." B: an identity, interest or talent that defines you. C: "You've got a ticket in your hand." Full text is in the table above, from Texas State's page, which says they match the ApplyTexas application. That page states no cycle year, so confirm the wording in your ApplyTexas account.

Is ApplyTexas Topic A the same as the Texas A&M essay?

Yes, the wording matches word for word. A&M sets a 750-word maximum.

Does UT Austin require a specific ApplyTexas topic?

No. UT asks for "an essay on any topic of your choice," 500–650 words, and says the Common App personal essay completes the requirement.

Is the essay required on ApplyTexas?

It depends on the university. A&M and UT require one. Texas State says it is "not required for admission, but it is recommended."

Can I send the same essay to every Texas school?

Yes, for the three schools above, if you adjust the length. A Topic A essay fits A&M's prompt, UT's any-topic essay and Texas State's optional essay. Check each school's limit before you paste it in. For that transfer prompt, see the UT Austin transfer essay guide.

Get a free review of your Common App essay

Get a free Quick Review of your Common App essay against GradPilot's narrative craft rubric, which reads whether the essay develops one main moment, uses details that shape the story, and lets the change grow from what happens. It reads an ApplyTexas Topic A draft the same way; paste the topic above your essay. For a Topic B essay, use the background and identity rubric. The Common App essay review page covers the rest.

More guides:

• UT Austin supplemental essays 2026-27: UT's two required short answers.
• UT Austin honors essays 2026-27: every UT honors prompt.
• Coalition Application essay prompts: the other shared application's six prompts.
• Common App essay prompts 2026-27: all seven Common App prompts.
• All Common App and supplement guides.

Sources

Retrieved October 30, 2026, except where noted.

• Texas State University, Freshman Admission Essays (no cycle label): ApplyTexas topics A, B, C; essay optional but recommended; submission options.
• Texas A&M University, Freshman application (no cycle label): required essay text and 750-word limit, application choice, Extracurricular Activities Form, Free College Application Week dates.
• UT Austin, Essays & Short Answers (no cycle label): any-topic essay, 500–650 words, Common App essay completes the requirement, short answers on either application, transfer Topic A.
• UT Austin, Freshman Admission (decisions dated 2027): Common App for summer and fall.
• ApplyTexas, home page (no cycle label; retrieved through a text reader because direct requests returned HTTP 403): what ApplyTexas covers.
• Common App, Essay prompts (2026–2027): Common App prompt 1 text.