First of all, watch the deadlines carefully: the importance of applying to colleges early

Each application is stamped with a date it was received in the admissions office. It is to your advantage to have your completed application in the admissions office as soon as the institution is ready to receive applications for the next class. I stress that the application packet should be completed as soon as possible with the help of your guidance office. You, the student, and your parents should ensure that the institution has received your application, your essays, your SAT / ACT scores, your letters of recommendation, and any other supporting documents as soon as possible. It is your responsibility to check with the admissions office to make sure your application is complete. Do not assume your application is complete until you have reviewed it yourself.

Colleges and universities will read the completed applications they received first. It will benefit you to be in the first group of applications that will be considered for admissions. Towards the end of the applicant pool, institutions will become a bit more selective, which will reduce your chances of admission, especially if your profile is not extremely strong for that year’s applicant pool. The admissions process comes down to the strength and depth of the applicant pool for that particular year. It is not a personal game but a numbers game.

I cannot stress enough the importance of submitting your application before the stated deadline. “He who gets up early gets the worm” is an appropriate saying for the admission process.

The importance of a good and relevant essay – make sure your essay is well written

By this time of year, (fall) you should have done your essay and reviewed by your English teacher. Your personal essay is your opportunity to put your application front and center. You can make your application come alive as long as you’ve written a good essay. Your essay should be well written and relevant. It should be an extension of you. It should also be about you or something that is very important to you. It should shed light on you as a college admissions candidate. You can make or break your admission opportunity. Don’t confuse your personal essay with the short essays you may have to write for some college applications.

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket – make sure you apply to at least two (2) safety schools.

What bothers me the most is the lack of consideration for safety schools because most will think and spend a lot of time researching their outreach school and the schools within their profile, but they won’t spend a lot of time on the schools they are likely to attend. When applying to schools, be sure to have a serious conversation with your parents about paying for the school or schools on your list. You want to get a good idea of ​​which schools you and your parents can afford with little or no help. I implore you to speak seriously with your parents because you don’t want to struggle to find a school that you can afford in May of your senior year. A school or schools that you can get into and pay to attend is the top school on your list.

You must apply to at least two safety schools, two schools within your profile, and at least two schools that are your cake in heaven (if you enter and get enough financial aid, you will attend). To determine your safe schools, you and your parents must obtain an estimated Expected Family Contribution figure before applying to colleges.

Take advantage of any situation that separates your application from the general pool – emphasize any part of your profile that will give you an edge over the current pool of applicants.

Finally, before applying to college, you and your parents should sit down and think of any circumstances that may help you through the admissions process. I also suggest that you sit down with your guidance counselor and go over whatever you do to maximize your chances of acceptance. Keep in mind that any unique situation that may help you get into schools that you may consider a long shot due to your academic profile can also provide you with a great financial aid package. These unique situations or talents can be anything from sports, performing arts, special abilities, races, and family situations. You must play whatever cards God has given you to advance your future. Don’t be afraid to use the race card, even if you only have a small percentage of the minority race in you (it might be ¼ Indian, for example). Selective colleges and universities will always try to recruit talented minorities to their campus because they want to have a diverse campus. One of my sons benefited from the situations mentioned above (sports and racing).

Conquering the college application process is easy if you work closely with your guidance counselor and the information on my website below.