College Admissions Tips

School Selection: The Key to a Brilliant Future (Plus Sample Perfect School List)

by Amy Morgenstern on September 13, 2012

Admissions time is here and you want to get into the best school possible. Decisions, decisions!

You might have a dream school or two in mind, but you are not sure what your chances are for admissions. Maybe you’re shooting too high? Maybe too low? How do you know?

It’s tough out there. Admissions rates are declining, and the number of applications is rising every year. According to Business Insider, admissions rates are falling for many of the nation’s Ivy League institutions. The University of California system, too, is becoming more and more competitive, with California students being increasingly left out of the UC system. Last year, UC San Diego alone received 53,000+ freshman applications, a 12.1 percent increase from 2010! In these times of greater competition, what is the trick for coming up with the perfect school list? Careful strategy.

Acceptance Rates of Top 15 Schools

Tricks for Coming up with the Perfect School List

The first strategic step to creating the perfect school list is to give yourself a range of options. You will want your list to include three types of schools:

  • Reach
  • Target
  • Safe

Reach schools are your dream schools; given your grades and test scores, you don’t think you have the strongest chance of getting in, but if you ace the essays and impress the admissions officer with interesting and excellent extracurricular activities, who knows? Target schools are those that are “just right,” and safe schools keep you from anxiety about whether you will be going to college at all. For a 10-school list, I recommend 2-3 reach schools, 4-5 targets, and 2-3 safe schools.

I advise students not to underestimate safe schools because that’s where you might find great scholarship money. For example, a Blue Stars student recently received a full-tuition Trustee Scholarship plus a $5,000/year stipend from her safety school, University of Southern California. In the end, she decided to attend USC, and armed with the advantage of such a prestigious scholarship, she will surely be just as competitive upon graduation as someone who went to Harvard.

Example of a Perfect School List

To give you an example, I have created a school list for a hypothetical freshman application. This applicant is a male with a 3.7 GPA, 2100 SAT I score, and an aspiration to study computer science. Since he is not a perfect 4.0 student, it does not make sense to apply to Top 10 schools. This does not mean, however, that he does not have great opportunities ahead of him. The trick to his admissions success will be a carefully researched, systematic school selection process.

Let’s take a look at his extracurriculars, volunteer activities, and essays. He won some regional math competitions, was the president of his school’s computer science club, participated in varsity track and field, and volunteered for two years at the Audubon Society. He also took some initiative by creating a mobile app notifying students of his school’s extracurricular schedule. For his Common Application personal statement, he wrote a reflective essay about his multi-ethnic identity growing up half Chinese and half Mexican. His supplemental essays were detailed discussions of his love for computer science and technology, specific to each school.

Because our hypothetical student has a pretty impressive set of extracurricular activities and interesting stories to tell in his essays, which will certainly increase the value of his admissions profile, the best path to securing a range of great possibilities is to approach the process by looking at two different ranking categories—the general rankings and those specific to his chosen field, computer science. This way, he will have the opportunity to get a great computer science education no matter where he is accepted. A school list like the one below will afford our student great choices when acceptance season rolls around. Remember: the goal of the admissions process is not to focus on one school and hope you get accepted but to give yourself the largest and best set of choices.

School Selection Tools for Assessing your Competitiveness

So how does one start the process? As a first stop, consult U.S. News and World Report and other ranking systems (such as Princeton Review, Washington Monthly, and Forbes Magazine) for a general sweep of school statistics. Start with approximately 20 – 25 schools and then narrow the list to 15. Then, create a data sheet with all the relevant variables. These may include:

  • Mean GPA
  • Mean test scores
  • Acceptance rates
  • Student/teacher ratio
  • Department rankings
  • Male/female ratio
  • Link to chosen major

Take a look at where you fall in the picture you have set up. For example, say a school has a 600 – 650 mean SAT range. Just because you may have scored a 580 doesn’t mean you won’t get in. Rather, some other factors on your application may need to compensate (and they very well could!). Gathering this data will help you make smarter decisions.

Don’t forget, however, that it is important to consider “fit” for your interests and preferences. For example, the University of Chicago is a great school, but not for students uninterested in fierce intellectual and political debate. Carnegie Mellon is fantastic for students interested in science and technology but it might not serve the student looking for a well-rounded liberal arts education (but the art school is great!). Cornell is fantastic, but only for students who thrive in a rural setting.

The Key to Admissions Success: Think Like a Project Director

Applying to college is a great challenge. After all, your future is at stake. Get yourself out of the haze and gain control! Think of yourself as the project director of your own life! Be systematic and stay informed. Assess your strengths and weaknesses as objectively as you can. Be specific about your academic and career goals. Stay creative and flexible. Keep your eye on the target and make sure that all of the specific components fit into your overall vision. With a precise master plan, those thick envelopes should be coming your way!

If you have any questions about the school selection process, feel free to contact Dr. M during her virtual office hours on Skype: Thursdays from 6 – 7 p.m. PDT and Saturdays from 11 – 12 p.m. PDT. Skype name: drmbluestars.

 

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Getting into Top Schools: Real Life Success Stories, Pt. 1–Jonathan

by Amy Morgenstern on August 21, 2012

Want to know what it takes to get into your dream schools? Everyone is familiar with the basic formula: great grades, excellent test scores, advanced classes, an impressive extracurricular resume as well as a demonstration of leadership, initiative, commitment to community, and intellectual rigor. Of course, central to the admissions packet are those amazingly interesting essays. But what does this all mean specifically? How do you ace this formula in your own, unique, powerful way? Herein lies the mystery, and the challenge!

To help solve the mystery, I will be posting a series of blogs from my treasure trove of brilliant student stories. Perhaps this will inspire you to take up the challenge and soar! Let me begin with Jonathan….

One day in late September, I received an email from Grace, Jonathan’s mom, stating that she had heard about me and was wondering if I could help her son, but they were very far away from California. Would I work remotely? Two days later, I met Grace and Jonathan over Skype. The next day, we were partners!

Jonathan is an extremely high-achieving math-science student attending a private school in Ohio. He has a near perfect 2400, took 4 SAT IIs, and 8 APs. His un-weighted GPA was just shy of a 4.0. Jonathan’s extracurriculars were outstanding. Most distinctive was his two-year summer internship at the Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center, where he worked on verifying a hypothesis regarding the inhibition of breast cancer cells. Even more exciting to me was the fact that Jonathan landed this internship purely on his own initiative; he had studied possible labs for research opportunities and simply wrote principle researchers explaining his desire to assist in the biomedical field. In doing so, he displayed maturity and ambition. Impressive. Jonathan, however, was also quite well-rounded. He loved to paint and showed me some very thoughtfully made pieces exploring themes of the human condition. He is also culturally and politically aware. Jonathan has depth to him. Also impressive.

Together we applied to Yale (Engineering, EA), Carnegie Mellon (Computer Science), OSU, Duke (Engineering), and Case Western. There were also a number of scholarship essays. Jonathan was a bit of a tricky case, however, because he was not yet sure exactly sure of his professional path. On the one hand, his involvement in biomedical research was leading him in the direction of BME. Yet he was also extremely accomplished in computer science and had mastered two AP computer science courses. Jonathan was also trying to decide whether he wanted to pursue a premed track and become a doctor. He also likes business. So many interests! My challenge as a strategist was to decide which angle of Jonathan’s profile was most appropriate for each school’s application. For Yale and Duke, we focused on his research at OSU; for CMU we highlighted his computational skills and experience; for some scholarship essays, we wrote about his aspiration to become a doctor. In the end, Jonathan was accepted to all of his chosen schools, with the exception of Yale (although he made it through EA with a deferral). Jonathan was also awarded the Michelson-Morley Scholarship at Case Western ($25,000), as well as the Morrill Scholarship at OSU (full tuition). Finally, Jonathan was a finalist for Case Western’s Pre-Professional Scholars Program (BS/MD). He has decided to attend CMU to study computer science.

Of course, the key to the admissions process is essay writing. During that first Skype meeting, Jonathan showed me a draft of his Common Application essay. It began with his alter ego, Nahtanoj (“Jonathan” spelled backwards), an artsy, intellectual guy with a sort of love-hate relationship to his main personality, Jonathan, the math-science nerd. A great idea! The narrative voice had a 20th-century, American male novelist feel to it; there was exciting potential to develop this voice. But the draft was too general and a little egotistical. So we got to work on creating a (more humble) literary essay exploring Jonathan’s multifaceted identity, incorporating key details from pop culture, academia, and his personal identity. This essay was successful not only because it was very nice to read, contained rich content, and was extremely witty, but also because it revealed how self-aware and thoughtful Jonathan is. The essay displayed the kind of character admissions officers look for. For a supplemental essay asking the applicant to share something that would not be evident elsewhere in the application, Jonathan chose to write about how much he loves to lift weights. Boring topic, right? Well, not when you insert reflections on being a skinny Asian American kid amid a sea of larger, Caucasian boys, the friendships he made throughout the three and half years in the weight room, and what it means to be a “real man.” This essay displayed a keen awareness of cultural and gender identity, something also attractive to admissions officers, who appreciate reflection about one’s community. In other essays, we talked substantially about Jonathan’s research and computer programming, depending on the prompt. Every essay displayed thoughtfulness, creativity, and intellectual rigor.

When I first met Jonathan, he was a bit shy and awkward. It did not take us long, however, to form an important bond that allowed him to share his world with me. During our long discussions, I was able to dig into details, as well as push Jonathan to think more deeply about an issue and define his thoughts and feelings more precisely. The essay writing process is an intense activity. Through it, students must confront themselves––see themselves––from a new, more mature light. Jonathan faced this challenge brilliantly in more ways than one. Because his admissions portfolio demonstrated maturity, growth, and wisdom, Jonathan had a tough time deciding among a wealth of choices.

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Announcing 6-Week UC Admissions Essay Bootcamp Beginning September 15!

August 10, 2012

Write Submission-Ready Essays with Dr. M! Register Here Download brochure for more detailed information. Are you ready to write your admissions essays? Writing personal statements is a tough challenge for every high school student. Don’t be too nervous, however! The time and effort you put into your writing will be worth it, and Blue Stars [...]

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More Trouble for UC Budget

July 31, 2012

For years, the University of California (UC), home to some of the best colleges in the nation, has served as a model public higher-ed institution. However, California’s current budget crisis poses a significant threat to the UC system. Years of state budget cuts have spawned major adjustments to the system: repeated tuition hikes, layoffs, and [...]

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A Sample Common Application Activities List

June 2, 2012

Filling out the Common Application can be tricky business. You need to pack the most information you can into very little space. Mastering the art of abbreviation is essential! Be strategic! The sample below represents a highly active, competitive student who was accepted to an elite school, early decision.

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What your admissions application says about you

March 24, 2012

I was working with a student on a mock alumni interview a few weeks ago and threw this practice question out to her: “What is the hardest thing you’ve ever done?” Her immediate response? “Apply for college!” Of course, I advised her not to use this answer, should she encounter the question with a real [...]

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Understanding the Common Application

March 24, 2012

If you are applying to private schools, and even some public schools (University of Michigan among them), chances are you will be using the Common Application. The Common Application acts as an electronic clearinghouse for all undergraduate admissions applications submitted to its 456 member schools (including some in Europe). You can even submit an art [...]

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Major in Media Studies and Join the Revolution!

October 7, 2010

It is the best of times, it is the worst of times. In the year 2015, people have access to a breadth and depth of information unimaginable in an earlier age. Everyone contributes in some way, participating to create a living, breathing mediascape. So begins EPIC 2015, a quasi-documentary, quasi-sci-fi video narrative taking the viewer [...]

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The Greatness of the Public Health Major

September 11, 2010

So you want to go to medical school but you don’t want to major in the hard sciences as an undergraduate. Or you are not particularly interested in medical school but want to make your mark in the health field. Well there is a great major for you: Public Health. Many high school students think [...]

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How your admissions application essay can avoid the yawn

September 1, 2010

An admissions officer can spot a good personal statement in 5 seconds. How does yours avoid the yawn? A well-written admissions essay gets inside the head of its reader. It invites and engages. It is the final touch of your application, the punctuation on your profile. And it is considered a crucial (if not defining) [...]

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