Well, most active and passive basses when you don't use EQ are very similar. After all, the front end of your head is basically an active preamp! An active bass merely moves part of that EQ circuit into the bass where it more convenient to adjust while you are playing.
In the Common Application, it says that the Personal Essay should be at least 250 words, and attached on a separate sheet (presumably, if you're submitting it online, you attach a one-page file).
The below numbers are using an estimate that it takes about 3 hours 20 minutes to write a 1000 word essay: How long does it take to write a 100 word essay? It takes about 20 minutes to write a 100 word essay.