College Admissions Help Blog

Ask Admissions Girl: When applying to colleges you have to send your high school transcript, but do colleges actually look at them?

YES! Transcripts are a very important part of the admissions process and in most cases, give a more accurate portrayal of a student’s academic prowess than the SAT, ACT, or other standardized test. This is why it is very important to start early and get good grades from the very start.

Although schools would like to see consistently high grades, admissions reps look for upward trends as well. If you have a bad freshman year but show a marked improvement over the next three years, this can also be seen as positive. A transcript which shows a decline in grades over your four years is conversely looked upon as a negative indication of a student’s abilities.
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Understand the Cost of College

When figuring out how to pay for college one must first understand the cost of college. There are a few helpful calculators on CollegeToolKit.com that can help you accomplish this:

• Real Cost of College Calculator – estimates how much college will cost from based on when you will enroll and the current cost of the college you are interested in
• Expected Family Contribution Calculator – calculates your EFC or the amount a family can be expected to contribute toward a student’s college education costs when determining federal aid
• Value of college calculator – puts into perspective the costs of college versus the potential benefit overtime by comparing your lifetime earning in two scenarios

Assess all of your resources

Once you have determined the cost you should talk to your parents to see if they can contribute to your college costs, and get a job and start saving for those extra expenses. The remaining amount will be paid for using scholarships, federal aid, and private loans. (more…)

Junior Year Fact: How you prepare for college now will affect your chances of getting into a traditional four year college, on time, after high school graduation.

Dear Juniors, do you know how to prepare junior year to get into college? (more…)

Today I got the chance to interview a freshman at Ithaca College in New York, Sara A. Manning (SAM).  She is home on her first college break for Thanksgiving.  I asked her questions about her time so far at Ithaca, if she has tips for students still in the admissions process and how it feels to be home again. Read the interview here:

AG: How do you like college so far?
SAM: So far college has been a pretty positive experience. I am currently in the Exploratory program at Ithaca College, but next semester I hope to be a part of the Communications program there. My first semester has been kind of an eclectic mix of classes that I picked in order to get a feel for different areas of study. Next semester, I hopefully want to try to focus more in one area and start working on getting credits towards a specific major. Right now I am leaning towards their Cinema and Photography program.

As for the social aspect of college, I am very happy with the friends I have made there and the programs I have joined. Living on my own was certainly a big adjustment, but I have become pretty accustomed to it over the past three months.

AG: What advice do you have for high school students in the college admissions process?

SAM: I recommend that high school students going through the college admissions process be organized and realistic. It’s useful to take notes on schools that you’re interested in and mark down their positive and negative aspects. Later on you can go back to those notes to try and narrow down to which schools to send applications.

Picking schools that have average GPAs and SAT scores that match yours is often a good idea, but also make sure to apply to one or two below and above your reach. Schools below your average can be good as a failsafe option, and schools above your average may unexpectedly accept you.

Also a few other important things to think about are cost per year and location. Both are deciding factors for picking out a school that is right for you.

Lastly, when a school accepts you, you should visit it before you decide to go. A school can look great on paper, and then in person it can just turn out not to the perfect fit.

AG: How is it being home for your first Thanksgiving break?

SM: Being home for Thanksgiving break can be both restricting and comforting at the same time. I mean, you get certain liberties that you don’t get at school such as watching cable TV in the privacy of your living room, cooking your own food whenever you want, and talking to your friends and family directly (and not through the screen of a computer). However, there is a definite difference between the amount of freedom you have at school and the amount you have at home.

Although most parents treat returning college students more like adults, their presence alone is somewhat restricting compared to the that of an RA or RD. A few of my friends from college have texted me or Facebook messaged me saying that their parents are completely overbearing and they don’t understand how they could have lived there for 18 years previously. Other friends have just said that it’s weird not to be around their roommates and friends 24/7. Coming home is certainly an odd adjustment, but it gives me a chance to clear my head and escape from my schedule for a week.

Student reviews and ratings of Ithaca College |  Admissions stats for Ithaca College

So the time has finally come, you are putting procrastination aside and sitting at the computer to write that killer college admissions essay. Congratulations! Here are some tips for the best way to approach the task on hand.

• Write in first person
• Share a powerful message
• Connect to the requirements of the essay
• Strategically support your academic profile and goals
• Show your ambition, exude confidence and express initiative

First develop an overall strategy.  Sit with your mentor (friend, parent, brother, sister, grandma, physics teacher, boss, school counselor — an outside reader) Talk about what you want out of college, and that will most likely match with the top colleges on your list. Let this information guide your strategy to incorporate supporting qualities, information into your essay. Qualities that match up with the school’s mission and your goals.

Each short or long essay you write is “a chance to tell your story.” To who? Why? To convince the admissions person reading your essay that you are their ideal candidate.  At this point, your grades and scores have put you into the yes or no column, but colleges must then use the essays to select candidates with the best fit.  Most admissions offices consider the college essay fourth in importance behind grades, test scores, and rigor of coursework. Read more about the school of choice, to figure out what matter most to them.  Connect with the reader based on what you know about the school.  Each school has a tagline, put that tagline in your head, (“The Best School in The West”) while you write and let it guide the story you craft.

Focus on the details that make your story unique, include the facts that are not obvious to the reader.  I had such writer’s block when I started writing my application essays. Don’t let the pressure of deadlines throw you off track – you are too good for that! Pick a topic that answers the essay question, and remember to relate back to it the topic during the story. If you are have trouble starting, remember an English teacher may have already assigned an essay that you can use as a starting point. Look through your old writing, talk to teachers and mentors, and refine your thoughts.

Why is college important to you? Remember you are filling the gaps in of the admissions person’s knowledge. To show yourself in the best light, and to put the reader in a jolly mood, focus on the positive. Stories that have positive outcomes, despite struggle, show initiative and make powerful college admissions essays.

I recently found a new networking site focused on serving just medical students.  If you know of someone studying medicine, let them know about:

http://www.medicalstudents.com/

What other sites are out there offering similar opportunities to other student groups???

For those who may not have noticed, or are new to the game of college admissions (which probably accounts for 99.9% of those reading this and other college admission blogs), the Common App has changed for the next class of applicants.

Some of the changes are obvious -- such as the reformatting of choices available in reporting SAT and/or ACT scores -- while others are more nuanced, making them all the more likely to lead to mistakes by the applicant, with often unintended, and, sometimes undesirable results.

It is all the more important, then, and incumbent upon the applicant, to read ALL instructions, thereafter, to carefully and thoroughly follow them.

Jeremy Spencer, Director of Admissions at Alfred University (writing for About.com:College Admissions) notes six of the most common mistakes made in the college application process. Read, The Six Most Common Blunders of College Applicants. Many of these errors of commission or omission translate directly from mistakes made on the Common App. These include, but surely are not limited to, missing deadlines, applying Early Decision instead of Early Action, and using the wrong college name in the essay.

Clearly, there is more to completing the Common App than simply filling in the blanks. Even those blanks require you, the applicant, to be concise, clear, and, most assuredly, accurate.

And let's not forget about those pesky short answers, where much more than "check the box that applies" is required.

Allen Grove, of About.com Guide, notes 5 Short Answer Mistakes that could, all things considered, sink what would otherwise be a meritorious application.

And then, there are the supplemental applications, addenda required by many colleges, both public and private.

Surely, you will want to put your best foot forward, presenting yourself and your credentials in the best possible light, most favorable (in the eyes of a college admissions officer) to acceptance at the college of your choice.

The Common App is, in most instances, the centerpiece of your admissions table, and you will want to set it with the knives, forks, and teaspoons properly laid out and pointing in the right direction.

A bit of old-fashioned advice from The College Whisperer as you embark on the road toward college admissions -- engaging the Common App early in your travels, and meeting it head on: Take advantage of all available resources, from your high school guidance counselor to the expert advice of an independent college planning counselor (and, yes, on occasion, even the wisdom of your parents). Along that road there is many a bump and often a detour or two. You drive, most certainly, but always seek the assist of essential navigation to gain the much-needed competitive edge.

Ask Admissions Girl: I am an upcoming junior, is there anything I can do to alleviate the senior burden?

It’s never too early to start planning! If you are a junior, sophomore or even a freshman there are ways to prepare before senior year.  Making college decisions can be stressful and as written in my last post there is a lot to do senior year, so it is best to be organized.  Alleviate or ease the “burden” senior year by starting early, and continually researching and applying yourself.

Gather as much information as you can about colleges, loans and scholarships, and you can make an educated decisions when the time comes without the stress.  We offer a helpful high school timeline and links here: How to Plan for College.

Below is another planning guide that can be used throughout high school to help make the college search and application process more manageable:

1: Start with research:

• Consider possible career options and investigate the type of education that is needed.
• Request materials from schools that interest you and visit their websites to read reviews and requirements.
• Arrange campus visits to those schools that interest you.
• Look at scholarship options and ways you can work to obtain one or more.
• Understand the loan process, look at requirements and provisions from federal loans versus private loans.
• Talk with upper classman, older siblings or college grads you know. Ask what to expect, and if they have advice. Find someone to support and mentor you through the process at school, through a friend or at home.

2: Organize yourself for success:

• Take the PSAT to prepare for the SAT, and to identify areas where you need improvement. Look for test-prep tools online or your local book store for help.
• Register for and take the ACT and/or SAT in the spring of Junior year.
• Make sure you are meeting your high school graduation requirements, and stay focused on your schoolwork.
• Sign up for classes for Senior year that support and represent your interests.
• Start saving to pay for test and application fees as well as tuitions.

3: Show schools what you are all about:

• Participate in extracurricular activities or volunteer locally.
• Explore your interests and gain experience by getting a job, internship or apprenticeship.
• Continue building relationships with teachers, managers and coaches that can eventually write a letter of recommendation for you.

Seems HS Juniors are getting busy looking at colleges, taking SATs and visiting a number of new sites set up for finding and comparing colleges - like www.HowToGetIn.com.

Post your favorite college admission sites and explain why you like them below...

Another recent addition to our portfolio of services is a college admissions discussion board. The site is available to all college bound high school students looking to attend college anywhere in the United States. HowToGetIn.com has been around for 10 years, although the forum and blogs hosted on the site are relatively new.

Join in the discussions at: http://forum.howtogetin.com/