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Blog > Common App , Essay Advice > How to Write a Great College Essay About Veganism

How to Write a Great College Essay About Veganism

Admissions officer reviewed by Ben Bousquet, M.Ed Former Vanderbilt University

Written by Kylie Kistner, MA Former Willamette University Admissions

Key Takeaway

People become vegan for a number of reasons. For some, it’s a deeply held personal choice, while for others it’s simply a matter of taste.

If you’re vegan, chances are that it’s a topic that’s important to you. You may even be wondering if veganism is something you should write about for your college essay.

Your college essay should be about something you are most passionate about, and veganism can allow you to talk about a core part of your values.

But veganism is also a fairly common topic that can at times be difficult to extract an original and meaningful message from.

Like any common topic, there are pros and cons to writing a personal statement about veganism. The topic isn’t off the table, but some approaches are more effective than others.

Where College Essays About Veganism Can Go Wrong

To achieve the goals of a personal statement, a college essay about veganism has to be about more than just your veganism.

After all, you are vegan for a reason. Something about the practice resonates with you at a deeper level. That significance is what you should focus on.

Two of the most common approaches to writing a college essay about veganism miss this mark because they rely too much on generalities instead of your deeply-held and identity-based reasons for being vegan.

“Why I became vegan”

The first ineffective approach is the surface-level “why I became vegan” or “how veganism changed my life” framework.

If veganism is something important to your lived experience, then it’s only logical that you’d want to write your college essay about what led you to be vegan or the specific ways being vegan has improved your life.

That is valuable. But too often essays that follow this approach give only common-knowledge reasons for being vegan. In doing so, they fail to address something truly meaningful about the writer.

A 2018 poll found that 3% of American adults identified as vegan, up from 2% in 2012. Your admissions officer is very likely familiar with the most common reasons behind veganism, so sharing this kind of surface-level answer is inadequate.

Unless you truly interrogate how veganism connects to a broader part of who you are, then your essay will leave an admissions committee wanting.

“Why you should be vegan”

The second common trope to avoid is the simple persuasive approach to “why you/everyone should be vegan.”

Maybe you do think everyone should be vegan. Maybe it’s even the belief that has sparked your interest in studying environmental science or food studies.

Because this topic carries a lot of weight, writing about why people should act a certain way takes a lot of time and care that is typically not possible in a personal statement.

A persuasive essay about veganism also says too much about others and not enough about who you are, so it’s best to find another approach.

Overall, college essays about veganism can go wrong when they make an admissions committee say, “That’s great! But now what?”

If you only write about your veganism, you leave the admissions committee with more questions than answers about who you are and why they should admit you.

Before you begin your college essay about veganism, you should consider asking yourself two questions:

How does my veganism relate to a larger part of who I am?

• And what do I want admissions officers to do with that information?

Using these questions as a guiding framework, let’s discuss two ways to go about writing your essay.

Effective ways to approach your college essay about veganism

Background and identity.

One way to make an essay about veganism stand out is by connecting your veganism to another significant part of your background or identity.

Instead of writing generally about why you became vegan, allow veganism to be only part of your more complex story.

Drawing these connections for the admissions committee will give them more genuine insight into who you are and what motivates you.

Consider the “how” and “why” behind your veganism to identify the value or motivation that is most central to you.

Did you go vegan after watching Food, Inc.?

Or maybe you grew up on a farm and your veganism is because of (or in spite of) your upbringing.

Or perhaps you simply have a dairy allergy and don’t like the taste of meat.

In all of these cases, the compelling story is not that you are vegan. Your veganism is compelling because it developed in a context that is specific to you.

Let’s plug the Food, Inc. example into our questions:

I went vegan after watching Food, Inc. > I watched Food, Inc. in health class. > I cried during the documentary because I felt bad for the animals that were being treated poorly. > I love my veganism because I can actively live out my compassion for animals.

And there it is! A compelling, motivating part of your identity: your compassion.

And what do I want admissions officers to do with this information?

I want admissions officers to know that I am deeply compassionate towards animals. > This compassion is a guiding principle for how I move throughout the world.

With these two questions answered, you have a seedling for your essay. If you find that your answers to the questions actually aren’t that compelling, then you might consider a different topic.

Related Interests

The second effective way to approach your essay about veganism is to relate it to a specific academic or co-curricular interest.

Your veganism can then be a vehicle through which you talk about another topic related to your goals and passions.

This approach is effective because it allows you to discuss something you’re personally passionate about (veganism) and connect it to another part of yourself (your interest or accomplishment) that gives the admissions officers more reason to admit you.

Probably the most popular connections are wanting to study environmental science or biology or being a climate or animal rights activist.

Let’s try the questions again:

I’m vegan. > I’ve joined and now lead an online community of vegans. > I’ve developed an academic interest in niche communities and am interested in learning more about them.

I have an extracurricular accomplishment managing an online community of 5,000+ members. > My veganism has led to a budding interest in the psychology and sociology of online groups.

Again, you’ve found the seed. You can use your newfound connections as the foundation of your college essay.

Key Takeaways

Veganism is deeply important to many people. If you’re one of them, it’s okay to write your college essay about it.

While some approaches are better than others, essays about veganism are still fairly common.

So if you choose to write one, make sure that you root your essay in genuine and specific examples that clearly illustrate how your veganism connects to a core part of you.

In the end, your college essay about veganism should showcase another value, belief, or interest that you hold deeply. Once you’ve determined what that looks like for you, check out our other resources for writing a college essay and creating a cohesive application narrative .

Liked that? Try this next.

The Incredible Power of a Cohesive College Application

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Life of a vegetarian college student: Health, lifestyle, and environmental perceptions

Melissa d. olfert.

a Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design, Division of Animal and Nutritional Sciences, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA;

Makenzie L. Barr

Anne e. mathews.

b Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA;

Tanya M. Horacek

c Falk College, Department of Nutrition and Food Studies, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA;

Kristin Riggsbee

d College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences, Department of Nutrition, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA

Wenjun Zhou

Sarah e. colby.

To examine health behavior and environmental perception differences among vegetarian and nonvegetarian students.

Participants:

First-year university students (n=1078) from eight United States universities.

Data were obtained from base 2015 and followup 2016 assessments. Vegetarians and nonvegetarians were compared for anthropometrics, lifestyle behaviors, and campus environmental perceptions (CEPS).

Vegetarians had smaller waist circumference, lower systolic blood pressure, higher fruit and vegetable consumption, lower percentage of energy obtained from fat, and higher perceived stress. Vegetarians expressed a lower rating of perceptions of health policies on campus.

Conclusion:

A clear difference in indicators of physical health does not appear, however, vegetarian students show positive dietary patterns which can promote positive health outcomes. Further, vegetarians had lower perceptions of health policies on campus. Results can be used by administrators to ensure policies are in place to support health of students as currently vegetarian students see limitations in the environmental health policies.

Introduction

The vegetarian diet, commonly defined as a diet that excludes intake of meat (fowl, seafood, etc.) and meat-based products, continues to grow in popularity in the United States. 1 Estimates show that approximately 4% of the American population identifies as vegetarian. 2 Further, certain demographics, such as college students, are more commonly switching to a vegetarian diet with 6% of young adults stating they follow the vegetarian diet. 1 , 3 Factors leading to the choice of following a vegetarian diet are vast and include health benefits, animal and ethical issues, religion, social media and popular trends, and peer/environmental influence. 4 , 5

In regards to health, research has suggested that vegetarian diets have the potential to be anti-obesogenic relative to diets that include some amount of meat or fish. 6 A study of groups with differing dietary patterns found that groups whose diets entirely excluded meat (vegans and vegetarians) had lower body mass index (BMI) (BMI) than groups of pescatarians, semi-vegetarians (restricting meat intake), and nonvegetarians. 7 BMI was also observed to increase simultaneously with greater inclusion of meat and/or fish in the diet. 7 Likewise, several studies have shown that vegetarianism is associated with beneficial effects among cardiovascular health indicators, including lower BMI (BMI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, glucose levels, and incidence of and mortality from ischemic heart disease. 8 , 9 Therefore, following a vegetarian diet may be preventative for chronic disease development.

Further, as may be expected, previous studies have observed that vegetarians on average consume greater quantities of fruits and vegetables daily than nonvegetarians. 8 Specifically for college populations, vegetarian students have been found to be more likely to meet the Healthy People 2010 dietary guidelines in comparison to their nonvegetarian counterparts, which may be preventative of future health problems. 8 However, other research indicates that college aged vegetarians may be at an increased risk for unhealthy eating behaviors such as binge eating and overall lead to the development of disordered eating behaviors. 10 – 13 Further, in some young populations, vegetarians have reported higher levels of anxiety and depression although research is limited. 14 As college students are already susceptible to higher levels of stress, this additional layer of restrictive eating could be problematic. 15 Therefore, the impact of a vegetarian diet on the behaviors and lifestyle of young adults needs further investigation.

Additionally, adherence to a vegetarian diet on a college campus may be difficult due to the environment. Growing data suggest that conditions and features of the campus environment influence diet choices, physical activity levels, and indirectly, the risk of developing obesity and/or related lifestyle diseases. On college campuses, the quality and perception of the dining food are often poor, with students often perceiving little to no healthy options are available. 16 , 17 Though the current body of psychological research makes it clear that perceptions can have a significant impact on individuals’ behavior, one aspect of the relationship between environment and obesity has rarely been explored: whether an individual must actually live in an objectively-assessed obesogenic environment in order to be at risk for the associated negative health outcomes, or whether is it sufficient that he or she perceives the environment to be not conducive to a healthful lifestyle. One of the few studies related to this topic found that positive perceptions of the local environment, including perceived access to dining amenities and recreation facilities, were associated with increased physical activity, higher levels of self-reported health, and lower rates of obesity. 18 This suggests that perceptions of the local environment may have a significant impact on health behavior and outcomes. Another analysis showed that individuals’ perceptions of their food environment may not be an accurate representation of the true, objectively-measured environment, and that factors such as low socioeconomic status (SES) are associated with underestimation of the quality of the local food environment. 19 The addition of “health promoting” amenities to an obesogenic environment may not be sufficient to reverse trends of obesity and poor health outcomes if community members’ perceptions of their environment do not change accordingly. Thus, examination of the relationship between environmental perceptions and health behaviors and choices, including adherence to a vegetarian diet, could lead to valuable insights for future health policy development.

Although campuses are often termed “obesogenic environments,” 9 , 20 with student populations become more diverse and popularity of vegetarian diets continue to rise, many colleges and universities have sought to implement modifications to their campus environments in order to promote more healthful lifestyles and reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity among their students. Multi-campus evaluation of campus dining options shows 80% of campuses providing vegetarian options. 21 Some institutions have also made efforts to improve students’ health by promoting vegetarian/semi-vegetarian diets through initiatives such as the “Meatless Monday” campaign. 22 Few studies have investigated whether the indications of superior physical health observed in other vegetarian populations are also present in vegetarian college students. Additionally, though some studies have investigated the environmental conditions associated with unhealthful diets and negative health outcomes among college students, few studies have examined the conditions associated with unusually healthful diets. 23 Thus, there were two major aims for this paper: one, to examine the health and lifestyle characteristics of vegetarians in comparison to nonvegetarians, and two, to explore the environmental perceptions associated with adherence to vegetarian and nonvegetarian diets.

Materials and methods

Study design.

Data for this secondary analysis were obtained from the Get Fruved study, a program aimed at promoting healthier lifestyles among young adults. 24 As part of Get Fruved, at-risk freshman students (n = 1155) from eight regionally spread universities in the United States completed a baseline survey that included questions about a variety of demographic, health and lifestyle behaviors and perceptions, and environmental characteristics. Baseline data were collected in 2015 and follow-up in 2016, thus two timepoints of comparison are available. At-risk criteria were defined as having less than optimal fruit and vegetable intake and at least one additional risk factor (first-generation college students, racial/ ethnic minority, low affluence, having overweight/obese parent, or personal overweight Body Mass Index). All subjects gave their informed consent for inclusion before they participated in the study. The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The protocol was reviewed and approved from each university’s Internal Review Board: [Content removed for blinded review]. Informed consent was collected from each participant prior to enrollment. The Get Fruved study was retrospectively registered on October 21, 2016 on clinicaltrials.gov [Content removed for blind review].

Survey measures

For this current study, variables related to health, lifestyle behaviors, and campus environment were selected from the overall Get Fruved survey.

Health measures

Physical health variables were collected from the Get Fruved anthropometric data (BMI, waist circumference, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP)) which were measured in person by trained study personnel. Height was measured by stadiometer (Heightonic digital stadiometer; Issaquah, WA) with the participant standing, facing forward without shoes, including height. Weight was taken without shoes and with light clothing via digital scale (Electronic Tanita scale; Arlington Heights, IL). Waist, hip, and neck circumferences were taken while the participant was minimally clothed via Gulick meter (North Coast Medical Gulick tape measure; Gilroy, CA). Waist measurement was taken at the midpoint between the lower margin of the last palpable rib and the top of the iliac crest; hip circumference was taken at the largest area of the hips. Blood pressures were taken in a seated resting position with an automated cuff (Omron HEM 907 XL Intellisense Prof. Digital BP monitor; Kyoto, Japan) that measured twice and averaged the two measurements. All measures were taken twice and averaged. Repeated measures were taken a third time if initial measures had a range larger than 0.2 kilo-grams for weight, 0.2 centimeters for height, and 1.0 centimeters for waist, hip, and neck circumference. All measurements were identical at each intervention site. To ensure data reliability all researchers completed inter-rater reliability to greater than 80% before data collection.

Lifestyle and behavioral measures

All other data used in this analysis were self-reported and collected via Qualtrics survey platform. Several previously validated instruments were included in the survey to assess respondents’ physical and mental health.

Vegetarian variable.

Vegetarian status was assessed using a single multiple-choice survey question that asked students “Do you consider yourself to be a vegetarian?”. Response options were yes, no, don’t know, and choose not to answer.

Stress variable.

Stress scores were calculated using the validated14-Item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14). 25 The PSS scores perceived stress on a scale of 0–56 with scores between 0–13 being low stress, 14–26 being moderate stress, and 27–40 representing high stress. Items include questions regarding stress in the past month (i.e., “in the last month, how often have you felt nervous or stressed?”).

Physical activity variable.

Physical activity was measured by the shortened version of the International Physical Activity Quotient (IPAQ) with higher scores indicated more weekly physical activity. 26 , 27 The short-form IPAQ is a validated questionnaire to score physical activity metabolic equivalency tasks in minutes/week (METs). The tool is comprised of six self-reported items of type (light, moderate or vigorous), frequency in days, and duration in minutes of physical activity performed (i.e., “During the last 7 days, on how many days did you do vigorous physical activities like heavy lifting, digging, aerobics, or fast bicycling?”, “How much time did you usually spend doing vigorous physical activities on one of those days?”).

Eating disorder variable.

The Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) 28 is a validated measure that was used to determine eating disorder risk scores range from 0 to 78. Questions cover topics such as dieting (i.e., “I think about burning calories when I exercise”), oral control (i.e., “I feel like others would prefer if I ate more”) and food preoccupation (i.e., “I find myself preoccupied with food”). A score of higher than 20 points indicates disordered eating behaviors.

Sleep variable.

The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used to measure sleep quality with higher scores indicating worse sleep quality. 29 The PSQI asks about sleep in the last month, with continuous scoring ranging between 0 and 21 with scores above 5 indicating poor sleep quality.

Dietary intake variable.

Daily fruit/vegetable consumption and percentage of energy obtained from fat were measured by the National Cancer Institute Fruit and Vegetable Screener (NCI FV) 30 and Percentage Energy from Fat Screener (NCI Fat), respectively. The validated NCI FV screener tool has students complete 19 self-reported questions on daily fruit and vegetable intake (servings/day). Questions asked about type and amount of fruit and vegetable consumption during the past month (i.e., “Each time you ate lettuce salad, how much did you usually eat?”). Higher NCI scores indicated a larger percentage of intake.

Environmental perception measure

Respondents’ provided perceptions of their campus environment at the follow-up assessment that used the College Environment Perceptions Survey (CEPS), 31 a 28-item survey using a five-point Likert scale for responses. This developed tool examined participants’ perceptions toward seven over-arching themes of their campus: (1) water quality, (2) healthy foods, (3) campus policies, (4) stress, (5) sleep, (6) exercise and sports facilities, and (7) vending machines. 31 CEPS total score was out of 100 points with questions being places into the seven categories. Maximum scores for each subscale are as follows: healthy food = 20 points, water = 12 points, physical activity = 24 points, sleep = 6 points, stress = 6 points, policy = 20 points, vending = 12 points.

Statistical analysis

All statistical analysis was done with JMP Pro 13.0.0 (JMP® , Version Pro 13, SAS Institute Inc. Cary, NC, Copyright ©2013). Respondents were separated into a binary vegetarian or nonvegetarian variable with those who responded “Yes” to the vegetarian question categorized as vegetarians, while respondents who answered “No” were categorized as nonvegetarians. Respondents who selected “Choose not to answer” or “Don’t Know” were not included in further analyses (n = 15). Additionally, students who began baseline as a vegetarian and switched to nonvegetarian at follow-up, or vice versa, were excluded from analysis (n = 26).

Pearson’s chi-square test was performed to test for differences in the number of males and females, number of students identifying as racial minorities, weight loss intentions, and weight loss attempts in the past year between the vegetarian and nonvegetarian groups. Non-parametric Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test was used to assess differences between vegetarians and nonvegetarians in BMI, SBP, DBP, waist circumference, sleep quality, eating disorder risk, physical activity, daily fruit/vegetable consumption, percentage of energy obtained from fat, and perceptions of the campus environment due to lack of normal distribution of continuous variables. Alpha was set at 0.05.

Demographics

From the initial sample, 1078 students were identified as either vegetarian or nonvegetarian at both baseline and follow-up, consistently. This constituted 93.3% of the original sample. Within this group, 61 students were identified as vegetarian and 1028 students as nonvegetarian. The majority of both vegetarians and nonvegetarians were female (85.3% vs. 64.8%; p < .01), eighteen years old (80.3% vs. 87.0%; p = .14). No significant difference was identified in the proportion of vegetarian and nonvegetarian students who identified as members of a racial minority group ( p = 0.50). There was no difference in living arrangements between vegetarians and nonvegetarians, with the majority of students in both groups reporting living in campus residence halls (82.0% vs. 87.1%, p = 0.25).

Health, lifestyle, and environment perceptions

In Table 1 , at baseline compared to nonvegetarians, vegetarian students had significantly lower SBP ( p < .01), smaller hip circumference ( p = .04), higher daily cup serving consumption of fruits and vegetables ( p < .0001), lower percentage of energy obtained from fat ( p = .0032), and higher PSS-14 scores ( p = .0325) at baseline. There were no differences between vegetarians and nonvegetarians in BMI, waist circumference, DBP, IPAQ, EAT-26, PSQI scores, or weight intentions ( p > .05).

Selected demographic, health, and lifestyle characteristics of vegetarian and nonvegetarian students.

Among follow-up assessments, there were similar findings of significant differences among the two groups with vegetarians having a lower BMI ( p < .01), smaller hip circumference ( p < .05), lower SBP ( p < .01), higher NCI FV ( p < .01), and lower NCI Fat ( p < .05). Changes in findings occurred with. A lack of significance among BMI ( p = .07), waist circumference ( p = .23), hip circumference ( p = .08), DBP ( p = .10), PSS-14 (p = 0.17), IPAQ ( p = .68), and EAT-26 ( p = 0.32).

As shown in Table 2 , no significant differences were found between groups in campus environmental perceptions (CEPS), expect for policy with vegetarians having a lower rating of perception of health policies on campus compared to non-vegetarians ( p = .044).

Perceptions of campus environment among vegetarian and nonvegetarian students at post-intervention.

The prevalence of vegetarianism in our sample was 6.2% of 1115 individuals, which is comparable to the prevalence of vegetarianism reported within an earlier study examining early and middle adolescent vegetarians. 8 A study from Perry et al study suggests that the prevalence of vegetarianism may remain constant throughout adolescence. 8 These adolescent vegetarians were found to be significantly more likely to be female than nonvegetarians, a pattern that has been observed previously. 32 Likewise, these results were recognized in our population.

The current body of evidence regarding mental health and vegetarianism reveals a complex and even contradictory set of relationships. In this study, two variables pertaining to students’ mental health were included: stress levels, as measured by the PSS-14, and disordered eating behaviors, as measured by the EAT-26. Among PSS-14, vegetarians had significantly higher stress than their nonvegetarian counterparts. Many previous studies have observed an association between vegetarianism and poor mental health. Few studies have examined stress levels in this population, but vegetarians have been observed to contemplate and attempt suicide at higher rates than nonvegetarians and have a higher prevalence of depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and seasonal affective disorder. 8 , 33 – 37 Oppositely, some randomized controlled trials have shown improvements in mood and stress levels in individuals who adopt a vegetarian diet, compared to those maintaining an omnivorous diet. 38 , 39 Features of the vegetarian diet, such as nutrient content and level of consumption of certain fatty acids, have been suggested as contributing factors to the mental health of this population. 35 , 39 It is also possible that certain personality factors predispose individuals to both mental health disorders and vegetarianism.

Regarding EAT-26 scores, there were no significant differences in scores between groups at baseline or follow-up assessment. Klopp et al. observed that college women had a significantly higher proportion of vegetarian women scored above 30 on the EAT, indicating eating disorder risk, in comparison to nonvegetarian women. 40 A study by Bardone-Cone et al found that women with a history of disordered eating were significantly more likely to have ever been or currently be vegetarian compared to women without a history of eating disorders. 41 Adolescent and young adult vegetarians have been found to be more likely to be diagnosed with an eating disorder by a physician and to report disordered eating behaviors such as binge eating with loss of control, intentional vomiting, and laxative abuse. 8 , 11 , 42 Similar relationships between vegetarianism and eating disorders have been observed cross-culturally. 34 , 43 – 45 However, in opposition and along with our findings, a few studies have failed to identify any association between vegetarianism and disordered eating. In a previous study of young adults, there was no difference between vegetarians, vegans, semi-vegetarians, and omnivores in EAT-26 scores, but other differences in eating behavior were observed. For instance, vegetarians had lower levels of external eating and were more willing to have and resist cravings than omnivores. 13

A prospective justification for differing results among previous research is the heterogeneity of motivation for vegetarianism. Former studies have shown that individuals may adhere to a vegetarian diet due to various factors such as ethical reasons, personal health, desire to lose weight, environmental explanations, and/or religious beliefs. 46 The association between vegetarianism and disordered eating may only encompass the reasoning for a subset of vegetarians who maintain this diet for health or weight-related reasons. Some evidence suggests that individuals who have or are prone to eating disorders use the vegetarian diet as a mask for generalized diet restriction and disordered behaviors. 45 In this study, as in previous studies on vegetarianism and disordered eating, participants’ motivations for adhering to a vegetarian diet were not explored. It is possible, however, that further examination of our population of vegetarians may find similar reasoning for adhering to this diet.

Albeit previous studies have reported an association between vegetarianism and higher levels of physical activity, vegetarians were found to participate in physical activity at the same rate as nonvegetarians when examining IPAQ scores. 36 In opposition to previously conducted studies, vegetarians were found to have a similar mean BMI as nonvegetarians. As no difference in physical activity levels was observed between vegetarians and nonvegetarians, the potential similarity of BMI could be related. However, it was observed that vegetarians consumed significantly more servings of fruits and/or vegetables per day and obtained a lower percentage of their daily caloric intake from fats than nonvegetarians. Additional cardiovascular benefits could be deduced from these findings with significantly lower SBP observed among vegetarian students in comparison to their nonvegetarian counterparts. Interestingly, this was the case despite the fact that vegetarian students did not appear to differ from nonvegetarians in regard to all measured non-dietary contributors to cardiovascular health, such as sleep quality and physical activity levels. The consumption of lower fat and higher fruit and vegetables may potentially explain the protective cardiovascular effects within the vegetarian group.

In our population, no significant differences were observed between vegetarians and nonvegetarians in any CEPS subscores other than policy with nonvegetarians expressing higher ratings of health policies on campus. These results are not especially surprising for the exercise section, given that no differences in physical activity levels were noted between vegetarian and nonvegetarian respondents. However, it is notable that no difference was observed between the two groups’ mean food scores despite the reported differences in diet content. This suggests that the differences in dietary content are likely not due to differences in perceptions of their food environment. Among policy it may be deduced that vegetarians may expect or pay more attention to health policies on campus and are hyperaware of what they believe should be the amount.

In the present study, respondents were surveyed in the fall and spring of their first year of college, with the vast majority of students reported living in on-campus residence halls or dormitories. Universities often require students who select this type of housing to enroll in a prepaid meal plan, which allows the students to access dining halls and other selected food establishments across campus. As all students enrolled in a meal plan have access to the same variety of dining hall foods, some of the constraints that may influence vegetarianism in other populations, such as the ability to purchase produce and meat alternatives, may not apply in this setting. Both vegetarian and nonvegetarian students would also be expected to have approximately equal access to campus amenities, such as recreation centers, counseling services, and water fountains. This may be an explanation for the homogeneity of environment perceptions among vegetarians and nonvegetarians in this sample.

Although small differences in vegetarian and nonvegetarian health were shown the highlight of vegetarian students showing positive dietary patterns, which can be preventative against negative health outcomes, is ideal and should be of interest to campus administration. The promotion of vegetarian diets on campus can help to align college student diets with that of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 47 Historically, it is known the college students fail to adhere to these guidelines, specifically failing to meet the recommended intake of 5 servings a day of fruit and vegetables. 48 – 50 Therefore, following a vegetarian diet on campus may help students to improve their diet and having campus support for such diets is essential. Further, as students in this study identified a greater need to campus policies to promote health, campus administrators can look to reevaluate health policies to make students more aware and the environment more in line with the health needs of students as currently vegetarian students see limitations in the environmental policies supporting health needs of students.

Limitations and future studies

As this study is not without limitations, we recognize that our vegetarian screening question did not provide a definition of vegetarianism and that students were not asked any additional questions about their vegetarian status beyond the initial screening question. Additional questions should ask the duration of dietary patterns. As such, the current questionnaire tools utilized to capture all data in this population took participants 45–60 minutes to complete, and consequently a registered dietitian 24-hour recall or validated recall tool to ensure vegetarianism was not given to reduce participant burden. Further, the NCI screeners may fail to capture certain vegetarian food items or lack reliability to capture true vegetarianism. Because of this, it is not known whether any semi-vegetarian students, such as those who restricted meat intake or were pescatarians, were included in the vegetarian group. Additionally, the percentages of different vegetarian subgroups (e.g. lacto-vegetarians, lacto-ovo-vegetarians) and vegans present within the vegetarian group are not known. It is possible that this lack of information may have some bearing on the results obtained from these data, as some vegetarian subgroups have previously been found to be significantly different from the general vegetarian population. 7 There may also be differences among vegetarians based on the source of motivation to adhere to a vegetarian diet (e.g. health, religion, ethics). Thus, further studies are warranted to explore health outcomes in various vegetarian subgroups as compared to the general population. Moving forward, it may be valuable to conduct a similar study focusing on students who primarily live off-campus, as such a sample would be expected to have more variation in environmental conditions. Environmental audit data would also be a useful addition to future analyses, as its inclusion would allow for comparison of the objective and perceived environment.

Conclusions

Vegetarian college students who responded to the Get Fruved baseline survey in fall 2015 appear to have heightened indicators of physical health, particularly in risk factors for cardiovascular disease than their nonvegetarian peers. Specifically, vegetarian students show positive dietary patterns that can promote positive health outcomes. Further, while vegetarian and nonvegetarian students had similar campus environmental perceptions, vegetarians highlight the need for policies on campus to promote health. However, the observed health differences are unlikely to be due to differences in perception of environmental conditions between vegetarians and nonvegetarians although more testing is needed.

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a research grant from the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Grant no. 2014-67001-21851 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, “Get Fruved:” A peer-led, train-the-trainer social marketing intervention to increase fruit and vegetable intake and prevent childhood obesity - A2101 , as well as West Virginia University Experimental Station Hatch no. WVA00627 and WVA00641. The funding sponsors had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of the data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results. We would like to thank the research participants. Further we would like to thank our multistate partners from the Healthy Campus Research Consortium.

This project was supported by AFRI Grant no. 2014-67001-21851 from the USDA NIFA, “Get Fruved:” A peer-led, train-the-trainer social marketing intervention to increase fruit and vegetable intake and prevent childhood obesity -A2101 along with support from West Virginia Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station WVA00689 and WVA00721

Ethics approval and consent to participate

The multi-state umbrella Institutional Review Board (IRB) at University of Tennessee, Knoxville approved all recruitment strategies of the study for University of Tennessee, West Virginia University, and Kansas State University (IRB approval #UTK IRB-14-09366 B-XP). The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and all participants provided written consent to participate by signing an IRB approved informed consent form. Verbal consent was received from each participant.

Availability of data and material

The datasets generated and/or analyzed in the current study are not publicly available but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Trial Registration

This study was retrospectively registered on October 21, 2016 on clinicaltrials.gov , {"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT02941497","term_id":"NCT02941497"}} NCT02941497 .

Conflict of interest

The authors have no competing interests to declare.

Essays About Veganism: Top 5 Examples and 10 Prompts

Veganism is on the rise. See below for our great examples of essays about veganism and helpful writing prompts to get started. 

Veganism is the practice of abstaining from animal-based foods and products. The movement originated from the philosophies against using animals as commodities and for capitalist gains. Now a booming industry, veganism promises better health benefits, a more humane world for animals, and an effective solution to global warming. 

Here is our round-up of essays examples about veganism:

1. A Brief History of Veganism by Claire Suddath

2. animal testing on plant-based ingredients divides vegan community by jill ettinger, 3. as vegan activism grows, politicians aim to protect agri-business, restaurateurs by alexia renard, 4. bezos, gates back fake meat and dairy made from fungus as next big alt-protein by bob woods, 5. going vegan: can switching to a plant-based diet really save the planet by sarah marsh, 1. health pros and cons of veganism, 2. veganism vs. vegetarianism, 3. the vegan society, 4. making a vegan diet plan, 5. profitability of vegan restaurants, 6. public personalities who are vegan, 7. the rise of different vegan products, 8. is vegan better for athletes, 9. vegans in your community, 10. most popular vegan activists.

“Veganism is an extreme form of vegetarianism, and though the term was coined in 1944, the concept of flesh-avoidance can be traced back to ancient Indian and eastern Mediterranean societies.”

Suddath maps out the historical roots of veganism and the global routes of its influences. She also laid down its evolution in various countries where vegan food choices became more flexible in considering animal-derived products critical to health. 

“Along with eschewing animal products at mealtime, vegans don’t support other practices that harm animals, including animal testing. But it’s a process rampant in both the food and drug industries.”

Ettinger follows the case of two vegan-founded startups that ironically conducts animal testing to evaluate the safety of their vegan ingredients for human consumption. The essay brings to light the conflicts between the need to launch more vegan products and ensuring the safety of consumers through FDA-required animal tests. 

“Indeed, at a time when the supply of vegan products is increasing, activists sometimes fear the reduction of veganism to a depoliticized way of life that has been taken over by the food industry.”

The author reflects on a series of recent vegan and animal rights activist movements and implies disappointment over the government’s response to protect public safety rather than support the protests’ cause. The essay differentiates the many ways one promotes and fights for veganism and animal rights but emphasizes the effectiveness of collective action in shaping better societies. 

“Beyond fungus, Nature’s Fynd also is representative of the food sustainability movement, whose mission is to reduce the carbon footprint of global food systems, which generate 34% of greenhouse emissions linked to climate change.”

The essay features a company that produces alternative meat products and has the backing of Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Al Gore. The essay divulges the company’s investments and plans to expand in the vegan market while providing a picture of the burgeoning alternative foods sector. 

“Experts say changing the way we eat is necessary for the future of the planet but that government policy is needed alongside this. If politicians are serious about wanting dietary changes, they also need to incentivise it, scientists and writers add.”

The article conveys the insights and recommendations of environmental and agriculture experts on how to turn more individuals into vegans. The experts emphasize the need for a whole-of-society approach in shifting more diets to vegan instead of putting the onus for change on an individual. 

10 Writing Prompts on Essays About Veganism

Here is our round-up of the best prompts to create interesting essays about veganism: 

While veganism has been a top choice for those desiring to lose weight and have a healthier lifestyle, some studies have also shown its detrimental effects on health due to deficiencies in specific vitamins. First, find out what existing research and experts say about this. Then, lay down the advantages and disadvantages of going vegan, explain each, and wrap up your essay with your insights.

Differentiate veganism from vegetarianism. Tackle the foods vegans and vegetarians consume and do not consume and cite the different effects they have on your health and the environment. You may also expand this prompt to discuss the other dietary choices that spawned from veganism. 

The Vegan Society is a UK-based non-profit organization aimed at educating the public on the ways of veganism and promoting this as a way of life to as many people. Expound on its history, key organizational pillars, and recent and future campaigns. You may also broaden this prompt by listing down vegan organizations around the world. Then discuss each one’s objectives and campaigns. 

Write down the healthiest foods you recommend your readers to include in a vegan diet plan. Contrary to myths, vegan foods can be very flavorful depending on how they are cooked and prepared. You may expand this prompt to add recommendations for the most flavorful spices and sauces to take any vegan recipe a notch higher. 

Vegan restaurants were originally a niche market. But with the rise of vegan food products and several multinational firms’ foray into the market, the momentum for vegan restaurants was launched into an upward trajectory—research on how profitable vegan restaurants are against restos offering meat on the menu. You may also recommend innovative business strategies for a starting vegan restaurant to thrive and stay competitive in the market. 

From J.Lo to Bill Gates, there is an increasing number of famous personalities who are riding the vegan trend with good reason. So first, list a few celebrities, influencers, and public figures who are known advocates of veganism. Then, research and write about stories that compelled them to change their dietary preference.

The market for vegan-based non-food products is rising, from makeup to leather bags and clothes. First, create a list of vegan brands that are growing in popularity. Then, research the materials they use and the processes they employ to preserve the vegan principles. This may prompt may also turn into a list of the best gift ideas for vegans.

Many believe that a high-protein diet is a must for athletes. However, several athletes have dispelled the myth that vegan diets lack the protein levels for rigorous training and demanding competition. First, delve deeper into the vegan foods that serve as meat alternatives regarding protein intake. Then, cite other health benefits a vegan diet can offer to athletes. You may also add research on what vegan athletes say about how a vegan diet gives them energy. 

Interview people in your community who are vegan. Write about how they made the decision and how they transitioned to this lifestyle. What were the initial challenges in their journey, and how did they overcome these? Also, ask them for tips they would recommend to those who are struggling to uphold their veganism.

Make a list of the most popular vegan activists. You may narrow your list to personalities in digital media who are speaking loud and proud about their lifestyle choice and trying to inspire others to convert. Narrate the ways they have made and are making an impact in their communities. 

To enhance your essay, read our guide explaining what is persuasive writing . 

If you’d like to learn more, check out our guide on how to write an argumentative essay .

Yna Lim is a communications specialist currently focused on policy advocacy. In her eight years of writing, she has been exposed to a variety of topics, including cryptocurrency, web hosting, agriculture, marketing, intellectual property, data privacy and international trade. A former journalist in one of the top business papers in the Philippines, Yna is currently pursuing her master's degree in economics and business.

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Home — Application Essay — Liberal Arts Schools — Being Vegetarian for a Week

Being Vegetarian for a Week

• University: UW–Madison

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Words: 586 |

Published: Jul 18, 2018

Words: 586 | Pages: 2 | 3 min read

The off-white, slimy cube looked back at me with a concentrated gaze that matched my own. I tentatively picked up my fork, poked its side, and watched it jiggle and sway under my fork’s careful teasing. “The time has come,” I thought to myself. “Today is the day I will eat tofu.” I stabbed the dang cube with my fork, raised it to my mouth, and swallowed it—along with my dignity. A dumb decision made in the spur of the moment can change one’s life forever, and, that week, I made the dumb decision to take part in a bet that I lost.

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Now I found myself face-to-face with a block of pressed baby soybeans and with what seemed like an impossible challenge: be vegetarian for a week.

While a vegetarian diet is easy for some, I grew up in a carnivorous family. A trip to the Brazilian Steakhouse, Costco hotdogs, and rotisserie chickens were not out of the norm. Being vegetarian would require commitment, perseverance, and daily battles with leafy, green-eyed monsters. Out of desperation during my first week, I combed internet for recipes and flipped through the pages of Vegetarian Times. Somewhere along the way, I was blinded by a blog’s neon green background and emphasis on graphic factory farm photos; despite the awful visuals and clear propaganda, the blog had a message that stuck with me: in the future, we will all be vegetarians. Whether this message is true or not, it made me contemplate human responsibility to mother earth.

As my internet searches shifted from quinoa recipes to the ethics of vegetarianism, I learned more about the damage human behavior inflicts on mother earth. I didn’t know it required 2,464 gallons of water to produce a pound of beef, nor did I know that nine billion chickens were slaughtered each year. I did, however, know that vegetarians were notoriously high-maintenance, preachy, and deficient in a million vitamins. Never in a lifetime would I have predicted a future as one of them. Today, I have become the high-maintenance diner who orders the BLT without bacon and subs black beans for pulled pork in tacos. I have also become the “preachy vegetarian” who leads the school Herbivore Society and who probably would have been mocked by my former self. A simple challenge initiated by a friendly bet has changed the way I view the world around me and has fostered my eagerness to try new things. More importantly, I learned that being a vegetarian was more than a change in diet. Being a vegetarian meant being aware of the effects of my actions and learning to immerse myself in a challenge.

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Choosing to live life as a rabbit was no exception to the rest of my life: I thrive on challenges. Challenges that make my brain ache (or in this case, my stomach) excite me. I chased challenges in the classroom by deciphering Dalton’s law and memorizing 1,000+ locations on a world map; on the road, every step during the last few miles of my half-marathon is a lung-busting, calf-aching challenge. I’m drawn by intellectual debates-- whether they be about the origins of Thanksgiving or Kafka’s intentions-- that challenge my mind’s preconceived notions. Yet, I find it comforting to know that logic is always by my side on even the most challenging derivatives and computer science projects. The challenges I seek go beyond a simple diet change; rather, challenges are the way I satisfy my curiosity and embrace my love of learning.

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Articles & Advice > Student Life > Articles

The Ultimate Vegetarian and Vegan Guide to Good Eating in College

Though many campus dining halls offer options, being a vegetarian or vegan can be tough. Here's an ultimate guide to your college cafeteria and beyond.

by Stephanie Farah Former Writer and Senior Editor, CollegeXpress

Last Updated: Oct 28, 2022

Originally Posted: Oct 24, 2012

Though choosing not to eat meat isn't difficult, eating at restaurants or friends’ houses does occasionally put ypou in some tricky culinary and social situations. Dinner at a nice steakhouse might mean you'll be eating a plain baked potato and a side salad and then raiding the fridge when you get home. Brunch at a friend’s house could mean finding a polite way to turn down the sausage and egg casserole. I can only imagine how difficult it must be to maintain a vegetarian or vegan diet in college. Between classes, study sessions, and a bustling social life, there’s hardly enough time to shop for and prepare three meat-free meals a day. And campus dining halls don’t exactly conjure up images of tofu scrambles and veggie burgers. True, the college dining experience may not be inherently veg-friendly, but there are more options today than ever before. Whether you’ve gone meatless for moral or health-related reasons, sticking to your vegetarian or vegan lifestyle can be challenging in college, but it’s not impossible.

Vegan- and vegetarian-friendly cities

When choosing the list of schools you’re going to apply to, consider looking at a few located in or around these cities that really roll out the red carpet for folks on a plant-based diet:

• Austin, Texas: Known as the Lone Star State’s hippie/hipster enclave, it makes sense that Austin is home to some excellent and innovative meat-free dining options, boasting no less than three dozen vegan/vegetarian establishments. In this dynamic and culturally diverse college town, you’re as likely to find lip-smacking barbecue ribs as you are mind-blowing babaganoush. Nearby schools: The University of Texas at Austin , Concordia University , St. Edward’s University
• Boulder and Denver, Colorado: In Boulder, another hippie haven, and nearby Denver, the Mile-High City, you can enjoy beautiful views of the Rockies, unrivaled outdoor activities in both summer and winter, and a host of vegan and vegetarian restaurants. And some of the cities’ omnivorous restaurants have even started offering Meatless Monday fare. Nearby schools: University of Colorado, Boulder , University of Colorado, Denver , University of Denver
• Burlington, Vermont: If you long for a small town that’s big on veg-friendly foods, look no further than the charming lakefront town of Burlington. Located in picturesque northern New England (Canada is just a stone’s throw away), Burlington is brimming with unique meatless dining options. Nearby schools: University of Vermont , Champlain College
• New York, New York: The city so nice, they named it twice—and then went on to cram the 33-square-mile island with more delicious food than anyone could possibly eat in one, or even two or three, lifetimes. And a good portion of that food didn’t have parents. New York City is arguably the best place in the world to get a steak, but with such a wide array of restaurants, it’s also one of the easiest places to survive as a vegetarian. Nearby schools: New York University , Fordham University , The Juilliard School (and many more)
• Portland, Oregon: Portland is synonymous with healthy living, and no list of vegetarian-friendly cities, including PETA’s , would be complete without it. Vegans in particular will enjoy Portland’s impressive variety of restaurants, such as East Side Delicatessen , which serves up roast beef and vegan “meat” sandwiches with equal aplomb. Nearby schools: Oregon State University , University of Portland , Reed College
• San Francisco, California: Yet another hippie hangout, San Francisco has one of the most innovative restaurant scenes in the veg-friendly state of California, and it was the first US city to adopt Meatless Mondays. In the City by the Bay, steering clear of meat and other animal products is easy. Indulge your inner hippie at Haight-Ashbury’s Cha Cha Cha , where you can tuck into Caribbean-themed vegetable dishes while admiring the neighborhood’s tie-dyed populace. Nearby schools: UC Berkeley , University of San Francisco , Golden Gate University

Connect me with CU Boulder! Connect me with U of Denver!

Connect me with UVM! Connect me with NYU!

Connect me with Fordham! Connect me with UP!

Connect me with Reed! Connect me with USF!

Vegan-/vegetarian-friendly schools

When it comes to campus dining options, you can always find something meatless to eat. But man cannot live on side dishes alone. In recent years, some schools have gone the extra mile for vegans, vegetarians, and students who just want some healthier meals to offset all the pizza and French fries. When applying to schools, be sure to explore their dining services. Get started here by checking out just a few of the schools that make it easy to eat your veggies:

• University of North Texas : UNT offers an entire on-campus all-vegan café called Mean Greens . Popular with carnivores and herbivores alike, the menu includes such inventive and delectable items as quinoa paella, Moroccan couscous, and garbanzo bean shepherd’s pie.
• University of California–Los Angeles : The school has committed itself to sustainable dining, adopting such programs as Beefless Thursdays and serving cage-free eggs and organic herbs grown in the school’s own herb garden.
• Northwestern University : Northwestern, which has adopted Meatless Mondays and other sustainable food initiatives , offers both vegan and vegetarian entrées, such as tofu French toast, tortilla soup, and vegetarian fajitas. There is also a wide selection of “well-balanced” menu options with fewer calories and less fat and cholesterol.
• Wesleyan University : The school’s dining services offer many meatless options and there’s even a student-run organic farm where students can learn about sustainable agriculture. The best part? Some of the produce they grow is donated to a local food pantry and served in campus dining halls.

Related: Most Vegetarian-Friendly Colleges in the US

Dorm food and dining out

Now that Mom’s not around to buy your overpriced Whole Foods granola and nutritional yeast, you’ll have to stock your dorm room with healthy go-to snacks on your own. And depending on your meal plan , you won’t be able to get your three squares a day in the dining hall, at least not every day, so you’ll need to venture off campus once in a while. Here are a few suggestions to help you fend for yourself:

• Keep a few healthy snacks in your room so you can turn to them whenever you’re tempted by junk food, or if your roommate decides to test your willpower with a bucket of fried chicken. Things like nuts, protein bars, low-fat popcorn, cereal, apples, baby carrots, and peanut butter and jelly with whole wheat bread are filling and easy to have on hand.
• For an easy lunch or dinner, there are plenty of vegan and vegetarian soups and frozen dinners to choose from. Stock up so you can avoid fast food on the weekends.
• For something more homemade, consider investing in a few college-friendly cookbooks, which are full of healthy recipes you can whip up with little more than a microwave.
• When going out to eat, Middle Eastern, Greek, Italian, and Indian restaurants are great places to find vegan and vegetarian options. Of course, you may occasionally be the odd man out with your salad while your friends tear through 50 hot wings.

Related: The Best Ideas for Dorm Meals Without a Kitchen

Vegan clothing

For those of you whose vegetarian convictions extend to your clothes and accessories, back-to-school shopping can be a challenge, especially when searching for things like leather-free shoes, bags, and jackets. Learn to check labels to ensure you’re getting man-made materials, and do some research to find vegan-friendly brands. Converse, Rampage, and Steve Madden all make vegan shoes, and retailers such as Alternative Apparel, H&M, Target, and Urban Outfitters are known to offer clothes and shoes made without animal products.

Vegetarian/vegan groups on campus

“Like attracts like,” as the saying goes. Once you land on campus, consider joining a student organization that supports your vegetarian lifestyle. You’ll make friends with like-minded people with whom you can check out campus dining options and local restaurants. At the University of Delaware , the Veg Club hosts vegetarian feasts and invites guest speakers to discuss topics like animal rights. The University of California Los Anegeles ’s Bruins for Animals! group dedicates itself to respecting and protecting animals and holds vegan potlucks throughout the year. Similar organizations exist at schools across the country, but if you happen to end up at a school without one, consider starting it yourself!

Connect me with UD!

Trading in your normal routine and the comforts of home for a brand-new life in college can be particularly trying when you’re on a meat-free diet. But rest assured you won’t end up starving or living off of soy milk and salads. Look at it as an opportunity to explore your campus and the surrounding city, get creative in the kitchen and try new foods, and encourage healthy meal options at your school. You might even make a few friends along the way.

Start planning out your best meals at the top food spots near colleges with The Best College Restaurants Across the Country: Part 1 .

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Vegetarianism Essay

This is a model  vegetarianism essay .

As I always stress, you should  read the question very carefully  before you answer it to make sure you are writing about the right thing.

Take a look at the question:

Every one of us should become a vegetarian because eating meat can cause serious health problems.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Staying on topic

If you rush to start writing and don't analyse the question and brainstorm some ideas you may include the wrong information.

There are religious or moral arguments for not eating meat, but if you discuss those you will be going off topic .

This question is specifically about the health problems connected to eating meat.

So you must discuss in your answer what some of these problems are and if you think there are real health risks or not.

Knowing about the topic

And don't get worried that you do not know much about diet and health.

As part of your IELTS study it will help if you know the basics of most topics such as some health vocabulary in this case, but you are not expected to be an expert on nutrition.

Remember, you are being judged on your English ability and your ability to construct an argument in a coherent way, not to be an expert in the subject matter. So relax and work with

Organisation

In this vegetarianism essay, the candidate disagrees with the statement, and is thus arguing that everyone does not need to be a vegetarian.

The essay has been organised in the following way:

Body 1: Health issues connected with eating meat (i.e. arguments in support of being a vegetarian Body 2: Advantages of eating meat

Now take a look at the model answer.

Model Essay

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own experience or knowledge.

Write at least 250 words.

IELTS Vegetarianism Essay - Sample Answer

Vegetarianism is becoming more and more popular for many people, particularly because of the harm that some people believe meat can cause to the body. However, I strongly believe that it is not necessary for everybody to be a vegetarian.

Vegetarians believe that meat is unhealthy because of the diseases it has been connected with. There has been much research to suggest that red meat is particularly bad, for example, and that consumption should be limited to eating it just a few times a week to avoid such things as cancer. Meats can also be high in saturated fats so they have been linked to health problems such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

However, there are strong arguments for eating meat. The first reason is that as humans we are designed to eat meat, which suggests it is not unhealthy, and we have been eating meat for thousands of years. For example, cavemen made hunting implements so that they could kill animals and eat their meat. Secondly, meat is a rich source of protein which helps to build muscles and bones. Vegetarians often have to take supplements to get all the essential vitamins and minerals. Finally, it may be the case that too much meat is harmful, but we can easily limit the amount we have without having to cut it out of our diet completely.

To sum up, I do not agree that everyone should turn to a vegetarian diet. Although the overconsumption of meat could possibly be unhealthy, a balanced diet of meat and vegetables should result in a healthy body.

(264 words)

You should begin by intoducing the topi c. The introduction in this vegetarianism essay begins by mentioning vegetarians and the possible harm of eating meat .

It then goes on to the thesis statement , which makes it clear what the candidate's opinion is.

The first body paragraph has a topic sentence which makes it clear that the paragraph is going to address the possible health issues of eating meat.

Some reasons and examples are then given to support this.

The second body paragraph then has a topic sentence which makes it clear that the main idea is now about the arguments for eating meat .

The conclusion in this vegetarianism essay then repeats the opinion and gives the candidates final thoughts.

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More Agree / Disagree Essays:

Ban Smoking in Public Places Essay: Should the government ban it?

Ban smoking in public places essay: The sample answer shows you how you can present the opposing argument first, that is not your opinion, and then present your opinion in the following paragraph.

Role of Schools Essay: How should schools help children develop?

This role of schools essay for IELTS is an agree disagree type essay where you have to discuss how schools should help children to develop.

Examinations Essay: Formal Examinations or Continual Assessment?

Examinations Essay: This IELTS model essay deals with the issue of whether it is better to have formal examinations to assess student’s performance or continual assessment during term time such as course work and projects.

Return of Historical Objects and Artefacts Essay

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Vegetarian Essays

Have no time? Stuck with ideas? We have collected a lot of interesting and useful vegetarian essay topics for you in one place to help you quickly and accurately complete your college assignment! Check out our essay examples on vegetarian and you will surely find something to your liking!

The reasons for abandoning a meat based diet go far beyond the nutritional and ethical; eating meat is also extremely destructive to the environment. With the explosive growth of the world population and increasing affluence in many Asian countries, global resources are under increasing strain. Aggravating this strain is the consumption of meat. Assembly-line meat […]

As the young boy gazes longingly at the meaty burger poster on display in a fast food chain, a repulsed vegetarian looks on in dismay. Since the beginning of time we humans have eaten animals in order to survive, but being humans some of us have developed a conscious towards all the brutal mass murdering […]

In Margaret Lundberg’s short narrative “Eating green” she has a theory about the planet going a fitter topographic point to populate if everyone became a vegetarian. which I believe is true. Lundberg negotiations about her childhood and how right off the chiropteran her female parent had her eating healthy nutrient and that reasonably much stuck […]

During the last 20 years more and more people decide to cut their daily menu any meat and animal products for many different reasons such as fear of food poisoning, diseases or etc. However, eating meat is part of the daily life of billions of people all over the world. Meat is a prehistoric, basic […]

This report is submitted in support of request for loan to allow for expansion of “Veggies and Stuff” which is the vegetarian catering company. This report outlines our plans, needs and expected costs necessary to expand the business. “Veggies and Stuff” is currently home-based business catering for small private functions. However, its popularity is increasing […]

What bugs me about this School? What really bug me in this school are the wait list and the difficulty getting class. And the price of the books and the type of food the serve and the transportation to the campus. I am having difficult to register for classes that I want I was hoping […]

According to 2012 statistics by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), it is estimated Americans ate an average of 57.4 pounds of chicken, 52.3 pounds of beef and 43.5 pounds of pork each. Vegetarians are about 5% of Americans and do not eat any meat including seafood and poultry. Meat is included as part […]

Vegetarianism is referred to as an act of refraining from meat consumption, especially red meat, seafood, poultry, as well as any other kind of flesh obtained from animals. While non-vegetarian defy, these beliefs are involved them with the unhealthy diet. Furthermore, people are what they eat –as they say; many American apparently eat chemically treated […]

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Essays on Vegetarianism

We have 8 free papers on vegetarianism for you, essay examples, essay topics, vegetarianism overview (701 words).

Vegetarianism

The time that we are now living in has been termed by many as the information age. This title has been given to the current era because people can retrieve, send, and process knowledge faster and more efficiently than ever before. From our new period has come technological advancements which have both caused and been…

Vegetarianism Essay (636 words)

Vegetarianism is the limitation of ones diet to only vegetables. Vegetarianism has been around for centuries, but recently we have seen the eruption of a more militant vegetarianism that is inspired by the animal “rights” movement. Today, vegetarian activists are throwing pies at Ronald McDonald and the Pork Queen, scrawling “meat is murder” in prominent…

Vegetarianism: What It Means To Be A Vegetarian

To most people Vegetarianism means the refraining of meat, primarily red meat, from personal consumption. Although the traditional vegetarian abstinence of red meat has grown into a group of varied lifestyles, little is known about them. To some people vegetarians are considered to be a drop out of the hippy era, or are labelled as…

History of Vegetarianism (703 words)

Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet. Albert Einstein Vegetarianism is the practice of not eating meat or some animal products, depending on the degree of vegetarianism. There are various types of vegetarianism, each with its own benefits,…

Vegetarianism Argumentative Essay

“You are what you eat”, goes a famous saying. And if that is truly the case, then a lot of Americans would appear to be unhealthy, chemically slabs of animal flesh. And while that is not a particularly pleasant thought, it is nonetheless an description of the typical American omnivore who survives on the consumption…

Vegan is the way to go Essay (701 words)

“The greatest of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. “(Mahatma Gandhi Quotes) Gandhi said this in his book, The Moral Basis of Vegetarianism, this belief is still valid in today’s modern society. At the present time in the United States, the concern for the health…

Evolution of Vegetarianism (693 words)

Vegetarianism is the limitation of ones diet to only plants, vegetables, grains, and fruits, without eating any food derived from an animal. There are different extremes of vegetarianism, where you can eat dairy, but not eggs, only milk, etc And the reasons why people convert to this diet differ. Health, religion, compassion for the animals,…

Jello Biafra – Grow More Pot (687 words)

Does anybody out there know that for the first time in American history the U.S. Army was used in a war operation against the American people? Right near here, up in Humboldt County about 200 miles north of San Francisco right near a town called Shelter Cove, get this: three- to four-hundred American G.I.s dressed…

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Diet derived from plants, with or without eggs and dairy

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• Not for everybody Let’s face the facts. Some people just love meat way too much to ever give it up for good. ...
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Vegetarian or Meat Eaters Essay

Introduction, works cited.

It is very difficult to say whether all human beings should be vegetarians or non vegetarians. However there is no strong case to conclusively prove either of the beliefs. Most studies have so far suggested that humans are primarily omnivorous, meaning that humans tend to eat what ever is available. As vegetarians humans can only eat fruits and certain varieties of leaves but not everything that grows. The human intestine is not designed to digest so many of the different plants. On the contrary a human being if left to fend for himself in remote areas such as jungles and mountains will be able to survive by eating meat, but will not be able to survive on plants as it would be difficult to identify as which is fit for human consumption. Non vegetarians argue that we as humans have the traces of canine teeth which none of the herbivorous living beings have. All animals that only eat plants are known to have stomachs that allow them to ruminate while humans do not have this facility thus indicating that we were made to become non vegetarians. It is thus clear that there is no authentic opinion about either of the eating habits and ultimately the choice boils down to individual preferences which are primarily guided by health and social concerns.

Although I never make attempts to canvas in support of vegetarianism but I have been fully convinced that in the world that we live in today, and in keeping with our body adaptability as related to our lifestyle, it is better to adopt vegetarianism as the primary dietary habit. With me it is not that I am a strict vegetarian and that I will not touch meat, but as a lifestyle choice I prefer to remain a vegetarian as far as possible. I have made the decision in favor of vegetarianism due to the large number of advantages that result from eating such food especially in view of the dormant physical environment that we live in today. I also supplement my vegetarian eating habits with a routing that is physically active and includes regular exercise and work outs.

Vegetarianism has distinct advantages in regard to nutrition, spirituality and morality. Nutrition does not result effectively amongst meat eaters since the digestive system is not able to substantially break down the acids and cholesterol as present in non vegetarian food. Medical experts have proved that the incidence of colon cancer amongst meat eaters is much higher since there is lower evacuation and slower putrefaction of the remnants of meat in the colon. Vegetarians are known to be totally free from such illnesses. Once an animal is killed its oils and flesh become unhealthy in terms of getting putrefied. Contrary to the belief that meat is a great source of proteins, the quality of the protein in meat products is considered to be very poor since there is lack of proper combination of amino acids which are the main elements in building proteins. It has been amply proved that more and better quality of proteins is found in Soya beans and tofu than in meat products.

It is well known that meat takes a longer time to digest and can remain in the intestines for up to four days, the effect of which can be seen if we leave a piece of meat in the sun for four days. During the time the meat is in the intestines it waits for a passage while it continues to cause harm to the digestive system by way of the uric acid that it contains and the constant fermentation that results within the intestine which is extremely harmful in the long run. This is the main cause of colon related illnesses.

The presence of meat in the intestines provides ground for the breeding of several undesired orgasms which cannot be overcome by the friendly bacteria which are supposed to cater to the development needs of a healthy body. Meat products provide a much greater amount of proteins than required by the human body and it is common medical knowledge that excess presence of proteins in the body will prove to be dangerous by way of the uric acid attacking the kidneys and destroying its cells called nephrons, thus resulting in the disease nephritis which ultimately renders the kidneys to become function less.

In contrast, vegetarians feel much lighter and better after they eat since there is lesser formation of protein digestive substances (keytones) when vegetarian proteins are digested. With the eating of excessive meat, more of ketones are formed which makes the person to have a nauseating feeling that reduces the desire to eat further until the adverse effect is diminished. Further complications result in the occurrence of acidosis which is the high level of acidic blood in the body resulting from higher levels of blood ketone in the system.

Lions and tigers eat meat and it serves them well because their digestive systems are acid based in having intestines that are only five feet in length and which are straight unlike the human intestines which are twenty feet long and are twisted and turned in layers within a small compact area. Such an intestine design does not facilitate proper digestion of meat in the human body. More disturbing is the fact that the meat of animals is sometimes found to have some cancerous growth which is just removed by the butchers and the remaining parts are sent to be sold for human consumptions. There is possibly no check to stop such practices thus proving to be health risks that meat eaters run in consuming such meat.

Meat is much costlier than vegetables and upon removing it from one’s diet a whole new world of eating habits is opened up. In fact lesser time is taken in cooking vegetarian food; it costs almost half as compared to meat and there is a wide array of continental, Spanish, French, Indian and Chinese styles of vegetarian food to choose from which are more nutritious than non vegetarian food. Meat products do not allow one to have a wide variety of foods as compared to vegetarian food and one need to be creative and to have the knack to enjoy the vast variety of seeds, nuts, wheat, legumes and beans to realize the utility of this variety. There is a choice in having cereals, vegetables, lentils and several other roots and beans to supplement the vegetarian diets which prove to be of better vitality to the human body. Cooking vegetarian food does not require any special technique as required in most non vegetarian food items which take a longer time and do not prove to be as nutritious.

It is known that more vegetarians are spiritually inclined which caters very well for human existence. Spirituality entails that we move away from meat eating habits towards vegetarianism so that one is led towards higher levels of self. Vegetarianism ensures a cool temperament, and reduces aggressive attitudes which are believed to be the prime reason for an unfulfilled life. Animal instincts are known to become stronger every time a person eats meat. When an animal is being killed to be consumed as meat it undergoes intense fear which is engulfed within its cells and which in turn is consumed by humans as meat. This invariably has adverse impact on the human psyche in bringing about some effect in behavior. Spiritual people are known to have an aura around them, the course for which is set by of the vegetarian diet that forms their life style and food habits. Conversely the animal aura is adopted when one consumes meat products.

There is a moral aspect attached to eating meat in that one must consider the moral responsibility and the karma associated with the killing of animals. This is irrespective of the fact that every body has his or her own concepts in life as far as food habits are concerned; at the same time one must consider the impact that is being created on the body, mind and soul in consuming what we consume. The body and mind are essentially made by what we eat, which further makes way for our thinking pattern and attitudes, which further make us to behave in our own specific styles. Our actions and behavior decide the results that we get in life which determine the levels of happiness that we have. Hence there is a strong linkage between eating habits and happiness. It does appear to be far fetched, but then all the good things in life come only upon making constructive changes within ourselves.

Vegetarianism can solve the world food crisis because almost half the world production of corn is fed to animals in order that they grow healthy to be ultimately butchered to be eaten as good quality meat by humans. Given that about forty thousand people die every day due to starvation, it would do well for the same corn and other agricultural produce to be fed to the children and others that die of food shortage. Although appearing to be almost impossible, there would be an end to the adverse situation if people become vegetarians and transfer these resources for human consumption. There would be an improvement in environmental conditions since more land is used in rearing animals for human consumption than what is used for agriculture. It is also known that nitrogen emitted by animal manure causes acid rain in many parts of the world thus polluting drinking water used by humans. The lesser the animals, the lesser will be the incidents of such rain.

Abhinabha Tangerman, Benefits and Advantages of Vegetarianism , Web.

Bernard G. Prusak, All we can eat? Thinking about vegetarianism, (2007), Thomson Gale Information Sheet, Vegetarian Society, Web.

Rejecting meat ‘keeps weight low’, (2006), BBC News Vegetarianism in a Nutshell , Web.

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Essay on being a vegetarian: Is that too risky?

<p>My D is a junior and I’m definitely getting the sense that the college process is starting for her. I know that her passions should come through in her essays. She’s a passionate environmentalist and a vegetarian for that reason. Should she write about the first part of that and not the second? Maybe I’m paranoid, but I can picture an overworked adrep scarfing down a Big Mac at her desk while delving into an essay about how eating meat is wrong. Any advice?</p>

<p>Your D should write about her passions. Good adcoms are not looking for clones of themselves, but are looking to create a diverse campus of students who meet the college’s qualifications. </p>

<p>My advice is to not try to micromanage your D’s essay. If she really ends up being rejected by a college because she’s an avid vegetarian (and I doubt that will happen), than clearly that college is not a place where she would have been happy anyway.</p>

<p>Risky essays are where all the fun is at. If the essay conveys resolve without intolerance, then there’s nothing to worry about.</p>

<p>macnyc, I just went through the dilemma you’re describing less than a month ago on the other side of the situation- as the child and applicant. If you don’t mind, I’d like to share my story and perhaps provide some insight. </p>

<p>My parents and I had conflicting opinions on appropriate essay topics. I thought my writing conveyed my passions; they worried that it might give adcoms the wrong impression. We struggled over this for a while, and it ended up effecting our relationship negatively. </p>

<p>Well, as is the case with all my college-related issues, I turned to CC :), and I got some lovely advice/critiques/confidence about my essay dilemma from carolyn, calmom, and Northstarmom, among others. The overall message I got from them was this: It’s important to let the applicant’s voice shine through. Loving parents always want the best for their children, but ultimately, the applicant has to be the one that’s happy with his/her choices at the end of the day. </p>

<p>After getting this advice and finishing the nth draft of my essay, I sat down with my parents a few days before my apps were due and I had a real heart-to-heart. I told them that my essay topic was important to me and that I needed them to understand that. It took a lot of time and persuading, but they eventually agreed to let me go ahead with what I was doing. I’m sooo happy they let me turn in my application the way <em>I</em> wanted, and I couldn’t ask for more from them. Now I’ll know whether my own raw passions and abilities qualified me for admission, rather than a safe but watered down version of myself created by my parents.</p>

<p>I understand that as a concerned parent you care about your daughter and only want the best for her. Just keep in mind that she’s a capable, intelligent person- her life is ultimately the one that will be most effected. Please don’t deprive her of the ability to decide how to direct the course of her life. Whether she gets in or doesn’t get in should be based on her abilities anyway. Plus, being original is always a plus.</p>

<p>Also, she’s still a junior. She has alot of time until her apps are due- who knows, she might find something that captures her interest more to write on during the next few months. I don’t think you have to worry about risky topics just yet. Let her figure out what she wants to write about first.</p>

<p>If you’re still worried, encourage your daughter to give her essays to english teachers or CC posters and get their opinions once she’s written a draft or two. I think that no matter what the topic, if it’s written effectively, it will leave a good impression.</p>

<p>Most importantly, please don’t let this add extra stress on the application process or your relationship with your daughter. Worrying about whether adcoms will like a risky essay doesn’t do alot of good, and doubting your daughter <em>might</em> make her resent your good intentions. When I was in this situation, for a while, I felt like my parents didn’t think I was good enough, and it really hurt. It also brought out an unrelenting, stubborn streak in me and I refused to see their side of the story. Today, I know I misinterpreted their motives, and things are cool again. </p>

<p>Please don’t fret. Things will work themselves out. :)</p>

<p>A few thoughts:</p>

<p>*Depends on the school. If it advertises itself as having phenomenal vegetarian offerings and has a big environmental studies thing, then the admissions people might think she’s a great fit. </p>

<p>*Depends on how she writes it. It could be completely boring, completely preachy, or good and different from the others. </p>

<p>*The essay shouldn’t be just about not eating meat. Surely, there is more to her personality than what she puts on her dinner plate every evening. </p>

<p>*If she has a good sense of humour, she can write a very good essay (maybe a supplemental one) about the topic… about how people in restaurants will say, “Yes, this is vegetarian; it’s chicken broth.” Or the legions of people who will ask if she still eats chicken, turkey, hen, pheasant, and quail - because birds aren’t animals.</p>

<p>She should write about her passions, but the essays should do more than merely describing her convictions. A good essay lets you see something about the personality, maturity and ability of the student. Essays may need to be edited but I would avoid getting help from English teachers. My D got some “help” which seriously weakened her main common app essay. The sentence structure may have been improved but the essay became very bland. Her English teacher did not seem to understand the purpose and value of the essays.</p>

<p>No, IMO that is not too risky. </p>

<p>As with all topics, the value of the essay will depend on how well it is written, not on the topic. Any topic can produce a great essay; any topic can produce a horrible essay.</p>

<p>The best essays, IMO, are a genuine expression of the applicant’s own personality. Overinvolvement by parents or other well-meaning people runs the risk of distorting or stifling the applicant’s unique voice.</p>

<p>Being a vegetarian is hardly risky. Most (if not all) HS girls become vegetarians at some point. It would only be risky if she lived in a community of cattle ranchers.</p>

<p>I would suggest she skip straight over the vegetarian part and talk about her environmental activities—i.e., what she actually DOES that demonstrates her passion for the environment.</p>

<p>Ditto the opinion that there are few if any colleges that would consider this a risky essay topic today. As others have suggested, even more important than the topic is how your D treats the subject. Not only should the passion show through, but I think the ability to reflect on a topic, make it relevant to who she is as an individual, how she got that way, and where she might be going is essential. In other words, the whys and hows, not just the whats, and always relating it back to what she has learned about herself. IMO, if she feels that telling this story accomplishes all of that, then she should by all means go for it!!!</p>

<p>IMO roshke has it right. This is why the student should be the source of the essay. It may well be that vegetarianism is often written about. It may well be that many of us, including me, have nothing personal, insightful and enlightening to say about this topic. But the OP’s daughter might! And her essay will then stand out all the more for being excellent in a well-plowed field.</p>

<p>IMO, too much emphasis sometimes is placed on originality per se. Any topic, any topic can be the source of a great essay. It is not the topic, it is what one does with the topic. </p>

<p>OP’s daughter can always change topics if it turns out that vegetarianism is not “fruitful” enough in her hands. She will then at a minimum have had a learning experience of exploring and evaluating her own thoughts (as opposed to being told beforehand that her thoughts are not worth exploring).</p>

<p>Risky is fine; being self-righteous and assuming the moral superiority of a specific position would not be. The issue is probable the tone rather than the subject, and if she is sensitive and expresses herself well it should not be an issue.</p>

<p>mattmom just beat me to it. ^___ That’s what I was going to say. And that was my first thought when I saw the subject of the thread. ps, I’m a vegetarian, also (28 years), but I wouldn’t proselytize in the essay. dmd, eDad, aries - all of these posts have some godd advice.</p>

<p>Yep–just don’t be a sanctimonious vegeterian, and you’ll be fine.</p>

<p>Many thanks for all the responses and great advice. Bobisbob, best of luck with your college admissions! I really appreciate that you took the time to share your story.</p>

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Vegan, Vegetarian or Omnivore: Which Diet Is Best for You?

May 24, 2024

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An overwhelming amount of information exists about the best way to eat for long-term health. Breaking through the clutter is challenging and sometimes subjective. Licensed Dietitian, Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD explains what to look for in the foods you eat or in the lifestyle changes you’d like to make in order to live your healthiest life.

Macie Jepson Well, they say that less is more and simple is better. That’s what we’ve been told throughout the years. And Pete, I’ve been telling you this, too. These days, I’m trying to live by that adage when it comes to my diet; eat fewer processed foods, more fruits and vegetables. But I have to tell you one thing I will never eliminate in my diet is red meat.

Pete Kenworthy Yeah, I’m definitely with you on eating meat. I eat more fish and pork probably than red meat, but I certainly don’t turn away a good burger, that’s for sure. And I definitely don’t shy away from meat in general. Beef, pork, chicken, really, if you name a meat, I’ve probably eaten it or I would eat it. However, there’s an increasing body of evidence that links meat consumption, particularly red meat and processed meats with chronic illness, right? But is a plant-based diet really better for us? And what’s the difference between vegan and vegetarian?

Macie Jepson Hi, I’m Macie Jepson.

Pete Kenworthy And I’m Pete Kenworthy. And this is The Science of Health . So many questions about this growing choice to eliminate meat from our diets. Currently about 10% of Americans over the age of 18 identify as vegan or vegetarian. So here to break down these diet choices is Kelli Santiago, Clinical Dietician and Wellness Coach at University Hospitals in Cleveland. Thanks for being with us.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Thank you. Thanks for having me.

Pete Kenworthy So first, explain these diets or lifestyles, right? Vegan versus vegetarian. And we hear plant-based diet a lot these days. Is that different from those other two?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD We’ll start off with vegetarian versus vegan. So, a vegan diet would be one that doesn’t include any type of meat or animal byproducts. So, we’re talking dairy. We’re talking anything made with dairy, eggs. Anything that is going to be made from or containing an animal product would not be included in a vegan diet. So, this would include something like gelatin would not be in a vegan diet. And then the other thing I think that’s important to point out between at least what I think is the difference between a vegan diet and being a vegan. So, one could have a vegan diet, follow a vegan diet, but maybe not necessarily identify as a vegan. If you are identifying as a vegan, you would be someone where every product in your life would not contain an animal. So, you wouldn’t be wearing leather. You wouldn’t be wearing wool. You would be very cautious of where you’re getting cosmetics and what household cleaners you’re using.

Those would not be, they wouldn’t be tested on animals. They wouldn’t contain any animal products, and that I consider is a full vegan lifestyle versus a vegan diet. Neither one is right or wrong. Just to kind of explain the difference between those things.

And then a vegetarian diet. So, there’s several types of vegetarian diets you might have. So, a vegetarian diet would be one that may contain some type of animal product. So, you might have a pescatarian. A pescatarian is someone who would essentially follow a vegan diet but would allow fish. You might have a lacto-ovo-vegetarian. Again, that would be someone who essentially is following a vegan diet but would consume eggs and dairy and dairy products. You could have a lacto-ovo-pescatarian. That would be someone who would be including eggs, dairy, dairy products, and fish in their otherwise vegan diet. And that would be the main difference between those.

Macie Jepson The common denominator here, and a lot of what you just described is that people are taking meat out of their diet. And so, what are the health benefits of doing that?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Overall, when we are removing meat, especially certain types of meat, is you’re reducing ultimately the saturated fat in your diet. So, saturated fat is found in fatty types of meat, like your bacon, your high fat ground beef, your processed meats like your pepperonis and your salamis and your high-fat lunch meats, your dark meat chicken or dark meat poultry. So, those can potentially be high in saturated fats. And if we are removing those from our diet, we’re naturally reducing the type of saturated fat in our diet. Now we do get saturated fat from other things. So, I can’t make the blanket statement that, oh, you’re following a low saturated fat diet because if you are including butter per se in your diet, that’s a high source of saturated fat. You would still be getting saturated fat from that. But if we are reducing the meat, especially those high saturated fat meats, that would be a lower saturated fat diet.

Macie Jepson Don’t we need a little bit of fat there anyway?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD So, if we have, the recommendation for saturated fat is no more than 15 grams a day. So, we can have some saturated fat. We just don’t want to overdo it. So, no more than 15 grams of saturated fat a day is what is recommended typically. And then there are other types of fats, your polyunsaturated fat and your trans fats. Obviously, we don’t want any trans fats in our diet. And then the rest of our fat after the saturated fat, we would want to come from the unsaturated fat. Those are the heart healthy fats.

Pete Kenworthy You’re talking about keeping meat out of your diet eliminates some fats, but what risks are we posing on ourselves by eating meat? We saw this study that said the risk of ischemic heart disease in vegetarians and vegans was 22% lower than meat eaters and reduced 17% after adjusting for BMI, so significantly lower than meat eaters. But what’s actually happening in our bodies with that meat? Yeah, fat. Great. We’re eating fat. But what does that mean? What does that risk? Is it all heart and vascular?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Primarily. Yeah. So, when we are reducing the amount of saturated fat in our diet, saturated fat is going to increase your cholesterol and increase your bad cholesterol. When our bad cholesterol goes up and our total cholesterol goes up, what happens? We are at a greater risk for heart disease. So, if we are lowering that saturated fat and keeping our bad cholesterol, that LDL cholesterol low or within a normal range and keeping our total cholesterol low or within a normal range, that’s reducing our risk for heart disease.

Macie Jepson Learning so much here. So, I want to break it down just one more level. Vegetarian: maybe you’re eating some fish and you are eating some eggs versus vegan, cutting all of that out. Is one healthier than the other?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD So, I think it’s important to point out that health is a subjective word, and no, not necessarily. I think if I have a patient that’s a vegan or a vegetarian, I’m going to ask them like, okay, what are we eating for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and making sure that we are following an overall well-balanced diet. You can have a very balanced diet following a vegan diet. We get enough protein. We get enough carbs. We get enough healthy fats. We get enough fiber. We can absolutely have a balanced diet following a vegan diet. You can also have an absolutely balanced diet with including meat in your diet with lean meats. So yeah, I don’t think one is necessarily healthier than the other.

Yeah, that’s what I was going to ask you about. You talk about eating meats. Well, we had just talked about eliminating meats versus eating meat, but then you hear a lot about eat salmon. There are a lot of good fishes you can eat, especially things like salmon, right? Or you just mentioned lean meat, so maybe like chicken, right? Pork. Is it specifically a red meat concern that we’re worried about? Because there are some of those, like you said, dark meat, poultry, not as good, right? But is it a red meat and dark meat poultry only? Are we good with the white meat, right, like the light meat chicken, the pork, the fish?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah. So, I usually say, okay, if we’re going to have meat in our diet, that’s fine. We’re going to choose the lean meats. Those lean meats would be chicken breasts, turkey breasts. We’re going to limit the dark meat poultry. And you can have red meat as a part of a lean meat. So lean ground beef, 90/10 or leaner, anything with loin in it; pork loin, tenderloin, sirloin. These are lean types of red meats. So, I just say we’re going to focus on the lean meats, whether that’s coming from a cow or a pig or a chicken. So yeah, we can certainly have some red meat in our diet, but we do want to be just mindful of how much saturated fat. So, with the fish, fish is actually really high in the unsaturated fat, the heart healthy fat. So, this is why like the Mediterranean diet, and oftentimes you’ll hear us preaching about fish is because they’re so high in the healthy fats, the poly and the monounsaturated fats. And those fats can actually protect your heart from heart disease. They can help to better control your LDL/HDL total cholesterol.

Pete Kenworthy Let me play devil’s advocate one more time because people who love eating meat like me, they love the taste of it. I love a cheeseburger. I love pork chops, whatever the case may be. But what we will argue is I can’t go vegetarian because I need my protein. I need to get my protein. That’s where I get my protein from. We’re lying to ourselves basically, right? So how do, you said vegans get plenty of protein and then I hear, yeah, beans and nuts. I don’t want to just get protein, but is that it? Is that how vegans or some vegetarians get their protein is beans and nuts?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yes, beans and nuts are part of it. There are other things, plant-based proteins. You’ve got your soy and then all your soy products, from your tofu to your seitan to your tempeh to your edamame, right? Lots of different soy products and they are all complete proteins, so they have all nine essential amino acids, which is great. And then quinoa is another plant-based complete protein. Ezekiel bread as well. So, it’s not just nuts and beans, but yes, part of it is nuts and beans. And then again, all your soy products, your quinoa, all that stuff, your whole grains, you’ve got some protein there. If we are getting all of our nine essential amino acids in appropriate amounts, by the end of the day, a vegan can live a very healthy diet. It’s just naturally limited. And I think that there’s pros and cons to everything. One of the major cons to a vegan diet is that it’s just naturally limited. We are cutting out a lot of food. And that doesn’t make it impossible. It just makes it a little bit harder, more planning ahead, a little bit more strategic grocery shopping. I might need to have a little bit more knowledge in the kitchen as far as cooking and stuff like that. But if you are happy to do that and that’s the thing that you like to do, then by all means. Yeah.

Pete Kenworthy From a diet perspective, though, are there cons of that, a plant-based diet or a vegan diet?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD From a nutritional standpoint? If you’re not planning well enough, yeah, if we’re not putting in the effort to make sure that we have protein at every single meal. Toast, while great is not a complete meal. We need a little bit more to that. We need some protein. So unless, again, we’re planning ahead and making that effort to make sure we got carbs and proteins with every single meal. If we’re just kind of being a little lackadaisical about it and not putting that effort towards it, yeah, we can have some nutritional deficiencies. Absolutely.

Macie Jepson I wonder if we’re getting enough nutrients though. I mean, I read one study where vegans have insufficient levels of B12. Do you need supplements to make up for that? What do you recommend?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah, so if someone is on a vegan diet, I would probably recommend a B12 supplement just most of the B12 that is in our food is coming from an animal product. But we do have some fortified products like soy products that are fortified with B12. Usually what I like to do before I recommend any supplement is to look at lab work, make sure that the person is actually deficient. And if that lab work justifies a supplement, then yeah, a hundred percent I would recommend a B12 supplement. That’s really the main thing that we’re looking for in a vegan diet just because there’s an absence of animal meat foods.

Pete Kenworthy What is B12? Why would people need a supplement like that?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD B12 is a B vitamin, and that is particularly helpful in reducing your risk for anemia and also just helps to keep your blood and nerve cells healthy.

Macie Jepson And I would think when it comes to vegan and vegetarian, iron could be an issue as well if you’re not getting enough protein?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah. It can be. We do have iron in plants. It’s a different type of iron than what is in meat, but you can have the increased risk of iron deficient anemia or just an iron deficiency following a vegetarian or vegan diet. Again, if the blood work justifies it, I would 100% recommend a supplement.

Macie Jepson So, I would imagine it’s important to make sure that you’re getting really good produce. Does that mean eating in season? I hear that a lot. Why is that important?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah. So, eating in season is helpful for a couple different reasons. One, the food is more nutrient dense because it is fresher, right? It’s more in season, higher in nutrients. And the other thing is that it’s going to be less expensive when we are buying any produce in season. And so, that’s a big pro.

Pete Kenworthy Is today’s produce as nutrient rich as it used to be, right? Because all sorts of things we worry about. And I see you smiling.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah. That is a very popular question. I have not studied the nutrient profile of produce from 20, 30, 50, 60 years ago.

Pete Kenworthy But what are those concerns? Why are people asking that question? What are they concerned about?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Well, I think it’s okay to question the nutrient density of our food. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with questioning that. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being concerned about the food that we’re putting in our body. I think those are all valid questions and concerns, and I don’t fault anybody for asking that question. If someone were to ask me that, again, I would kind of go back to, well, are we eating a balanced diet? Do we have carbs and protein at each meal? Are we eating enough fruits and vegetables? What does our diet look like as a whole? And then pair that up against one’s lab work. If we’re coming back with a lipid panel that is perfect and our vitamins and minerals, there’s no deficiency, I have no reason to question the nutrient density of that person’s diet. We are meeting our needs. We are good.

If I do see maybe the only exception that would be vitamin D, because we get it from the sun and in March in Northeast Ohio, everybody is vitamin D deficient. So, that’s really the only one that I would question as far as a lack of nutrients in the diet, just because vitamin D doesn’t naturally occur in most foods. Yeah, but going back to your question, I mean, I think it’s okay to ask that question, but before we start making bold claims that our produce or that our food is less nutrient dense, we need to compare that with what is actually going on in our body with lab work and tests.

Pete Kenworthy And that’s what the takeaway is here for me, right? It’s know your numbers really.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah. Absolutely.

Pete Kenworthy Like have a doctor. Know your numbers.

Macie Jepson And especially if we’re talking about otherwise young, healthy people who don’t necessarily get that type of blood work at this time in their life. They should probably do that.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD At least once a year. Oh yeah. I like doing it once a year.

Macie Jepson Speaking of young and healthy people, and I’m asking this question because I really want some perspective from what you’re seeing on the front line. My daughter took on a pescatarian lifestyle while she was in college studying environmental engineering. My other daughter studied environmental studies. They both came back from college with this idea that they didn’t want to eat meat anymore. So, plant-based diets consume fewer natural resources, generate fewer greenhouse gas emissions, a smaller water footprint. And footprint is a big thing. So, what I want to know from you to give this all perspective. Why are people doing this? The people the that you treat. Is it because of the environment or is it because of health?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD I think it’s because of the media. I mean, there’s so much out there right now promoting a plant-based diet or a vegetarian diet, which is fine. And there’s some great studies out there that will justify a plant-based diet or going fully vegan or some form of vegetarian diet. I think that’s fine. When someone makes that switch, I have to ask them, okay, why are we doing this? That’s my very first question. Why am I doing this? Is it because you think it’s going to magically help you lose weight? Is it because you think it’s going to magically improve your health? Is it for environmental reasons? Is it for animal cruelty reasons? Why are we doing this? And I think all of those reasons can be absolutely valid. If we want to do it for health, okay, let’s do it for health, but let’s make sure we got to do it the right way. I mean, Oreos are vegan. Nothing against Oreos. I love them myself. But if we’re just sitting there eating Oreos for lunch and then saying, well, I’m following a vegetarian or vegan diet and I’m healthy. Well, no, that’s not a balanced diet. We need to make sure we got some protein in there. So, whatever the reason is, again, I think there’s validity for all of it.

My next question is, okay, so if we’re going to follow this lifestyle, let’s make sure we do it right. Let’s make sure we’re getting everything that we need. What proteins are you allowing in your diet? So, for example, your daughter, she’s going to allow fish. Great. So what proteins are we going to do for breakfast? Are you going to eat fish for breakfast? If the answer is no, what are we going to do for breakfast? What’s our protein for breakfast? Let’s talk about our choices and then kind of build a proper plan from there. Not to say, oh, well, you’re wrong for doing it for environmental reasons. That’s stupid. I would never, their reason is their reason, and we’re going to go with that, but we got to make sure we’re going to do it the right way.

Macie Jepson Pete, are you hanging on the fact that Oreos are vegan? I can’t get past that.

Pete Kenworthy I like Oreos, too.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah.

Pete Kenworthy Is vegan more expensive?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Not necessarily. There are certainly ways that you do not have to spend a lot of money. I mean, I love a good canned bean, and those are some of the cheapest sources of protein in the entire grocery store. And then now, meat can be quite expensive. So, I don’t think it’s necessarily more expensive. Now, if you are going to really expensive grocery stores and picking out very expensive produce, well then yes, it can be. But if we are following a budget, it can be a budget friendly diet. Absolutely.

Macie Jepson Speaking of expensive, I feel pretty lucky my daughter doesn’t want to replace a steak with something that tastes like a steak necessarily. But every now and again, she craves a burger and we do plant-based Impossible Meats or the like. They’re expensive.

Macie Jepson And what’s in them, because again, wanting to stay away from processed foods as well. What are they?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Well, they are plant-based, right? Now, the fat in those, like the Impossible Burger, I believe it’s the Impossible Burger and the Beyond Burger, the fat that is in them is coconut oil. And coconut oil is a vegan product. It comes from a plant, right? But it is really high in saturated fat. So, when you compare them protein for protein, like a beef burger and a Beyond Burger or an Impossible Burger, protein for protein, they are very similar. Fat for fat, they’re also very similar. So, you’re not actually reducing the saturated fat. It’s just coming from a different source, that coconut oil, whereas the saturated fat in the burger is just coming from the saturated fat of the animal that’s in the tissue.

Pete Kenworthy So, permission to eat the burger, right?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD You can eat the burger if you want to, you’re just not following a vegetarian or vegan diet.

Pete Kenworthy But there have to be valuable nutrition differences, right? They can’t be equal. Are they?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD So, I think they’re pretty equal. I think they’re pretty equal. I mean, I might have to go back and look at it, but I think they’re pretty equal. That Beyond Burger, I would have to look at the sodium content. I honestly don’t know. It could be high. I’d have to go back and look at that. Saturated fat wise, they have saturated fat. So.

Macie Jepson But it kind of goes back to what some vegans say. No animals were harmed in the process of making this.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Correct. Correct.

Macie Jepson That’s the redeeming quality.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Correct. So, if we are doing this for potentially environmental reasons, if we are doing this potentially for animal wellbeing reasons, then yeah, the Beyond Burger would definitely fit that criteria. Be my guest. But if we’re looking from a macronutrient profile, I don’t see these things differing a ton. Now, that’s the Beyond and the Impossible Burger. There are other plant-based burgers out there that are very low in saturated fat. You’ve got your MorningStars, your Boca Burgers, your black bean burgers. Those are going to be really low in saturated fat and still pretty… You got to look at the protein content. So, with the Beyond, not the Beyond, the MorningStar, the Boca Burgers, those are a lot smaller than your Beyond Burgers. Like Beyond Burgers are pretty hefty burgers, right? The MorningStar, the Boca Burgers, they’re pretty small. For how big they are, there’s a decent amount of protein, but nothing compared to a four ounce beef burger. I mean, we’re talking nine grams of protein versus 30 grams of protein. So, if we’re doing protein for protein, you might have to double up on that MorningStar or Boca Burger because we want you to eat roughly 20 to 30 grams of protein per meal. So, if we are using the MorningStar or the Boca Burger, it’s not going to meet that protein requirement. You might have to double up on it to get enough protein, or you could just add stuff to it. You could put beans on that Boca Burger and increase the protein amount or do that Boca Burger plus a side of rice and beans and beef up the protein of the plate. There’s a couple different ways that you can do it, and those do tend to be a lot lower in saturated fat versus the beyond and stuff like that. Now they can be really high in sodium. So, if we’re following a low salt diet, you just got to watch that, but.

Macie Jepson Sounds like really high in carbs, too. Is that something we need to be concerned about? Lots of rice and beans?

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Not necessarily.

Macie Jepson They’re the good carbs.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Right. Yeah, not necessarily. Again, when I look at someone’s plate or I look at my own plate, I look at it as a puzzle and I’m putting the puzzle pieces together. How much carbs do I have? How much protein do I have? And do I have enough to call this a balanced meal? And you can get carbs from multiple sources. You can get protein from multiple sources.

Pete Kenworthy So, bottom line here is if you are thinking about switching to vegan, vegetarian or some form of vegetarian, or maybe you want to do it for environmental reasons or you want to do it for animal cruelty reasons, the bottom line really is if you’re making a switch or if you’re going there for whatever reason, be deliberate about how you do it. You need to make sure you’re doing the right things. And on the other side of that is you might not need to get rid of all meats if you’re eating meats that are okay. So, I mean, I guess we’re talking about a million different kind of people here, because different reasons why people want to go vegan/vegetarian. Yeah, go ahead.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD So, I think that makes up a good point and kind of that difference between vegan, vegetarian and plant-based. Someone who is including some amount of plant or some amount of animal proteins, like maybe we got some chicken in there, maybe we got some fish in there. Maybe we got some tenderloin in there every now and then or whatever. But in their household, Mondays are meatless Mondays, so we’re going to try to slowly incorporate more plant-based proteins into our diet with following meatless Mondays in our house. I would think that that’s like I partially follow a plant-based diet. I enjoy plant-based proteins, and I will go out to dinner and choose the black bean burger every now and then. And every now and then we will grill some black bean burgers outside. We are not vegetarians, we are not vegans, but we are happy to incorporate more plant-based proteins into our diet. That is wonderful. Yeah, I think that’s wonderful.

Macie Jepson And that brings us full circle because that’s exactly what I’m trying to do. So, we do Mexican food on Friday nights, and my husband looks at me like I’m crazy because I’m not doing the enchiladas. But lately I’ve just been doing the shrimp quesadillas. So, knowing, I think we all know what the benefits are and whether we go into it a hundred percent or we just make an educated decision now and again, it’s to each his own, I guess.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Yeah. Absolutely. It’s all about balance and doing what’s right for you.

Pete Kenworthy Yeah. Can you expand on that as we just wrap it up here? What do you mean by that? It’s all about balance and doing what’s right for you.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Doing what’s right for you, doing what fits your lifestyle. Vegan is not for everybody, and I would never make the blanket statement that everybody should be vegan. Vegetarian is not for everybody. And I would never make the statement that everybody should be a vegetarian. You have to do what is right for you if you live in a house with other people, what’s right for your family? What is doable? If I take someone who like you, who’s like, I could never give up meat. How could I sit here in good faith, say, no, no, no, you really need to switch to a vegan diet. This is the best one. It’s not sustainable. It’s not your reality. Like you can’t do that. So, we kind of make some adjustments where we can. So, exactly what you were saying. Maybe I don’t want the ground beef enchiladas. Maybe I’m going to…

Macie Jepson To be clear, I really do.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Maybe I’m going to go with the shrimp quesadillas, and it’s a leaner, it’s a leaner dish, and I’m trying to reduce the saturated fat in my diet because I want to reduce my risk for heart disease.

Pete Kenworthy Right. And know your numbers is the other thing, right?

Macie Jepson For sure. Yeah.

Pete Kenworthy Kelli Santiago, Clinical Dietician and Wellness Coach at University Hospitals in Cleveland, thanks so much for joining us today.

Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD Thank you for having me.

Tags: Nutrition , Diet and Nutrition , Kelli Santiago, MS, RD, CSSD, LD

Your Best College Essay

Maybe you love to write, or maybe you don’t. Either way, there’s a chance that the thought of writing your college essay is making you sweat. No need for nerves! We’re here to give you the important details on how to make the process as anxiety-free as possible.

What's the College Essay?

When we say “The College Essay” (capitalization for emphasis – say it out loud with the capitals and you’ll know what we mean) we’re talking about the 550-650 word essay required by most colleges and universities. Prompts for this essay can be found on the college’s website, the Common Application, or the Coalition Application. We’re not talking about the many smaller supplemental essays you might need to write in order to apply to college. Not all institutions require the essay, but most colleges and universities that are at least semi-selective do.

How do I get started?

Look for the prompts on whatever application you’re using to apply to schools (almost all of the time – with a few notable exceptions – this is the Common Application). If one of them calls out to you, awesome! You can jump right in and start to brainstorm. If none of them are giving you the right vibes, don’t worry. They’re so broad that almost anything you write can fit into one of the prompts after you’re done. Working backwards like this is totally fine and can be really useful!

What if I have writer's block?

You aren’t alone. Staring at a blank Google Doc and thinking about how this is the one chance to tell an admissions officer your story can make you freeze. Thinking about some of these questions might help you find the right topic:

• What is something about you that people have pointed out as distinctive?
• If you had to pick three words to describe yourself, what would they be? What are things you’ve done that demonstrate these qualities?
• What’s something about you that has changed over your years in high school? How or why did it change?
• What’s something you like most about yourself?
• What’s something you love so much that you lose track of the rest of the world while you do it?

If you’re still stuck on a topic, ask your family members, friends, or other trusted adults: what’s something they always think about when they think about you? What’s something they think you should be proud of? They might help you find something about yourself that you wouldn’t have surfaced on your own.  

How do I grab my reader's attention?

It’s no secret that admissions officers are reading dozens – and sometimes hundreds – of essays every day. That can feel like a lot of pressure to stand out. But if you try to write the most unique essay in the world, it might end up seeming forced if it’s not genuinely you. So, what’s there to do? Our advice: start your essay with a story. Tell the reader about something you’ve done, complete with sensory details, and maybe even dialogue. Then, in the second paragraph, back up and tell us why this story is important and what it tells them about you and the theme of the essay.

THE WORD LIMIT IS SO LIMITING. HOW DO I TELL A COLLEGE MY WHOLE LIFE STORY IN 650 WORDS?

Don’t! Don’t try to tell an admissions officer about everything you’ve loved and done since you were a child. Instead, pick one or two things about yourself that you’re hoping to get across and stick to those. They’ll see the rest on the activities section of your application.

I'M STUCK ON THE CONCLUSION. HELP?

If you can’t think of another way to end the essay, talk about how the qualities you’ve discussed in your essays have prepared you for college. Try to wrap up with a sentence that refers back to the story you told in your first paragraph, if you took that route.

SHOULD I PROOFREAD MY ESSAY?

YES, proofread the essay, and have a trusted adult proofread it as well. Know that any suggestions they give you are coming from a good place, but make sure they aren’t writing your essay for you or putting it into their own voice. Admissions officers want to hear the voice of you, the applicant. Before you submit your essay anywhere, our number one advice is to read it out loud to yourself. When you read out loud you’ll catch small errors you may not have noticed before, and hear sentences that aren’t quite right.

ANY OTHER ADVICE?

Be yourself. If you’re not a naturally serious person, don’t force formality. If you’re the comedian in your friend group, go ahead and be funny. But ultimately, write as your authentic (and grammatically correct) self and trust the process.

And remember, thousands of other students your age are faced with this same essay writing task, right now. You can do it!

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Vegetarian College Essays Samples For Students

39 samples of this type

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Example Of Vegetarianism Essay: Should We All Be Vegetarian?

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Did Annie’s macronutrient intake fall within the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR) established by the Dietary Reference Intakes? Fill in the table below.

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7. Objectives Product/Service: Bring the menu up to 4.8 score in the next three months.

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Introduction Health is not just the state of our physical body, a good health is a factor of a healthy body, healthy mind, balanced diet, and perfect fitness regime. Though we all know this fact we just tend to ignore many of these factors due to our busy lifestyles. It is highly recommended that we all should take the “Real Age Test” via the www.realage.com website. The survey results give an understanding of functional age in contrast with the actual age of a person owing to the person’s physical and mental health.

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The researcher will base the arguments on the works of three authors, Farrell, Tony with “The “Frankenfoods” Phenomenon” which was published in Vegetarian Times, Saunders, Doug with “ 'Frankenfoods' have moved on. When will opponents?” published in Biotechnology, and Shelton, Deborah with “Frankenfoods: Do you know what your meals are made of?” published in Essence. The researcher will dwell on the validity of genetically modified foods (GMO).

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What Is a Capstone Project vs. Thesis

As students near the end of their academic journey, they encounter a crucial project called the capstone – a culmination of all they've learned. But what exactly is a capstone project? 

This article aims to demystify capstone projects, explaining what they are, why they matter, and what you can expect when you embark on this final academic endeavor.

Capstone Project Meaning

A capstone project is a comprehensive, culminating academic endeavor undertaken by students typically in their final year of study. 

It synthesizes their learning experiences, requiring students to apply the knowledge, skills, and competencies gained throughout their academic journey. A capstone project aims to address a real-world problem or explore a topic of interest in depth. 

As interdisciplinary papers, capstone projects encourage critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity. They allow students to showcase their mastery of their field of study and demonstrate their readiness for future academic or professional pursuits.

Now that we’ve defined what is a capstone project, let’s discuss its importance in the academic landscape. In case you have short-form compositions to handle, simply say, ‘ do my essay for me ,’ and our writers will take care of your workload.

Why Is a Capstone Project Important

A capstone project is crucial because it allows students to combine everything they've learned in school and apply it to real-life situations or big problems. 

It's like the ultimate test of what they know and can do. By working on these projects, students get hands-on experience, learn to think critically and figure out how to solve tough problems. 

Plus, it's a chance to show off their skills and prove they're ready for whatever comes next, whether that's starting a career or going on to more schooling.

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What Is the Purpose of a Capstone Project

Here are three key purposes of a capstone project:

Integration of Knowledge and Skills

Capstones often require students to draw upon the knowledge and skills they have acquired throughout their academic program. The importance of capstone project lies in helping students synthesize what they have learned and apply it to a real-world problem or project. 

This integration helps students demonstrate their proficiency and readiness for graduation or entry into their chosen profession.

Culmination of Learning

Capstone projects culminate a student's academic journey, allowing them to apply theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios. 

tackling a significant project or problem, students demonstrate their understanding of concepts and their ability to translate them into practical solutions, reinforcing their learning journey.

Professional Development

Capstone projects allow students to develop skills relevant to their future careers. These projects can also be tangible examples of their capabilities to potential employers or graduate programs.

Whether it's conducting research, presenting findings, or collaborating with peers, students gain valuable experience that enhances their professional readiness. 

Types of Capstone Projects

Capstones vary widely depending on the academic discipline, institution, and specific program requirements. Here are some common types:

What Is the Difference Between a Thesis and a Capstone Project

Here's a breakdown of the key differences between a thesis and a capstone project:

How to Write a Capstone Project

Let's dive into the specifics with actionable and meaningful steps for writing a capstone project:

1. Select a Pertinent Topic

Identify a topic that aligns with your academic interests, program requirements, and real-world relevance. Consider issues or challenges within your field that merit further exploration or solution. 

Conduct thorough research to ensure the topic is both feasible and significant. Here are some brilliant capstone ideas for your inspiration.

2. Define Clear Objectives

Clearly articulate the objectives of your capstone project. What specific outcomes do you aim to achieve? 

Whether it's solving a problem, answering a research question, or developing a product, ensure your objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).

3. Conduct Comprehensive Research

Dive deep into existing literature, theories, and empirical evidence related to your chosen topic. Identify gaps, controversies, or areas for further investigation. 

Synthesize relevant findings and insights to inform the development of your project and provide a solid foundation for your analysis or implementation.

4. Develop a Structured Plan

What is a capstone project in college without a rigid structure? Outline a comprehensive plan for your capstone project, including key milestones, tasks, and deadlines. 

Break down the project into manageable phases, such as literature review, data collection, analysis, and presentation. Establish clear criteria for success and regularly monitor progress to stay on track.

5. Implement Methodological Rigor

If your project involves research, ensure methodological rigor by selecting appropriate research methods, tools, and techniques. 

Develop a detailed research design or project plan that addresses key methodological considerations, such as sampling, data collection, analysis, and validity. Adhere to ethical guidelines and best practices throughout the research process.

6. Analyze and Interpret Findings

Analyze your data or findings using appropriate analytical techniques and tools. Interpret the results in relation to your research questions or objectives, highlighting key patterns, trends, or insights. 

Critically evaluate the significance and implications of your findings within the broader context of your field or industry.

7. Communicate Effectively

Present your capstone project clearly, concisely, and compellingly. Whether it's a written report, presentation, or multimedia deliverable, tailor your communication style to your target audience. Clearly articulate your research questions, methodology, findings, and conclusions. 

Use visuals, examples, and real-world applications to enhance understanding and engagement. Be prepared to defend your project and answer questions from peers, faculty, or stakeholders.

In wrapping up, what is a capstone project? It’s like the grand finale of your academic journey, where all the knowledge and skills you've acquired come together in one big project. 

It's not just about passing a test or getting a grade – it's about proving you've got what it takes to make a real difference in the world. So, if you ever need capstone project help , our writers will gladly lend you a hand in no time.

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What Is a Capstone Project in College?

How to do a capstone project, how long does a capstone project take to complete.

Annie Lambert

specializes in creating authoritative content on marketing, business, and finance, with a versatile ability to handle any essay type and dissertations. With a Master’s degree in Business Administration and a passion for social issues, her writing not only educates but also inspires action. On EssayPro blog, Annie delivers detailed guides and thought-provoking discussions on pressing economic and social topics. When not writing, she’s a guest speaker at various business seminars.

is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.

• T. (2023, June 16). What Is a Capstone Project? National University. https://www.nu.edu/blog/what-is-a-capstone-project/
• Lukins, S. (2024, May 12). What is a capstone project? And why is it important? Top Universities. https://www.topuniversities.com/student-info/careers-advice-articles/what-capstone-project-why-it-important
• Capstone Project vs. Thesis: What’s the Difference? (2021, December 9). UAGC. https://www.uagc.edu/blog/capstone-project-vs-thesis-whats-difference

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Higher Education Needs More Socrates and Plato

By Ezekiel J. Emanuel and Harun Küçük

Dr. Emanuel and Dr. Küçük are on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, where Dr. Emanuel is a professor and the vice provost for global initiatives and Dr. Küçük is an associate professor of the history and sociology of science.

The right attacks colleges and universities as leftist and woke. Progressives castigate them as perpetuating patriarchy and white privilege. The burdens of these culture war assaults are compounded by parents worried that the exorbitant costs of higher education aren’t worth it.

No wonder Americans’ faith in universities is at a low. Only 36 percent of Americans have confidence in higher education, according to a survey by Gallup last year, a significant drop from eight years ago. And this was before colleges and universities across the country were swept up in a wave of protests and counter-protests over the war in Gaza.

But the problems facing American higher education are not just the protests and culture war attacks on diversity, course content, speech and speakers. The problem is that higher education is fundamentally misunderstood. In response, colleges and universities must reassert the liberal arts ideals that have made them great but that have been slipping away.

By liberal arts, we mean a broad-based education that aspires to send out into society an educated citizenry prepared to make its way responsibly in an ever-more complex and divided world. We worry that at many schools, students can fulfill all or most of their general education requirements and take any number of electives without having had a single meaningful discussion that is relevant to one’s political life as a citizen.

Over the past century, what made American higher education the best in the world is not its superiority in career training, but educating students for democratic citizenship, cultivating critical thinking and contributing to the personal growth of its students through self-creation. To revive American higher education, we need to reinvigorate these roots.

In Europe and many countries elsewhere, colleges and universities have undergraduates specialize from Day 1, focusing on developing area-specific skills and knowledge. College students are trained to become doctors, lawyers or experts in international relations, English literature or computer science.

In the United States, European-style specialization for medical, legal, business or public policy careers is the purpose of post-collegiate professional schools. Traditionally, the American college has been about imparting a liberal arts education, emphasizing reasoning and problem solving. Those enduring skills are the critical ingredients for flourishing companies and countries.

Historically, students arriving on American college campuses spent a majority of their first two years taking classes outside their projected majors. This exposed them to a common curriculum that had them engage with thoughtful writings of the past to develop the skills and capacity to form sound, independent judgments.

Over the past half century, American colleges and universities have moved away from this ideal , becoming less confident in their ability to educate students for democratic citizenship. This has led to a decline in their commitment to the liberal arts, a trend underscored in the results last year of a survey of chief academic officers at American colleges and universities by Inside Higher Ed. Nearly two-thirds agreed that liberal arts education was in decline, and well over half felt that politicians, college presidents and university boards were increasingly unsympathetic to the liberal arts.

Today, there is almost no emphasis on shared courses among majors that explore and debate big questions about the meaning of equality, justice, patriotism, personal obligations, civic responsibility and the purpose of a human life. Majors that once required only eight or 10 courses now require 14 or more, and students are increasingly double majoring — all of which crowds out a liberal arts education. Ambitious students eager to land a prestigious consulting, finance or tech job will find it too easy to brush aside courses in the arts, humanities and social and natural sciences — the core of a liberal education.

The devaluing of the first two years of a shared liberal arts education has shortchanged our students and our nation. Educating young adults to be citizens is why the first two years of college still matter.

To that end, the so-called Great Books have long been the preferred way to foster citizenship. This approach is not, contrary to critics on the left and right, about sanctifying specific texts for veneration or a mechanism for heritage transmission.

Books by Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Locke, Kant, Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman as well as Wollstonecraft, Austen, Woolf, Baldwin, Hurston and Orwell are worthy of introductory collegiate courses for students of all majors. These writers address the fundamental questions of human life. They explore the ideas of self-determination, friendship, virtue, equality, democracy and religious toleration and race that we have all been shaped by.

As students address those big questions, the Great Books authors provide a road map as they challenge and criticize one another and the conventional wisdom of the past. The Socrates of Plato’s dialogues is the exemplar — asking about beliefs and then subjecting them to respectful but critical analysis and skepticism.

These books are best studied in small seminar discussions, which model and inculcate in students democratic behavior. This discourse is an antidote to the grandstanding in today’s media and social media.

The teacher is less an expert in specific writers and more a role model for intellectual curiosity, asking probing questions, offering critical analyses and seeking deeper understanding. In an idealized Socratic fashion, these discussions require listening at length and speaking briefly and, most important, being willing to go where the argument leads.

Parents who are paying for college might question the value of spending $80,000 a year so that their son or daughter can read Plato, Hobbes and Thoreau instead of studying molecular biology or machine learning. But discussing life’s big value questions in seminars gives students personal engagement with professors that can never be reproduced in large lecture halls. Discussions among students on their deepest thoughts cultivates curiosity and empathy, and forges bonds of friendship important for citizenship and fulfilling lives.

Although we like to set ourselves apart from the past by appeals to modernity, the fundamental questions that we find ourselves asking are not always modern, and the latest answer is not always right. But how would you know how to think beyond the readily presented check boxes if you haven’t done the work of laying things out and putting them back together for yourself?

War was no less a concern for Thucydides, Tacitus and Thoreau than it is today. Discussing Great Books allows students to gain distance from the daily noise and allows their reason to roam free among principles and foundations rather than becoming absorbed in contemporary events. Our biggest problems are often best addressed not by leaning in but by stepping away to reflect on enduring perspectives.

Liberal arts education is not value neutral. That is why it is indispensable today. Freedom of thought, critical reasoning, empathy for others and respectful disagreement are paramount for a flourishing democratic society. Without them, we get the unreasoned condemnations so pervasive in today’s malignant public discourse. With them, we have a hope of furthering the shared governance that is vital to America’s pluralistic society.

Ezekiel Emanuel and Harun Küçük are on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, where Dr. Emanuel is a professor and the vice provost for global initiatives and Dr. Küçük is an associate professor of the history and sociology of science.

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