<p>I don’t think it can ever hurt to indicate that a school is your 1st choice! And, although it may sound unethical, a school isn’t going to know if you say that their school is your 1st choice & then tell another school that they are your first choice. Schools don’t check with other schools on that info! Plus, doesn’t everyone like to be flattered?
How long an admissions counselor spends reviewing your application depends on the school. At some colleges, each admissions counselor may be responsible for reviewing 2000 applications a season. At other schools, it may be 500 applications. It all depends! Typically, at a smaller school, each application is read twice-once by an admissions counselor who does an initial review and then the application is reviewed by a senior staff member who makes the final decision on admission (and merit scholarship, sometimes).</p>
<p>If the school is your first choice, and you’re certain you’ll go if “chosen”, why not just go early decision if available?</p>
<p>I used to be on the admissions committee for my alma mater, and although it no longer has the ed option, we loved to “lock you in” early.</p>
<p>Lisa</p>
<p>Do you think it’s appropriate to attach a document like a resume in the “additional info” section, as the activities section in the common app may not provide enough room for a description of the breadth and scope of the activity?</p>
<p>Yep, you can upload a resume into the additional info section. When explaining your undertakings on your resume, just be sure that you are really giving meaningful information. Don’t simply say things like, “My soccer team practiced four days/week after school, doing drills, an having intra-squad scrimmages. We usually had games once or twice a week.” In other words, only describe the “breadth and scope” if it varies from the obvious.</p>
<p>Just getting this to the top again.</p>
<p>What about just a recap of the main points?</p>
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<p>I’m a big fan of ED, too, when it’s offered. But it’s not right for all applicants. For example, I may discourage ED applications if:</p>
<p>-A student comes from a family with an EFC that the parents feel is unrealistically high. Chances are, that student won’t get the financial aid that s/he needs at ED time. Yet, if the college meets the demonstrated need (if any), then the student can’t ethically withdraw from the binding commitment. Such students may be better off waiting until April when it will be possible to compare scholarship offers.</p>
<p>Students with low EFC’s usually do well at the colleges that meet full need (or nearly) but not always as well at the colleges that don’t. So these applicants, too, may be better served by having several offers to compare in the spring.</p>
<p>It’s complicated for sure, but $$$ can be a reason to take a pass on ED applications, even when a student has a clear-cut top choice and ED is offered there.</p>
<p>-The student had an atypically weak junior year. In such cases, I advise a full semester of strong senior grades before colleges see the transcript, rather than just one marking period (sometimes less).</p>
<p>-The student has any other reason to believe that a full semester of senior year achievement will mean a stronger application. This could include those with discipline issues in grade 11 or perhaps athletes who missed out on much of their junior season due to injuries but may play a starring role in late fall or early winter of grade 12.</p>
<p>Finally, some students may not settle on a first choice until after the ED deadlines have passed. For those who have camped out on CC since middle school, this may sound far-fetched, but I’ve worked with kids–often those whose parents did not attend college themselves or who aren’t involved in the admission process–who don’t wake up to looming application demands and deadlines until halfway through senior year. I get calls every January, February, and March seeking help for students who have done almost nothing about college plans. They may end up getting very excited about a particular college, but they’re lucky to make the Regular Decision deadlines at some of them … much less ED!</p>
<p>just curious</p>
<p>if i don’t write anything in the additional info section, would it hurt my chance?</p>
<p>I’ve seen other apps where the colleges offer something like optional personal statement or short answers…</p>
<p>“the student can’t ethically withdraw from the binding commitment”</p>
<p>I disagree with Sally on this one point for Common Application schools. From the Common Application ED instructions:
<a href=“https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/ED_Agreement.pdf[/url]”>https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/ED_Agreement.pdf</a></p>
<p>There is no mention whatsoever of any ethics issues; the student simply says thanks, but no thanks, and is released without consequence.</p>
<p>This thread is really enlightening. I’ll take some of these tips to account when I apply later! Thanks everyone.</p>
<p>curious77,</p>
<p>you say, “You may prepare different versions of the common app for each college if you want to differentiate.”</p>
<p>how does one do this?</p>
<p>My son did this last application season. I believe he just listed the college he wanted, submitted. Then changed the common app and submitted to a different college and so on. He had applied EA to one school and had updates for his RD schools. It seemed rather simple from what he described, but I did not actually see the process on the computer. I am pretty sure he also changed his common app essay for later colleges. I am sure that he changed the main application and not just the supplement for the specific colleges.</p>
<p>Yeah, my friend did something similar. Just apply to a college, change the app a little, and apply to a different college etc.</p>
<p>Ah, that makes sense. Thanks, guys (and/or gals)!</p>
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<p>You can do that? So, colleges only receive the common app as it appears at the time you hit the send button? I thought (for unknown reason) by sending the app to colleges you are given them the access to your online app in a read only mode. Is there any online help in support of this on the web?</p>
<p>The “Better” example by ‘Sally_Rubenstone’ was excellent. It really demonstrates how to be candid while remaining positive and expressive about your circumstances.</p>
<p>My son used the additional information section to explain his transcript and situation. He was a member of the inaugural class of a charter high school that floundered and was failing, so he transfered his senior year to a much more successful charter. As a result, his teachers hadn’t know him for long, his transcript showed duplicate coursework and strange stuff with his math classes, things like that. Basically, he used it to help schools make sense of odd things in his application and supporting materials.</p>
<p>Colleges do not see the common app on line. It is submitted to them electronically and they download it after you have elected to submit it. So you have control of which college gets what. You also could have 5 (or more) teachers write online recs and then you may pick which teacher recs go to which college.</p>
<p>Thanks curious77! I’ll make sure my son knows about this.</p>
<p>For the additional info part, is it alright if I write about my closest grandparents died at the start of my sophomore and right before junior year, and about my parents getting divorced? I’m not going for a sob story or anything; in fact, I’ve improved my grades in tougher classes, as I remember my grandparents were not fortunate enough to have the opportunities to succeed in the classroom as I have.</p>