Get into College

Every year during college application season, we read new articles about plummeting acceptances rates at top schools. And every year, we read about the resulting pressure on high school students to put their most accomplished, interesting, and polished foot forward in applications. Approached haphazardly, the college admissions process can be overwhelming-- and yes, getting into college takes work. But with the right planning, you can minimize stress while ensuring that you are accepted at a fantastic school.

Steps

Positioning Yourself for Success in High School

  1. Understand the criteria that colleges will use to evaluate you. Most colleges use a "holistic" admissions process, meaning that the school will consider your achievement in many areas-- both objective and subjective. A weakness in one area can be outweighed by a strength in another, and vice versa.
    • Your academic record. Colleges will see this quantitatively in the form of your four-year transcript and GPA, as well as qualitatively in your teachers' and counselor's recommendation comments. Admissions officers want to see that you can succeed in an academically challenging environment.
    • Your standardized test scores. Most colleges, particularly the more selective ones, require the ACT or SAT.
    • Your extracurriculars. Colleges seek students who are engaged outside of the classroom. Participating in a breadth of activities can indicate that you are a well-rounded person, but colleges also seek depth of engagement, which you can indicate through pursuing leadership positions or independent projects.
    • Your character. Essays, letters of recommendation, and interviews all combine to convey your personality.
    • Your background. Colleges evaluate your achievements in the context of your circumstances-- for example, admissions officers will not expect you to have taken eight AP courses if your school offers none. Similarly, background can illuminate character, and colleges will be impressed by an applicant who excels despite personal hardship.
    • Your "fit" with a particular college. The word "fit" can seem maddeningly nebulous: what exactly does it mean to be a good match for a certain school? But admissions officers want students who understand and appreciate the culture and unique offerings of the colleges to which they apply.
  2. Choose your classes carefully throughout high school. Take classes that will challenge you, but don't overload yourself; remember that you don't want to get an ulcer while you are still a teenager!
    • Take Do Well on AP Exams. AP exams not only demonstrate a willingness to challenge yourself, but also can give you college credits that may save you time and tuition later.
    • Fulfill the coursework recommendations of colleges you are interested in. Most four-year colleges want applicants to have taken four years of each main academic subject, including foreign language. Treat suggestions as requirements: for example, if one of your prospective colleges requires three years of high school science but suggests four, you should take four years of science to remain competitive.
    • Only take less than four years of a subject in order to take more advanced courses in an area you are especially interested in.
  3. Pay attention to your GPA. You don't need a 4.0 to get into a great school, but remember that your cumulative GPA for all four years of high school is sometimes used as an initial screen for colleges that receive a plethora of applications. Higher grades will expand your colleges choices.
  4. Distinguish yourself in activities outside of school. As a freshman, you may want to try out many different activities. But as you get older, it is best to focus your time on a few activities that you find most rewarding and pursue leadership positions in them. Colleges will note your commitment.
    • Use your summers productively. Find an internship; volunteer; get a job; attend a summer program or take courses at a community college; work on a personal project; reach out to a professor at your local college whose research interests you and ask if you can get involved.
    • Enter contests. Awards will help your application stand out, and even if you don't win, the experience can't hurt.
  5. Make a resume. Keep track of your activities and the dates you participated in them so you don't forget anything when filling out your applications.
  6. Get to know your teachers. Reach out to them after class to ask questions or discuss topics of interest. You'll thank yourself later when it's time to ask them for a recommendation!
  7. Take the SAT or Register for the ACT. Sign up for a test in winter or spring of your junior year, and that way, if you are unhappy with your scores, you'll have plenty of time to study and take the test again.
    • Take the PSAT in October of your junior year if your high school offers it. This will help you learn what to expect on the actual exam, and if you do well enough, you may receive a financial award from the National Merit scholarship competition (free money!).
    • Get a test prep book at least a month before your test and work through it. Focus on areas of difficulty, and take multiple full practice tests.
    • Use the practice questions posted on the SAT and ACT websites. The SAT, for example, provides a regular Question of the Day.
    • Consider enrolling in a test prep class. But if test prep is too costly, remember that that it is completely possible improve your scores through independent studying.
  8. Take SAT Subject Tests. Unlike the SAT and ACT, these exams test knowledge of a specific topic such as Biology or U.S. History. Most selective colleges require you to submit scores for two different Subject Tests.
    • Take tests in areas you have excelled in.
    • Take the a Subject Test immediately after finishing the relevant coursework at your school. For example, if you take Biology your freshman year and do well in it, you should take the Biology Subject Test that spring while the concepts remain fresh in your mind.
    • If you are considering a career in a STEM field and have taken some trigonometry and precalculus, you should strongly consider taking the Math 2 Subject Test. Many colleges will prefer math proficiency beyond the scope of the general SAT.

Deciding Where to Apply

  1. Do basic research. Get a college guide book from the bookstore or library; subscribe to college mailing lists by filling our their Information Request forms online; dig around college websites, paying particular attention to the programs and majors that you are interested in; attend information sessions in your hometown.
  2. Visit schools in person if possible. Even with extensive research, it can be difficult to get a true "feel" for a college without spending time on campus. When you visit, sign up to attend a campus tour or information session-- or both. Campus tours are often student-led, while information sessions are typically led by admissions officers. Both will give you valuable knowledge.
    • Take notes during or right after your visits. Without anything to refer back to, schools may begin to blend together in your head!
    • Pay attention to campus atmosphere. What are the students like? What are they doing as you walk around campus? Can you imagine yourself among them?
    • Set aside time to explore the area surrounding campus. Find out what sort of activities, entertainment, and resources you could take advantage of as a student there.
  3. Assemble a balanced list. The admissions game is wildly unpredictable, and you will need to apply to schools that range widely in selectivity to ensure that, come spring, you have been accepted to at least one program. Your list should include schools from each of the following three categories:
    • Reach schools. These are colleges that you have only a small chance at being accepted to. Many college counselors will say that a college that accepts less than 15 percent of its applicants should always be considered a reach school, no matter how accomplished the student.
    • Target schools.These are colleges that you have a good shot at being accepted at. You fit the profile of their accepted students: for example, you fall within their average range of test scores and GPA.
    • Likely or "Safety" schools.These are colleges you are very confident you will be accepted at.
  4. Consider cost-- but don't let sticker price discourage you. Talk with your family about how much you can afford to pay for college. But when creating your list, remember that most colleges are "need-blind" and will give you financial aid if you are accepted.
    • Seek out the "Price Calculator" on college websites, and enter your family's financial information to find out how much aid you can expect to receive.
  5. Decide if you will submit an Early Application. Some of the colleges on your list may offer an "Early Action" or an "Early Decision" option, which allows students to submit their applications earlier in the fall and receive their admissions decision sooner, in December. Early Action is non-binding: you are not obligated to attend the college if accepted. In contrast, students accepted to a college through Early Decision must enroll there.
    • If you have a clear first choice college, apply Early Decision if possible. Early Decision increases your chances of getting in by demonstrating to a college that they are your first choice.
    • If you are unsure where you want to go, apply Early Action. Colleges generally have higher admissions rates for early applicants. Plus, hearing back earlier on will save you suspense-- and a favorable decision will put your mind at ease!

Completing Your Application

  1. Make a timeline. Personally check the website of each college on your list and note the most up-to-date admissions deadlines. If you are prone to procrastination, create mini-deadlines to encourage steady work: for example, you might plan to finish one new application each week.
  2. Create a Common App account, if you need to (hint, you probably do). More than 500 colleges currently accept this standardized application form. You only need to fill it out once, and once finished, you simply forward it to all participating schools you are applying to.
    • The app opens each year online on August 1st, so you can begin filling out your application over the summer (lucky you!).
    • The Common App requires a "personal statement," a prompt-based essay of no more than 650 words. The prompts generally stay the same from year to year, so it's possible--and wise-- to start drafting your response even before August 1st arrives.
    • A personal statement will help admissions officers get to know you through some important aspects, or aspects, of your identity. Although there is no one correct format, compelling essays often recount and reflect on a story.
  3. Ask your teachers for letters of recommendation. The vast majority of colleges require two teachers, both from core academic subjects: English, math, science, history, or foreign language. Ask early on in your senior year. Otherwise, your teacher of choice may be swamped with other requests by the time you reach them!
    • Choose teachers who have a high opinion of you. Ideally, your recommender has seen you excel or work to overcome challenges. Did you enjoy their class? Did you put effort into it?
    • Choose recommenders who have taught you in the past two years and for at least a semester: not your math teacher from all the way back in freshman year, and not the senior year math teacher you've only known for two weeks.
    • If you believe another adult-- an art teacher, a coach, a supervisor, and so on-- would write persuasively on your behalf, by all means ask them. But their letter should supplement your two academic letters rather than replace them.
    • Ask for your letters in person. You may feel awkward, but your request will have a more personal touch.
    • Offer to send your recommender your resume, to help them write knowledgeably about you.
  4. Write any necessary supplemental essays. Many colleges require essays specific to their school in addition to your personal statement. Like the personal statement, this is an opportunity to convey important parts of your identity in a compelling, readable way.
  5. Consider submitting an arts supplement. If you have devoted significant time to or demonstrated unusual achievement in visual art, music, dance, or writing, a portfolio can enhance your application. But beware!-- if you submit a portfolio, some colleges will require you to submit your entire application up to a month earlier.
  6. Revise and proofread your application before submitting. Ask parents, friends, or trusted teachers to read it over, but make sure the words and ideas in your application remain your own.
  7. Prepare for any interviews. Not all schools require or even offer interviews; generally, schools will contact you after you submit your application with interview instructions. An off-campus alumni interview is a good and convenient option, but if possible, arrange an on-campus interview with an admissions officer, as this will hold more weight in the admissions process.
    • Relax. Your interview will probably not make or break you, unless you show up in torn jeans and a sweaty T-shirt and start swearing.
    • Research a college before going to its interview. Think about why you are applying to this specific school and what strengths you would contribute to it.
    • Have questions ready for your interviewer. This is a fantastic opportunity to learn more about the school, as well as to convey your genuine interest in a school.
    • Look on the internet for some common college interview questions[1], and practice your answers beforehand-- but avoid memorizing responses in a way that will sound mechanical.
    • Brush up on some current events. You don't need to know everything that's going on in the world, but it's not a bad idea to read the newspaper daily for a few days before the interview.
  8. Finished. Smile because you've done what you can; now sit back, and wait.

Tips

  • Follow your own interests rather than seeking to mold yourself into the sort of applicant you believe colleges want. Your passion (or lack of it) for what you do will show.
  • Work ahead. The more thinking and writing you do over the summer and early in the fall, the less stressed you will be when deadlines roll around.
  • Don't let the college process consume your life. Designate specific chunks of time work on your applications, then set aside college thoughts for the rest of the day. Consider making the dinner table a "college-talk-free zone."

Warnings

  • Don't let your academic performance suffer during senior year, both during the college process in fall and after your applications are in, in the spring. A significant drop in your grades may cause a college to rescind their offer.
  • Don't apply to more than one school Early Decision hoping to increase your chances at both. Colleges will revoke your acceptance if discover you have bent the rules.
  • Deadlines are nonnegotiable, so keep track of them! Don't let a simple planning error ruin your application.
  • If you send in an Early Application, it is tempting to wait until you receive your admissions decision before beginning your applications to other schools. But if you are wise, you will prepare for the worst-case scenario and have your backup applications ready.

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Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.quintcareers.com/college_interview.html
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