So How Exactly Does the Admissions Process Work?

<p>After the deadline, when all the kids have clicked "Submit" on the Common App, when all Recommendation Letters, Transcripts, SAT Scores, and everything else has been sent...what happens?</p>

<p>As a hopeful high schooler planning on sending her applications in at the end of the year, I'm wondering if anyone out there who has been a part of the Admissions process could give me some insight? Do a group of people just sit around a table, reading through test scores and essays, arguing for or against students, filing applications into the "Admit" "Reject" and "Maybe" piles? How long do they spend per application? How long do they spend looking over ALL applications?</p>

<p>I'm really curious about this.</p>

<p>Admissions officers generally have about 15 minutes to read your file, which includes your transcript, test scores, list of EC’s, teacher recommendations and essays. The process is different for every college, but here are two links to the way one college does things:
[Don't</a> Touch That File | News | The Harvard Crimson](<a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2009/4/30/dont-touch-that-file-by-the/]Don’t”>Don't Touch That File | News | The Harvard Crimson)
[The</a> Harvard Crimson](<a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/video/2011/3/28/tour-admissions-office/]The”>A Glimpse Inside Harvard Admissions | Flyby | The Harvard Crimson)</p>

<p>[Behind</a> The Scenes: How Do You Get Into Amherst? : NPR](<a href=“Behind The Scenes: How Do You Get Into Amherst? : NPR”>Behind The Scenes: How Do You Get Into Amherst? : NPR)</p>

<p>Here’s a behind the scenes report at the final culling of admits/rejects at Amherst a few years ago.</p>

<p>Each schools use different criteria and strategy. It is usually like a black box for outsiders particularly when they use a holistic approach. Most schools would have multiple rounds of review. There may be some minimal requirements as the first round screening criteria which may course requirement, GPA, and/or a threshold test score. Some schools set up a scoring system and assign a score for each parameter such as GPA, score, essays, etc and computer a total score.
Again, each school has a different black box even they tell you what are their criteria.</p>

<p>Although it’s 10 years old, everything in “The Gatekeepers” still holds.</p>

<p>[The</a> Gatekeepers: Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier College](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/The-Gatekeepers-Admissions-Process-Premier/dp/0142003085/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1380494162&sr=8-3&keywords=the+gatekeepers]The”>http://www.amazon.com/The-Gatekeepers-Admissions-Process-Premier/dp/0142003085/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1380494162&sr=8-3&keywords=the+gatekeepers)</p>

<p>The only thing you can count on as reference is the admission stat from the most recent year(s).</p>