I should write an SEO-friendly introduction to this, but I don’t have much to say about prepositions other than that I see the wrong ones in college application essays all the time. Just like other grammatical errors, using the wrong preposition impedes flow in any writing. When you’re dealing with readers who are speed-reading, the last thing you want to do is create a pothole that sends them careening off the road with a sentence like “my curiosity of learning has led me to be excited with attending DreamSchool and I can’t wait to weave my love about knowledge into its amazing, world-renowned tapestry of education.”
This should help.
Excited: generally an anticipatory state of mind: a state of enthusiasm that for something that you haven’t done yet.
To: “I’m excited to explore DreamSchool.” (infinitive verb)
About: “I’m excited about necromancy.” (noun: the person/place/thing that elicits the excitement); “I’m excited about working with The Essay Mechanic.” (gerund verb: the action causing the excitement)
For: “I’m excited for my best friend’s upcoming wedding.” (this often expresses excitement about something someone else is experiencing)
By: Less common in essays, but correct in certain contexts. “I am excited by research.”
Passion:
For: “I have a passion for music.” (noun phrase, directly expresses passion for the subject)
About: “I am passionate about making music.” (adjective phrase describing your enthusiasm towards something, usually a gerund or a noun/noun phrase)
Love:
For: “My love for sociology led me to write a biography of Pierre Bourdieu.” (More personal)
Of: “My love of sociology led me to major in it.” (More broad)
With: “I fell in love with her.” (usually noun, but can be gerund verb, e.g., “researching”)
Interest:
In: “I have an interest in history.” EASY TO REMEMBER.
Curious:
About: “I am curious about different places,” “I am curious about seeing different places.”
(noun/noun phrase/gerund verb)
To: “I am curious to see different places.” (infinitive verb)
Curiosity:
About: “My curiosity about computer science led me to become a developer.” (expresses interest in topic, subject, concept, etc)
Of: “The curiosity of A2Cers is limited by their ambition” Expresses the general characteristic or quality of being curious. (archaic: probably not useful in college application essays)
