Hey guys, like a lot of people on this site i’m a junior and i would like to know:
do any of you have any advice for me as i start in with college selection/admission?
<em>what is the one thing you wish you knew before you applied to colleges??</em>
<p>Get everything done early. On your essays, make sure the beginning and end are just dynamite. Hook the reader. </p>
<p>Don't be afraid to be original. A lot of people have had their grandmothers die. Everyone becomes really sad. How did it effect you in a unique sort of way?</p>
<p>Don't try to be in every club to look good on your app. What have you done with those clubs? Are you a leader of one of them? Have y'all done something significant?</p>
<p>Don't be just a bookworm. There are lots. Be diverse, but focused. </p>
<p>Oh, and again....get everything done early.</p>
<p>if you can get copies of the apps start now... cuz otherwise you'll prolly end up procrastinating... like me =X</p>
<p>The way to pick colleges is top-down, meaning you start by identifying your preferences (location, competiveness, size, study abroad programs, sports, performing arts, and the dozens of other things that matter to you). Then pick colleges that meet those preferences, putting together a basket of safeties, matches, and reaches.</p>
<p>Keep in mind is you don't need to be right about all your decisions up-front. What you need to do is check your decisions until they ARE right. So for example if you think that a LAC in a rural setting might be what you want, go off and visit one! It might turn out that you decide it isn't right after all, in which case you come up with new choices.</p>
<p>Bottom up, the way most people pick colleges, is pick schools with attractive names (a Harvard, Williams, etc), add in a few schools for flavor, and then throw in a safety. You end up with a incoherent collection of colleges; a student that will be ecstatic at a rural small college like Dartmouth is unlikely to be similarly pleased at an urban campus like Columbia, yet you'll see lots of people apply to both. You'll see plenty of people that jump at the big brand names (Princeton, Stanford, etc) with little actual reflection on why they are choosing those schools or if they are actually a good fit.</p>
<p>Before you get too far along in the process, consider money. Its heartbreaking to get your heart set one a college only to find out that you're family just can't afford it. I don't know your circumstances, of course, but unless you're family is either wealthy or very poor money may be an issue. It's worth having your parents work thru one of the EFC estimators online now, and then have a discussion of what they can afford (or will pay for, which may be less).</p>
<p>But the most important point is that picking actual colleges is the last step. First you have to figure out what you want (which ought to take some time). Go visit some nearby colleges, large and small, even if they aren't schools you are particularly interested in. Take the tour, talk to some people, so that you can break the "mystique" of college and start to learn whats out there and what you might like.</p>
<p>The good news is this is an ideal time to start thinking about colleges. You have time to make some decisions and also some visits without the pressure of filing deadlines a few weeks away like a lot of people who first start thinking about this next September.</p>
<p>BTW there are, as you might guess, dozens of books that describe this process in greater detail. And since you have time I'd recommend reading one or two before you go any farther. Two great books are "Looking Beyond the Ivy League" by Pope (although the book has a bias towards LACs), and "Making It into a Top College: 10 Steps to Gaining Admission to Selective Colleges and Universities" by Greene. Both these books lay out the structured approach outlined above. </p>
<p>The last bit of advice is don't be rushed! You have 6 months or so before ED apps are due, and longer for RD. Take the time to discover what you want and identify the colleges that can provide it. Don't be seduced by the big status names, and I warn you about this because it sounds like your parents are already pushing this. They are great schools for some people, but you should only go if you are one of those people.</p>
<p>I believe there was a similar advice thread in the Parents Forum.</p>
<p>Dig through these forums - you'll find a ton of information and advice.</p>
<p>don't procrastinate...seriously :)</p>
<p>thanks guys! (especially mikemac, very informative!)
:)</p>
<p>any more advice?</p>
<p>This may be obvious, but it's still very important: Reread your applications carefully, and I mean carefully, before sending them in. Have others reread your applications. This way, you'll avoid stupid errors like saying you do an activity 40 hours a month instead of 40 hours a day like someone I know did....alright that someone was me, but yeah.</p>
<p>why great advice. Can this be a sticky? <strong>bow down before the great wisdom of the seinors</strong>;)</p>
<p>haha yes i agree wabash, thanks seniors!! (keep on posting!!)</p>
<p>Do a "personal" essay..it is the only piece of personal info they'll get about you</p>
<p>what do you mean sambouc?</p>
<p>I believe that it is better to write smthing that gives an impression/image of who you are, where u come from, what u think..i.o. a general topic or genral thinking. I think it is more lively for the reader. I think a personal story is good. I wrote about my family.</p>
<p>anybody know when colleges come out with the admission forms?</p>
<p>Taws, some colleges keep past versions of their college applications online. You can preview them and, if you choose, you can print them out and do roughdrafts; if you do your apps online, then they can also serve as a guideline so you don't skip any sections.</p>
<p>hilary, start looking for scholarship opportunities if you don't have any higher education reserves or if you're applying to the ivies. Depending on which schools you apply to and get admitted into, some aren't as generous with their financial aid, but your family's income is big in determining the amount. Had I known that college was going to be so expensive, I would have competed in those science fairs throughout middle school... :(</p>