Being accepted to the college or university of your choice can be a little nerve racking.  Did I do my best on the essay?  Did I say enough in the interview?  Did I answer the question correctly?  Everyone is on pins and needles so don’t think you’re alone.  So how do you at least put yourself in the running to be accepted?  It’s as simple as being yourself and allowing the best you to shine through on paper and in person.  

Most college guides admonish students to apply to three to five colleges.  This list of colleges should include those schools that are described as reaches, targets, and safeties.  Reach meaning colleges that are highly competitive or that you may think are out of your range.  Targets are colleges that you really want to attend.  You have the grades and the SAT/ACT scores to be admitted.  Safety schools are those schools that you know beyond a shadow of a doubt would admit you.

The Application 

The application is a great way to show admissions counselors and others involved in reviewing your application, that you are the type of student they want to admit.  This is the time to show your stuff.  If you have been consistent in a group or organization or have held leadership positions, write it down.  If you have received academic accolades, of course shout this to the world.  Maybe you worked during the summers and on the weekends to pay for school clothes or save up for college, whether in your essay or as an answer to a question, make sure this information lands on your application.  It shows that you are a responsible young person. 

Today, lots of college applications are offered online.  It’s a great idea to print out the application and fill it in before entering the information on your final online application.  Make sure you are aware of all deadlines and application fees before getting started.

Prepare a resume of past employment, extracurricular activities, and awards, this will come in handy for pertinent questions on the application.  Some applications ask for recommendations from teachers, so find out if this is needed early to give your teachers plenty of time to get these written.   

Lastly, make sure that your application is well-written and neat, with no misspellings or grammatical errors.  Also make sure that you have supplied all supplemental documents that are required.

The Interview

You may remember the episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air when the admissions counselor from Princeton begged Will to enroll.  We all know that going to Princeton was Carlton’s dream, so when he found out that underachieving Will was being begged to attend he was outdone.  How in the world could his academically challenged cousin be getting an invitation to Princeton?

On the day of Carlton’s interview he turned his uniform into some type of hip-hop costume and proceeded to impress the admissions counselor with the rap styling’s of Grand Master C.  He tried to be more like Will than himself, which ultimately ended in disaster.   This is a perfect example of what not to do at your college entrance interview.  Be Yourself. 

Of course, being nervous is a part of the game, but if you have prepared yourself by reading through the college’s website, catalog, and have prepared questions for the interviewer you’ll be fine. 

What type of questions should you ask?  Ask about the department(s) that you are considering entering.  What percentage of students beginning in that particular department finish there?  What type of careers do those students embark upon?  How many get jobs right after college?  What type of programs does the school offer to prepare students for the working world?  Are there available tutors in the case that you need help?  Ask questions about the school as a whole, the extracurricular activities, and dormitories.  What types of things are there to do on the weekends?  Some of these questions may be more geared toward the department head rather than the admissions counselor, but in any case, this gives you an idea of potential questions.

Sometimes interviews are held at your high school and other times at the university or college.  Be prepared, be on time, and dress the part.  If you’re interviewing at your high school and the school has uniforms, make sure your uniform is ironed and neat.  If you’re interviewing at the university, put on your best suit and walk in with confidence.  Remember, research, be yourself, show that you’re interested and be a part of the interview by interjecting yourself in the conversation, asking questions, and lastly, but most importantly, put your best foot forward.  Make it count.    

The Essay

All those things your English teacher told you about sentence structure, subject-verb agreement, and establishing your main points and supporting those, come into play now.  Whatever the topic you are asked to write about on your application make sure you integrate all of the good things, academic or otherwise, you have accomplished.  Formulate your essay so it will present the best you.  Make sure someone reads over your essay before you submit it.  Sometimes your eyes become immune to mistakes and misspellings, so a pair of fresh eyes always discovers something you may not have seen.