The process of applying to colleges can be time-consuming and discouraging.
Many students begin enthusiastically investigating all of the colleges and focus their attention on those they find suitable, only to become discouraged when they are faced with the application forms.
It is best to apply to no more than about five colleges because of the expense and labor for each additional application. At least one of these choices should be a "safe" school, i.e. a college the student knows will accept him or her.
It is also important to get application forms early because the amount of detail and work required to complete them is formidable. Some students do not get into colleges because they "burn-out" before they finish the application most important to them.
The best procedure, I believe, is for students to apply for early admission to one college.
Students who know they are going to apply to college, should begin keeping records of their activities and achievements as early as possible.
If they are accepted, they have been spared a great deal of work, money and wear and tear on the nerves. With this procedure, the college informs students of the results early enough so that they can apply elsewhere.
Even if students do not get early admission, they can still be accepted by that college on the regular admission schedule.
Students should try to develop some estimate early in high school of what achievement tests they will need to comply with the admission requirements of the colleges they choose.
It is best to take these achievement tests soon after completing the appropriate high school course.
For example, if the student takes biology as a freshman, he or she should take the biology achievement test at the end of freshman year if he or she needs that particular test.
Knowing what tests are required, also helps students space them throughout high school and avoid being overwhelmed in junior or senior year.
Students who know they are going to apply to college, should begin keeping records of their activities and achievements as early as possible.
They should list everything: clubs, jobs, community activities, sports, trips, special events, and so forth. When faced with an application form, most students forget very important information.
Most college admission offices agree that the interview is not as important as the composition required by most colleges.
I believe the best compositions are those written from the heart. One applicant wrote one in which she described her room and told what everything in it meant to her.
Her choice of subject matter made great sense, since she was certainly the world's expert on the topic. She was admitted to the college of her choice.
In these days of limited finances, many families may find that the cost of sending their children to college for four years is more than they can afford. If this is the case, I strongly recommend that you send your children to a two year community college and then have them transfer to the college of their choice as a junior. This system has many advantages. By junior year, students have a better idea of what they want to study and are able to make more informed choices. They can choose the college that has the strongest department in their major field. Also many colleges have high attrition rates in the first two years.
Colleges that are difficult to get into in the freshman year, are often easier to get into in the junior year because there is not as much competition.
Another reason is that grades are a better predictor of college performance than SAT scores.
Students who do well at junior or community colleges have proven themselves college admission offices know they are taking less of a chance on them than they are with un-tried freshman applicants.
Finally, it is important for parents and students to remember that there is not just "one" college that is the best. There are many colleges that are "best".
There is a college out there for every student who is motivated to succeed.
First published in 1991
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