How to Get Into Brown University: Strategies and Essays That Worked — Shemmassian Academic Consulting (2024)

Part 1: Introduction

So, you and your child are gearing up for college application season and it’s clear that they might be a contender for a prestigious Ivy League or Ivy+ university. You know that your college applicant is much more than a high GPA and solid standardized test scores—they’re an exceptionally intelligent, self-driven, independent thinker who would thrive in a rigorous but free-spirited academic atmosphere on a classic New England college campus. Does this sound like your child? Then they would likely be a great candidate for Brown University.

Getting into Brown means understanding and embracing the university’s unique Open Curriculum—the reason Brown is known as “the weird Ivy.” (They wear that name with pride.)

Brown is one of the country’s oldest universities, founded in 1764—even before the American Revolution. But about half a century ago, Brown students, unsatisfied with the rigid confines of a traditional university model, demanded complete educational reform. A team of students and faculty members worked to transform the academic curriculum to an innovative, student-centered model now known as Brown’s Open Curriculum.

Unlike its other Ivy counterparts, Brown has no core curriculum (à la Columbia) or distribution requirements (à la Yale, Harvard, and many others), meaning that students have an unparalleled freedom to shape their education. They assume the responsibility for the direction and intensity of their learning.

The Open Curriculum is core to Brown’s philosophy of intellectual and individual development, meant to help students discover who they are and what subjects are meaningful to pursue. This creates an atmosphere for innovative contributions to research, entrepreneurship, art, and social activism alongside the academic pursuits of a standard undergraduate education.

Outside the classroom, the university emphasizes an action-oriented approach to learning, encouraging research and hands-on experience. Your child could walk across a quadrangle after sparring with a Nobel-prize winning professor about quantum physics to designing ecologically sustainable spacecrafts in an engineering lab.

They could spend their morning discussing classical music theory with a MacArthur Genius, their afternoon inventing a new modular synthesizer, and their evening teaching piano to local elementary school students. To further their education outside the classroom, they will have access to thousands of research, internship, and employment opportunities through the exclusive BrownConnect network.

And after Brown? The university prides itself on how their Open Curriculum creates well-rounded, multi-dimensional adults who understand a variety of intellectual and life perspectives. Graduates are prepared to use their challenging, self-guided education to lead society in solving complex world problems.

Brown University ranking

• Forbes: 15

• Niche: 10

• U.S. News & World Report: 13

• Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education: 25

(Suggested reading: Ivy League Rankings)

Where is Brown located?

Brown is located in Providence, Rhode Island—a small, historic New England city that also serves as the state’s capital. The city prides itself on its unique mix of small-town vibes and big city cultural offerings, including an innovative art scene (thanks in part to the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design) and world-class restaurants (it’s home to one of the leading culinary schools in the country). It consistently ranks as one of the most “artsy” American cities, as well as one offering the best quality of life.

Providence is in the heart of New England, about an hour south of Boston and three hours north of New York. For excursions during the warmer months, the Rhode Island seashore, including the famously elegant seaside town of Newport, is only a thirty-minute drive from town.

Brown University setting

Urban. The Brown campus is in the aptly named College Hill neighborhood on the east side of Providence. With its red brick colonial architecture and sprawling greens punctuated modern, state-of-the-art building additions, College Hill offers a classic New England college experience. The tree-lined streets of College Hill are populated with beautiful 18th- and 19th-century homes and dotted with hip coffee shops where Brown students often study or hang out.

College Hill is home to a mix of college students from multiple universities (RISD is just down the street from Brown), young professionals, and families. Thayer Street livens up the quiet and residential neighborhood with mostly locally-owned stores, restaurants, and bars—plus the storied Avon Theater, an art deco cinema that’s screened independent films since the 1930s.

Brown University student population

• Undergraduate student population: 7,125

• Grad and professional school population: 3,300 (2,689 graduate students and 611 medical students)

Brown University acceptance rate

Here are the admissions statistics for Brown’s class of 2026:

• Applications: 51,316

• Acceptances: 2,686 (884 Early Decision; 1,802 Regular Decision)

• Matriculants: 1,699

• Overall acceptance rate: 5%

(Suggested reading: Ivy League Acceptance Rates)

Brown University tuition and scholarships

Brown University’s 2023–2024 cost of attendance (i.e., tuition, room, board, and fees) is $87,648.

Brown’s admissions process is need-blind, and the school promises to meet 100 percent of students’ demonstrated financial need without student loans. Most students whose families earn under $60,000 per year will have their expenses fully covered by scholarships and grants.

Among the class of 2027, 50 percent of students received financial aid—within this population, the average family pays $29,400 per year. Brown has also published average financial aid awards by income bracket, showing that the vast majority of families earning under $200,000 per year received some amount of aid.

Who gets into Brown?

Most successful applicants to Brown demonstrate academic prowess, as indicated by the following statistics for the class of 2027:

• 95% of admitted students ranked in the top 10% of their high school class.

• Average GPA: Brown doesn’t publish the GPAs of their incoming students (we discuss GPA further in the next section).

• Brown average ACT score:

  • 25th percentile: 34

  • 75th percentile: 36

• Brown average SAT score:

  • 25th percentile: 1510

  • 75th percentile: 1570

Among the class of 2027, 15% are first-generation college students and 14% are international students. Additionally, students entering Brown as part of this class come from all 50 U.S. states, including Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.

Part 2: Brown admissions requirements

Brown academic requirements

Ideal candidates for admission to Brown will have spent their high school careers striving to excel intellectually and challenge themselves both inside and outside the classroom. More specifically to Brown, competitive applicants will have a track record of being self-driven in order to thrive in the Open Curriculum program. Students who already prove they can be responsible for their own intellectual and creative development will be outstanding additions to the academic culture at Brown.

While there are no specific admissions requirements to get into Brown, the admissions team is searching for applicants who display an eagerness to learn and a willingness to accept intellectual challenges. They prefer to see a student get a “B” in an AP or IB class than an “A” in an honors class.

Brown does not indicate any specific GPA requirements, though according to their admissions team, students with “high grades” often stand out among applicants. That said, Brown takes into account that different high schools have different cultures of awarding grades. It also stresses that grades are not the only measure of academic and intellectual talent that’s considered in the admissions process. This emphasis on holistic admissions may be particularly true at Brown among the Ivies.

As mentioned above, Brown has no specific requirements for admission, but they suggest that the curriculum for college-bound, competitive students includes the following coursework:

• English: 4 years of literature and academic writing

• Math: 4 years, through calculus, especially for students bound for STEM programs

• Science: 3-4 years (with 2 years of lab), focusing on biology, physics, and chemistry when possible

  See Also

  Little Ivies: What You Need To Know + Full List of Colleges

• History: 3-4 years, with both history courses and courses that focus on government, economics, and politics

• Foreign language: 3, but preferably 4, years of consecutive language learning

• Music and art: Encouraged though not officially recommended

Applicants planning to concentrate in STEM fields would benefit from extracurricular activities in their area of interest.

Brown application requirements

Brown requires the following materials for undergrad admission:

• Common App, including the Common App Essay

• Brown supplemental essays

• Forms sent from your child’s school:

  • 2 teacher letters of recommendations

  • 1 counselor letter of recommendation

  • School report, transcript, and midyear school report

• Optional in 2023–2024: SAT or ACT

• Optional: If your child excels in music or visual art, they are encouraged to include a supplemental portfolio in their Common App

• Optional: Video portfolio or alumni interview, no longer than 2 minutes

If your child is planning to concentrate in a STEM field, or the Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME)—the only Ivy League BS/MD program—at least one of your child’s recommendations should come from a math or science teacher. PLME applicants, as well as applicants to the Brown-RISD Dual Degree Program, will also need to submit additional supplemental essays.

Part 3: Applying to Brown early decision vs. regular decision

Brown accepts Early Decision applications until November 1st. These applicants will be notified of admission by mid-December, and can be accepted, deferred, or rejected. The deferred applicants will be reevaluated in the larger pool with regular decision applicants and have the opportunity to alert Brown of significant accomplishments or noteworthy changes in circ*mstance in the period between the early and regular admissions process.

Admitted applicants must attend Brown, and therefore should not apply to any other universities through a binding early process. (The only instance in which your child can renege on their obligation to Brown is if, after several rounds of evaluating financial aid packages, your family determines that Brown is 100 percent unaffordable.)

Although the pool is smaller for ED candidates, Brown only admits, again, roughly 10 percent of applicants.

If your child would rather apply regular decision to Brown, they can do so by January 5th.

How do you know if your child should apply to Brown early decision?

If your child is positive that they want to attend Brown, and their application is in shape for submission by the November 1st deadline, then they should apply early.

If your child is not sure that Brown is truly the right university for them, or they need time to improve their grades, standardized test scores, or extracurriculars then they should wait and apply regular decision.

(Recommended reading: Early Action vs. Early Decision: Pros and Cons and What Your Child Should Do)

Part 4: 2023–2024 Brown supplemental essays

In addition to the Common App personal statement, Brown requires three relatively short supplemental essays specific to the university.

Since Brown has a unique academic model that’s created a very particular college environment, the admissions team uses these supplements to evaluate how effectively your child might thrive at Brown and contribute to the community both intellectually and personally.

These essays are also an opportunity for your child to demonstrate that they are a well-rounded candidate by giving them a space to talk about achievements or life experience that would not translate to an academic transcript, and how these things would be specifically significant to their Brown education.

Now, let’s move onto unpacking an outstanding example of each supplemental essay. (And if you’re looking for even more intel on how your child can write the best essay possible, check out our college essay examples.)

Question 1: Brown’s Open Curriculum allows students to explore broadly while also diving deeply into their academic pursuits. Tell us about any academic interests that excite you, and how you might pursue them at Brown. (250 words max)

Brown is asking your child to familiarize themselves with Brown’s Open Curriculum and delve deeply into how they would use it to design their dream education.

It’s not enough for your child to say they like the idea of a flexible curriculum— Brown expects applicants to have done their research into specific programs and how your child might combine them to pursue their particular academic interests.

The strongest applicants will tell a story about their intellectual development, whether that’s obsessing over a niche subject, experiencing the thrill of applying a subject in real life, or having an “aha moment” about the intersection of two seemingly separate fields of study.

Let’s meet our example student:

Minh is the child of Vietnamese immigrants and the first person in her family to go to college in the U.S. Her strongest academic subjects are biology, physics, and calculus, and she plans to concentrate in environmental engineering. But she also spent a summer as a political organizing intern for a Vietnamese American candidate running for a seat on the Seattle City Council.

Here’s what Minh wrote:

I’ve always been pegged as a science nerd. While other kids were playing soccer, I was illuminating my hamster’s cage with intricate potato lightbulb electric grids. When I chose to intern for Stacey Ngyuen’s Seattle City Council campaign instead of preparing for the National Science Fair this past summer, the person who was most surprised was myself. Me, the girl that spent almost every weekend of tenth grade building a solar-powered iPhone charger!

But as the child of Vietnamese immigrants in a mostly Southeast Asian neighborhood, I felt it was important to help better represent our community on the council. Knocking on hundreds of doors for Stacey and listening to peoples’ concerns for the neighborhood, two things caught my attention: everyone was worried about ventilation from wildfire smoke in the summer and their basem*nts flooding in the winter. I realized that my dream of becoming an environmental engineer didn’t exist in a vacuum— that low-income immigrant neighborhoods like my own would need specific solutions to battle climate change.

I’m excited to use Brown’s Open Curriculum to build an education for myself that melds environmental engineering, public policy, and urban studies to become a visionary engineer who can see the effects of climate change from both a human and a technical angle. I can’t think of a better place for my interests to combine than the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, where I will be able to interact with scholars and conduct the research of my dreams.

What did Minh do well?

• She tells a story of intellectual growth. Minh combined her passion for science, her commitment to civic duty, and her familial background into one compelling narrative about her diverse but intersecting academic interests.

• She demonstrates self-direction in her academics. Minh took Brown’s invitation to be the architect of her own education to heart. She referenced particular Brown concentrations and institutes to show that she would be able to make the most of the Open Curriculum model. This in itself serves as a strong answer to the implied question “Why Brown?”

Question 2: Students entering Brown often find that making their home on College Hill naturally invites reflection on where they came from. Share how an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you, and what unique contributions this might allow you to make to the Brown community. (250 words max)

Question 3: Brown students care deeply about their work and the world around them. Students find contentment, satisfaction, and meaning in daily interactions and major discoveries. Whether big or small, mundane or spectacular, tell us about something that brings you joy. (250 words max)

Question 4: What is your most meaningful extracurricular commitment, and what would you like us to know about it? (100 words max)

Question 5: If you could teach a class on any one thing, whether academic or otherwise, what would it be? (100 words max)

Question 6: In one sentence, Why Brown? (50 words max)

Final thoughts

Brown University is a perfect fit for an independent and innovative college applicant who wants the freedom to take charge of their own education. Your child will have the chance to reach their personal and intellectual potential at an academically rigorous institution with world-class scholars invested in their success. Since the school’s educational model is unique among both the Ivy League and higher education institutions in general, your child should learn all they can about this exceptional academic culture to know if they are truly a good candidate for Brown.