it\u2019s summer, which means it\u2019s time for beach, pool, sleeping in, vacation, road trips, afternoon movie marathons, summer jobs, and\u2026.college applications. if, in about a year from now, you are dreaming of clutching an acceptance letter to your dream school in your triumphant fist, then it\u2019s time to start thinking about your applications (if you haven\u2019t already) right now.<\/p>\n
here are our top three tips for a college application that will stand out from the pack.<\/p>\n
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it\u2019s blindingly apparent to admissions offices when you have sent them a canned essay copied over from a template on your computer with \u201cinsert college here\u201d strategically sprinkled throughout the text. trust me on this. i could spot them a mile away. make sure to take the time to get to know each school you are applying to. visit the campus if you can, and take notes on specific academic, research, extracurricular or service opportunities you are interested in. it\u2019s easy to get caught up in how beautiful a campus is or how much fun the students look like they are having, but remember the college wants to hear your thoughts on it as a place of learning<\/em>. if a visit is not possible, spend some quality time on the website. pro tip<\/em>: go to the \u201ccurrent students\u201d page for the best information on classes and other opportunities offered at the school. the \u201cprospective students\u201d page is a good starting place, but it often doesn\u2019t get into the nuanced details on specific opportunities you can tell colleges you are interested in. another good page to check out–that hardly any prospective students frequent–is the \u201cmission\u201d or \u201cabout us\u201d page. this is where a college tells you point blank what it values in itself and in its students. why wouldn\u2019t you want to take advantage of this information to show a college how you fit right in with its ideals?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n most applications include various sections to fill out with honors, classes, test scores, activities, and interests. whenever possible, take a \u201ctop-down\u201d approach to listing information<\/em>. highlight your best stuff at the top where it will get noticed. for example, rather than listing your courses in the order you attend them (which is what most students do), put your aps or ibs first, then honors, then other academic subjects, then electives. just because you have gym first period doesn\u2019t mean gym should be first on your list.<\/p>\n take every opportunity you have to tell the college about yourself<\/em>. don\u2019t skip over optional \u201cdescription\u201d spaces: seeming as if you have too much<\/em> to say rather than nothing at all to say always looks better. so, for example, rather than just writing \u201csoccer, grades 9-12,\u201d let colleges know you were the \u201crecipient of the student athlete award and chosen as a mentor for the freshman players.\u201d<\/p>\n also, remember that some information is optional<\/em>. if your sat or act scores are less than stellar, and you are applying to a test-optional school, remember that you don\u2019t necessarily need to fill out the test score section. this gets a little tricky, so make sure you consult with your college counselor.<\/p>\n be thoughtful about your applications. the best applications tell a story and give a college a sense of who you are and how you will contribute to its campus. are you an artist and a filmmaker? a budding chemical engineer? make sure your \u201cidentity\u201d comes across on the various parts of your application.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n college applications can be pretty complex. there are essays, recommendation letters, transcripts, official test reports, maybe art portfolios or music supplements, and more. create a spreadsheet early in the process to keep track of everything you need and the deadlines<\/em>. you don\u2019t want to hold up your applications and miss early deadlines because you are waiting on a recommendation letter or need to scrape together some art samples. also, don\u2019t forget that all of your friends (and their friends) are going to be clamoring for recommendation letters from the same teachers. ask your teachers early <\/em>(the spring of junior year is ideal) and give them whatever they need to write a stellar recommendation. when i advised high school students for college admissions, i rarely allowed them to skip any opportunity to tell the schools more about themselves. so if there is an optional essay asking you to describe yourself in an acrostic poem, think twice about brushing it off; completing the optional essays shows the colleges your investment in going above and beyond.<\/p>\n there\u2019s too much competition out there to throw an application together at the last minute! you\u2019ve invested so much in your high school life so far, so put some thought into how you present yourself to colleges, so they don\u2019t miss just how special you are.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" it\u2019s summer, which means it\u2019s time for beach, pool, sleeping in, vacation, road trips, afternoon movie marathons, summer jobs, and\u2026.college applications. if, in about a year from now, you are dreaming of clutching an acceptance letter to your dream school in your triumphant fist, then it\u2019s time to start thinking about your applications (if you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":88,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[75],"ppma_author":[24868],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n2. consider how you present yourself<\/h2>\n
3. don\u2019t forget about all your supplemental components<\/h2>\n