January 9, 2026
Written By
Michael Minh Le
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Every year, thousands of premeds open the Harvard Medical School secondary application and panic. The prompts aren’t just tough. They’re long, open-ended, and packed with hidden traps that can turn a stellar candidate into an automatic rejection. You already know the stakes: this is Harvard. And that means generic answers, copy-paste templates, or rushed writing won’t cut it.
In this blog, we’ll break down every single essay prompt for the 2025–2026 cycle, including the optional HST prompt. You’ll learn how to navigate key questions like employment during undergrad, post-grad activities, and the infamous diversity essay. We’ll show you how to avoid common mistakes, craft standout responses, and build a three-phase game plan to submit on time with confidence.
If you’re serious about getting into schools like Harvard, the reality is you can’t wing secondaries. That’s why our Admissions Consulting exists to guide you through every step, including pre-writing your secondaries before they’re released. Our students don’t miss deadlines, and their acceptance rates show it.
If you want expert help strategizing and writing your secondaries, book a free call to join our next advising cohort here.
Harvard doesn’t ask many questions, but the ones they do ask carry significant weight. These essays are Harvard’s way of asking: Do you belong here? Do you think in the kind of reflective, curious, systems-oriented way that defines this institution? Are you not just qualified, but aligned?
Below, we break down each essay prompt for the 2025–2026 cycle, not just what they’re asking, but how you should respond.
“If you have already graduated, briefly summarize your activities since graduation.”
Harvard wants to see that you didn’t drift aimlessly in your gap year(s). They’re looking for proof that you’ve taken intentional steps toward medicine, deepened your understanding of the field, and made a real-world impact in the process.
This is your chance to connect the dots. Highlight your most meaningful clinical, research, work, and volunteer experiences since graduation. For each one, go beyond the role. Share the skills you developed, the lessons you learned, and how each experience shaped your perspective as a future physician.
Did your scribe job teach you the art of listening? Did your research lab push you to think critically and ask better questions? Did volunteering in a free clinic open your eyes to systemic gaps in care?
Tie it all back to your current goals for medical school. Show them that you’re not just passing time. You’re building a foundation. The best responses read like a story of growth and clarity, not a checklist of boxes you think Harvard wants to see.
“If there is an important aspect of your personal background or identity not addressed elsewhere in the application that may illuminate how you could contribute to the medical school and that you would like to share with the Committee, we invite you to do so here.”
Harvard wants more than a class of high-GPA, high-MCAT applicants. They want people who bring something real to the table. They want perspective, empathy, and complexity. This prompt is where you show that you’re not just a qualified applicant, but someone who will make their class (and one day, the profession) better because of who you are and how you’ve lived.
Diversity isn’t just about race or ethnicity. It’s also about values, beliefs, upbringing, geography, life philosophy, first-gen status, and how you see the world. Ask yourself: what’s a part of my identity or background that has shaped how I think, how I act, and how I care?
You don’t need to share your deepest wounds to write a compelling essay. But if you’ve faced difficulty, like financial, personal, or cultural, then this is the place to talk about it. Show what you’ve learned, how you’ve grown, and why it matters for your path to medicine.
The best responses start with a moment, something vivid, personal, and specific. Then they zoom out and connect that moment to your worldview, your values, and ultimately your “why.”
Harvard is looking for future physicians who understand people. Use this essay to show that you understand yourself, and that your lived experience will shape how you’ll show up for patients.
Keep this one simple. It’s purely logistical. Harvard just wants to know when you’re available for an interview. Be honest about your schedule, especially if you have fixed commitments like work, travel, or school. You don’t need to explain or justify, just clearly state your availability and make sure your contact info is up to date.
“Please describe how your interests, experiences, and aspirations have prepared you for the HST MD program.”
What they’re asking: Are you built for the HST ecosystem? Do you thrive in highly technical environments? Can you push the boundaries of medicine through science, data, and innovation, without losing the human in the process?
Only respond to the HST essay if you’re applying to the Health Sciences and Technology (HST) track, a joint program between Harvard and MIT designed for future physician-scientists, tech innovators, and people who think in systems.
How to frame it:
Avoid this trap: Don’t turn this into a research shopping list. Name-dropping labs, professors, or MIT buzzwords doesn’t impress. It signals you’re more interested in prestige than purpose. Focus on you: your thinking, your work, your vision.
Writing your Harvard secondaries isn’t about saying the “right” thing. It’s about saying the real thing. Here’s how to do exactly that:
1. Lead with impact, end with intention
Start strong. Hook us. Don’t warm up for two paragraphs. Get to the point immediately.
And once you’ve told your story or made your case, land the plane. Every paragraph should either move your story forward or reveal your drive to become a physician. A good gut check? After each section, ask yourself: “So what?” If the answer isn’t clear, go back and sharpen it.
2. Answer the unasked question
Every essay is really asking: “What did this teach you about the doctor you want to become?” Don’t just list what you did. Dig into how it shaped your character, your perspective, or your sense of responsibility. Harvard wants reflective thinkers, not just achievers.
3. Be a storyteller, not a résumé reciter
You’re not writing your CV. You’re writing about your journey. That means setting scenes, introducing characters, and sharing emotional insight. One powerful, well-told anecdote will always beat five forgettable bullet points. Make it memorable.
4. Show, don’t state
Don’t write, “I’m passionate about health equity.” Instead, show us the moment you realized inequity existed. The patient who changed you. The system that failed someone. The conversation that stuck. Let your experiences speak for themselves.
5. Stay in your lane
Vision is good. Vagueness is not. Avoid sweeping statements about “revolutionizing healthcare” unless you can actually back it up. Be clear, grounded, and focused. Stay in your lane, and show Harvard you know where you’re going.
Even strong applicants get rejected from Harvard because of weak essays. These are the traps that quietly (but quickly) take you out of the running:
1. Starting with a cliché
“I’ve always wanted to be a doctor…” is the fastest way to lose your reader. Harvard’s AdCom has seen it thousands of times. Your first line should make them lean in, not check out. Start with your story, not a generic premed script.
2. Over-explaining instead of emotionally connecting
You don’t need to prove you’re smart. They already know. Instead of stuffing in background details or extra context, focus on how it felt, what it meant, and what it changed. Vulnerability and reflection show maturity. Over-explaining shows fear.
3. Writing like you're trying to impress a robot
This is Harvard, not ChatGPT. If your essay reads like it was optimized for an algorithm (perfect structure, buzzwords, and zero soul) then you’re doing it wrong. The goal isn’t to sound flawless. It’s to sound human, thoughtful, and real.
4. Ignoring the “Why HMS” thread
Even if they don’t ask directly, Harvard wants to know why you belong there. Every essay should subtly show alignment with HMS values: leadership, innovation, service, curiosity. If your story could fit anywhere, it won’t stick here.
5. Forgetting to tie it all back to medicine
This is not a personal essay contest. It’s a medical school application. No matter how powerful your story is, if it doesn’t connect to the physician you want to become, it’s just noise. Every essay should answer the question: How does this move me toward the doctor I’m becoming?
Short answer: Yes, but carefully.
Harvard doesn’t reinvent the wheel with their secondary prompts. They’ve asked the same core questions for years. The wording might get a mild facelift, but the heart of the prompts stays consistent. That means you can and should start drafting your answers before you even get the secondary invite.
But here’s the catch: Harvard’s secondaries are deceptively simple.
They're not checking off boxes. They're sizing up your maturity, your insight, your intentionality. So if you’re going to pre-write, don’t just plug in boilerplate answers you used for other schools. You need to write like someone who belongs there.
You don’t need a 12-week writing retreat to crush your Harvard secondaries. You need focus, intention, and a game plan. Here’s a 3-phase strategy to help you stay on top of secondaries and submit on time.
Before you write a single sentence, break down each prompt. What’s it really asking? Then brainstorm stories that align with your values, identity, and growth. Think in moments, not titles. Skip the generic stuff.
Once you’ve got stories, build bullet-point skeletons for each essay: what happened, what changed, and how it ties to your journey to medicine. That clarity will save you hours later.
Take it one essay at a time. Don’t try to multitask or Frankenstein pieces together.
Each essay should have an emotional anchor, like a moment or insight that makes us feel something.
Once it’s down, edit for clarity and rhythm. Trim jargon. Vary sentence lengths. Make it flow like a conversation, not a textbook.
Now tighten it. Cut the fluff. Every sentence should either move the story forward or deepen the reflection.
Read it aloud. If you stumble, your reader will too.
Get feedback, but not from 10 people. One or two smart, thoughtful reviewers who are familiar with the admissions process are much better than a crowd of opinions.
Every year, strong candidates miss their shot because they submit drafts that are rushed, recycled, or just wrong for what Harvard is really looking for.
That’s exactly what we help avoid with our Application Cycle Advising. We help serious applicants pre-write their secondaries before the floodgates open. You’ll get one-on-one support to brainstorm, draft, and refine every essay, so when that Harvard secondary lands in your inbox, you’re not panicking. You’re ready.
If you want expert support to pre-write your secondaries the right way, book a free strategy call and apply to join our next advising cohort.
