Evaluating Applications
While I don’t think any two colleges proceed in precisely the same manner when evaluating applications and making admission decisions, I am confident that the ultimate goal is the same — to admit a richly diverse freshman class that is comprised of students who have convinced the admissions staff, in one way or another, that they are capable of successfully pursuing and completing the college’s academic programs.
Here, in short form, is what happens in the admission offices of many selective colleges:
1. Your transcript is considered of primary importance. Staff members look at the kinds of courses you have taken, the level of achievement in those courses, and their breadth and relative difficulty. They look to see if you have made reasonably good use of the resources available at your school. For instance, if the school offers numerous AP and/or honors courses, have you taken a reasonable number of them? Many, perhaps most, colleges look at grades 9 — 12. Some look only at grades 10 — 12. Finally, they do their best to try to get a fix on how rigorous the school’s grading system appears to be in order to place your GPA in context.
2. They look at your test scores (SAT I and/or ACT and three different SAT II tests in many cases). Some consider the highest in each subject area only. Others, for example, may use your highest total SAT I scores from any one test date. If you are not sure how the colleges on your list do it, you can always call them and ask.
3. They read the school references: the counselor’s report and two teacher reports. In those they look for substance, straightforwardness, credibility, and an honest appraisal of your strengths and weaknesses.
4. They look at your self-presentation in the application — your ability to think and to express yourself in writing. They consider whether you have met them at least halfway in completing their application. In other words, have you given their application some thought and made a reasonable effort to respond to the particular questions that they have asked?
5. They note it if you have any special academic talents or achievements.
6. They note it if you have any special non-academic talents or achievements.
7. They try to get a sense of your energy level, i.e., the likelihood that you will have both the ability and the inclination to jump in and take advantage of the many resources, both academic and extracurricular, offered by their institution.
8. They ask themselves if all of the pieces of your application fit together. Is there a consistency (i.e., a credibility) to your application? Do others see you as you see yourself? Is your application simply a promotion piece? Are the school and teacher references largely boiler-plate, or do they really help the admission officers get to know you?
9. Lastly, they try to gauge what sort of difference it might make (for you and for the institution) if you enrolled there: in the classrooms, in the dorms, or in the sorts of activities and organizations that make up the daily life of their particular campus.
In this manner, they try to get a handle on each of the thousands of applicants, one by one. Only after such initial review are they able to know the full range of choices that are available to them. Choosing from a large number of well-qualified young men and women only a relatively small number to whom they can offer admission each year is obviously the most difficult part of their jobs as admission officers. And, by definition, given that their decisions are made one by one, individual applicant by individual applicant, it’s that part of their task that is least amenable to generalizations or formulas.
January 4th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
Hello Karl,
Thanks for that awesome piece of information — I learned a lot! I’ve been coming to this site ever since summer and I have really been enlightened. In this last post, you gave us straight out what it feels like to be next to an admissions officer in the process of reviewing applications. I am now scared; I received half A’s and half B’s sophomore year (with a somewhat rigorous schedule but not as rigorous as 2 or 3 sophomores, who had 4 AP classes as well as Honors Pre Calculus…2 years ahead of the standard math level.) However, I just completed my first semester of Junior year, and I received 3 B’s and the rest A’s…but again I took advantage of the AP classes offered. I just realized now that in every honors/AP class I have taken so far, I have got a B in it.
If I get straight A’s next semester (in a schedule that includes AP English, AP Art history, AP US history, Honors Pre Calculus and Chemistry), do you think colleges will still consider me?
My first choice is Cornell, and my second is UC Berkeley.
I plan on getting a 2250+ SAT score (I know I’ll be able to do that as I’ve been prepping for awhile now)
I don’t have too many extracurriculars, I focus mainly on 2: Volleyball, where I’m team captain, Technology Commissioner of our school’s American Red Cross Club. I am also a front page editor of my school’s website (www.irvinehigh.org) Next year I will be the head webmaster of the website.
I plan on developing an Anti-Virus software for some sort of instant messaging program and releasing it to the web at the start of this summer…I hope to get thousands of downloads. Computers and Technology are my passions…but I hope that since I’ve gotten 3 B’s in past mathematics courses colleges won’t throw me away. (what if i get 800 on SAT math?)
Thanks very much for reading this long comment. I hope you will get a chance to respond.
Regards,
Nandhu
January 8th, 2007 at 11:57 am
Hi Nandhu,
Thanks for your comment. I agree that Dean Hargadon’s insights are pretty awesome.
Anyway, I would not worry about the B’s too much. You seem to be taking challenging courses and doing well. College admission officers are not merely looking for perfection in applicants. They are looking for young men and women who will add to the richness of their institutions.
Your energy and passion really came across well in your comment. I hope you make every effort to allow those same qualities to shine through in you college essays. Remember, Dean Hargadon suggested that college admission officers are looking for students who have the passion and energy to take advantage of all that their institutions have to offer. You seem like that type of person. Use your applications to communicate the same.
Keep up the good work and send me an update when you get a chance.
Regards,
Karl
January 30th, 2007 at 11:43 am
well my school dosen’t offer any AP classes
so should i show some effort by taking classes in near colleges?
January 30th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
Eric,
I don’t think you need to go to the extreme of taking college classes before finishing high school, although I know of some kids who have done so. Just enroll, if possible and when appropriate, the highest level classes that your high school has to offer.
FYI, the latest high school trend is to drop AP classes. Many educators feel that teaching to a test like an AP exam diminishes the learning experience.
Good luck.
Karl
February 17th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
So Karl are you essentially telling me that getting a “B” in AP/Honors courses carries more weight with college admissioners than getting an “A’ in an easy course? If that is the case, should I continue to take part in my honors math class, in which I recieved a B last term? Should I risk it?
February 18th, 2007 at 9:56 am
RB,
The best answer I can give you is . . . it depends. If you are reasonably certain that you are going to be recruited as a student-athlete, you are probably better (for admissions purposes, anyway) taking the easier class and getting the higher grade. On the other hand, if you are hoping to be admitted based primarily on your academic achievement, you are probably better off sticking with the AP/Honors courses. Colleges want to see commitment and a willingness to meet academic challenges head on.
That being said, I don’t think you need to take each and every AP/Honors course that your school offers. Pick the ones you are somewhat passionate about (i.e., the ones in which you will most likely excel). I have seen kids who take too many AP/Honors courses burn out. By the time you finish high school, you want to be excited about college, not exhausted and dreading four more years of drudgery.
Is there a way you can bump that B in the AP/Honors course up to an A? I found that working with friends in study groups was a fun way to keep my grades up. You may want to consider forming a study group or two if you haven’t done so already.
I hope my advice helps. Good luck. Send me an update when you get a chance.
Karl
August 22nd, 2007 at 3:53 pm
I recently read the “Bring Your Passion to College Admission” blog, hoping that there would be some useful information to solve my dilemma. The article was great, but I’m not entirely sure what to do.
I have a bit of a class selection issue: I am very passionate about mathematics, as a sophomore I took AP Calculus BC and passed the exam with a 5. During the fall semester, I plan to take an after school college course to enrich my knowledge of mathematics (I’ve taken college courses before so it wouldn’t be a drastic step). The problem is that for the past two years I have been involved in the drama during the fall and badminton during the spring- both of which are after school activities. Not to be presumptuous, but I have always been the lead of the fall play and am one of the best badminton players in the league (which might sound prestigious, bit it isn’t). So what I’m really asking is: Do colleges value passion more than commitment to extracurricular activities?
Thank you,
Hector
August 22nd, 2007 at 8:08 pm
Hector,
“Passion” and “commitment to extracurricular activities” are not mutually exclusive (i.e., commitment to extracurricular activities suggests that you are a passionate person who understands the level of commitment that is typically required to earn distinction).
By the way, it sounds like you are doing all the right things. You have excelled both academically and outiside the classroom. If you have to (or want to) drop one of your extracurricular activities in order to pursue your passion for math, that’s fine. If you can continue to excell in math while continuing your participation in both drama and badminton, that’s even better.
I hope my advice helps. Please stay in touch and do not hesitate to ask additional questions.