Admission secrets college applicants need to know

Be nice.  That’s one of the many bits of advice offered in a recent “Business Insider” article that warns students and parents that their communication with people at college admissions offices is tracked.  So venting, or being rude, to the person who answers the phone is definitely not a good idea as it will likely get noted in the student’s file. Those cautionary words were attributed to a former Yale University admissions official.

A student seeking admission to an elite university needs an application that’s not just good, but great.  Due to the monumental number of applications received by top schools, you need your application to stand out in the pile.  Otherwise, your application will likely be marked with the acronym “SP,” which stands for standard positive. So consider how you can make your application particularly memorable.  Those words of wisdom were accredited to a former Stanford University admissions reader.

It’s vital to realize that schools need to develop a well-rounded incoming freshman class.  So if you are an engineering applicant, for example, you are in competition with all of the other engineering applicants.  While you may have a considerably more impressive application than those of students applying for different majors, many of the other students may get accepted while you may not.  A college is not going to fire all of its History professors, for example, if there is a weak applicant pool for that major.

It’s not enough just to be smart at top schools, according to a former Assistant Director of Admissions at Dartmouth College, who said she analyzed students’ personalities as reflected in their applications and indicated in her notes whether they came across as “arrogant, entitled, mean, selfish, or, on the flip side, funny, charming, generous, witty.” She added that it was important to the University to build an incoming class of individuals who would “make good classmates, roommates, teammates, leaders, and friends.”  So college-bound students would do well, in their applications, to depict their positive personality traits. 

If given the opportunity to meet with an admissions officer, be sure to have intelligent questions prepared.  A former Assistant Dean of Admissions at both Princeton and UPenn said it “tells me a lot about the student, not much of it good,” when the applicant has absolutely no questions to ask. 

It appears that top colleges and universities want students who are not only smart, but also nice!     

Susan Alaimo is the founder and director of SAT Smart. For the past 25 years, SAT Smart’s Ivy League educated instructors have prepared students for the PSAT/SAT/ACT exams with preparation courses and private tutoring throughout Central Jersey. SAT Smart also offers private tutoring for subject tests, AP courses, and all high school subjects. Visit www.SATsmart.com, or call 908-369-5362.