250 Colleges With Openings for Current Seniors

May 1^st has now passed, offering a slew of options to high school seniors who have not yet honed their post-graduation plans.  May 1^st is known as National Response Day, by which time college bound students need to accept a seat (and pay a deposit) to the college they have chosen to attend.

Since most students apply to a multitude of colleges, it’s impossible for schools to know in advance exactly how many of those whom they’ve accepted will actually enroll.  Once May 1^st rolls around, colleges find out if they have met their target enrollment. If not, their name is likely be added to a list cultivated by the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) offering a last chance for high school seniors.

Sometimes, students plan to attend a community college after high school or to take a gap year to explore their interests. As they approach graduation and realize the majority of their friends are leaving town for college, they may have a change of heart. 

Fortunately, the list just released by the NACAC includes more than 250 colleges that are still accepting applications for the fall semester of 2023.  Included are two New Jersey schools that have openings for both incoming freshmen and transfer students and are still offering housing and financial aid. They are Caldwell University and Rider University. 

 

New York currently has 19 schools still accepting applications, including Adelphi University, Hofstra University, Ithaca College, and Pace University. Pennsylvania lists 22 schools, including Penn State University, Duquesne University, Moravian University and St. Joseph’s University. Three schools in Connecticut are still accepting applications: Mitchell College, University of New Haven, and University of Saint Joseph. Maryland lists 6 schools, including Goucher College, Maryland Institute College of Art, and Salisbury University. 

 

As the list is frequently updated, interested students should visit nacacnet.org/openings for the most current information.

 

At this point, students interested in a particular college should file an application promptly and touch base with the admissions office to verbalize their strong interest in attending the school. If all goes well, they may end up purchasing their college gear sooner than expected!

Susan Alaimo is the founder and director of Collegebound Review which offers PSAT/SAT^® preparation and private college advising by Ivy League educated instructors. Visit CollegeboundReview.com or call 908-369-5362

Passion Project Advantage on College Applications

Years ago, college admissions officers were in search of well-rounded students who seemed to have it all: academic success, athletic prowess, and a resume full of extracurricular activities.  That’s no longer the case.  Colleges are no longer seeking “Renaissance people,” but rather students with a specialty. By admitting thousands of talented students, each with their own niche, colleges are able to create a diverse, and accomplished student body.

 

On their applications, students should emphasize the talent they would bring to the school – and the more unique the better.  While colleges typically have thousands of applicants eager to play football, baseball, soccer, and basketball, they have many fewer seeking a spot for fencing, golf, crew, squash, sailing, and polo.  

 

Students with a talent for music might benefit from the words of a conductor who referred to as “scholarship row” the section that included students playing oboes, bassoons, bass clarinets, baritone saxophones, and tubas.

Student Resume Can Boost College Applications

The college application process actually begins as soon as students embark on their high school journey.  Well before students identify their future college major or dream school, they start creating their personal journey through the activities, clubs, and organizations with which they engage. The best way to keep track of it all is to craft a resume and constantly update it throughout one’s high school years.

 

A resume is a worthwhile document to have on hand, as it is often requested of high school students seeking a part time job, internship, scholarship, or inclusion in a pre-college program.  Students should compose their initial resume during freshman year of high school, listing categories such as Academics, Athletics, Extra-curricular Activities, Volunteer Work, Employment, and any other fields in which they are engaged.  Resumes should continuously be updated, with the categories posted in decreasing order of importance. Thus, the category featuring the student’s most impressive accomplishments would top the resume.

 

On The Common Application, which is accepted by more than 900 colleges, students are given space to list ten activities. But they are limited in the amount of information they can include about each one. Often, students do not have sufficient space to enumerate all of their accomplishments and leadership roles for each activity. Thus, a resume can fill this gap.

The "Must Ask" College Planning Questions

Identifying one’s ideal college is a daunting task, with some 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. alone.  Often, students and their parents rely on information from well-meaning friends and relatives.  But the experiences and expectations of one family can vary greatly from that of another, with differing resources, talents, and ambitions.

 

The ideal way to identify “best fit” colleges is to devise a list of questions and then seek answers – hopefully over a lengthy period of time as colleges are visited and admissions officers are consulted.  Productive questions may be:

 

Which colleges offer the strongest program in my intended major?

 

Do I prefer to attend a college in an urban, suburban, or rural community?

 

Would I be more comfortable at a small school, or would I love being immersed in a large student body?

2.8 Million Students Take AP Exams in May

College bound students know that the GPA and SAT scores listed on their college applications are scrutinized by college admissions officers.  But so too are additional numbers: the scores on their AP exams. 

AP stands for Advanced Placement. It’s the term for college level courses, created by College Board (the same folks who bring you the SAT exam), that provide high school students with the opportunity to earn colleges credits if they score high enough on end-of-year exams.  AP exams are currently offered in 38 subjects, including the Arts, English, History and Social Science, Math and Computer Science, Science, and World Languages and Cultures, although not all courses are offered at every high school.  AP exams were introduced back in the 1950’s and have greatly increased in the number of options and in popularity over the years.  Currently, some 2.8 million students take AP exams each May. Students who score 3 or higher (on a scale of 1 to 5) are offered college credits by many of the nation’s colleges and universities.

Students Get Unlimited “Do Overs” on SAT Exam

 

Just as the SAT has evolved over the years, so too have the “rules” surrounding it.

 

The first SAT was administered on June 23^rd, 1926 to 8,040 students. In 2022, nearly 100 years later, some 1.7 million students took the exam as part of their college application process.

 

The test has survived a multitude of revisions over the year, with a major overhaul scheduled for March of 2024 when the test will go digital in the United States and decrease significantly in length from three hours to two hours of testing material.

 

The good news for students is that they will continue to have control over which of their scores get reviewed by colleges. Students can take the current and/or new SAT exam and all of their scores are recorded on their College Board account. When it’s time to apply to college, students can literally check off the scores they want to submit.  Colleges do not know how many times a student has taken the SAT and do not see any scores that students do not want to share.

Preparing for National College Decision Day

May 1st is a momentous day for college bound students.  It’s National College Decision Day – the deadline day for college applicants to confirm their enrollment for the upcoming fall semester. 

Typically, high school seniors apply to a gamut of schools, spreading their applications out among perceived “stretch,” “target,” and “safety” schools. By March 1^st they will have heard back from the vast majority of these colleges, letting them know whether or not they have been accepted.  Now, the ball is in the student’s court.  

 

Often, there is a clear-cut favorite and enrollment decision is an easy one.  Other times it’s a difficult choice.  As May 1^st approaches, students who are unsure of which college to choose may decide to “double deposit” – accepting admission at two schools and paying an enrollment deposit at each.  While possible to do, this is considered unethical as the student will ultimately attend only one university.  It’s also unfair to one’s peers, as it’s taking up a spot that could be cherished by another student. Likewise, it’s a waste of money, as enrollment deposits are typically nonrefundable.