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You've may have heard the phrase "demonstrated interest" at some point in the college search process. What does it mean? And why should you care?

As one element of our application process, we hope to see students who are excited about the prospect of being on our campus. Strong applicants are those who have actively researched the opportunities at Tufts and engaged with the many programs, events, and resources we offer to introduce you to what makes Tufts great. Showing us that you are excited for a future at Tufts can be done in a lot of ways...some of which are outside of the application itself. Campus tours and information sessions (in person or virtual), our fall open house series, and meeting with admissions representatives if we visit your high school are ways to show that you took an active role in learning about Tufts and considering how our offerings align with your aspirations for college.

One required way we get a sense of every applicants' excitement about Tufts is embedded in our application itself: the "I am applying to Tufts because..." short-answer response. While we care about every piece of writing you send us, this “Why Tufts?” response plays an especially critical role in our evaluation process. It’s short, and because we read so many of them, we can tell the difference between a student who has simply heard of Tufts and a student who really values the unique facets of our community.

Let’s pull apart the layers of what makes a good "Why University X?" style response.

Layer -1

It’s possible to go backwards with this essay. Please do not write in the name of a different institution! Please spell Tufts correctly! Not Tuffs, or Turfs, or Tuft. It's Tufts! And if you are using an apostrophe to show possessiveness, it goes at the end (Tufts’), not before the S (not Tuft’s).

These are small mistakes, but they don't go unnoticed. We encourage you to read through your essays before you hit submit, just to double check that everything is in the right place.

Layer 0

You are learning the basics! Everyone starts somewhere and, if you don’t know anything about us, you probably land here. I encourage you to do some research online, attend our virtual events, and read up on blogs from current students to learn about the interesting and unique values of our community.

Layer 1

This approach: “I want to go to Tufts because you offer biology and are near Boston.” This is a fairly common "Why Tufts?" response. While these two fit factors might be great jumping-off points for a college search, this response doesn’t really show us much of your knowledge or interest in our campus. There are lots of schools near Boston, and a lot of them have biology. We can strengthen this essay by naming specific things about the campus and the ways you have learned this information.

Layer 2

This approach: “I want to go to Tufts because you offer the Tisch College of Civic Life. I want to be a Tisch Scholar.” Now we are getting somewhere! There is detail about a distinctive opportunity that might show us how our university's mission aligns with your own values. However, while we do appreciate essays that reference explicit programs that only we offer, this is information that can be easily found online.

Many students write about specific classes and professors, which is a great step to show us that you have started looking at what your future could be here. Students who write about niche programs do demonstrate a high level of research, but in the words of Jeff Probst from Survivor, I am going to urge you to “dig deeper!," so...

Layer 3

“I want to go to Tufts because you offer the Tisch College of Civic Life. Being an active, informed community member is an important part of my academic goals and I want to learn skills through the Tisch Scholar program to become the most civically engaged person I can be. After reading Will Wilson’s blog on Tufts’ values, I know that the best place for me to pursue a Civic Studies major and learn about the power of social change is at Tufts.”

Bombshell! (I have to say that, I wrote it!)

What resonates in this (fictional) "Why Tufts?" response is the turning point. When did you really decide that you wanted to continue your education here? For many students, writing about visiting campus, meeting our admissions team, talking with current students, or reading student profiles in Jumbo magazine or our blogs are the moments that confirmed your decision to apply. So, we invite you to share the emotional connection that you have during these interactions so that you come to life in this essay.

This sample essay doesn’t just highlight specific departments or programs (Tisch College, Civic Studies), it relates them to our core mission of nurturing students to become more informed and civically engaged citizens and helps us understand how you share that mission, too.

There are many opportunities for your writing to tie into the values that we search for in our review process, but the “Why Tufts? response is the best way to tell us that you know what you are talking about and that Tufts means something special to you.