Can I Write a Supplemental College Essay in One Day?

You typically have a fixed duration within which to write a supplemental college essay. This can be even more challenging with colleges that only send out secondary questions after receiving your primary application.

Therefore, you must be fast enough to meet the strict submission deadlines.

Moreover, supplemental college essays tend to have different prompts that cannot be pre-written like personal statements.

Fortunately, you can still write a high-quality supplemental college essay even in one day. To achieve that, you must understand the critical foundational aspects about this type of content.

What You Should Know About Writing a Supplemental Essay Fast?

The first thing you should do is to understand the amount of time you have to write your essay. You should also take into consideration the length required for such type of content.

Here are the insights that you need.

Time Constraints for Supplemental Essays

The typical duration for writing supplemental essays ranges fromtwo weeks to about a month. Therefore, you should have a focused and efficient approach so that you can produce the content within the expected deadline.

Note that the duration you’ll have could be even less since you may be required to send in your essay early if the application process is done in a first-come first-serve basis. To get the most amount of time, you should take account of when the essay prompts come out.

You typically get the supplemental essay prompts released in the summer and majority of colleges will give them out in July and August. By September 1st, most supplemental essay prompts would have been released. This would vary from college to college.

Understanding when the release date is for your target institution will help you get on to this project early to avoid any rush.

Also take note of the deadlines.

Generally, the early decision or early action deadlines are around October while the regular decision deadlines are in January or February.

But don't wait for the deadline to send in your essay. You must send it in early enough in case of anything that may require your attention. This is particularly important with colleges that have rolling admission deadlines. That means they will continue evaluating applications until they fill in their freshman class.

That means if you can write your essay fast enough, you will have an edge against other applicants.

How Many Words Can You Write in a Day?

To figure out if you can write the essay in one day, you need to know your normal daily word count for essay writing.

You need to understand the ideal duration to complete a good supplemental. Based on responses from various students, the daily word count when writing an essay could range between 500 to 1,500 words. Some can write five pages in a day.

This may not apply in every case since various factors like complexity and writing style can affect the duration. The effect that complexity has in your writing is evident in the number of words that an average academic researcher can write in a day. Such writers typically aim for 1,000 words in a day, which helps strike a balance between productivity and quality.

Remember that you shouldn’t aim for the highest word count since that will mean over-exerting yourself and decreasing the level of creativity and quality.

Can You Write a College Essay in Two Days or Less?

How you approach this project will determine how fast you can write it.

The writing process isn't just limited to the content, many other factors are involved. This includes planning, outlining and focusing on key points. There is also proofreading, editing, reviewing, and even research.

All those issues take time.

If you want to write within two days, you must set specific timeframes or timelines within which to handle each of those components. You must have specific timelines for brainstorming, outlining, drafting and revising.

Although speed is important, quality is far more valuable.

If you can’t incorporate the critical details of your personal experiences, aspirations, and achievements within a short period of time, then it's better to take longer than to rush through the process.

The only point at which rushing through may be necessary is if the deadline is approaching and you have no other choice.

Factors That Determine How Fast You Write Your Supplemental Essay

There are many factors that may be out of your control which determine whether you can write an essay in one day or not. You may have specific requirements from the institution or even interruptions during the process of writing.

Let's explore each aspect individually.

Length of Supplemental Essays

Different colleges and universities set specific guidelines on supplemental essay lengths. It can range from as little as ten words to as long as 650 words or more. You may even be required to submit more than one essay, going up to three or more.

Other colleges may not require supplemental essays at all.

Some colleges that do not have standard college specific writing questions include: Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Wesleyan University, University of Pittsburgh, Gonzaga University, The Ohio State University, Kenyon College, University of Virginia, and the University of the Pacific. However, you may be required to answer additional questions based on the initial application that you provide.

Regarding institutions that have supplemental essay prompts, they typically have specific word counts for each question. An example is the four questions required by Harvard, each with a word count ranging from 10 to 200 words. Another example is the 250-word limits for the University of Delaware's prompts. Similarly, Dickinson College has a 160-word limit.

Two universities that have two prompts are the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (with a 250-word limit plus a 500-word limit prompt), and Bentley University (with a 250-word limit).

Rutgers University is an example of a college that will send additional questions based on your primary application. This is indicated in their 2023-24 application.

Many other universities have specific word counts and requirements for their essays including: Augusta Polytechnic Institute, Syracuse University, Loyola Marymount University, Macalester College, and Carnegie Mellon University.

Writing Duration Based on the Type of Supplemental Essays

Not all supplemental essays are the same. The differences could impact the level and complexity of writing required which in turn affects how long you can write.

To give you some insight on these differences, we'll cover the common types of supplemental essays and how this may affect your writing duration.

The “Experiences” Question

This prompt asks you to explore your experiences and how they prepare you for your career or chosen field. You'll find this question in such universities as Harvard, Tulane, Johns Hopkins, and Princeton.

Although this may not require in-depth research or complex analysis, it will require a good memory and retelling of a truly meaningful experience that the admission officials will value. You'll have to spend a lot of time thinking of what exactly to write rather than just writing anything that comes into mind at first.

You must also spend time providing the necessary context and background. This can take time and would require quite a bit of editing and reviewing in order to have a clear narration that is truly impactful.

The “Why This School” Question

This question requires thorough research. You'll find it in universities like Tufts, Yale University, and the University of Chicago.

To answer this question, you must have an in-depth understanding of the values, culture, programs, and opportunities provided by the school. Therefore, you must spend a lot of time researching on your target institution.

You’ll have to take time going through the official website of the institution, watching videos provided by the university and even checking through testimonials by students. You might also check the news to understand the current affairs within the university.

This level of research will definitely take quite a bit of time and it might be hard to predict how long it can take because you don't know beforehand how much you need to research.

The “Diverse Perspectives” Essay

Here, students are required to show how their experiences, backgrounds and perspectives can contribute to the diversity of the school’s student body.

Just like the experiences question, this question requires quite a bit of self-thought. However, here it requires you to also understand a bit about the target institution. So, there will be quite a bit of research into the institution, apart from reflecting on your personal experiences to figure out how the two match.

The complexity involved in this question can take quite a bit of creativity, which will require a bit more time to answer.

The “Challenge Overcome” Essay

Here, admission officers want to see how you responded to challenges and what you did to go through such experiences. The challenge you provide should be something meaningful and particularly matches the institution that you have in mind.

This won't require extensive research, like the question on,”Why this school?” But it requires extensive reflection to provide something truly meaningful from your personal perspective. Therefore, you shouldn't just write the first thing that comes into mind, but evaluate different experiences and pick out one that truly is valuable.

The “Unique Interest” Question

Such schools as Brown University and UNC want students to reflect on their unique interests. Admission officers want to see the passion you have, even outside the classroom.

This question is similar to the “challenge overcome” question, since it focuses on your personal experiences. It won't take as much time as researching on the institution, but you should give it a bit of time so that you uncover something that is unique.

Detail in Supplemental Essays

Apart from the type of prompt you have, the detail required in your content will impact how long you have to write.

Note that supplementals are quite short. Therefore, you might not have enough room to provide extremely detailed writing. However, the choice of words or aspects that you mention will be extremely crucial. Any single word you use will mean you have one less word to write in the essay.

So, you must provide as much detail as necessary to convey your message without going overboard.

How do you do that?

If something isn't common knowledge, then you must provide extra detail. Issues that are generally well known will not require too much detail. Use that as a rule of thumb and you’ll be able to write a quality piece.

Having that in mind will give you a gauge of how long you’ll have to write.

The Verdict on Writing a Supplemental Essay in One Day

Having covered all those issues, it's now possible to figure out whether you can craft a compelling piece in less than a day. So let's explore different scenarios and see the feasibility of this task.

We will take into consideration the time constraints and strategies involved.

Let's analyze specific scenarios.

Can You Write a Four-Page Essay in One Day?

Considering that each of the common types of supplemental essay prompts require extra time, either to reflect on personal experiences or to do extensive research, writing four pages in a day might be a big ask.

You might not spend all day writing, but the extra activities involved would generally require you to spend more than a day.

Giving the essay a day to rest before proofreading and editing is also a good practice in order to catch any errors that you may not see in the same day.

Is It Possible to Write an Essay in 24 Hours?

If it's just one essay prompt with probably just a few hundred words, you might complete it in 24 hours. Also, if the prompt is just a quantitative assessment rather than a qualitative one, all you would be required to do is to state specific facts that can be done rather quickly.

However, most prompts require qualitative assessments, which involve reflection and analysis.

Can I Write a 1,000-Word Essay in a Day?

A 1,000-word essay would be similar to a four-page essay. Therefore, you would face the same challenge as the four-page essay. So, it would be better to space out this task throughout two days rather than just one day.

Can You Write a Two-Page Essay in Two Hours?

Something as crucial as a supplemental essay that determines your entry into a prestigious university shouldn't be rushed within a two-hour period. If the prompt given is not strictly on specific facts or data, you would not likely do a good job within two hours.

You would need time to reflect and assess on your ideas, which would require more than two hours.

Can I Write Six Pages in Three Hours?

Here, you would face the same challenge as writing a two-page essay in two hours. You would likely overlook many critical issues that will get your application denied. Most likely, your content will have typos that will give the indication of a rushed process.

Conclusion - How Long Should It Take to Write a College Supplemental Essay?

How long it takes will depend on multiple factors, as mentioned earlier. This will involve the required length of your essay, the specific prompts, the type of essay you have to write, the details required in the essay, and so many other factors.

It can be difficult to give a one-size-fits-all recommendation for how long it should take to write such content. Even so, you don't have all the time in the world to write it since there is typically a deadline.

Therefore, you should aim to write the most comprehensive piece in the shortest time possible, but give yourself extra time to review or edit what you have written.

Frequently Asked Questions

Let's shed light on some critical queries that you may have regarding the duration of writing your supplemental.

How long should a 650-word limit supplemental essay be?

You might be given a specific range within which to write your supplemental essay when you are given a word limit. If not, you can get some insight from the Common App which has a 650-word limit but a recommended range between 250 to 650 words.

Therefore, ideally, you shouldn’t write less than half the word count and preferably aim for as close to the word limit as possible.

What is the ideal word count?

The ideal word count for your essay will vary based on the type of application or the institution. This is different from personal statements that generally have a universal recommendation. According to the Coalition Application, 500 to 650 words is the recommended range. The Common App has a range of between 250 to 650 words.

What is the shortest a college supplemental essay can be?

Different institutions have different recommended lengths for their essays. Based on various institutions that we have looked through, a supplemental can actually be as short as 10 words.

However, having fewer words doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be easy to write. With fewer words, you now have to be extremely careful about what you write since there is no room for error.