Villanova Supplemental Essays 2026-27: Pick 1 of 5
Villanova asks one essay of about 250 words from five prompts, two new for 2026-27: a Pope Leo XIV prompt and an AI prompt. Which to pick and why.
Villanova Supplemental Essays 2026-27: Pick 1 of 5
Villanova asks for one essay of about 250 words, chosen from five prompts. It must be different from your Common App or Coalition essay. Two of the five are new for 2026-27: a Pope Leo XIV prompt about equity and justice, and a prompt about technology and the common good.
The new technology prompt sits on the same page as a rule that the essay be written "unaided by artificial intelligence". Read the two together. Our view: pick by the evidence you hold, use Prompt 3 only if you can name what you would do at Villanova, and treat Prompt 4 as a values question, not a tech showcase. When your draft is ready, a free why-Villanova essay review reads it against the prompt you chose.
Every Villanova page quoted below was checked on October 30, 2026. The prompts are labeled "Villanova Writing Supplement (2026-2027)". We compared them with the 2025-26 set on the same page as archived on August 13, 2025. The deadlines page prints no year.
The 2026-27 Villanova prompts
Villanova's writing supplement page says: "Choose one of the five topics below and submit a written response in about 250 words."
| # | Prompt (verbatim) | Versus 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | As Pope Leo XIV (Villanova Class of 1977) has said, “no one can single-handedly bear the weight of the challenges the world is facing, just as no one is so weak that they cannot play their part.” What have you done to play your part in advancing equity and justice in your community? | New wording |
| 2 | What is a lesson in life that you have learned that you would want to share with others at Villanova? | Same |
| 3 | "Villanova" means "new home." Why do you want to call Villanova your new home? | Same |
| 4 | Villanova embraces Artificial Intelligence (AI) with a commitment to thoughtful, ethical use rooted in our Augustinian mission and values. How do you see technology helping you to lead, serve, and contribute to the common good? | New prompt |
| 5 | At Villanova, we often say "each of us strengthens all of us." Please detail a time when someone has borrowed some of your strength in their time of need. | Same |
What changed from 2025-26
The archived 2025-26 page had two prompts that are now gone:
- Old Prompt One: "St. Augustine states that well-being is “not concerned with myself alone, but with my neighbor’s good as well.” How have you advocated for equity and justice in your communities?"
- Old Prompt Four: "As an Augustinian community, we value recognizing individuals for their true selves. Please share with us a time when you were misjudged based on your identity, background, experiences or interests."
Two consequences. First, Prompt 1 moved from "advocated" to "play your part", and its quote says "no one is so weak that they cannot play their part". A small, specific action now fits the question as written; you do not need a founder story. Second, the misjudged-identity prompt has no Villanova home this year. If you drafted one, Boston College's Prompt 3 still asks a close version (see the Boston College supplement guide).
Which of the five Villanova prompts to choose
| Prompt | What it needs from you | Skip it if… |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Play your part | One thing you did, for whom, and what changed | Your only material is an opinion or a club title |
| 2. A life lesson | A lesson, the moment you learned it, and why Villanova students would use it | The lesson is a proverb with no story behind it |
| 3. New home | Named Villanova specifics tied to your own interests | You cannot name anything beyond the campus and the name |
| 4. Technology and the common good | A view on how technology helps you "lead, serve, and contribute", with one example | You only want to list apps or coding skills |
| 5. Borrowed strength | Someone else's need, what you gave, what it cost you | The story is really about you being thanked |
Villanova's page also says it "seeks applicants with characteristics that reflect our three core values: Veritas (Truth), Unitas (Unity) and Caritas (Love)". You do not need to name them. Prompts 1 and 5 already point at them.
Prompt 3: "new home" is the only why-Villanova question
Prompt 3 is the only prompt that asks why Villanova. If you choose it, the "home" frame invites generic lines about community and campus beauty. The test is the one in our why-this-college mistakes guide: if another school's name can replace Villanova's in a sentence, that sentence is doing no work. Name one or two things you would do there and connect each to something already true of you.
Our view: choose Prompt 3 only if your research is specific. The countercase: if Villanova is your Early Decision school and you have done that research, Prompt 3 is the one place in the file to show it, and a strong why-Villanova is worth more to you than a fifth lesson essay.
Prompt 4: the AI prompt next to the AI rule
Both lines are on the same page. The prompt: "Villanova embraces Artificial Intelligence (AI) with a commitment to thoughtful, ethical use rooted in our Augustinian mission and values." The rule, in full: "The Admission Committee expects that each writing supplement be the original work of the applicant, unaided by artificial intelligence. Those found to be submitting writing that is not their own may be denied or have their admission rescinded."
Read the question closely. It asks about "technology", not only AI, and it asks three verbs: "lead, serve, and contribute to the common good". A strong answer takes a position, shows one time technology served people you know, and says where you would draw a limit. A list of tools you can use answers none of the three verbs. For how school AI rules relate to what you sign in the application, see the AI attestation guide.
Prompt 5: start with their need
The phrase "borrowed some of your strength" puts the other person's need first. Essays that open with the writer's virtue answer a different question.
Constructed example: the core of a Prompt 5 answer
Constructed example, written by us, not a real applicant statement. (99 words)
In March my lab partner, Dana, stopped coming to the early sessions we needed for the science fair. Her mother had started night shifts, and Dana was getting her brothers to school. I moved our work to lunch and took the 6 a.m. data readings alone for three weeks. I lost my spot on the morning run club, which I had wanted all year. I didn't tell her that. What I learned was smaller than "helping": strength you lend has to be quiet, or the person borrowing it pays interest. Dana presented our results. I held the poster board.
Annotation: Dana's need comes before anything the writer did, and the cost (the run club) is specific. The one-sentence reflection answers "borrowed" in the prompt's own terms. At 99 words this is the core only; Villanova asks for about 250, so a full draft would add what changed for Dana and for you after those three weeks.
Villanova's "about 250 words" and other rules
- Length: "Try not to stress about going over or under the suggested word count—as long as it is close." Villanova does not define "close". Our recommendation: treat 250 as the target, not the floor of a longer essay.
- Different from your main essay: "The supplemental response must be different from the response shared in the Common Application or Coalition Application essay section."
- Help: "Ask for a second opinion, not a rewrite", and suggested changes "should not completely change the original content."
Reuse map
- From your Common App essay: not allowed as the same response. Use a different story.
- From Boston College: BC's Prompt 1 (a tradition) and Villanova's Prompt 5 (borrowed strength) both live in community material. Keep the story; rewrite the analysis for the new question.
- From other why-us essays: only research habits transfer to Prompt 3, never sentences.
- From community prompts elsewhere: the community supplemental essay guide shows how Prompts 1 and 5 differ from a plain describe a community you belong to prompt.
- Catholic-school sister pages: Notre Dame and Jesuit college essay prompts.
For a faith-centered prompt at another university, see Pepperdine's faith prompt.
Checklist before you submit
- You answered exactly one of the five prompts, quoted from the 2026-27 page (not last year's).
- It is close to 250 words.
- It does not repeat your Common App or Coalition essay.
- Prompt 1: one action you took, not only a belief.
- Prompt 3: at least one Villanova specific that another school could not share.
- Prompt 4: you addressed "lead, serve, and contribute", not just "technology".
- Prompt 5: the other person's need comes first.
- Timing: Villanova's dates and deadlines page lists Early Action and Early Decision I on November 1, and Early Decision II and Regular Decision on January 15.
Questions about the Villanova supplement
How many supplemental essays does Villanova require?
One. You choose one of five topics and write "about 250 words", in addition to your Common App or Coalition essay.
Is there a why-Villanova essay?
Prompt 3 is the why-Villanova option ("Why do you want to call Villanova your new home?"). It is one of five choices, not required.
Can I use AI on the Villanova supplement?
Villanova's page says it "expects that each writing supplement be the original work of the applicant, unaided by artificial intelligence. Those found to be submitting writing that is not their own may be denied or have their admission rescinded."
Are the Villanova prompts the same as last year?
Three are the same (2, 3 and 5). Prompts 1 and 4 changed, compared with the page as archived on August 13, 2025.
Get a free review of your supplemental essay
Get a free Quick Review of your supplemental essay against GradPilot's why-us rubric if you chose Prompt 3: it reads whether you name Villanova specifics and tie each one to you. For Prompts 1 and 5, use the community supplement rubric; for Prompts 2 and 4, use the personal short-answer rubric. Paste Villanova's exact prompt above your draft.
Next reads: what each 2026-27 supplemental essay type asks, and every school guide in the Common App essays hub.
Sources
Retrieved October 30, 2026, except where noted.
- Villanova University, First-Year Writing Supplement (labeled "Villanova Writing Supplement (2026-2027)"): prompts, length, Common App difference rule, AI note, tips, core values.
- Villanova University, First-Year Writing Supplement, archived August 13, 2025 (labeled "Villanova Writing Supplement (2025-26)"): the prior prompts used for the comparison.
- Villanova University, Application Dates and Deadlines (no year printed): Early Action, Early Decision I and II, Regular Decision dates.
Get feedback on your supplemental essay
Paste your draft. The free Quick Review shows what to fix against the prompt's rubric before you submit.