<p>What does Wes want to see in an applicant?</p>
<p>I would suggest reading "The Gatekeepers."</p>
<p>The book follows an admissions officer through an entire admissions year at Wesleyan.</p>
<p>I read The Gatekeepers and found it riviting, informative and well-written. On the other hand, it made me feel that an "ordinary applicant" with extremely high grades, boards, very good recs, and "regular" ec's (as in hasn't invented anything and isn't the first violinist in the state orchestra) has little to no chance to be noticed by the ad-coms...not that this is any different at any other top tier school. If most of the students admitted to the top tier schools truly excel at their "passions" at the highest levels, I am duly impressed with their accomplishments. However, this makes me nostalgic for the time when top high school students who had after-school jobs or babysat, tutored or coached inner city children, ran a club, and made a commitment to community service were considered strong candidates. Sometimes kids just need to be kids. I must be dating myself or am too cynical.</p>
<p>"What does Wes want to see in an applicant?"</p>
<p>why would you even ask that</p>
<p>oh please, dont be so foy-angelic </p>
<p>this whole site is about findout out what sort of things colleges want to see in your app...</p>
<p>well i guess that some combination of good grades, high standardized test scores, meaningful extracurricular involvement and solid teacher recommendations would do the trick. </p>
<p>does that answer your question?</p>
<p>not at all boy, not at all.... </p>
<p>haha..its like wtih those brosures that come home</p>
<p>i feel like every insitutions of higher learning around has professors who love their students, good one on one environments, and a slue of other things that they all boast about</p>
<p>i feel like i have no idea what makes one college any different from another ....</p>
<p>first off, there's no magic formula. i would hope you know this by now, assuming your a rising senior (based of the 09 in your name).</p>
<p>second, no offense, but if you cant spell brochure or slew (slue means to turn on an axis/to pivot), you probably wont get into wes without a really really really expensive "college advisor"</p>
<p>third, this site isnt solely for getting into college. i didnt find out about it until after i was admitted and have found it extremely useful</p>
<p>my spelling sucks...thats not representative of my academic ability</p>
<p>and i know that theres no "magic formula." I didn't ask for one. I know theres not 'sure bet' but I wager anything that if you were to look at the apps of every kid to get in to any college over the last five years there would be trends for each college. Things that many of the applicants have in common.</p>
<p>Ummm, yankeeman90, you may want to look at YOUR use of your (you mean you're, right?)</p>
<p>ahaha at the post above me...</p>
<p>to the OP:</p>
<p>If you meant to ask "what DISTINGUISHING FEATURES would an admitted wesleyan student possess over a waitlisted or denied one", i refer you to my first answer. my first answer is the obvious one. yes?</p>
<p>BUT. </p>
<p>IN MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE (and I emphasize that what I am about to tell you is maaad subjective) as a current wesleyan student, I have found that among my classmates, certain unexpected character traits or achievements or backgrounds or whatever have resurfaced time and again, to the exclusion of other traits/achievements etc. </p>
<p>1) Few played varsity sports in high school. This is not Syracuse or UMD, we're not a jocky place. Instead,
2) Most students seem to have participated in theater, or taken studio art/photography classes, or play(ed) some kind of musical instrument, in high school. This could be important.
3) Many seem to be way out of the ordinary in some way, particularly in having a highly developed relationship with a musical instrument. Echoing (2), this could be important. It seems just about everybody plays something here.
4) Some students that I know possess compelling personal stories. Also, I've met a whole lot of kids from "flyover" country, Middle America way between the coasts, as well as various foreign countries. It seems geographical and other diversity can play a role. I went to racially diverse schools my whole life, so maybe that doesn't stand out as much to me as it would to others, but it might also play a role. </p>
<p>That's a list of things that I have noticed about Weskids. Some things that I have conspicuously failed to notice are: </p>
<p>1) Super high achievers, in high school or college. Maybe they're here somewhere, but I haven't run across any. </p>
<p>So from my own experience you could draw the conclusion that Wes uses a more holistic than stats-based process in admitting students. It also seems that admissions rewards being artsy more than it awards being jocky. </p>
<p>These are my own personal reflections and I have no idea whether or not they coincide with the official line. You mentioned that "I have no idea what makes one college different from the other"...I hope this helps.</p>
<p>On the other hand, in high school, I never played a musical instrument, nor did I participate in theater, nor take any art classes. In fact, I don't know that most of my friends have, either. One thing I do think helped me get in, though, was expecting to be a science major. Wesleyan is trying to increase its focus on the sciences right now.</p>
<p>Hmmm.... if Wes doesn't have a lot of jocks, how come its soccer, lacrosse, crew, tennis, swimming teams are so hot?</p>
<p>is the campus pretty political? Like I'm really into activism and what-not, would admissions appreciate that?</p>
<p>So, could being in choir for 8 years help? And taking a musical theater class one semester?</p>
<p>Wes does have a jock, preppy contingent. It is not huge, but it is there with some very strong teams...It is diverse</p>
<p>"i'm pretty into activism, would that help me?"</p>
<p>Sure. Showing passion for anything extracurricular is great - whether it's activism, sports, journalism, whatever. The reputation of Wes tends to draw more people who are really passionate about activism than are really passionate about sports, but admissions looks for both, and you can definitely find both on campus.</p>