How to Get Admissions Officers to Say Yes

Not Going for the Name School

You write: "Don't apply to and go to a school just because of the name or because mom and dad want you to go there."

This is an issue my son, my ex-husband and I are dealing with. My son has an excellent chance of being accepted to Duke on early admission. But he tells me that, for some reason, he is very attracted by Santa Clara University, where he would also have a good chance of admission. I'm torn right down the middle--where I hear him describe his thoughts about Santa Clara and Duke, it's clear he prefers Santa Clara (he has visited neither). But I do get the "name" value of Duke--and my ex- husband is VERY clear that the "name" brand is superior and should be chosen if available.

It's really a dilemma--not only about which school is better, but about letting control of our son's life and letting him make the decision, even if it may not be the "right" one.

caltech the heaven

frankly i don't believe most stuffs of ranking here. how the college is ranked doesn't matter, as long as you love the school. i love caltech better than Harvard.

mexicen language

firsts i am Somalia and i life in Uganda I'm student i a study in public administration at KIU KAMPALA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Keep it real

I work in an honors program at a university, and we review applications just as an admissions office does. I can say from personal experience that we do have pretty good BS detectors. So be real with who you are so we can realistically evaluate whether our school/ program is a good fit for you. Yes, getting the "unfortunately, I regret to inform you..." letter sucks for a while, but going to a school where you won't fit in or be happy is infinitely worse. We get applications from students who extol the virtues of our school's mission and characteristics, but if your resume and courses don't match up, then it's not going to be a good fit. The student and parents then end up losing time and money, not to mention the emotional distress of a student being very unhappy at a specific school. The institution loses because we offered a seat to student X who won't be happy and will transfer when student Y who was next on the list would have been a great fit at the institution.

So the first step is for students and parents to first be realistic about what the student needs/ wants. Don't apply to and go to a school just because of the name or because mom and dad want you to go there. Make sure that the core values of the institution match what you really believe. And make sure that the school has lots of options for majors and programs of study; most students change their major at least once during college, many more than once. The change can also be really radical; I myself changed from a biology pre-med to an education major. Imagine my dilemma if the school I attended only had science majors... I'd have been in serious trouble!

I know this is hard for a 17 year old to do, but it's important. I'd say, in my own humble opinion, that it's the most important thing. Be honest with yourself and with your parents. If the thought of law, medical, etc. school fills you with dread rather than joyful anticipation, then that's likely not a good fit for you. It's about finding a good fit. Name branding can be important, but it's definitely not the most important. Those who read and evaluate applications aren't looking to be mean and reject students for no reason. We really are trying to make sure that there's a good fit between the student and the school/ program.

Good luck to all those applying!

Essay writing and college prep

Thank you for this article; it lists exactly the sort of advice I'd like my daughter to hear from the very experts who will be reading her essays. I hope that these opinions represent those at most universities, assuming that the student has met the preliminary hurdle of academic requirements.