<p>Hey guys,</p>
<p>Okay, first of all.. i am not in college yet but many of my friends are and they often tell me to do the little things right. Here on CC, although the advice is amazing.. sometimes it is general like 'do well on your SATs' and stuff like that. But, in my opinion there are many little things you can do to increase your chances. Think about it this way, doing these things that are within your control correctly can only increase chances, not decrease them. Most of it is common sense anyway and here they are in NO particular order of importance:</p>
<p>1)<<show interest="">>: There are certain schools that love it when you show interest. One such school is apparently WUSTL and i heard that visiting the campus and talking to some professors and admissions officers will put a very positive light on your application. I decided to go ahead and contact WUSTL and before they even answered my question, they invited me to go visit them and a prof. contacted me telling me to meet with him. This surprised me because most schools did not respond to me email. There are other colleges like this where interest is a factor!</show></p>
<p>2)<<early bird="" gets="" the="" worm?="">> Is that how it goes? Apply as Early as possible to any school you can, regardless of deadline. Some of you may disagree with this but i had a friend who got into Cornell, JHU, Penn but got rejected from CMU and Michigan because he was almost passed the deadline. Moreover, certain schools like U. Michigan have an early response deadline similar to the EA/ED Deadline. Also, it is non binding. I talked to representative from U Mich. and she urged me to submit my app. within the Early Response Deadline without actually telling me that it increases chances. With more spots and less pressure, you are more likely to get away with weaknesses. This applies to normal non EA/ED applicants too. Earlier the better.</early></p>
<p>3)<<specific volunteering="">>: Concentrate on volunteering at a max of two or three places and get letters of recommendations from them. For example, doing 300 hours at two places is much more preferable than doing the same # hours at five places. It shows your strong commitment and your focus on a particular organization. Moreover, you are almost guaranteed to receive better letters of recommendations from there. On a similar note, send as many letters of recommendations as you can without going over the limit. For example, Johns Hopkins states that it wants two letters ..however, on their particular discussion forum, Admissions Officers have stated that three or four is acceptable but no more than that. </specific></p>
<p>4)<<perfect application="">>:This is a fairly common sense one but after all the hard work you put into getting good grades, scores, ECs.. it would be a shame to blow it if you do a bad job on your app. This means no spelling mistakes, legible writing , highlighting of important stuff rather than a 'laundry list' and more. Certain strong applicants who are not good with applications make themselves seem less qualified than they are. While certain weaker candidates, without lying, make themselves to be more qualified than they actually are. This depends on how much effort and time you put into them. I hear this increasingly more and more from my college friends: do not rush your applications. Also, do not list your email as '<a href="mailto:ikillsnoobs@gmail.com">ikillsnoobs@gmail.com</a>'.. make an email with your first and last name. </perfect></p>
<p>5)<<sat policy="">>: Figure out each school's policy about how they view SAT marks. For the Class of 2010, we can choose to send our SAT by dates. However, it is often useful to send more than one set of marks. Some schools like U Mich. just look at the highest SAT mark. However, other schools take your top mark from each section, regardless of Date. For Example: a student who got (760,670,650)(2080) and (710, 720,670)(2100) would be better of sending only sending the second score to U Mich. However, if you are applying to schools that Superscores, you are better off sending both because that equals 2150, which is a 50 point increase! Schools do not look down upon you because you took the test twice! That is ridiculous.</sat></p>
<p>6) <<essay>>: Depending from college to college, i have heard that the essay is either one of the most important factors or a fairly important one. I have a book that with 50 good essays. To Quote Jane Reynolds, Former/Present Dean of Admission at Amherst,"the essay is one of the most important parts of the Amherst application, primarily because it is where applicants are able to reveal the thoughtful side of themselves which only they can speak about." Taking the essay lightly will not do much good and can even cause harm. This is one of the few things you can control during the time of admissions. </essay></p>
<p>7)<<teachers and="" recommendations="">>: Remember, the vast majority.. maybe 80%.. of the applicants will have positive recommendations. First of all, do not be left out in that 20% who get bad recommendations. Secondly, develop good communications with your teachers. No matter how good of a student you are, if the teacher thinks you are a slacker, lazy or unorganized, it is going to show in his or her recommendation. This goes under the perfect application point so make sure your essays and recommendations turn out well. Yes, you can control your recommendations. If the teacher likes you, he or she will write about your positive traits. Make the teacher like you! No bribing! Note:Christmas Presents are not bribes.</teachers></p>
<p>8)<<facebook, myspace="" etc.="">>: There are a lot of rumors out there that sometimes admissions officers(I imagine they must be really bored) check your facebook, myspace and whatever they think the kids use these days. I personally think this is nothing to worry about but why take the chance? Delete those pictures of yourself that may raise some eyebrows. Join some of your University Facebook Groups lol. Hey, it can't do any harm!</facebook,></p>
<p>9)<<always request="" an="" interview="">>: Some colleges say that interview is important but is not one of the factors when considering admission. May be true but may not be true. However, if you are a good interviewer, it is another opportunity to showcase your talents and let them know what sets you apart from all the other applicants. If you feel comfortable with interviews, always request one. And try to avoid awkward pauses. Do Not be Late... please.</always></p>
<p>Anyway, there may be more but i cannot really think of anything else right now. This stuff is mostly common sense but if you do all these things properly, it starts to add up and eventually makes a difference.</p>
<p>Honestly, think about it... if schools only did care about Grades and SATs... there would be two spaces in the whole application and it would be much easier for the college to see who they like... but that isn't the case. Not sure how helpful this is but it is worth considering. Let me know if you guys agree or disagree with some of the points. Also, if you have something to add, feel free to comment.Thanks.</p>