You can use the following applications to apply to a number of schools, including Wellesley.

Friendly reminder: It’s free to apply to Wellesley.

Common ApplicationQuestBridge ApplicationCoalition Application

Specify your decision plan.

When you begin your application, you’ll need to choose a decision plan for each school you apply to. (Check out our dates and deadlines page for more information.)

Use your legal name throughout.

Be sure to be consistent and use your legal name (as it appears on your passport or other legal documents) on all of your application materials. This may sound obvious, but it’s really important! If you go by another name, list that as your “preferred name” on the application and that’s the name we’ll use when we get in touch with you.

You’ll need to write two essays: a personal essay and a shorter, Wellesley-specific essay. See our application tips for advice on writing your essays.

The personal essay.

For your personal essay, you may choose from the prompts below or write on a topic of your choice. The essay should be 250 to 650 words.

Current Common Application essay prompts

• Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
• The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
• Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
• Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
• Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
• Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
• Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

The Wellesley-specific essay

This required writing supplement asks you to respond to the following topic:

When choosing a college, you are choosing an intellectual community and a place where you believe that you can live, learn, and flourish. We know that there are more than 100 reasons to choose Wellesley, but it's a good place to start. Visit the Wellesley 100 and select two items that attract, inspire, or celebrate what you would bring to our community. Have fun! Use this opportunity to reflect personally on what items appeal to you most and why.

We require three letters of recommendation (two from teachers), your transcripts, diploma or examination certificates, and a School Report completed by your guidance counselor. These can be submitted online through your application. Once you have selected your high school, you can list and save the names of your counselor and two teachers in the “School Forms” section. Instructions will be emailed to them with information on how to submit the forms online or offline in print.

Three letters of recommendation

Wellesley requires three letters of recommendation: one from the head of your school or your school counselor and two from academic instructors. At least one recommendation must include an evaluation of your proficiency in reading, writing, and speaking English. These letters should be sent directly to the Office of Admission at Wellesley.

Official transcript

An official transcript is a certified record of the courses you have completed and the marks you received at each marking period in all schools attended during the previous four years. We need both the transcript in the original language as well as a translated version. If the school system uses a coded transcript, an explanation of the code and the marking system should be included. If you cannot obtain a transcript, a certified record of the courses you took, along with a progress report, must be submitted instead.

Diploma or examination certificates

All applicants must submit certified photocopies of all academic diplomas and Government Examination certificates. These include GCSE ("O" level) and "A" level certificates, and appropriate documents from your home country (e.g., Indian S.S.C., Indian H.S.C., Kenyan Certificate of Education, Hong Kong Certificate of Education, Malaysian SRP, International Baccalaureate SPM, STEM, etc.). Examination certificates cannot be substituted for the required official transcript (see above) or for the required standardized tests (see below). All academic records and examination certificates must have an official seal or certification.

Wellesley College has temporarily suspended its standardized test requirement for a four-year period of review. Applicants to Wellesley for entry in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 are not required to submit SAT or ACT test results with their applications. 

Our holistic, committee-based application review process gives us the flexibility to evaluate each applicant’s full record within the context of their available resources. While standardized tests have long served as an external benchmark of college readiness, they are one factor among many that we can consider in the admission process.

Regardless of an applicant’s decision to submit test scores, the admission committee is particularly interested in an applicant’s demonstrated writing and quantitative skills as key predictors for success in Wellesley’s curriculum. 

Standardized Testing FAQs.

If English is not your native language and you have been studying in an English-based curriculum for fewer than four years, we strongly recommend that you take one of the following English proficiency tests or interview tools:

• TOEFL (iBT or Essentials)
• Duolingo English Test
• IELTS
• Cambridge Assessment English Qualifications (C1 Advanced, C2 Proficiency, or C1 Business Higher accepted)
• InitialView
• Vericant (Standard Interview, which includes a writing sample)
• GTEC CBT (Global Test of English Communication Computer Based Testing)

If relevant to your application, you may submit these optional credentials.

Financial Aid Intent Form

If you’re applying for financial aid, you must fill out the Financial Aid Intent Form that will be available in your Wellesley Applicant Portal after you submit your application. In an effort to simplify the financial aid process for international, undocumented, and DACA students, applicants who have indicated their intent to apply for aid will be prompted to complete a Financial Aid Intent Form after submitting their application for admission. Within three to five business days of the completion of the Common Application, students will be given access to the Applicant Portal by the Office of Admission. We will contact applicants later in the process regarding any additional financial aid forms or documents they may need to provide. We encourage all applicants applying for aid to begin completing the CSS Profile so that if requested, they can submit it promptly. However, students won’t need to submit the CSS Profile unless they are instructed to do so by our staff.

Early Decision Agreement

If you’re applying Early Decision Round I or Round II, be sure to complete the Early Decision Agreement with your application. Before submitting your application, you’ll need to list your parent or guardian's email on the recommended page to ensure they sign their portion of the Early Decision Agreement.

Arts, music, or theatre portfolio

If you have a special talent in the arts, you might want to submit an arts portfolio.  

Our art, music, and theatre studies departments will accept electronic submissions of portfolios, recordings, or presentations. The appropriate department will review your material.

Wellesley College does not have a dance department and does not review creative writing materials. Please do NOT submit any dance and/or creative writing supplements as they will not be evaluated.

To submit an arts portfolio:

• You must submit your portfolios, recordings, or presentations electronically through the Wellesley Applicant Portal. Wellesley does not accept art portfolios through the Common Application. Please do not mail any materials to the Office of Admission. Submissions sent by mail will not be reviewed or returned.
• Follow the guidelines and instructions as outlined by Wellesley’s art, music, and theatre studies departments.
• Please submit your Arts Portfolio through your Wellesley Applicant Portal. Portfolio submissions must be received within a week of the application deadline in order for our faculty to have sufficient time for review. 

Athletic supplement

If you are interested in competing in varsity athletics at Wellesley (Division III), submit a recruiting form to the head coach of your sport.