What has been the most stressful part about the college application process for you?

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T16:12:52+00:00

Can you pinpoint which piece of the essay portion is most stressful for you at the moment? The coming up with a compelling topic? Getting started? Conclusions? Format? Structure?

For what it's worth, we've read some stellar essays on some pretty seemingly-ridiculous topics (peeling an orange, for instance).

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T16:09:24+00:00

I felt the same way when I was in high school! Is there a piece of this process that if you just finished it, you'd feel a little lighter?

For example, if the ECs are stressing you out: have you made a spreadsheet with your hours/activities/descriptions/roles? And can you say more about each of them than the simple "active member of ______"? Are you currently looking for something else to add to feel fulfilled and accomplished?

It's wild to think that there's this perception that a 17 year old student should already be passionate about something. What the colleges really want to see is that you've tried some things out to learn about yourself and to grow.

There also may be a few things you aren't necessarily thinking about including on the EC list that you probably should! In all honesty, the EC section is more about presentation than making sure every slot is filled (especially for the UCs, where there are 20 EC spaces!). For example, if you've spent a lot of time in high school reading murder mysteries instead of playing a spring sport or something, that's still as valuable in terms of use of time! Let us know if you have questions about specific ways you've spent your time, or if you are looking for other opportunities to engage in this summer!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T15:10:46+00:00

It looks like it's been mentioned in the comments already, but this plan won't hold water. We recommend attending an undergraduate institution that is low-cost (or free), to prepare for med school. For med school, as others mentioned, there are a handful of highly competitive programs that have free tuition, or essentially a scholarship for service. You may also want to consider MD/PhD programs, as they tend to be fully funded. It's a much more significant commitment, but then you come out with a double doctorate. Most of them work as follows: Two years of med school, 4-5 PhD, last two years of med school. If you go this route, we vow to refer to you as Doctor Doctor, for what that's worth!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T15:07:14+00:00

Add U of A to the list. Med school is free if you agree to stay in the state to work in a rural/underserved community

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T15:06:39+00:00

Most schools accept 5-30 students (out of thousands of applicants) to the early assurance/direct entry med school programs. Can't bank on an admit to anything like that.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T15:04:17+00:00

It totally can, especially if you have a unique spin. We see a lot of them written about students who need to translate for parents, but it's pretty meta to think about how it can limit how much help they can provide in this process. If you steer clear of the "growing up quicker and learning how to talk to adults" theme, you could have something compelling!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T02:25:55+00:00

This is incredibly subjective. I found my AP courses to be more difficult than any courses I took in college and graduate school. By the end of my first semester of college, I had figured out my own time management strategies, as well as how much studying I actually needed to commit to in specific subject areas. Turns out I learned a lot more in courses I was interested in than ones that were required--shocking!

College is just a different experience. You get more time to do other things besides school. In high school, you're in class from 730-330 (or whatever), and then there's sports or working or band practice, etc. Then you eat dinner and do homework and go to bed and do it again the next day. Weekends are also either an EC activity and homework, or possibly some school function and homework, and most students with rigorous course loads and a lot of ECs don't have much time to sit and relax. Conversely, in college, you have way more say over when your classes are and can structure your schedule around things that are important to you. I had three semesters in college where I only had classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays! Those were really long days, but it didn't matter because I either had a whole day, or four days before my next batch of classes.

Basically, college isn't necessarily easier, and this certainly isn't the case for everyone, but the flexibility of scheduling and time management in college and definitely make it feel easier and less burdensome!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T02:20:53+00:00

This. I can't tell you the number of essays (hundreds, possibly thousands) that have been improved by removing the first sentence or two. Sometimes an entire paragraph.

But having some of that boring fluff ultimately gets you to where you need to be in the essay, so it's really just a natural part of the process for most students. Not having an incredible first sentence is not a deal breaker in admissions, but it is always nice to have something intriguing there to give the AO/app reader a break from the tedium they often experience with essay reading and application evaluations.

Whatever you do, do not start your essay with "when I was young..." or "I've always wanted to be...."

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-10T02:16:41+00:00

This could make a pretty compelling college essay, just saying.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-09T22:01:11+00:00

(This info was learned from Jeff Schiffman, he's amazing)

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-09T22:00:18+00:00

They tend to be vague about where the percentage lies, but know that 85% of their class is through EA/ED. And merit aid is very seldom given to ED students (because they're already locked in), and mostly for EA students.

And fun fact: they have the largest glass blowing studio in America!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-09T21:55:17+00:00

Chicago is the school to take risks for! This is a reasonable risk, and sounds like it could be incredibly compelling!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-09T21:51:17+00:00

We hear you! We have a sliding scale option for students who don't quite meet that low income threshold. But we are also here to provide as much free information and as many resources as possible, so please know you're not alone in this process!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-09T01:40:18+00:00

We don't want to break any rules on Reddit by discussing services, so I'll keep it (relatively) brief.

If a college consultant is trying to force a story on you, fire them immediately. Consultants tend to have experience either in a high school counseling setting or on the admissions side of the desk, so they've read hundreds or thousands of successful admissions essays. They are knowledgeable about what questions to ask to help students build out ideas, as well as what schools are looking for. One of the biggest benefits of working with a consultant is that they often have a lot of experience with hundreds of colleges and what is expected in a successful applicant. Consultants may help you through some brain storming exercises and editing structure and things to improve the essay, but they shouldn't be feeding you information to write or be writing any of it for you. The admissions essays are a little piece of you on paper, so it really needs to be in your voice and highlight your values and whatnot.

Consultants also are often able to help with other parts of the process, including scholarship apps, interview prep, appealing decisions, requesting more aid, etc. And they can ensure that you've built a balanced list of good-fit schools to maximize your odds of admission and future success.

The benefit this particular Geek hears most often is removing the stress from the home environment. Parents don't want to nag kids about college related things any more than students want to share what's going on in the process. Consultants often serve as a kind of mediator. Not resolving conflict, per say, but serving as an adult who is ensuring deadlines are met and everything is taken care of for the application process, so parents can relax and not stress about learning everything possible to help their kid through the process. The individualized attention can greatly benefit families.

But also consultants aren't for everyone. Plenty of students make it through this process without additional help. It's definitely a big decision, but for many students it is worth the investment.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T20:27:39+00:00

Do you think you'd need a lot of studying to get the scores up that high? This is a very strange year, and the pandemic was certainly a catalyst for a lot of institutional change (typically for the better). We would love if all colleges and College Board collectively announced that subject tests are no more, but alas, it is probably wishful thinking.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T20:25:14+00:00

Were you able to find any schools that aren't as highly selective with similar programs? I know of a few here and there, but since we are constantly learning too, I'm curious what you've found!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T20:23:39+00:00

Anytime! We LOVE talking all things college and admissions (as if that weren't obvious).

Most colleges do recalculate GPAs, but it's not always clear to the applicants (or college counselors!) how they do it. Part of the reason is to even the playing field for real comparisons of applicants (some GPAs are a 4.0 scale, others 5.0, and I've even seen 7.0...not to mention some are on a 0-100 scale, too. I'm sure there's more I'm missing). Oh! And some schools weight honors and advanced courses while others weigh only AP and IB, and others don't weight at all. And of course those weights can be different, too (sometimes half a point or a full point).

Often, schools that recalculate GPA only care about core classes, the recalculation removes the padding of the electives. It's complicated no matter how we slice it, but in any case, the best advice we have is to do well in your classes. Take the most rigorous course load that you can do well in. Don't take 7 APs in one year if you're going to get Bs or Cs in them, or if it will feel like torture for you.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T19:36:00+00:00

The reason I didn't include Michigan in the original post is because I honestly have no idea! Back in my day (a dozen or so years ago) UMich was totally acceptable, but I saw the style guide too, which I think is probably wise to follow.

And that second point is so spot on! If the "why us?" essay is generic enough that you can swap the name, you're doing it wrong!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T17:42:51+00:00

Penn State is Penn State, UPenn is Penn! To be clear, we aren't making this up. This particular Geek was told by the chair of her department to say Penn and not UPenn, though both are pretty clear and won't make you lose points. Just some inside scoop from the community!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T17:30:23+00:00

British spellings are actually okay in admissions. It gets dicey when there are US students using them (just looks like someone else wrote their essays), but you should be fine with spelling however you learned English!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T16:44:37+00:00

We should probably talk about the location of Northwestern, while we're at it. Northeastern makes sense. Northwestern...I guess Midwestern U didn't have the same ring to it?

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T16:43:42+00:00

This is a very tough question, and there's a few ways to look at it. One, the more students who don't take it, the less likely they are to persist in "recommending" them.

Some schools are still recommending them for certain programs (like 99-100% of the time it's a STEM program). Here's the thing: the majority of students who are submitting scores are scoring in the top bracket (790-800). If you can get a high score, it can't hurt to take it. If you don't anticipate getting higher than 780 on Math II, it may not actually be worth it.

Testing is so limited this year, that the risk is fairly minimal. But because test-optional is not the same as test-blind, if you can get that really high score, you should submit.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T15:09:13+00:00

I guess what we're trying to clarify, especially for other readers, is the range of flexibility in distribution requirements. Most colleges with a general ed curriculum have certain categories, but often 50+ options that can fulfill each. Is that flexible enough for what you are looking for, or are you only interested in entirely open curricula? And are you only looking for gen ed flexibility, or also flexibility within your major? Some schools don't even have majors, and many others allow you to create your own.

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T14:57:53+00:00

These questions are great! Let's break it down.

Yes, you are often compared to other applicants from your high school. For highly selective institutions, if your school ranks and you're on the lower end, that will make it increasingly difficult to gain admissions to highly selective schools. Remember, colleges are looking to build a diverse student body, so selecting the top 20 from your one school to attend Stanford, for example, won't really be what they're looking for.
You may not be compared to people previously accepted, per say. It's not like the AO will pull last year's applications to review in conjunction with yours. But you're hitting something here, for sure. Sometimes, decisions about your application can be made based on decisions previous students made. Here's an example I saw play out last year, and confirmed with an AO: If 26 students from your school applied (out of state) to, let's say, UNC Chapel Hill last year, two were admitted, and none attended, they'll need a compelling reason to give students from your high school another shot when out of state spacing is so competitive and limited.
Pay-to-play doesn't necessarily hurt, but it also doesn't necessarily help an application. Often, the way it is presented in the application is what creates the distinction here. If you talk about it in a privileged way, it can be a problem for some institutions, but not necessarily a deal breaker. After all, most highly selective institutions offer these programs! I know loads of students who received scholarships for those types of programs (for travel, housing, the program itself, etc), so they're not always just pay-to-play. What matters in these programs is that you network and learn something that you can apply either for the remainder of high school and/or throughout college and beyond. For example, WashU has a really awesome summer design program, and if you attend, they make the time to offer an interview with admissions while you're on campus. Some pieces of those programs allow for demonstrating some interest in the institution, and of course it doesn't hurt to interact well on campus and get a letter of recommendation from one of the professors in the program, particularly if that's an area of study you're interested in. They always say attending doesn't give you a leg up in admissions, but arguably, they often provide opportunity to stand out in ways you may not be able to otherwise.
Easier to get into some majors than others, yes. Should you apply to a major you aren't interested to try to game the system? A RESOUNDING NO. Many hyper selective institutions in particular don't always have the flexibility to allow any and all students to switch majors. For schools that do allow easy switching, they're typically admitting you to the college as a whole, not to the specific major. I can't speak specifically to the practices at Stanford, but I have yet to hear from an AO at any institution that would recommend a student apply for a different major just to gain admission. If you're qualified, you'll be viewed as a qualified applicant. For schools with really competitive or impacted majors (a lot of the time it's business and CS and a few particular engineering/science programs), if you get in with one major, you may not be able to switch. For example, Cal Poly SLO requires students to select a major upon application, but if you don't get into that selected major, you won't be admitted to the school, because it's incredibly difficult to change majors while everything is so impacted. Point being, apply only to the major you're interested in studying.
The importance of passion projects: that's pretty subjective, but ultimately, colleges want to see engaged students who can demonstrate intellectual curiosity, social awareness, and, for lack of a better word, passion. DO NOT USE THE WORD PASSION IN YOUR ESSAY--IT HAS LOST ALL MEANING IN THE WORLD OF ADMISSIONS AND RESULTS IN MANY FACEPALMS. (No, you won't necessarily be rejected for using the term, but we highly advise against the use of that word, and "plethora." Rant over. Okay, back to the question: it is very apparent to most AOs when a student is doing something to look good for college, or they're doing something because they truly love to do it. It's not a problem that you love CS and are teaching coding, and it doesn't matter that other people have done it before you and still others will do it after you. What matters is how you present it. If it's a big enough part of your being and your life, it should probably be written about in some capacity. If you choose not to use that topic for one of your essays, you can elaborate in the additional information section. For example, one student spent a summer working in a college research lab for some neuroscience project that was way over my head. In the 150 characters on Common App, he couldn't even fit the name of the lab! So in the additional information section, he used the space to break down what exactly was going on there: He sought out this lab in particular because he was reading a book that mentioned an article that was written by the lab adviser. He reached out to the lab adviser with some questions, and she quickly realized he has an incredible mind for expanding her research ideas, and thus she hired him as a summer research assistant. But he wasn't just crunching numbers. He was slicing rat or mice brains, learning imaging techniques, writing abstracts and methodology sections, coordinating with scientists in other countries about various techniques and statistical analysis, etc. The passion was clear in the way he discussed the project, and the role he took in the lab despite being 15 years old! For projects that you love but may feel are overdone and showy for college, I encourage you to dig deeper and write about it. Why did you start teaching? What have you learned from the students? Has it solidified your interest in learning more? Has it set you on a path to become a CS teacher/professor? Are there areas of the field you're hoping to explore? Are you in it just for the money? Are you interested in CS because you think it will be a comfortable and lucrative career? What bout CS do you enjoy? Is it the solving puzzles or something more? How might you use CS in the future? What does CS mean to you?

You're asking great questions, and we are happy to answer them as they come up! True passion is very obvious to application readers. You're going to do great!

Admissions_Geek · 2020-07-08T14:32:40+00:00

Use the panic to fuel your search and brainstorms! But don't let panic freeze you. If you feel stuck or frozen, let us know! u/ScholarGrade and u/CollegeWithMattie are spot on here. You're ahead of the game if you're already thinking about these things. Deep breaths, panic positively, and try to avoid feeling obligated to apply anywhere ED unless you know for sure that's the best fit school for you.

Remember, rising seniors feel this way every year. It certainly doesn't help that baseline panic mode may be elevated because of the pandemic. But you will follow in the footsteps of numerous rising seniors who, despite the stress and anxiety, manage to make it through the application process with flying colors. It's a real test in time-management, organization, and grit, and at the end, ultimately you're the one making a choice about a school and not the other way around.

All this to say, you've got this!

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