The College Admission Game: What's the Ante?

Like Poker,  To Play the College Admission Game You Have to Have Jacks or Better

Yep, when you apply to a highly selective school it's a real crapshoot. So how can you improve your chances in this seemingly random lottery? Using a poker analogy, you must have Jacks or better to play the game, Here are some tips to "stack the deck in your favor".

1. At selective colleges, strength of secondary school curriculum and performance (GPA) within that context are the most important criteria for initial consideration. Additional differentiation can be seen in the Standardized test scores and class rank. Students applying to these schools have to have stellar grade and test scores. To achieve them they had to do their BEST at ALL times.

2. Excerpts from college admission officers selection attributes: "Our students have individual passions: things they really care about. They see themselves as playing a significant role in world and know how to accomplish this by making a contribution in their area of concentration using their passions as a driving force.

From a college admissions interview: "We ask about what current events you follow, favorite subjects, what you're involved in at school, what you want to do at our school, your family, who you look up to, in what area are the "king of trivia of", etc.

3. Select colleges have the cream of the crop applying to them (see # 1 above). Part of the ante to play in their league is to differentiate yourself and do so in a way that makes you unique and standout. Playing a sport, being on the newspaper/yearbook, playing an instrument are all nice and may be significant but they are really basic and only par for a course where birdies and eagles are expected. Competing on a school team that has a basis in intellect AND achieves higher level (state/national) recognition WILL stand out and be duly noted as a real positive on the student application. Participation in such areas indicates intellect, critical thinking, teamwork, competitiveness and problem solving skills. These attributes combined are highly valued by admission professionals. These activities can also help you have the ability to answer difficult essay or interview questions such as:

* "If there were five students competing for the same seat in a class, what would be your sales pitch to        the professor for letting you take it?"
* Name a class you have taken that has changed the way you think.

4. The ability to read both in quantity and quality is an imperative to college performance. College students receive multiple reading assignments every week, each of which is usually associated with an accompanying written paper. Learning to read in volume with a high level of comprehension is the acquisition of a skill that will have a lifelong positive impact. Such reading will increase vocabulary, enable better scoring on standardized tests, and perhaps most importantly help you develop critical thinking and problem solving skills while stimulating intellectual curiosity. From another college interview application supplement:

* What book have you read recently that you would tout as a "must read" to your friends? 

* What are your top five favorite books and why are they interesting to you.

5. Colleges look at how students spend their time. While not evaluating things such as playing video games, they are looking for meaningful pastimes that enrich the student's life and help them understand what they will be able to contribute on their campus. From a college brochure: "Students should strive to add things into their lives that will be meaningful to them. This requires effort and a self-starting mentality which will ultimately fully develop intellectual curiosity and the truly valuable attribute of seeking to be a lifelong learner."

6. Schools have two opinions of the concept of volunteerism/community service. The first is compulsory volunteer activity that must be completed as a requirement for graduation. This is seen as a given for all students regardless of selectivity. The second type of community service or volunteerism reflects a drive within the student. This activity demonstrates to the school that the student has matured to a level where their own self-interest is superseded by a real desire to help others over their own immediate needs. The select colleges expect that their student body will be cognizant of the needs of others and actively participate in areas to which they feel drawn.

A recent article and survey in the NY Times : "In the most positive light, such service teaches children and teenagers to look beyond themselves and understand the role they can play in their community and country. In the most negative light, it is one more activity to tick off en route to college."

A 2008 survey of admissions officers from the top 50 colleges and universities by the organization DoSomething.org, found that admissions officers consistently put a higher value on continuous volunteering over several years at a local place than a short-term stint overseas. In the survey, the admissions officers said they were confident they could discern when a student was being disingenuous about her commitment to community service. One noted that "insincerity seems likely when there is a laundry list of activities with minimal commitment."

7. College admissions personnel: We are looking for tomorrow's leaders. The fate of the world is literally in their hands. Students should actively seek any opportunity to take leadership during their secondary school years: captaincy of sports teams, student government, the lead in a school play or become known as a "go to" person that can resolve conflict. Not only will having these experiences help gain admission to a select college, they will provide a development and skill building cycle that will have a significant positive impact throughout the student's life.

8. Many students "hit the wall" at some point in their college career. Hitting the wall is finding that class work is overwhelming. Getting behind in a class can quickly lead to discouragement, and possibly failure. Students must develop the necessary skills that will minimize the chances of hitting the wall. In addition to the importance of reading discussed above, organization, time management and assignment completion planning skills are very important to keep a student from hitting the wall. It is critical that healthy habits are formed during the high school years and to be able to quickly correct a situation while at home where resources and assistance can be readily applied using parents, teachers or a tutor’s expertise.

Application to a Selective College: The Addendum-Friend or Foe

So you’ve decided to apply to a fairly selective college or university. You’ve completed all the steps that you need in order to apply and are now in the final stages prior to hitting the submit button and getting this daunting process behind you is your top priority. In fact, you may have tried to submit your application and found that it could not be processed because you did not complete the particular school’s addendum.

So what is this beast and why is it of importance in some cases when you apply to a selective school? Well, in many cases it is not and the addendum simply asks for additional demographic or family information. For these addenda you simply fill them out as per directions and you then apply to that particular school. These selective schools use other factors than the addendum to differentiate admission offers.

Today we are also seeing selective schools looking for creative ways to shape their incoming classes. They are looking for diversity in such traditional areas as geography, ethnicity, and socioeconomic circumstances and they are also looking for real diversity in thought. One way to accomplish this goal is to challenge prospective students with addenda to the application that will demonstrate a student’s creativity as well as their problem solving and critical thinking abilities. The key here is that the student must respond to these addenda in a way that reflects their best in demonstrating these skills.

Let’s look at an example. Wake Forest recently went SAT/ACT optional. One the reasons for this was that they wanted to achieve some of the class-shaping/diversity goals described above. Wake was quite transparent and when it made this announcement it explained its new process for admission. One addition was the interview while another was a strong emphasis on the addendum. This addendum could have a powerful impact on an admissions decision. The questions are potential minefields or golden opportunities. The student completing the document must be in “I’ m applying to a very selective school mode” and answer each question with thoughtfulness, clarity and in some cases innovation and creativity. Some students may answer a question such as “What outrages you?” with “I hate it when I work in a team on some members do not do anything and I have to do their work”. This is not a good answer. In fact, it reflects an image of a whiner and of someone that is immature and self-centered. When one thinks about it, a proper response to this question (as expected by the admissions staff) might be to reflect on the situation in Darfur, or cruelty to animals or man’s destruction of the planet. If you look at each of the questions in Wake’s addendum you’ll find similar opportunities to shine or fail miserably.

Many other selective schools have these addenda. You must be careful and take a larger view when you fill them out. While you cannot have anyone other than yourself make these responses, you should strongly consider having parents, peers, or a guidance/counseling professional review your work. Putting in the extra thought and review can clearly make the difference between acceptance and rejection.