What do Admissions Officers Look at in a College Application?
While there are so many little things that go into an acceptance decision for each college, there are some main topics that will be addressed.
ACADEMIC RIGOR
This seems to be a primary focus at most institutions. This does not just mean “GPA”. The term GPA is all relative. Schools have MANY ways that they individually calculate the GPA based on weighted classes (honors, IB, AP) and the scale they use (4.0, 4.5, 5.0, etc.). Colleges will usually recalculate a high school GPA to create a way to compare students fairly. Even that varies from college to college. Some do take honors and AP classes into consideration, and some do not. Most, if not all, will only use academic core classes in their assessment. So, gym, cooking, band, and health are not included. The basic classes will be: math, science, English, history, and foreign language. Admissions officers will look at the student’s transcript to evaluate types of classes taken (college prep, honors, AP, IB) and compare against the school’s profile and the classes offered at a particular high school. The profile is a page or two of data collected about the high school, surrounding town/area, academic offerings, student clubs, recent graduating class test scores, demographics of student body, and MANY other pieces of data. A school’s profile will most likely be available on a high school’s website under the guidance office page. If not, a HS guidance counselor can probably share this. Using the school profile, college admissions can compare one student to his/her direct peers, and by recalculating the GPA and looking at the specific classes and grades obtained from the transcript , the student can be compared to other students from different high schools.
STANDARDIZED TESTS
This includes the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) and the ACT (just called the ACT now but was originally called American College Testing). They are completely separate tests. Students generally determine which one is better suited for their individual test taking abilities. The SAT has fewer questions requiring more in-depth thinking and therefore more time / question. Students who like this test may not like to be rushed into an answer but take more time to think about it. The ACT has more questions and requires students to make quicker decisions. Students who like this test may be more inclined to feel comfortable making quick decisions and moving on to the next question. As a rule of thumb, I like to recommend that students take one of each test in a proctored situation to decide which format is more comfortable for them. Many test prep companies offer free tests. Some will follow-up with calls to pay for test prep, and the aggressive nature of this varies. If test prep is warranted, I recommend concentrating on ONE of the tests. It makes no sense to spend time and money when colleges will only want one or the other. Some students choose to submit scores for both tests, but that does not give them an advantage. There are many schools that have gone “test optional”. Check each college’s website for their particular variation of this. Some schools do not require scores for admission but do require them for merit aid consideration. The fine print is important for this topic.
PERSONAL STATEMENTS
These are multiple topics unto themselves. Most schools require some kind of essay requiring the student to reveal something important to them, a time or place or event of significance, or some insight they have had about themselves. Prompt choices are usually available. The Common Application has a single personal essay that will be sent to each college with the rest of the application. There are usually 6-7 topics to choose from with the prompts remaining fairly consistent from year to year. The Coalition Application has its own prompts and length of essay. Many colleges offering their own applications also require a personal statement. Other writing samples may be required. These are usually shorter in length. Typically, there are 1-3 other forms of writing either required or optional. Some schools do not require anything other than the main essay.
LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION
These should be solicited from about two teachers. Most colleges want no more than two from teachers. Some actually state on their admission website pages if they want less. Naviance allows students to choose which teachers’ letters are sent to individual schools. I recommend that students choose teachers that they have a connection with through class (bonus if you have a connection outside the classroom as well - such as an academic advisor for a club) or a teacher of a subject that you are really interested in pursuing in college (make an appointment to really talk to them if they didn’t get a chance to know you through class). Just because a student received an “A” doesn’t mean that the teacher will be able to give them a great recommendation. Sometimes a teacher who has seen a student struggle, try hard, and improve but not get an “A” will be a more compelling letter for admissions officers to read. Sometimes perseverance trumps aptitude. Depending on the high school, a student should think about asking a teacher late winter or early spring of junior year, especially if the teacher is in high demand or only writes a limited number of letters each year. After the verbal agreement, the student should meet in person and give the teacher a letter outlining potential areas of study, a resume (if available), and what they feel were his/her most significant activities and why. If a student is going into engineering, he/she may want to have a science teacher as well as a humanities teacher write letters to show he/she is well-rounded. I wouldn’t recommend two teachers in the same subject even if it is the student’s intended major. This is a personal decision, but teacher recommendations can carry a lot of weight because they may show attributes that the student can’t convey in other areas of the application. I always recommend that a student write a handwritten thank you note possibly with a small gift for the teacher. They are using their own time to do something special and incredibly important for students. It is not part of their contract nor is it an obligation that teacher have to write recommendations. Students should show their appreciation.
EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
These are very important because they show how the student spends his/her time OUTSIDE the classroom. College is not all about classes. In fact, most students will only have class for a few hours a day and much less than the rigid high school time spent in a classroom. Therefore, there are a lot of hours in the day that a college student is able to utilize to grow and mature into an adult. Many activities in high school or at least the general idea will be available to college students. Leadership positions, sports in many capacities, philanthropy/community service organizations, religious groups, and so many others are on every college campus. So many of the high school extracurricular activities give students ways to grow and mature into young adults able to take on the stress and responsibility of college life.
DEMOGRAPHICS
These are considered because colleges want to have a student body made up of different types of people, so a class will have geographic diversity, gender diversity, ethnic diversity, areas of study diversity, religious diversity, etc.
SPECIAL TALENTS
These are sometimes considered because it does add status to some institutions. This can be national winners of almost anything. Are you the national champion baton twirler? Make sure that colleges see that.
DEMONSTRATED INTEREST
This is how students show a college that they are truly interested. Colleges want their students to be happy and return to campus each year, become excited alumna, and continue to support their schools because they feel that they had a great experience during college. Many colleges, particularly large state institutions, do not care if you visit, go to a rep visit, or have a conversation with an admissions counselor. They simply have too many applicants to keep track of their interest. The types of institutions that may care if you want to come are usually smaller to mid-sized private institutions. Listen in informations sessions at colleges. If they use words like “we want to know you want to come here” or “an interview is highly recommended”, they are TELLING you that they want you to make an effort if you are really interested. Sometimes (definitely not always) it could make a difference when two equally qualified candidates are presented for admission. Who should they admit? The kid who lives forty minutes away and never visited campus, chose not to interview, and didn’t go to the booth at his/her college fair or the kid who lives three hours away and visited, came back to interview, and reached out to his/her regional representative with thoughtful questions about the campus?