university of oregon diversity essay

What are your chances of acceptance?

Calculate for all schools, your chance of acceptance.

Your chancing factors

Extracurriculars.

How to Write the University of Oregon Essays 2023-2024

The University of Oregon offers all applicants two optional prompts—one with two options to choose from, and one that’s more open-ended than a usual prompt. There’s also a required prompt for Honors College applicants and two required prompts for prospective Architecture majors.

Since UO receives thousands of applications from academically strong students, your essays are your chance to stand out. In this post, we’ll discuss how to craft an engaging response to each of these prompts and their options.

Read these University of Oregon essay examples to inspire your writing.

The University of Oregon Supplemental Essays

All applicants.

Prompt 1 (optional): Choose one of the topics below and respond in 250-500 words:

• Option A: Describe an experience with discrimination, whether it was fighting against discrimination or recognizing your contribution to discriminating against a person or group. What did you learn from the experience? In what ways will you bring those lessons to the University of Oregon? (250-500 words)
• Option B: The University of Oregon values difference, and we take pride in our diverse community. Please explain how you will share your experiences, values and interests with our community. In what ways can you imagine offering your support to others? (250-500 words)

Prompt 2 (optional): This section can be used for various purposes, and gives you an optional opportunity for discussing any of the following.

Your academic record might have included periods of low performance such as grades of D or F, inconsistent or downward trends in grades, deficiencies in particular subject areas, or discrepancies between your test scores and GPA. This might be because of special personal circumstances such as death or illness of a parent, caring for a family member, homelessness, frequent moves, or due to learning disabilities/differences or study habits. If relevant, be sure to let us know what actions you have taken in order to be successful, and what you have learned from the experience.

You want to help us better understand how your involvement in activities was limited by work or family obligations, or by the unique setting of your school or community., you need to share any other information with us about yourself that is not provided elsewhere, or uo admissions staff told you to provide certain information in this space., honors college applicants.

Essay Instructions:

Curiosity and breadth of interests are defining characteristics of Clark Honors College students. We value originality and want to learn more about your unique journey and the nature and breadth of your intellectual curiosity.

Note: applicants are required to submit the UO’s application essay and the CHC application essay. The UO’s essay cannot be used to fulfill the Clark Honors College admission essay requirement.

Essay Prompt:

Please tell us about a specific enthusiasm that showcases your curiosity and intellectual engagement with the world. Your chosen enthusiasm or passion can be from any domain—academic, artistic, scientific, cultural, or any other area that has captivated your interest. Be thoughtful and provide concrete examples to support your response. (500 words)

Architecture and Interior Architecture Major Applicants

Prompt 1: Describe your engagement with an experience, activity, or creative project (as in art, construction, or craft, etc.) that has influenced your interest in design. What did you learn from this experience? (350 words)

Prompt 2: Why have you decided to study this design program? Please expand on relevant experiences and motivations that have shaped your desire to apply to the major. (350 words)

How to Write the University of Oregon General Supplemental Essays

All applicants prompt 1, option a (optional), describe an experience with discrimination, whether it was fighting against discrimination or recognizing your contribution to discriminating against a person or group. what did you learn from the experience in what ways will you bring those lessons to the university of oregon (250-500 words).

Discrimination is a very personal topic. After reading the prompt, you’ll probably have an idea whether or not you have enough experience to select it as your essay. Your essay doesn’t necessarily have to be about an experience where you were the one being discriminated against, and it also doesn’t have to be about a time when you did the right thing and actively stood up to discrimination.

In fact, the prompt suggests discussing an experience where you contributed to discrimination or failed to prevent it. If you decide to answer this prompt, you need to be prepared to share personal experiences and stories that might be uncomfortable for you to address. If you don’t feel comfortable writing a detailed, personal essay on this topic, it’s probably wiser for you to choose the other prompt option.

If you decide to write this prompt, you’re going to first need to find an experience to write about. You might have something off the top of your head, or it might take a little longer to figure out what you want to write about. Some possible experiences you could consider include:

• Being a racial minority in a predominantly homogenous school
• Being told you can’t do something because of your gender
• Bullying someone or not preventing bullying
• Participating in racial justice or gender equality marches
• Being treated differently because of your sexuality
• Witnessing discrimination and not standing up

A note about race/ethnicity: In June 2023, the United States Supreme Court struck down the use of affirmative action in college admissions. The ruling, however, still allows colleges to consider race on an individual basis. If you wish to discuss a time during which you were discriminated against because of your racial/ethnic background, this is the place to discuss that.

Whichever experience you decide to write about as your experience with discrimination, positive or negative, you should start the essay with an anecdote to help the admissions officers understand what your experience was.

Let’s say your example is a time when you were walking down the hall on your way to your calculus class and you heard your friends calling a girl racist names. Did you keep your head down and ignore the situation because you didn’t want a late pass to class? Or did you join your friends and make fun of the girl in some way? Or, did you go over to your friends to call them out for their actions and to ask the girl if there was anything you could do to help her?

By setting up your experience in a very personal, anecdotal fashion, you can quickly establish what your experience was and ground your essay so it feels individual and unique.

The most important part of this essay is not your story about discrimination—though that is still the subject of the essay—but rather how you overcame the discrimination and grew from the experience. Or maybe you weren’t able to overcome it, but you still learned about yourself and society from that experience. That’s a perfectly valid thing to write about as well.

After you’ve established what your experience was, you should focus the remainder of your essay on how that experience changed you as a person or opened your eyes to something that had a deep impact on you. If you carefully choose an experience with personal significance, you’ll be able to figure out why it was important to you fairly easily. You want to show the admissions officers that this experience taught you something you still carry with you every day and will continue to carry with you on campus.

Maybe you learned to never judge anyone for a physical trait or disability again after you were belittled and profiled yourself. Perhaps you saw the need for more social justice lawyers in the country after you read stories about innocent people on death row who never got the fair representation they deserved. Or, maybe you decided to stop letting society define what is “appropriate” and started encouraging other students to embrace their own personalities rather than societal conventions.

The final part of your essay should describe how you’ll bring those lessons to the University of Oregon. You could choose to talk about how you vow to be accepting of everyone you meet with your new perspective on life, how you want to speak with students who’ve confronted discrimination in similar ways, or your plan to study a field related to some level of societal inequity to continue learning about how to combat injustice.

If you end up choosing this essay option, the key is to be as introspective and personal as possible. The admissions committee does want to hear if you have suffered any hardships or even if there are moments you yourself aren’t proud of in life, but they are most interested in your personal growth from these events. As long as you’re willing to open up about your experiences and reflect on what you have learned, this is a great option to choose!

Some helpful tips for this essay:

• Avoid using a privileged tone. This type of prompt may lead you to accidentally frame yourself as a champion for the marginalized, and that is something you need to make sure to avoid.
• Use “I” statements. It’s very difficult and complicated to speak on behalf of an entire subset of people, but you can speak for yourself and speak from your own experience.
• Show what you learned. If you choose to write about an event where you did not speak up, it would behoove you to show some personal growth and/or a time that you did. If you are writing about a time when you were discriminated against, do not forget to include what you learned and how you will rely on that experience at The University of Oregon.

All Applicants Prompt 1, Option B (optional)

The university of oregon values difference, and we take pride in our diverse community. please explain how you will share your experiences, values and interests with our community. in what ways can you imagine offering your support to others (250-500 words).

While the previous option focuses on a student’s experiences with discrimination, this essay focuses on a student’s background. Every student on campus contributes to making a diverse community, so in this prompt, you’ll want to share with the admissions committee ways in which you will add to the University of Oregon’s vibrant community.

We recommend writing this essay if you come from a background or identity that has given you a unique experience and perspective. Even if you feel like the community you come from is “boring” or “generic,” there’s probably still a lot you could find to write about! Take a look at our guide to writing the diversity essay for some tips that will help you tackle this prompt.

Brainstorming your topic:

No matter where you come from, the person you are now has been influenced by your background and many converging factors. That said, there is a wide variety of experiences, values, or interests that you might pick from for this essay. Here are a few ideas:

• Family traditions
• Religious holidays
• Music tastes
• Unique hobbies
• Cultural values
• Moral values you live by

As opposed to the previous option, where you’re asked to describe an experience, this prompt is more focused on how you plan to share your unique background with your fellow students on campus, thus contributing to and expanding the diverse community. Don’t spend too much time describing your background without discussing how you plan on sharing it at the University.

This also means you don’t just have to pick one thing to discuss for the entire essay. A Chinese-American student could talk about his tradition of making dumplings with his dad’s side of the family and the filial piety that is a core aspect of their culture, while also mentioning his deep-rooted love for the Yankees that he got from his mother.

Tips for writing your essay:

The admissions officers reading this essay are really looking to hear about how you plan to share your unique personal culture with other students on campus. As you write, make sure you both describe what is important to you and why you want to share it with others. Including stories or anecdotes is a great way to establish the personal connection to these experiences that you value. They provide the admissions committee with a deeper understanding of your personality.

This prompt also asks how you plan to offer support to others on campus, and a great way to answer this question would be to tie it back to whatever you plan to share with the campus community. This support can take many forms. Consider the following examples:

• A student might write about how he will pack extra curry powder so he can cook chicken curry for his friends when they’re upset, because his mom makes that at home to cheer him up.
• A student could write about some memories from Hanukkahs spent with her family, and how she’ll share these experiences with new friends who don’t know anything about Judaism.
• A student who lost a parent at a young age knows how hard it is to struggle with loss, so they will be there to comfort and console peers who might experience similar loss.

Mistakes to avoid:

If you choose this option as the topic of your essay, you want to make sure your voice and personality come across. Be careful that you don’t write things that are too generic or clichéd in your essay—you don’t want to write about a life lesson that could be on a Hallmark card. If you are writing about your heritage or cultural ethnicity, you don’t want to accidentally stereotype yourself or make monolithic statements about an entire group of people.

The best way to avoid the above mistakes is to write about things from your personal experience. This essay should be about something so unique and specific to you: only you could have written it!

All Applicants, Prompt 2 (optional)

This section can be used for various purposes, and gives you an optional opportunity for discussing any of the following..

After reading this prompt, perhaps you experienced a great sigh of relief. There may have been a time where you feel as though your academic performance didn’t match your ability, or, more simply, that an academic record is not indicative of you as an entire person.

This prompt gives you the opportunity to explain a blemish on your academic record. It’s important, however, to keep in mind when choosing to write something in the additional information section that you should not simply be making excuses for a bad GPA or trying to downplay getting suspended for cheating—whatever you choose to include should substantially improve upon and develop your application, as well as offer a perspective on your record and on yourself as a person that is not otherwise reflected in your essays.

See CollegeVine’s guide to writing the “exceptional personal circumstances” essay to gain a deeper understanding of what you should and shouldn’t include.

Essentially, this essay should provide explanations, not excuses.

When writing this essay, you should highlight personal responsibility and growth, in place of justifications or apologies.

For example, if you were caught in an academic integrity scandal, it is much more compelling and refreshing to hear you explain how you are a different student and grew from that experience than it would be to read a laundry list of excuses about the pressure you were under.

This is also the place to discuss any personal hardships you experienced during your high school experience. It’s important to remember the gravity of this question—the school cites “death or illness of a parent, caring for a family member, homelessness, frequent moves, or due to learning disabilities/differences or study habits” as possible reasons.

Also note that while the year 2020 may have been difficult for you, it affected most students in similar ways, at least with regard to the disruption to normal studies. It would probably be best to avoid writing about this time, but if you do choose to write about this disruption to learning in 2020, make sure to make it as personal as possible.

For example, perhaps you didn’t have a reliable computer or internet at home, or maybe you were splitting your time taking care of your siblings while trying to study. The more specific you are, the more the admissions panel is able to see you as a holistic candidate.

Finally, remember that this prompt is optional . If you truly don’t have any substantial reason to respond to this prompt, that’s completely fine. Don’t try to make up an academic struggle or place undue importance on a trivial matter just to write this essay.

Prompt: Please tell us about a specific enthusiasm that showcases your curiosity and intellectual engagement with the world. Your chosen enthusiasm or passion can be from any domain—academic, artistic, scientific, cultural, or any other area that has captivated your interest. Be thoughtful and provide concrete examples to support your response. (500 words)

This prompt is meant to gauge who you are as a person, beyond just your abilities as a student. That said, an open-ended prompt like this one is both a blessing and a challenge. On the one hand, the endless number of interests to share about yourself can serve as a strength, as there aren’t really any limitations to the essay you can write. On the other hand, because it’s so open-ended, it can be daunting to figure out which is the perfect passion to choose.

The passion you write about doesn’t necessarily have to be a traditional extracurricular activity, but you might still want to take a peek at our guide to writing the extracurricular activities essay for some tips!

First and foremost, it’s important to follow the prompt—i.e., to select only one passion. Perhaps one passion is so essential to your identity that you already know what you’re going to share. More likely than not, though, you might be struggling to identify a singular topic that encapsulates your essence.

Before you begin writing, it’s important that you select a strong topic. When choosing a passion, you need to be sincere. Don’t write about a topic you aren’t really passionate about just because you think the admissions committee wants to read about it. An authentic topic will always make for a better essay than some random extravagant one.

To begin, you might draft a list of formative interests, things that have come to define who you are. This could be anything from chemistry to horseback riding. The passion you choose should ideally reveal a greater truth about yourself—something that the reader wouldn’t know about you from the rest of your application. If you’re still struggling, you might think about what passion or interests your friends or family might share to describe what you’re about.

You might also draft a list of experiences that fall into certain emotional categories (i.e. pride, fear, excitement, jealousy). By breaking down these experiences into subcategories, it might be an easier way to access your best memories with certain activities or subjects.

Good essays often begin in the middle of a story—this technique is called beginning in medias res. Starting right in the midst of the action makes for an engaging hook. Try using an anecdote and beginning with a feeling or a setting. The word count is large enough to put this technique to good use, and you’ll want to capture your reader’s attention as quickly as possible.

For example, a student who loves playing classical guitar might begin her essay like this:

“My fingers pluck each string deliberately but delicately. My foot taps quietly along, keeping rhythm like a metronome. I am at peace, once again practicing classical guitar like I have every day for the past ten years. That seems long already, but there is still so much to learn.

As each mellifluous note wafts through the air, I am filled with the joy of knowing there is another technique to master, another piece to play, another obstacle to conquer. Playing classical pieces is more than a hobby; it is a challenge, an opportunity to honor something that transcends time.”

This is a strong start to a response for a number of reasons:

• First, it uses very evocative language to great effect, painting a vivid picture of the passion.
• Second, it describes in detail the emotions the passion evokes and the reason it elicits joy in the student.
• Finally, it showcases the student’s perspective in a way that cannot be misconstrued. This student is clearly intellectually stimulated by this passion, dedicated to it, and industrious when it comes to practicing—all excellent qualities to bring to the University of Oregon.

Best of all, all of those reasons have been established in under 100 words! As you can see, there is an immense amount of freedom to exercise your creative writing skills.

There are techniques besides in medias res anecdotes. For example, you might begin with a bold claim:

“My mother begged me not to do it.”

“To be completely honest, I’ve never been much of an athlete.”

Or, you might start with a question, a statistic, or an interesting fact:

“When a dive is being adjudicated, there are four essential criteria: your approach and starting position; your take-off from the platform or springboard; your flight through the air; and your entry into the water.”

The main idea is to have a strong hook that will make your reader want to keep reading. Once you accomplish that, you can move on to the body of the essay. This is where you should detail the passion, when and how it developed, what it means to you, how you feel when you partake in it, etc.

It’s also important that you write positively about yourself. While that doesn’t mean the essay has to be an uplifting piece about how amazing and fantastic you are, you should make sure not to tell a story that might be misinterpreted or misunderstood by the admissions panel. If the passion you write about involves directly ignoring a reasonable rule set by your high school’s administration—or worse, the law—for example, that will signal to the admissions community that you are constantly “defying authority.”

Besides illegal activities, you’ll want to avoid writing about the following things, some of which we’ve discussed already:

• Something you aren’t actually involved/interested in.
• Something you already wrote about elsewhere (or intend to include elsewhere later).
• Something you think sounds impressive that you aren’t too invested in.
• And just because it bears repeating, don’t write about defying authority/breaking the law!

The end of your essay should have some reflection. What did you learn from this experience? In what ways are you different from how you were when you first discovered the passion? How do you plan to apply any lessons the passion taught you in the future?

Whatever passion you choose, both you and the admissions officers reading your essay should be able to answer this question—Why share this passion? If you feel like you can answer this question with a response like “it showcases your grit,” “it demonstrates that you’re an intellectually curious person,” “it exemplifies your love for your family,” etc., then you’re off to a great start.

Architecture and Interior Architecture Major Applicants, Prompt 1

Describe your engagement with an experience, activity, or creative project (as in art, construction, or craft, etc.) that has influenced your interest in design. what did you learn from this experience (350 words).

This extracurricular essay prompt is asking you to write about a specific experience, activity, or project that has inspired your interest in Oregon’s architecture program. When thinking about what experience you might write about, make a list of some top contenders then ask yourself these questions about each of them:

1) Is this the activity/project in which you have shown the most commitment to the field? Has it been the most influential experience in your development?

2) What is the strongest emotion you feel about this experience?

• Why do you feel that emotion?
• How has that emotion evolved over time?
• What is/was your emotional state during the experience?

3) What goes through your mind at the moment that you participate in this activity/project?

4) Have you developed or strengthened any personality traits as a result of participating in this activity/project? If so, what are they and how have they changed over time?

5) Are there any specific skills that you have developed as a result of participating in this activity?

6) How does this activity affect the rest of your life? This can include other activities, your social life, academics, etc.

Your approach to answering this prompt will be different based on whether you choose to discuss an activity or a creative project.

If you choose to discuss an activity you’ve partaken in, then you’ll want to select an one that has truly and profoundly influenced your interest in design. Outline specifically what this experience was and what your role in it was.

For example, say a hypothetical student was an Instructional Design Intern at a plastic manufacturing company. They would want to focus on explaining what their role in the organization was and how they made an impact. They could write the following:

“As a design intern, I conducted material science research and provided administrative support to a team to develop a new type of packaging—one that is made from more sustainable materials than plastic and paper. My work helped create more environmentally friendly packaging that is biodegradable, and it will reduce the microplastic waste that ends up in the world’s soils and oceans.”

If you chose to discuss a specific project, you will want to outline the creative process. For example, a hypothetical applicant could talk about how they always start a creative project by taking a walk through a local park listening to calming music. Here is an example of a paragraph they might write:

“Before every creative project, I always go on a calming walk through the trails of my local park. This helps clear my mind of everything that isn’t related to the project and gives me creative ideas while I am immersed in the nature around me. Once I finish my walk, I go back to my house and begin jotting down the different ideas for 15 minutes straight. I write down anything and everything that comes to mind without worrying about whether or not it will make for a good project—I just want the creative ideas to flow.”

This could serve as a plausible way to explain how your creativity serves your projects, and it shows how these projects influence your curiosity in the domain of design.

After choosing either an activity or a project, make sure to discuss what you learned from that experience. Do not just simply state that you learned how to draw an elephant, for example. Instead, if you created a colorful painting of a forest or garden, write that you learned how to blend certain colors to achieve a desired effect and form a complete picture.

Architecture and Interior Architecture Major Applicants, Prompt 2

Why have you decided to study this design program please expand on relevant experiences and motivations that have shaped your desire to apply to the major. (350 words).

This prompt is sort of a cross between the common “Why This College” prompt and “Why This Major” prompt . Be sure to look at both articles to get a good idea of how to tackle this prompt. It’s different from either one in that it asks about a specific program as opposed to the University as a whole or one particular major. The first step when writing your essay is to do your research .

Go through the University web pages about the program and the department as a whole , noting the specific features and offerings that pique your interest. You’ll want to demonstrate that you are truly committed to this program and uniquely suited for it by mentioning specific appealing resources by name.

Here are strategies to consider for this prompt:

1. Zero in on your academics.

Discuss in depth how Oregon’s program matches your goals. While you discuss this idea broadly, be sure to also mention specifics about the program that serve your goals better than any other school or program could.

For example, a hypothetical student might be interested in obtaining a Bachelor of Interior Architecture. The student could write an essay about how the major program interests them because it would uniquely allow them to explore their passion for connecting virtual reality to the architecture of the real world.

They could then mention specific resources that the program offers to help them achieve their learning goal, including: a class called “Introduction to Architectural Computer Graphics,” Professor Siobhan Rockcastle’s virtual reality research into building skylights, and virtual reality architectural design exhibitions on campus.

Highlighting these specific resources and reasons for choosing the major program will make the student stand out, and will show that they are passionate enough about UO’s offerings to do research into its offerings that set it apart from other schools.

2. Link opportunities to your skills and experiences.

Be sure to connect your extracurriculars, high school classes, and general life stories to your academic interests. Show that you’re a good fit for the program by highlighting relevant prior experiences with topics that are central to the program.

For example, if a hypothetical student worked in construction in the past, they might talk about how they gained a deeper understanding of how houses are built. They could then explain how gaining this knowledge inspired them to pursue an architecture major with a focus on townhome design.

Maybe they also visited a lot of museums, churches, and other buildings with rich histories, and they were fascinated by the methods each architect took in the design and construction processes. This would explain their interest in studying architecture and their desire to one day recreate historical styles for a new era.

3. Discuss unique features of the program.

For instance, one key aspect that a hypothetical student could highlight in their essay is that Oregon’s design program heavily emphasizes a hands-on approach throughout their curriculum. Their essay would talk about their appreciation for the fact that students are given their own work area in studios and are granted a high degree of independence.

Another specific detail that their essay might include is that Oregon’s faculty members focus on having discussions about students’ work rather than giving letter grades, so that students can gain constructive feedback and learn from their mistakes.

No matter which approach you take, mentioning specifics about the program will help the admissions officers envision you as a student in it. Just be sure that you do good enough research to discuss these resources, people, and opportunities with some depth. If your research was lackluster and you just name-drop things without elaboration, your essay will seem insincere and unfocused.

Where to Get Your University of Oregon Essays Edited

Do you want feedback on your Oregon essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. 

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

Search this site

Clark honors college menu, clark honors college, essay tips & prompt, the clark honors college essay requirements for admission .

Applying to the Clark Honors College requires two different essays:

• One using the Honors College prompt
• One from either the Oregon Application Personal Statement or the Common Application*

The UO general essay topic cannot be used to fulfill the Clark Honors College essay. You must complete both of them. 

(*Note: On the Common Application, the Honors College essay prompt will appear immediately below the honors question on your screen when you answer “yes” to apply.) 

Clark Honors College essay instructions: 

The Honors College strives to be a diverse, welcoming, and inclusive place. When faculty and staff review the applications, they are looking to see how you think and how your mind works. The best essays: 

• demonstrate effective storytelling 
• include thoughtful analysis 
• synthesize themes in a meaningful way 
• give a sense of your personality and unique perspective 

The CHC essay prompt:

Curiosity and breadth of interests are defining characteristics of Clark Honors College students. We value originality and want to learn more about your unique journey and the nature and breadth of your intellectual curiosity.

Please tell us about a specific enthusiasm that showcases your curiosity and intellectual engagement with the world. Your chosen enthusiasm or passion can be from any domain—academic, artistic, scientific, cultural, or any other area that has captivated your interest. Be thoughtful and provide concrete examples to support your response.

Please limit your response to a maximum of 500 words.

University of Oregon 2023-24 Supplemental Essay Prompt Guide

Regular Decision Deadline: Jan 15

You Have: 

University of Oregon 2022-23 Application Essay Question Explanations 

The Requirements: 1 essay of 250-500 words

Supplemental Essay Type(s): Community

As you’ve looked into what it will be like to attend Oregon, you’ve hopefully learned about what makes Ducks unique. No two are alike, though, so tell us what makes you who you are, and how that connects to our campus community. We are interested in your thoughts and experiences recognizing difference and supporting equity and inclusion, and choosing one of the two following options will guide you in sharing those thoughts.

Describe an experience with discrimination, whether it was fighting against discrimination or recognizing your contribution to discriminating against a person or group. what did you learn from the experience in what ways will you bring those lessons to the university of oregon.

Discrimination can take many forms and be based on a number of things — race, socioeconomic background, disability, gender (to name a few) — and we have all witnessed it in some way, whether we were the targets or not. When approaching this essay, remember that admissions is looking for awareness, not perfection. Admissions doesn’t expect you to have solved a worldwide problem, but they do want to know that your eyes are open to who is being left out or treated unfairly, and whether or not you have taken it upon yourself to do something about it. Have you worked toward inclusion in a club or organization? Do you support girls who break into male-dominated sports? How? The second way to answer this is to recount a time when you were on the wrong side of discrimination. Be vulnerable here, but be sure to analyze why you acted, be it youthful ignorance, implicit bias, or wrong-headed cultural “norms” — this will show admissions that you are self-aware and reflective. It’s important to show that you have learned from your mistakes and are evolving. Lastly, how will you bring those lessons to U-O? Will your actions speak louder than words? Do you want to volunteer in local Special Olympics events? Will you get involved in an LGBTQ+ rights group? Let admissions know that you care and are working for a more inclusive future in your way, however that may be.

The University of Oregon values difference, and we take pride in our diverse community. Please explain how you will share your experiences, values and interests with our community. In what ways can you imagine offering your support to others ?

Diversity applies to many facets of who we are, including but not limited to: cultural heritage, ethnic background, gender, socioeconomic upbringing, or an inter-sectional combination of all of the above. No matter who you are, you bring something to the table. How will your differences help to enrich your future community at U-O? Maybe reflect on how you influence those around you now, and then mentally place yourself on campus as a college student doing the same. Maybe you’ll share your love of Korean BBQ or your knowledge of Flamenco dancing. Maybe you’ll get on stage with the college improv team and make your peers laugh with your satirical social commentary. No matter what you have to offer, admissions wants to know how you’ll share it and how you’ll contribute positively to U-O’s diverse community.

About Kat Stubing

View all posts by Kat Stubing »

We have school-specific prompt guides for almost 100 schools.

Contact us for information on rates and more!

• I am a * Student Parent Potential Partner School Counselor Private College Counselor
• Name * First Last
• Phone Type Mobile Landline
• Street Address
• Address City State / Province / Region Afghanistan Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos Islands Colombia Comoros Congo Congo, Democratic Republic of the Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curaçao Cyprus Czechia Côte d'Ivoire Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island and McDonald Islands Holy See Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macao Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Macedonia Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestine, State of Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Réunion Saint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Sint Maarten Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Sweden Switzerland Syria Arab Republic Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania, the United Republic of Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Türkiye US Minor Outlying Islands Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Viet Nam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Åland Islands Country
• Which best describes you (or your child)? High school senior High school junior College student College grad Other
• How did you find CEA? Internet Search New York Times Guidance counselor/school Social Media YouTube Friend Special Event Delehey College Consulting Other
• Common App and Coalition Essays
• Supplemental Essays
• University of California Essays
• University of Texas Essays
• Resume Review
• Post-Grad Essays
• Specialized Services
• Waitlist Letters
• Private School Essays
• General College Counseling
• School list with priorities noted:
• Anything else we should know?
• Name This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
• Agnes Scott College
• Alvernia University
• American University
• Amherst College
• Babson College
• Bard College
• Barnard College
• Baylor University
• Bennington College
• Bentley University
• Berry College
• Bethany College
• Bishop’s University
• Boston College
• Boston University (BU)
• Bowdoin College
• Brandeis University
• Brown University
• Bryn Mawr College
• Bucknell University
• Butler University
• California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
• California Lutheran University
• Capitol Technology University
• Carleton College
• Carnegie Mellon University
• Catawba College
• Centre College
• Chapman University
• Claremont McKenna College
• Clark University
• College of Mount Saint Vincent
• College of William and Mary
• College of Wooster
• Colorado College
• Colorado School of Mines
• Columbia University
• Cornell University
• Culver-Stockton College
• D'Youville University
• Dartmouth College
• Davidson College
• Drexel University
• Duke University
• Earlham College
• Elon University
• Emerson College
• Emory University
• Flagler College
• Fordham University
• George Mason University
• Georgetown University
• Georgia State University
• Georgia Tech
• Gonzaga University
• Harvard University
• Harvey Mudd College
• Haverford College
• Hillsdale College
• Hofstra University
• Illinois Institute of Technology
• Illinois Wesleyan University
• Indiana University Bloomington
• Ithaca College
• Johns Hopkins University
• Kalamazoo College
• Lafayette College
• Lehigh University
• Lewis and Clark College
• Linfield University
• Loyola Marymount University (LMU)
• Lynn University
• Macalester College
• Malone University
• Manchester University
• Marist College
• Mary Baldwin University
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
• Meredith College
• Monmouth College
• Moravian University
• Morehouse College
• Mount Holyoke College
• New York University (NYU)
• North Park University
• Northwestern University
• Occidental College
• Oklahoma City University
• Olin College of Engineering
• Pepperdine University
• Pitzer College
• Pomona College
• Princeton University
• Providence College
• Purdue University
• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• Rice University
• Saint Elizabeth University
• Santa Clara University
• Sarah Lawrence College
• Scripps College
• Seattle Pacific University
• Smith College
• Soka University of America
• Southern Methodist University
• St. John’s College
• Stanford University
• Stonehill College
• Swarthmore College
• Syracuse University
• Texas A&M University
• Texas Christian University
• The College of Idaho
• The George Washington University
• The New School
• Trinity College
• Tufts University
• Tulane University
• University of California
• University of Central Florida (UCF)
• University of Chicago
• University of Cincinnati
• University of Colorado Boulder
• University of Florida
• University of Georgia
• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
• University of Maryland
• University of Massachusetts Amherst
• University of Miami
• University of Michigan
• University of Minnesota
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC)
• University of North Carolina at Charlotte
• University of North Carolina at Greensboro
• University of Notre Dame
• University of Oklahoma
• University of Oregon
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Richmond
• University of San Diego
• University of San Francisco
• University of Southern California (USC)
• University of Texas at Austin
• University of Tulsa
• University of Vermont
• University of Virginia (UVA)
• University of Washington
• University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Vanderbilt University
• Vassar College
• Villanova University
• Virginia Tech
• Wake Forest University
• Washington and Lee University
• Washington University in St. Louis
• Wellesley College
• Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
• Yale University

Want free stuff?

We thought so. Sign up for free instructional videos, guides, worksheets and more!

One-On-One Advising

Common App Essay Prompt Guide

Supplemental Essay Prompt Guide

• YouTube Tutorials
• Our Approach & Team
• Undergraduate Testimonials
• Postgraduate Testimonials
• Where Our Students Get In
• CEA Gives Back
• Undergraduate Admissions
• Graduate Admissions
• Private School Admissions
• International Student Admissions
• Common App Essay Guide
• Supplemental Essay Guides
• Coalition App Guide
• The CEA Podcast
• Admissions Stats
• Notification Trackers
• Deadline Databases
• College Essay Examples
• Academy and Worksheets
• Waitlist Guides
• Get Started

University of Oregon Menu

University of oregon, diversity initiative.

The Diversity Initiative is one piece of the important anti-racism work our university is undertaking to create a more inclusive, equitable, and diverse institution. This initiative aims to build inclusive academic excellence and a more diverse faculty presence at UO immediately, as we seek to better represent and be more welcoming to students, faculty, and staff of color. The new  Black Studies  and  Latinx Studies  minors, the Black Cultural Center, and  other programs are a start , but not nearly enough.

The effort is part of the  UO’s academic initiatives , dedicated efforts to collaborate across disciplines, translate discovery for societal benefit, and develop the next generation of leaders and problem solvers.

Additional information will be provided in the near future about other elements of the university’s efforts to address systematic racism across campus that affects Black faculty, students, and staff.

Join Now to View Premium Content

GradeSaver provides access to 2355 study guide PDFs and quizzes, 11005 literature essays, 2762 sample college application essays, 926 lesson plans, and ad-free surfing in this premium content, “Members Only” section of the site! Membership includes a 10% discount on all editing orders.

University of Oregon

My impact on diversity anonymous, how would you add to the u of o advancement of the equity and inclusion division.

At the University of Oregon, I would be eager to be a part of the advancement of the equity and inclusion division by contributing my ideas and passions to the Multi-Ethnic Student Alliance group. People often struggle to fully understand what it is like to be a person who identifies with multiple ethnicities. I identify as Caucasian, Hispanic, Native American, and Japanese in no particular order. Safe spaces like affinity groups as well as open groups both serve different purposes and offer different benefits. However, they come together because they bond people who are interested in exploring specific aspects of themselves. Providing both forums for students to discuss and explore their identities will help those who feel like they do not fit into a specific racial group.As a student who identifies as both Caucasian and as a person of color, I would want to help create spaces for people who identify as multiracial at UO to talk about their experience being a mixed person. Being multiracial is different for everyone and definitely varies depending on individual circumstances. Some students (myself included) have been told “Oh, you’re Mexican? No! But you’re so… white!” The phrase “but you’re so white” might seem harmless out...

GradeSaver provides access to 2313 study guide PDFs and quizzes, 10989 literature essays, 2751 sample college application essays, 911 lesson plans, and ad-free surfing in this premium content, “Members Only” section of the site! Membership includes a 10% discount on all editing orders.

Already a member? Log in

Search this site

Journalism and communication menu, journalism and communication, diversity, equity, inclusion, and antiracism.

The University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication is a welcoming and inclusive home for all students, staff, and faculty. Our differences make us stronger, and we learn from each other’s experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds.

Find Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Antiracism Resources

Read the SOJC’s Diversity Action Plan

Visit the UO Division of Equity and Inclusion

The University of Oregon campus in Eugene is located on Kalapuya Ilihi, the traditional indigenous homeland of the Kalapuya people. Following treaties between 1851 and 1855, the Kalapuya people were dispossessed of their indigenous homeland by the U.S. government and forcibly removed to the Coast Reservation in Western Oregon. Today, Kalapuya descendants are primarily citizens of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians.

We acknowledge that our Portland campus is located on the traditional homeland of the Chinook, Clackamas, Kalapuya, Kathlamet, Molalla, Multnomah, and Tualatin people, in addition to other tribes and bands. We express our respect for all federally recognized Tribal Nations of Oregon, which continue to make important contributions to their communities, the UO, Oregon, and the world.

Learn About the Native People of Oregon

Statement of Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Antiracism, and Anti-Oppression

The UO School of Journalism and Communication aims to foster responsible citizens, scholars, and professionals who understand the value, richness, and strength of a diverse community. Our humanity demands we continue progressing toward those goals to create a more just, equitable, and inclusive society. As a community of media and communication scholars, journalists, strategic communicators, and content producers, we believe in the importance of diverse representation, antiracism, and anti-oppression as vital components of education and communication. We commit to continue building a more inclusive learning and professional working environment for our students, faculty, and staff.

In 2021, the SOJC offered more than $600,000 in scholarships, including over $221,000 to students from underrepresented backgrounds. In 2020, donors launched the SOJC Diversity Excellence Scholarship fund to support students from underrepresented populations as well as the school’s commitment to building a stronger and more empowered community through a more inclusive and diverse student body. Students can use the scholarship to pay for all educational expenses, including tuition, fees, books, supplies, and room and board.

Learn More About SOJC Scholarships and Apply

Donate to the Diversity Excellence Scholarship Fund

The SOJC Diverse Alumni Mentoring Network is a collective of SOJC alumni who volunteer their experience and time to help students of diverse cultural, ethnic, and economic backgrounds adjust to the UO system and the school’s culture. They also mentor students in how to navigate professional fields that do not look, write, or sound like them and their communities. The program uses multiple entry points to facilitate one-on-one connections between students and alumni of color, as well as women, LGBTQ+, and first-generation college attendees.

Learn More About the Network

Find or Become a Mentor

SOJC Common Reading

The SOJC’s DEI Committee recommends the following books to all students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members.

Reason for recommending: Given the SOJC’s investment in science communication, through initiatives such as Science & Memory, the Center for Science Communication Research (SCR), and our science communication minor, books that advance diverse perspectives on climate and the environment are essential to our work and our school. Braiding Sweetgrass shows how to approach science via past and current indigenous knowledge, broadening the lenses through which we view the world.

Reason for recommending: This book is great in whole or in parts. It covers many different aspects of race and racism, from systemic inequalities to how they appear in microaggressions, in an accessible, engaging way. Full of anecdotes and personal stories to ground the overall arguments, this book will likely appeal to students across several classes.

Reason for recommending: At the intersection of computer science and media studies, this book does a great job of highlighting how human biases are integrated into communication technology (e.g., search). Especially relevant for students in communication subdisciplines such as design and user experience.

Reason for recommending: This is a powerful series of essays that’s part memoir and part cultural criticism from a poet and daughter of Korean immigrants. She refers to "minor feelings" that occur "when you believe the lies you are told about your own racial identity."

Reason for recommending: Ahmed addresses how diversity comes to be integrated into institutions, such as higher ed, and how this work is often performative rather than transformative. She also addresses how diversity workers generate strategies and knowledge for overcoming these challenges and continuing to work toward equity and inclusion.

More Events   »

Have a language expert improve your writing

Check your paper for plagiarism in 10 minutes, generate your apa citations for free.

• Knowledge Base
• College essay
• How to Write a Diversity Essay | Tips & Examples

How to Write a Diversity Essay | Tips & Examples

Published on November 1, 2021 by Kirsten Courault . Revised on May 31, 2023.

Table of contents

What is a diversity essay, identify how you will enrich the campus community, share stories about your lived experience, explain how your background or identity has affected your life, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about college application essays.

Diversity essays ask students to highlight an important aspect of their identity, background, culture, experience, viewpoints, beliefs, skills, passions, goals, etc.

Diversity essays can come in many forms. Some scholarships are offered specifically for students who come from an underrepresented background or identity in higher education. At highly competitive schools, supplemental diversity essays require students to address how they will enhance the student body with a unique perspective, identity, or background.

In the Common Application and applications for several other colleges, some main essay prompts ask about how your background, identity, or experience has affected you.

Why schools want a diversity essay

Many universities believe a student body representing different perspectives, beliefs, identities, and backgrounds will enhance the campus learning and community experience.

Admissions officers are interested in hearing about how your unique background, identity, beliefs, culture, or characteristics will enrich the campus community.

Through the diversity essay, admissions officers want students to articulate the following:

• What makes them different from other applicants
• Stories related to their background, identity, or experience
• How their unique lived experience has affected their outlook, activities, and goals

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

Think about what aspects of your identity or background make you unique, and choose one that has significantly impacted your life.

For some students, it may be easy to identify what sets them apart from their peers. But if you’re having trouble identifying what makes you different from other applicants, consider your life from an outsider’s perspective. Don’t presume your lived experiences are normal or boring just because you’re used to them.

Some examples of identities or experiences that you might write about include the following:

• Race/ethnicity
• Gender identity
• Sexual orientation
• Nationality
• Socioeconomic status
• Immigration background
• Religion/belief system
• Place of residence
• Family circumstances
• Extracurricular activities related to diversity

Include vulnerable, authentic stories about your lived experiences. Maintain focus on your experience rather than going into too much detail comparing yourself to others or describing their experiences.

Keep the focus on you

Tell a story about how your background, identity, or experience has impacted you. While you can briefly mention another person’s experience to provide context, be sure to keep the essay focused on you. Admissions officers are mostly interested in learning about your lived experience, not anyone else’s.

When I was a baby, my grandmother took me in, even though that meant postponing her retirement and continuing to work full-time at the local hairdresser. Even working every shift she could, she never missed a single school play or soccer game.

She and I had a really special bond, even creating our own special language to leave each other secret notes and messages. She always pushed me to succeed in school, and celebrated every academic achievement like it was worthy of a Nobel Prize. Every month, any leftover tip money she received at work went to a special 509 savings plan for my college education.

When I was in the 10th grade, my grandmother was diagnosed with ALS. We didn’t have health insurance, and what began with quitting soccer eventually led to dropping out of school as her condition worsened. In between her doctor’s appointments, keeping the house tidy, and keeping her comfortable, I took advantage of those few free moments to study for the GED.

In school pictures at Raleigh Elementary School, you could immediately spot me as “that Asian girl.” At lunch, I used to bring leftover fun see noodles, but after my classmates remarked how they smelled disgusting, I begged my mom to make a “regular” lunch of sliced bread, mayonnaise, and deli meat.

Although born and raised in North Carolina, I felt a cultural obligation to learn my “mother tongue” and reconnect with my “homeland.” After two years of all-day Saturday Chinese school, I finally visited Beijing for the first time, expecting I would finally belong. While my face initially assured locals of my Chinese identity, the moment I spoke, my cover was blown. My Chinese was littered with tonal errors, and I was instantly labeled as an “ABC,” American-born Chinese.

I felt culturally homeless.

Speak from your own experience

Highlight your actions, difficulties, and feelings rather than comparing yourself to others. While it may be tempting to write about how you have been more or less fortunate than those around you, keep the focus on you and your unique experiences, as shown below.

I began to despair when the FAFSA website once again filled with red error messages.

I had been at the local library for hours and hadn’t even been able to finish the form, much less the other to-do items for my application.

I am the first person in my family to even consider going to college. My parents work two jobs each, but even then, it’s sometimes very hard to make ends meet. Rather than playing soccer or competing in speech and debate, I help my family by taking care of my younger siblings after school and on the weekends.

“We only speak one language here. Speak proper English!” roared a store owner when I had attempted to buy bread and accidentally used the wrong preposition.

In middle school, I had relentlessly studied English grammar textbooks and received the highest marks.

Leaving Seoul was hard, but living in West Orange, New Jersey was much harder一especially navigating everyday communication with Americans.

After sharing relevant personal stories, make sure to provide insight into how your lived experience has influenced your perspective, activities, and goals. You should also explain how your background led you to apply to this university and why you’re a good fit.

Include your outlook, actions, and goals

Conclude your essay with an insight about how your background or identity has affected your outlook, actions, and goals. You should include specific actions and activities that you have done as a result of your insight.

One night, before the midnight premiere of Avengers: Endgame , I stopped by my best friend Maria’s house. Her mother prepared tamales, churros, and Mexican hot chocolate, packing them all neatly in an Igloo lunch box. As we sat in the line snaking around the AMC theater, I thought back to when Maria and I took salsa classes together and when we belted out Selena’s “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” at karaoke. In that moment, as I munched on a chicken tamale, I realized how much I admired the beauty, complexity, and joy in Maria’s culture but had suppressed and devalued my own.

The following semester, I joined Model UN. Since then, I have learned how to proudly represent other countries and have gained cultural perspectives other than my own. I now understand that all cultures, including my own, are equal. I still struggle with small triggers, like when I go through airport security and feel a suspicious glance toward me, or when I feel self-conscious for bringing kabsa to school lunch. But in the future, I hope to study and work in international relations to continue learning about other cultures and impart a positive impression of Saudi culture to the world.

The smell of the early morning dew and the welcoming whinnies of my family’s horses are some of my most treasured childhood memories. To this day, our farm remains so rural that we do not have broadband access, and we’re too far away from the closest town for the postal service to reach us.

Going to school regularly was always a struggle: between the unceasing demands of the farm and our lack of connectivity, it was hard to keep up with my studies. Despite being a voracious reader, avid amateur chemist, and active participant in the classroom, emergencies and unforeseen events at the farm meant that I had a lot of unexcused absences.

Although it had challenges, my upbringing taught me resilience, the value of hard work, and the importance of family. Staying up all night to watch a foal being born, successfully saving the animals from a minor fire, and finding ways to soothe a nervous mare afraid of thunder have led to an unbreakable family bond.

Our farm is my family’s birthright and our livelihood, and I am eager to learn how to ensure the farm’s financial and technological success for future generations. In college, I am looking forward to joining a chapter of Future Farmers of America and studying agricultural business to carry my family’s legacy forward.

Tailor your answer to the university

After explaining how your identity or background will enrich the university’s existing student body, you can mention the university organizations, groups, or courses in which you’re interested.

Maybe a larger public school setting will allow you to broaden your community, or a small liberal arts college has a specialized program that will give you space to discover your voice and identity. Perhaps this particular university has an active affinity group you’d like to join.

Demonstrating how a university’s specific programs or clubs are relevant to you can show that you’ve done your research and would be a great addition to the university.

At the University of Michigan Engineering, I want to study engineering not only to emulate my mother’s achievements and strength, but also to forge my own path as an engineer with disabilities. I appreciate the University of Michigan’s long-standing dedication to supporting students with disabilities in ways ranging from accessible housing to assistive technology. At the University of Michigan Engineering, I want to receive a top-notch education and use it to inspire others to strive for their best, regardless of their circumstances.

If you want to know more about academic writing , effective communication , or parts of speech , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Academic writing

• Writing process
• Transition words
• Passive voice
• Paraphrasing

 Communication

• How to end an email
• Ms, mrs, miss
• How to start an email
• I hope this email finds you well
• Hope you are doing well

 Parts of speech

• Personal pronouns
• Conjunctions

In addition to your main college essay , some schools and scholarships may ask for a supplementary essay focused on an aspect of your identity or background. This is sometimes called a diversity essay .

Many universities believe a student body composed of different perspectives, beliefs, identities, and backgrounds will enhance the campus learning and community experience.

Admissions officers are interested in hearing about how your unique background, identity, beliefs, culture, or characteristics will enrich the campus community, which is why they assign a diversity essay .

To write an effective diversity essay , include vulnerable, authentic stories about your unique identity, background, or perspective. Provide insight into how your lived experience has influenced your outlook, activities, and goals. If relevant, you should also mention how your background has led you to apply for this university and why you’re a good fit.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Courault, K. (2023, May 31). How to Write a Diversity Essay | Tips & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved March 25, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/college-essay/diversity-essay/

Is this article helpful?

Kirsten Courault

Other students also liked, how to write about yourself in a college essay | examples, what do colleges look for in an essay | examples & tips, how to write a scholarship essay | template & example, unlimited academic ai-proofreading.

✔ Document error-free in 5minutes ✔ Unlimited document corrections ✔ Specialized in correcting academic texts

Search this site

Knight campus graduate internship program menu, knight campus graduate internship program, inclusion and diversity scholarship.

All applicants to the Knight Campus Graduate Internship Program are encouraged to apply for this unique scholarship opportunity. Priority deadline is March 1st at 11:59 PM Pacific. Initially launched in 2017 with a combined $200,000 contribution from the Knight Campus Graduate Internship Program and Thermo Fisher Scientific, we are pleased to continue to offer these scholarships.

Scholarship Application

The Knight Campus Graduate Internship Program is committed to fostering an inclusive community that embraces students from diverse backgrounds. Diversity comes in a variety of forms, including but not limited to: gender, race, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status and other non-visible differences.

To be considered for the Inclusion and Diversity Scholarship, applicants must submit a 250-500 word essay describing how they have demonstrated a commitment to inclusion OR by describing how inclusion has impacted their pursuit of science. Scholarships range in amount and will be given based on essay content and demonstration of academic and professional strengths already presented in your program application.

Application review will begin March 2nd. Only admitted students are eligible for this scholarship and each applicant is allowed one submission. Awardees will be notified by email no later than April 7th.

All program applicants are encouraged to submit an essay for consideration of the Inclusion and Diversity Scholarship.

Questions? Feel free to email Betsy Tanenbaum: [email protected]

To apply, submit your essay via the online form below.

SUBMIT YOUR ESSAY

Search this site

Financial aid & scholarships menu, financial aid & scholarships, – deadlines extended –.

Due to the delay in FAFSA data being supplied to the University of Oregon, the UO is extending the confirmation deadline to June 1, 2024, for first-year students admitted for fall 2024. We are also extending the priority FAFSA filing deadline to April 1, 2024, for all UO students.

Diversity Excellence Scholarship

The Diversity Excellence Scholarship (DES) recognizes the academic achievement and potential of students who, through sharing their varied cultural perspectives, will enhance the education of all UO students and the excellence of the University. The University of Oregon offers these tuition-remission scholarships as part of our diversity mission .

Award Information

Annual award amounts range from $6,500-$7500 for undergraduate students (annual award is split evenly over fall, winter, and spring terms). The scholarship is renewable with the length of eligibility based on the recipient's grade level at the time of awarding. The DES is a tuition remission scholarship. It cannot be combined with some tuition-remission programs such as the Presidential Scholarship and may be reduced if used with UO staff/staff family rates or other tuition remission scholarships.

Eligibility Requirements

• You must apply for admission to the University of Oregon OR be a currently enrolled University of Oregon student in good standing.
• Establish financial need as defined by federal and state guidelines.
• Meet the DES minimum GPA requirements. All applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or greater to be considered.
• Meet the DES application deadlines.
• Only domestic students are eligible to receive the Diversity Excellence Scholarship.

How to Apply

Deadlines and processes differ by student status and grade level. Follow proper steps outlined below.

Incoming students (students not currently attending the UO)

Freshman applicants:.

• Apply for admission to the University of Oregon by January 15 .
• Watch your e-mail for an invitation to enter the UO Scholarship Dashboard. This happens within one week of submitting your application for admission.
• Complete the online Diversity Excellence Scholarship application within the UO Scholarship Dashboard by February 1 .
• Have a school official, teacher, member of a community organization, or employer submit your online letter of reference via the Scholarship Dashboard by February 1 .
• Note: Dreamer students including students who have Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status or Temporary Protected Status (TPS) as well as other undocumented students who are ineligible to submit a FAFSA may submit an Oregon Student Aid Application (ORSAA), which is an alternative to the FAFSA. File the ORSAA by April 1 to meet the scholarship application deadline.
• Submit all required admission application materials to the Office of Admissions by February 15 .

Transfer student applicants:

• Apply for admission to the University of Oregon by March 15 .
• Watch your e-mail for an invitation to enter the UO Scholarship Dashboard. The first invitations will be sent once the application opens in mid-October.
• Complete the online Diversity Excellence Scholarship application within the UO Scholarship Dashboard by April 1 .
• Have an instructor or professor, member of a community organization, or employer submit your online letter of reference via the Scholarship Dashboard by April 1 .
• Submit all academic transcripts to the Office of Admissions by April 1 .

Continuing UO students

Undergraduate students already attending the university of oregon:.

• Complete the online Diversity Excellence Scholarship application within the UO Scholarship Dashboard by March 1 .
• Have an instructor or professor, member of a community organization, or employer submit your online letter of reference via the Scholarship Dashboard by March 1 .

Selection Criteria

Scholarship recipients are selected by the Diversity Excellence Scholarship selection committee based on the following:

• Past academic performance
• Participation in campus or community activities
• Individual's ability to contribute to diversity
• Preference given to students with financial need as defined by federal and state guidelines
• Preference given to first generation of the family to attend college
• Preference given to Oregon residents

Scholarship Renewal

To maintain scholarship eligibility, you must:

• Be enrolled in and complete a minimum of 12 UO credits per term.
• Maintain a minimum 3.00 UO GPA.
• Make satisfactory progress toward completion of a degree.
• Meet regularly with a scholarship advisor in the Center for Multicultural Academic Excellence (CMAE) .

Award Notification

Freshman recipients will be notified by May 1*. Continuing undergraduate recipients will be notified by June 1. Transfer recipients will be notified by June 15.

*Notification deadline extended from April 1 for 24-25 academic year.

Note: This award cannot be combined with some tuition-remission programs such as University of Oregon staff tuition rates.

Complete terms and conditions can be found here .

College essay resources

How to pick the right university of oregon essay prompts, school supplements.

In the University of Oregon application, you’ll have the opportunity to choose 1 of 2 prompts for the Equality and Inclusion essay. This essay is optional, but we recommend completing it to maximize your chances and show that you’re a great fit for UO. This guide will help you pick the best University of Oregon essay prompt for your application.

The Equality and Inclusion essay:

This essay is an opportunity to show that you share UO’s values. You’ll need to choose 1 of 2 prompts. Here are some tips to help you choose a University of Oregon essay prompt:

Option #1: Describe an experience with discrimination, whether it was fighting against discrimination or recognizing your contribution to discriminating against a person or group. What did you learn from the experience? In what ways will you bring those lessons to the University of Oregon?

If you’ve had an experience that might fit this prompt, try answering these questions:

• Did you learn something from this experience?
• Was this experience important to you?
• Did it have a lasting impact on your actions, interests, values, or goals?

If you answered yes to these questions, this prompt is a good option for you!

Option #2: The University of Oregon values difference, and we take pride in our diverse community. Please explain how you will share your experiences, values and interests with our community. In what ways can you imagine offering your support to others?

This prompt gives you more freedom. Most students will have something in their life that fits this prompt – but it can be difficult to identify it.

• Is your topic something you want to share or discuss with your peers?
• Can you think of specific situations where you could share it with others at UO?

If you answered yes to both, then your topic is off to a good start! 

Complementing Your Common App Essay

When choosing a University of Oregon essay prompt, think about how it works with your Common App essay. Try to use your UO essay to discuss a different interest, value, or goal.

Here’s how an example student handled this:

• Common App essay topic: Advocated for better wheelchair accessibility in her community
• UO essay topic (Prompt #2): Mentored underserved middle schoolers in STEM program; wants to be a peer tutor at UO.

 Her Common App essay had similar themes to UO Prompt #1, so she decided to use UO Prompt #2 instead. This allowed her to discuss different interests and values.

The Additional Information Essay

The University of Oregon application has a second optional essay. It allows you to share additional information or context about life circumstances that may have limited your academic or extracurricular achievements.

Additional Information Prompt:

This section can be used for various purposes, and gives you an optional opportunity for discussing any of the following.

•Your academic record might have included periods of low performance such as grades of D or F, inconsistent or downward trends in grades, deficiencies in particular subject areas, or discrepancies between your test scores and GPA. This might be because of special personal circumstances such as death or illness of a parent, caring for a family member, homelessness, frequent moves, or due to learning disabilities/differences or study habits. If relevant, be sure to let us know what actions you have taken in order to be successful, and what you have learned from the experience.

•You want to help us better understand how your involvement in activities was limited by work or family obligations, or by the unique setting of your school or community

•You need to share any other information with us about yourself that is not provided elsewhere, or UO admissions staff told you to provide certain information in this space

• This prompt is optional. You don’t need to use it unless you have circumstances to explain.
• Note: the Common Application has a similar prompt. If you’ve already written about a topic in the Common App’s Additional Information essay, then you don’t need to repeat the same material here.

The Robert D. Clark Honors Essay

Oregon has a new choose-one-of three honors essay prompt for 2019-20!  If you want to go that extra step and get into the honors college, here's what you have to choose from.

The CHC faculty are involved in the review of applications to the Honors College, and are eager to learn about how you think, and how your mind works. Please write an essay that responds to one of the three quotations below. Reflect on how the quotation relates to your own experience, beliefs, and attitudes.

Select one of the three quotes listed below. (650 word maximum).

• Hannah Arendt: "Education is the point at which we decide whether we love the world enough to assume responsibility for it, and by the same token save it from that ruin which except for renewal, except for the coming of the new and the young, would be inevitable."
• Maya Angelou: "Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future, and renders the present inaccessible." 
• John Steinbeck: "I wonder how many people I've looked at all my life and never seen.”

There's a trap in this prompt!  Even though you are responding to some very deep philosophical quotes, you don't want to spend this essay making broad philosophical statements.  Instead, follow that last sentence of the prompt and relate your quote to one of your own real-life experiences.

{{cta('23c84ba1-3477-4414-ba3b-170d2fd9411c')}}

Related Articles

How to write every carnegie mellon essay 2020-2021.

This guide will help you write fantastic responses to every Carnegie Mellon essay prompt!

How to Write Every Carnegie Mellon Essay 2018-2019

This guide will cover the Carnegie Mellon essay prompts, helping you use all three together to give a comprehensive view of who you are.

How to Write All of the UT Austin Essays 2019-2020

The UT Austin Essay prompts 2019-20 have been announced! This guide will go over the changes and give you helpful tips for every prompt.

• Become a Writing Coach
• Writing Center
• Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
• Sign Up for an Essay Coaching Package
• College Essay Feedback for High Schools
• Prompt for IECs

Search this site

Equity and inclusion menu, equity and inclusion, marketing home.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Learning Opportunities at the UO

Division of Equity and Inclusion Leadership Team Statement

 Cultural Humility Toolkit

Courageous Conversations

Sign up for our newsletter  

IDEAL Campus Climate Survey 2022  

Results       Survey FAQs

​​​​ Yvette Alex-Assensoh  ​​​​​ Vice President for Equity and Inclusion

Communications from the VP

Happy Women’s History Month! The world-wide celebration of Women’s History Month began in 1917, when March 8 was initially earmarked as International Women’s Day. Under President Jimmy Carter, a 1980 proclamation recognized National Women’s History Week, which the U.S. Congress, in 1987, used a law to rename as “Women’s History Month” in March of each year.    Celebrating Women’s History Month on our campus is an opportunity to recognize and also celebrate the progress that the UO is making in leveraging equity and anti-discrimination as important tools in building a thriving and flourishing campus. Read More    

Black History Month 2024: Education is Freedom for All Education has always played a pivotal role in Black History. As enslaved people in America, beginning in 1619, African Americans were either denied the ability to learn or to have any meaningful education. Individual slaves, who endeavored to read and also to teach others to read were deemed criminals, punishable by violent lashing and, in some cases, even death. Deemed properties of their owners, Black people were also prevented from either learning about their history or to utilize their native African dialects. Read More

Moving Beyond Land Acknowledgements at the University of Oregon Equity work is constantly evolving. As institutions, we are obligated to continually update and investigate our policies and practices because systemic racism is deeply embedded in all facets of society and the process of building towards real justice requires just as deep of a level of engagement. This doesn’t mean just having hard conversations to tell people we had them. It’s about engaging in difficult discussions that lead to concrete actions that actually move the needle for people’s quality of life. Read More .

Latinx Heritage Month 2023: Investing in Thriving Community Today as We Look Towards the Future . Part of cultivating a thriving campus is constantly challenging ourselves to better facilitate and nourish community. How are we affirming and encouraging all in our community to be their full selves, not just on an individual level, but in our systems? Latinx Heritage Month 2023 is as opportune a time as any to explore this question. Read More

AAPI Heritage Month and Challenging Reactionary Solutions . It is becoming a grim tradition this time of year to review the Stop AAPI Hate data and acknowledge that the issue is continuing to get worse. When you factor in particularly tragic spectacles such as the mass shooting in Monterey Park, California in January where a gunman killed 11 Asian American people at a dance hall, it’s even more distressing. Frustrating but unsurprisingly, far too many people attempted to minimize this tragedy by implying that the fact that the gunman was an Asian American man invalidated any reasons to treat it as an instance of the systemic danger Asian Americans face. In many ways, this is a reflection of how the national discourse has been oversimplified and often weaponized to obscure and divert energy away from a glaring problem: increasing anti-Asian hate crimes. Read More

We work collaboratively to strengthen individual capacity and community bonds to advance the academic mission of the university through I nclusion, D iversity, E valuation, A chievement L eadership

L.A.C.E. embodies the universal tenets of Love, Authenticity, Courage and Empathy. These interlocking values represent the being and doing of individuals and the institutions in which they engage. 

*©Yvette Alex-Assensoh 2013 

Land Acknowledgement

The University of Oregon is located on Kalapuya ilihi, the traditional indigenous homeland of the Kalapuya people. Following treaties between 1851 and 1855, Kalapuya people were dispossessed of their indigenous homeland by the United States government and forcibly removed to the Coast Reservation in Western Oregon. Today, Kalapuya descendants are primarily citizens of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and they continue to make important contributions to their communities, to the UO, to Oregon, and to the world.

In following the Indigenous protocol of acknowledging the original people of the land we occupy, we also extend our respect to the nine federally recognized Indigenous nations of Oregon: the Burns Paiute Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians, the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, the Coquille Indian Tribe, the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, and the Klamath Tribes. We express our respect to the many more tribes who have ancestral connections to this territory, as well as to all other displaced Indigenous peoples who call Oregon home.

Office of Vice President for Equity and Inclusion (VPEI)

Center for Multicultural Academic Excellence (CMAE)

Multicultural Center (MCC)

Center on Diversity and Community (CoDaC)

Strategies Groups

Strategies and working groups are autonomous grass-roots organizations of faculty, staff, and students from native, black, latinx, asian, desi and pacific islander, and white communities. volunteers donate their personal time and energy in support of making the university a more welcoming place., strategies groups bridging connections and building community.

Learn about Funding

IN THE SPOTLIGHT:

Izabella dentler.

“As a first-generation Filipino student, I was always pushed by my family to complete a degree in higher education because I had the means and opportunity. When I chose my major, advertising, it was a shock to my family because it was not in the medical field. I knew though that I needed to follow my passion for creativity and design.”

Izabella Dentler, class of 2023 Major: Advertising; Minor: Art

 Read more about Izabella Dentler on the 2022 Asian, Desi, Pacific Islander Heritage Month homepage

CONNECT WITH US

        View this post on Instagram                       A post shared by UO Div of Equity & Inclusion (@uodei)

Search Global Education Oregon

Global education oregon menu, global education oregon, cmae: diversity excellence scholars abroad.

The Center for Multicultural Academic Excellence is committed to the access, retention, and engagement of under-represented and multiple identity students. CMAE provides support and leadership development, cultural programing, academic services, and dedicated space. Our mission is to ensure that students are provided with opportunities to explore, understand and affirm the complexities of cultural identity that shape the human experience. We provide access to the resources that students need in order to be successful a the UO and beyond.

Diversity Excellence Scholars Abroad Scholarships Four scholarships of $2000 each will be awarded to increase the diversity of UO participants in study abroad programs. The purpose of the Diversity Excellence Scholars Abroad (DESA) is to provide opportunities for under-represented students to study abroad. Awards will be based on academic achievement and financial need. Applicants should have a minimum 2.50 GPA. Other application materials include: official transcript, letter of recommendation, essay, and FAFSA letter.

February 28, 2021

To apply go to http://inclusion.uoregon.edu/desa

Search our Archives!

PHOTO ESSAY: University Honors Women’s History Month With Flag Raising Event

On March 4, the Office of Social Justice and Diversity (OSJD) hosted a celebration to mark the start of Women’s History Month with a flag-raising event in front of the Center for Computing and Information Science (CCIS) building.

Dawn Soufleris, vice president for student development and campus life at Montclair State University, talks to students and faculty during the Women's History Month flag-raising event. Sal DiMaggio | The Montclarion

Members of the campus community watch the Women's History Month flag-raising event. Sal DiMaggio | The Montclarion

A faculty member speaks at the flag-raising event. Sal DiMaggio | The Montclarion

Members of the university community gathered as women across campus spoke, including vice president of student development and campus life Dawn Soufleris.

Celine Williams, the graduate coordinator for the Office for Social Justice and Diversity, gives a speech at the flag raising event. Sal DiMaggio | The Montclarion

A student speaks speaks at the flag-raising event. Sal DiMaggio | The Montclarion

Speakers discussed the importance of women in our communities and how to empower them not just during March, but throughout the year.

Sal DiMaggio

Passing the baton: michelle itoua breaks her own coach’s record, 10 films directed by women to watch this march, you may also like, burger station: clifton’s flavor haven, montclair state’s food recovery network chapter combats food insecurity on and off..., ‘neon gods’ is a drop-dead gorgeous read, montclair state culturs hosts “cultur-ella” festival celebrating diversity, montclair state culturs hosts “cultur-ella” festival celebrating diversity, pebbles gotcha day.

• Weekly Newspapers
• Photo Essay
• Book Reviews
• Professors and Staff Highlights
• Clubs and Classroom Spotlights
• Student Side Hustle
• Editor’s Picks
• Student Artist Profiles
• TV Shows & Movies
• On Campus Events
• Video Games
• Student Athlete Profile
• Cross Country
• Field Hockey
• Swimming and Diving
• Track and Field
• Focus Immigration
• Focus Climate Change
• Focus Democracy
• Focus Racial Justice
• Focus Disruption
• Focus Voting
• Fiction Writings
• Photographs
• Themed Papers
• Advertise With Us
• Jobs & Classifieds

• See us on twitter
• See us on instagram
• See us on linkedin

Welcome Our Anesthesiology Matched Residents for 2024-2025

March 15, 2024

We are thrilled to announce the wonderful results of the 2024 Anesthesiology Matches for our Categorical, Advanced, R-spot, Internal Medicine-Anesthesiology, and Pediatrics-Anesthesiology programs. We want to extend our warmest welcome to those who will be joining our program and department. We're excited to see our team grow and evolve with their contributions. Join us in expressing gratitude for everyone involved in the selection process. A big thank you to all!

• Internal Medicine
• Pediatrics-Anesthesiology

Tatenda Chakoma Stanford University

Nathan Coss UC San Francisco

Farhan Lakhani Medical College of GA

Vamsi Maturi Texas A&M Health

Biftu Mume UC Davis

Brandon Muncan Stony Brook University

Niti Pawar UC San Francisco

Anthony Pederson Albany Medical

Nabeel Rasheed University Missouri-Kansas

Ebere Sonoiki UC Davis

Samantha Strutner UC Irvine

Emily Suen Northwestern University

Dustin Tanaka University of Toronto

Robert Victor UC Irvine

Fatima Baig Chicago Medical School

Shamieh Banihani UC Riverside

Komal Dani University Southern California

Abel Edossa University of Nevada

Angelica Griggs-Demmin Johns Hopkins University

Charissa Iluore University of Pennsylvania

Sarah Jacobs University of Miami

Kyle Lakatos UC San Francisco

Joanna Madej Robert Wood Johnson

Kimberly Peloza Columbia University

Ge Ge "Julia" Ran Chicago Medical School

Aska Sturdevan UC Davis

Joseph Thomas University of Nevada

Milad Torabi Stanford University

Tomoko Wilson Oregon H&S University

Giovanni Perottino Northwestern Universtiy

Katherine Lowe Case Western Reserve

Ryan Gilbert University of Pittsburgh

Olivia Vukcevich UC Riverside