What are colleges looking for in community essays?

Colleges use community essays to understand the role you play in groups and what you’ll contribute to campus life. They want to see how you engage with others, your sense of responsibility, and the kind of impact you’ve made, both big and small. There isn’t a single right answer, and you can draw from any aspect—your school, neighborhood, cultural group, family, workplace, or even online communities.

It’s perfectly fine to focus on something outside of school, like your volunteering at the animal shelter, especially if that’s where you feel you’ve made your most meaningful contribution. What matters most is that you show authentic investment in that community, clarify why it matters to you, and reflect on your growth.

Admissions officers don’t necessarily prefer school-based examples over outside activities. What they’re looking for is depth—a unique, personal glimpse of how you interact with others and develop community. For example, you might describe a moment when you started a new initiative at the animal shelter, trained new volunteers, or navigated a tough situation with a pet adoption. Or if debate is your passion, focus on a story where you helped a teammate overcome their fear of speaking up, or started hosting sessions to bring newer members in.

If you decide to write about your cultural background, avoid making it a broad narrative. Instead, zoom in on a specific experience—like organizing a cultural festival, mediating between community members from different backgrounds, or learning something meaningful from an intergenerational moment.

Leadership is great if it was part of your contribution, but don’t feel pressure to have held a formal title. Collaboration, empathy, and consistent involvement all count. The essays that stand out often revolve around a moment of conflict, growth, or transformation. For example, maybe you noticed animals at the shelter weren’t getting adopted because of outdated photos, so you organized photo shoots, improving adoption rates. The key is to highlight a challenge, your creative response, and what you learned.

Take time to reflect on the communities that mean the most to you—not just the ones you think sound impressive. Pick the story where you can best show what you value, how you connect with people, and the qualities you’d bring to the college community. That authenticity is what colleges remember.