Helpful College Admissions Tips
It’s fall-senior year of high school. The weather is getting cooler and the amount of school events and activities planned are piling up. Buying class rings, preparing for Homecoming and senior class trips are all many students can think about at this time. Despite all the excitement and the crush of planning that happens in senior year-no amount of reveling and celebration can surpass the frenetic pace of yet another high school senior tradition-applying to colleges. College admission becomes a very real part of life that can sometimes be overwhelming.
If senior year of high school is the first time a student even thinks about applying to a college, then the college admissions process will be that much harder for them to navigate. The key to success in college admissions is to start early; preferably in junior year of high school. Most colleges have application and admission deadlines that are open months, and sometimes, in excess of a year before the expected starting date.
College admissions can be a tricky part of the college search process. It’s the time in a student’s life when they have virtually no control over the outcome. Once an application is sent and all transcripts, reference letters and other accompanying documents reach the school-the decision is pretty much in the hands of admissions officials.
There are, however, many things that a student can do in order to increase their odds of admission into a particular school. The first thing a student should do, as was mentioned before, is start early. Waiting until the last minute to search for colleges or apply can mean that many spots will be taken by early decision students who’ve already applied.
Another tip for college admission success would be getting others involved in the application process. Asking pertinent questions of guidance counselors and using the resources they have available can be quite advantageous. Guidance counselors know more about the college admissions process than most other people students may have access to. Also, running important decisions by parents and other family members can also be helpful-as some of these people have gone through the same stressful situation, too.
Knowing the criteria that a college uses for admission is the most important part of applying to college. College admissions criteria can be myriad and different from one school to the next. While most school are very strict about deadlines for applying, for instance, some school have what’s called open enrollment, which allows a student to apply year round without penalty. Also, while test scores from SAT’s and other standardized tests are important with some colleges, others put more emphasis on the student being well-rounded and multi-talented. The point is, knowing what is most important to a particular school is important.
Many students, although they are wise enough to start early and get outside help, do themselves a disservice by not properly weighing their options. It’s easy to not properly research schools enough before applying, or to only research a few options. Having a small college pool or too many options can be limiting, and makes the admissions process more complicated than it should be. Three to five colleges is a good range to consider when applying to colleges.
Taking the process of college admissions in stride is important. Obsessing over details can distract a prospective student from what’s really important-acceptance into a school of choice. The more organized and thought out the approach to college admissions, the more time a college senior will have to think about more pressing matters; such as booking a limo for the prom.
