Glimpse Video in Your College Application: What to Know
Should you send a Glimpse video with your college application? Here's why colleges are asking for them, what admissions wants to see, and how to make yours count.
AI can write a passable personal statement now. (Not a great one, and not one that sounds uniquely you — it's still got a long way to go there.) But admissions offices know “passable” is enough to slip through, and it's changing what they're asking for.
Many schools have dropped supplemental essays altogether, in part because they weren't getting the information they actually wanted and needed from them.
That's part of why a growing number of schools now accept a Glimpse video — a short, unscripted, unedited video introduction — alongside the usual essays and transcripts. If one of your schools offers this and you're not sure whether to bother, or you're staring at your phone with no idea what to say, you're not alone.
Here's what a Glimpse video actually is, why colleges want one, whether you should send it, and how to record something that sounds like you instead of a hostage tape.
What Is a Glimpse Video, Exactly?
Glimpse is a self-recorded video introduction, run by a company called InitialView, which has done admissions interviews since 2009. Students film 60 to 90 seconds of themselves on their own phone or computer and send it to whichever colleges they choose.
A few mechanics worth knowing: you can re-record as many times as you want before sending, but you can't edit the footage, and once it's sent to a school, it's locked for that school. It costs $22 to send to as many colleges as you like (free with a fee waiver), and it's almost always optional — skipping it typically carries no penalty. Glimpse isn't the only way schools take videos, though — it's just been the most popular one lately. Rather than using Glimpse, some colleges instead run their own version directly through their applicant portal, with their own time limit and rules.
Why Are Colleges Suddenly Interested in These?
Well, unfortunately, it's because a written essay has become the one part of your application that's gotten harder to trust. Between AI tools, editors, and well-meaning parents, admissions readers can no longer assume that 500 words on the page came straight from a 17-year-old.
A short, unedited video sidesteps that problem entirely — nobody can ghostwrite your face and voice for 90 seconds. More than 30 schools have adopted Glimpse since it launched in 2023, according to Washington Monthly, and that list keeps growing. Schools that currently accept Glimpse or a similar video option include Boston University, Brown, Colgate, Duke, Middlebury, Northwestern, Occidental, Rice, Swarthmore, UChicago, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, and WashU, among others — though this changes constantly, so always confirm on the college's own site rather than trusting any list, including this one.
Should You Send One?
Here's my rule, and it's bigger than Glimpse: when a school hands you a chance to share more about yourself, take it. In my book, optional isn't optional — with two exceptions, the Additional Information section and the Challenges and Circumstances prompt on the Common App, both of which exist for real hardship, not padding.
Glimpse doesn't fall into that exception. If a school offers it and you're reasonably comfortable on camera, send it — it's one more chance to show an admissions officer a side of you the rest of your application hasn't already covered.
That said, part of submitting a strong application is following directions. Admissions officers are busy enough without sorting through material they didn't ask for, and you want your application standing out for the right reasons.
Here's the part I want you to actually follow, though: only send it to schools that ask for it or say they'll accept it. Because Glimpse lets you send to as many colleges as you want for one flat fee, some students record one video and blast it to every school on their list, whether or not that school reviews Glimpse submissions. A video sitting in a folder nobody opens does nothing for you, and colleges do notice when you add material they never requested. Treat “should I send this” the same way you'd treat any other supplement: check the college's admissions site or your applicant portal, and when in doubt, ask.
One more thing you can't undo: once you send a Glimpse for Early Decision or Early Action, that video is locked for that school. There's a one-time re-record window that opens December 15, but only for schools that haven't already received one. Send it the way you'd send an essay — thoughtfully, not the night before your deadline.
What Is Admissions Actually Looking For?
Not polish. Admissions readers aren't grading your lighting setup or your delivery — they want to feel like they just met you. Your warmth, your energy, your specific brand of humor. That's it.
College Essay Guy's Tillie Gottlieb, a former admissions officer, puts it plainly: after reading thousands of these, what sticks with her is rarely the polish — it's the moment she gets a real sense of who you are. Your job isn't to be the most impressive person alive. It's to be recognizably, specifically you, the same you your best friend or favorite teacher already knows.
How Do You Figure Out What to Say?
Start by looking at what you've already covered. If your personal statement is about your love of chemistry and a supplement covers soccer, don't repeat either one here — use this as a chance to show a piece of yourself your activities list and essays haven't gotten to yet.
Pick one extracurricular or moment you can talk about at length without notes — a lesson from an unlikely source, a quote you actually live by, how your friends would describe you. Pick whichever idea feels easiest to say out loud, not whichever sounds most impressive on paper. Then write a rough outline with two or three bullet points, practice it a few times, and when you actually record, don't read it word for word. A script you're reciting sounds like a script. A script you've internalized sounds like a person.
And remember: this video goes to more than one school, so keep it general. Don't name-drop the specific college in the recording itself.
How Do You Record One That Doesn't Feel Awkward?
Your phone is completely fine — you don't need a ring light or a real microphone, and honestly, anyone who tells you otherwise is wrong. Find a quiet room, face a window so light hits your face instead of your back, and prop the phone at eye level so you're looking into the camera, not down at it. Do one test take to make sure you're framed from the chest up and, more importantly, that you can actually be heard. Good audio matters more than good lighting.
Aim for three to five takes, talk slightly slower than feels natural, and go with the one that feels most like you — not the most flawless one (the same rule applies to essays, but that's a post for another day). A small stumble is more endearing than a stiff, over-rehearsed delivery. Once you're happy with it, send it, and don't second-guess it into oblivion. Whichever application plan you're working toward, try to record this well before your deadline crunch, not the night of.
Glimpse Video FAQ
Q: Is a Glimpse video the same as a college interview?
A: No. It's an unscripted self-recording you make on your own schedule, not a live conversation with an interviewer. Some schools offer both, and some have replaced alumni interviews with a video option instead.
Q: How many colleges can I send my Glimpse to?
A: As many as you want for one $22 fee (free with a fee waiver). That flexibility is exactly why you should only send it where it's wanted — more isn't automatically better.
Q: Can I edit my video before sending it?
A: No editing software is allowed on Glimpse itself. You can re-record as many times as you like beforehand, but the version you send has to be a single, unedited take.
Q: What if I mess up after I've already sent it?
A: For most schools, that video is locked once sent. If you submitted for Early Decision or Early Action, there's a one-time re-record window starting December 15, but only for schools that haven't received your video yet.
Q: Do all colleges call it “Glimpse”?
A: No. Some, like UChicago, offer their own optional video introduction through their applicant portal instead of Glimpse. The philosophy is the same — short, unedited, and not meant to be extensively rehearsed — but the platform and rules differ, so always check each college's own instructions.
The Bottom Line
A Glimpse video isn't a performance and it isn't a second personal statement. It's a hello — one more honest data point in an application process that's working hard to find those wherever it can. If a school on your list accepts one, it's worth your 90 seconds. Just make sure you're only sending it where it's actually going to be seen.
If you're still sorting out which of your schools want what — video, extra letters, portal-specific quirks — my free College Application Information Planner is built for exactly that kind of tracking, so nothing optional slips through the cracks.
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Has one of your schools offered you a Glimpse or video option? Tell me which one in the comments — I'm tracking which colleges are adding these each cycle.
