Lehigh University
Supplemental Essay Guide 2026-27

Make the "why you applied" half research-level, not Google-level. The first prompt's motivation half is where students lose points. Skip "great engineering program" and "strong alumni network"—those read as a quick Google search and echo hundreds of identical essays. Instead, connect one specifically named Lehigh resource to your own background or work (a professor whose research overlaps yours, an integrated program like IDEAS or IBE you genuinely fit, a center tied to your goals). And spend more words on you than on Lehigh—praising a professor for 100 words wastes the tiny 200-word budget.

The Celebration prompt requires sensory detail and presence. This essay tests authenticity in a way that résumé essays cannot. Admissions readers are looking for a recent, specific moment—not a lifetime achievement or abstract pride. Include sensory details (what you saw, heard, felt) and use present or near-present tense to create immediacy. A weak response lists accomplishments; a strong one lets the reader experience the moment alongside you. Avoid pivoting to how this moment fits your college goals or what you'll do next—that belongs in the first prompt, not here. This essay is purely about revealing your humanity and what brings you genuine joy.

Show agency—you are the actor, not the observer. Lehigh's strategic identity is 'Inspiring the Future Makers'—students who propose, research, and execute ideas. Across both essays avoid passive language like 'Lehigh will help me' or 'I hope to benefit from.' Instead, write 'I will use Lehigh's [named resource] to [specific action]' or 'I plan to pursue [named program] so that I can [goal that requires this specific resource].' The strongest applicants signal they are coming to Lehigh to do something, not to have something done to them. This framing—treating Lehigh as a platform for your agency rather than a destination for your absorption—aligns with the school's maker-centered identity.

Don't skip the 'how you found Lehigh' half of Essay 1. Essay 1 has a two-part structure that matters. Some applicants jump straight to 'why I want to go' without answering 'how I first learned about it.' CollegeVine's weak examples show applicants who skip the origin story entirely. A genuine origin story (campus visit, a conversation with an alumnus, a specific program you researched) makes your motivation credible. Generic reasons ('great engineering school,' 'beautiful campus') without a personal discovery moment read as hollow. Spend real words on the discovery—it anchors your motivation in authenticity rather than prestige.