This week University of Pennsylvania's Vice Provost and Dean of Admissions, Whitney Soule shares insights on the intentions behind schools' carefully crafted essay prompts, and how students can approach those essays as a way to introduce their character.
She discusses Penn's new short answer prompt that invites students to express gratitude to someone that they haven't thanked, an exercise intended to provide Penn a glimpse of how the student relates to others, and to provide students a feel-good reflection on the impact of others in their lives. 

The Daily Pennsylvanian article featuring Whitney Soul.
More on the University of Pennsylvania here.