Getting In and Beyond

Now that all of my peers are committed somewhere, I took the time to ask them what they thought of the college application process. I took the time to ask my friends Mallika, Amy, and Rachel about the college application process and to reflect on what they would or wouldn't have changed. 1. If you wouldn't mind sharing, where are you going this fall, and what are you planning on studying? Mallika : I'm going to the University of Maryland (College Park) to study Computer Science. Amy : I will be going to Carnegie Mellon University this fall for computer science. Rachel : I’m going to Ursinus College and I plan to major in Computer Science and minor in French, Peace and Social Justice Studies, and hopefully also Gender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies if it fits. 2. How did you handle the stress of college applications in your senior year, if you had any? M : For me, it only got very stressful around Christmas break, because I had to write a lot of college essays durin...

It seems everyone and their pets are somehow the expert on your own college admission process. Growing up in the community I did, many of our family friends went off to prestigious schools and majored in some STEM field. It's understandable that the people around you have firsthand experiences that they feel the need to share. Some of the advice I've received in my first three years of high school helped me a lot in my senior year. For example, as a freshman, I took the advice of one senior to heart and started my essays really early after she told me of the stress she experienced trying to juggle her senior year coursework with the demands of college applications (she's at UC Berkeley right now). While information can be useful, advice about the college admission process is unreliable 99% of the time. Too much information can seriously clutter your brain. As corny as this sounds, you need to stay authentic to yourself. Do what you think is right. If you don't like ...

Everyone is confronted with rejection at some point in their lives. I underwent the classic college rejection in late January, when I got rejected from the most competitive school of the four I applied to. My initial reaction was one of shock. I had maybe anticipated I would manage to get in, but maybe not qualify for the highly competitive program I applied to. A flat-out rejection stung. I tried to forget about it, but I let it marinate over the weekend, and I would be lying if I said that self-doubt didn't cloud my brain. Was I not as good as I thought I was? What did they not like about me? Was it more about incompatibility or me being not qualified? The best thing I ever did was not let it ruin my life. I thought little of it after that weekend. I had already gotten into my top choice school, and I didn't let the rejection determine what I could or couldn't do. I didn't need to reevaluate my career choices or question my academic merit because I didn't get ...

I've noticed that this blog might be incredibly unhelpful if you're not an upperclassmen, so I thought I could take the time to give some underclassmen some college-related advice. Obviously, being a freshman and sophomore is stressful enough (trust me, I've been there). But here are some things I recommend you do during these two years as you start to barrel towards your junior year. As a Freshman... 1. Toy around with career interests, and maybe the kind of schools that could fit those tentative plans. I get it. You're fourteen. Senior year is far away. Even my eager self who jumped at a career path in my sophomore year had no idea what she wanted to do when she was a freshman. At the same time, you don't want to be a senior approaching college apps without any clue of what your career interests are. Take the time as a freshman to just lightly consider it. It's probably been itching at the back of your head at some point, right? 2. Meet with your counse...

I submitted my last college application on October 15th, 2017. For others, that milestone is sometime in early January. With my anxiety and my inability to deal with college applications longer than I already have (it seemed like everything I did starting my freshman year led up to that moment), October 15th was it for me. I was done, and it felt pretty awesome. But something I never knew I could experienced started to happen: I was anxious about waiting . My waiting game was much longer than most. My November and winter breaks were decidedly less stressful, but also more listless. Since none of my friends were done with their college apps, I couldn't really hang out with them, though the benefit of finishing my college apps so soon was that I got to spend almost a week in sunny Florida while everyone else was dealing with the cold, late-December weather. But waiting sucks. It really does! School does keeps you busy, and it keeps your mind from the finality of senior year, be...

So, it seems like you finally have everything sorted out. You requested those test scores, you're still days away from the deadline, and you should feel ready to go. But something is still bothering you. Maybe it's the finality of pressing that submit button, or maybe it's the fact that the reality is catching up to you: you're really starting to embark on a new chapter in your life. To help make you feel a little bit less  stressed, here is a checklist of things you need to do before you hit that submit button. Three Weeks Before Deadline: 1. Make sure you requested anything that takes awhile to get sent to a college. While most colleges are pretty lenient about getting in everything else except your application by the deadline (such as transcripts, test scores, and teacher recommendations), I would recommend you get everything in by the deadline. That way, if there are delays, you can rest easy. 2. If you haven't done so, finish writing any essays that need ...

Your high school counselor is by far your most valuable resource when it comes to the college application process. Here's a list of tips I have for having a great relationship with your high school counselor and to make sure he/she will have your back during the college app process! 1. Start meeting with him/her early. I'm talking about (at latest) first month of freshman year. If you're a sophomore, don't panic if you haven't talk to him or her just yet. It is bad if you still don't know who your high school counselor is or have never exchanged more than a few words with him or her by your senior year. And no, meetings with your counselor for course selection does not  count. Really make an effort to meet up with your counselor! I promise you it is not that awkward. 2. Have an agenda for the meeting. Scheduling the appointment is one thing, but this isn't a type of to-do list with only one item. It's important that your counselor is on the same pa...

I only applied to four schools, and only really cared about two of the admissions decisions. That being said, I wouldn't say I'm the best at giving advice on dealing the college app essays, though that isn't to say I didn't have obstacles to overcome. I certainly struggled (very normal thing, by the way), but I had the luxury of having to deal with less essays. So, I provided testimony from a bunch of my friends regarding their own struggles (or lack thereof) with the college app essays, and any advice they have for future high school seniors. Happy writing! *Please keep in mind that some people have chosen to only disclose their first names or remain anonymous. Thank you for respecting their privacy.* Mallika "Definitely start writing early. Also write your essay when you're in the right mood and you actually feel like writing. I wrote many drafts of essays of different topics, but I was never super into any of those topics, which reflected in my writing...

Be in the know so you can get the right foot in the door. Here is some jargon you should know about before you start diving into the college application process! Please note everything is in alphabetical order. CEEB Code This is an identification number for a specific location and/organization (think colleges or scholarship corporations). They were created by the College Board (CEEB simply stands for College Entrance Examination Board, i.e. the College Board) to prevent confusion and ensure things like test scores, transcripts, and applications go to the right places. When you send your AP scores or SAT scores, it is best to use the CEEB code the college has to make sure you're sending your scores to the exact location (and it saves money, since sending scores costs money, which can be wasted if you send your scores to the wrong places). Coalition Application This is a college admission application that allows an applicant to send one application to all colleges a student cho...

Hey, congrats on being a senior! Senior year is super exciting yet incredibly nerve-wracking, so hopefully these tips will help you alleviate that stress a little bit as you start your last first couple of weeks of school (if that makes sense). 1. Request transcripts. Your school takes time to process this kind of stuff! As far as I know, it's free to request and send out transcripts, so there's no harm in sending them out. If you decide to not apply to a school that you requested a transcript for, that's fine (though disclaimer: don't get all willy-nilly with that). Make sure you have all your papers in order. My school requires a signed form from a parent or guardian authorizing transcripts to be released, and that takes a lot of time to process, so make sure you actually can request a transcript before it's too late. 2. Turn in rolling admissions apps (if you haven’t done so at this point). Rolling admission applications are by far the most straightforward....

College app season really hits off in the summer (and not in the fall). Put the right foot forward with this suggested list of things to do the summer before your senior year! 1. Make a significant dent into those college app essays. Most colleges release their supplemental prompts and essays during this time. Get on top of those so as to avoid procrastination during the school year! If most of your schools are through the Common Application, then it's probably in your best interest to prioritize that big one over the smaller ones. I'll have some advice about writing your college essays in a later post, so be on a lookout for that! 2. Get a job, internship, and/or some career-related experience. Now that you shouldn't  have to worry about standardized testing (more on that later), you can actually focus on earning money or gaining valuable experience and perspective on what you want to do in the future. For example, I got a job as a cashier at my local grocery st...

Don't be the person that finds themselves in the beginning of senior year without any sense of what they want to do in college, or even worse: not knowing where to apply and how to go about it. The process for college applications starts earlier than your senior year (like, way earlier), so here are some helpful tips for tackling junior year in regards to the college application process. 1. Take the SAT or ACT Seriously, get this done!!! You DO NOT want to be worrying about standardized testing the summer before your senior year and certainly not when you're in the middle of college apps. Unfortunately, it's tough to really take it super seriously now, but it pays off. For some selective schools (you'll need to do some research on this), the admissions counselors are also looking to see you perform well on certain SAT Subject Tests, which requires special preparation. 2. Talk to teachers about recommendation letters. You obviously shouldn't do this u...