College Admissions: 7 Critical Steps

Over the past couple of years I’ve heard school officials and parents say they think college admissions will be more fair and ultimately easier to get into during this trial period of being test-optional.

However, the latest data (and my professional experience) shows the opposite to be true. The admissions process is actually becoming murkier based on what I’ve seen these past few years. Highly qualified students are being put on a wait list or turned down from publics schools. And let’s not forget how the private schools keep bragging about how selective they are and reject more students than ever before. ​

Starting the college process as early as possible will help the student dedicate the necessary time to research and build a great application. My most successful students start the college planning process with me as early as the 9th grade. But I most commonly get approached by parents of high school juniors and have found I can still significantly help them as well. 

Here is a quick outline of how I like to help students. I strongly recommend parents pay attention and implement as much of it as you can. 

1. Find Your Direction. Have a Sense of Purpose. Know Your Why. 
Research shows that when a student has a sense of purpose, or a direction, for their life, they perform better at school. While I don’t expect a student to have a specific career in mind, nor do I expect them to have their whole life mapped out, I do help them find their direction. 

There are a variety of assessments available to help a student get a better sense of what makes them tick, what satisfies them, what issues do they want to address, etc. All of these can help a student get a sense of direction of what they may want to do in life. 

Personally I work with that and build a list of sample careers that plays into their strengths and I let them evaluate what they think they may like to do. I then research the careers to find out if there is expected job growth in the future and what is a reasonable starting salary post-college. 

2. Build a College List 
Referring to the career list that you built, look for the commonality in fields of study that each occupation requires. Look for the overlap so you can think about what major(s) and minor(s) you should study. Just remember to find something flexible enough so that as time goes on, you are capable of switching careers later in life…it’s probably going to happen. 

There are nearly 4,000 colleges in the United States. Start looking for the ones that offer the major(s) and minor(s) that you’re considering. Next, factor in anything else that is important to you, such as class size, geographic location, “prestige”, extracurricular activities, etc. 

I know many college planners will say to build a list of 10-15 schools and divide them into thirds for Safety, Target, and Reach schools. I don’t mind this strategy, but I think it’s more important to think of the schools in terms of being a good fit for you. So I tend to say let’s find 5 schools that are a really good fit overall. I define fit in terms of academics, cost, and whatever other social aspects that are really important to you. 

Personally for me, one of the important factors is the likelihood of graduating in four years. Sadly most students attending public schools don’t graduate on time. Since college isn’t cheap, the longer the student attends, the more expensive it will be overall. 

3. Visit the Schools
I can’t stress enough how important it is to visit the schools in person. Speaking from personal experience, I was 100% certain of which college I was going to attend...until I visited the campus. I was left underwhelmed. Two weeks later, my family visited another school on my list that I didn’t seriously consider, but as soon as I stepped onto campus, I knew that is where I belonged. 

If you can’t visit in person, I suggest looking into virtual visits if the school offers them. Otherwise, use the internet to see what other students are saying about the school. Don’t rely solely on the school-made material because obviously it’s their own marketing piece. 

4. ACT/SAT Prep
Unless your entire college list consists of schools that say they are test-blind, get ready to take one of these standardized tests. For the schools that say they are test-optional, a high-test score is a great way to stand out above the others when it comes to admission and scholarship consideration.
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I know plenty of students who were admitted into test-optional schools based solely on their GPA and extracurricular activities. However, they were not offered a scholarship. When the students reached out to the schools to inquire about the possibility of a scholarship, the admissions office said an ACT or SAT score would need to be provided in order to be considered. So test-optional schools are telling the truth when they say you won't be dis-advantaged in the admission process if you don't submit a standardized test score; however, they forget to mention how it may negatively affect your scholarship opportunities. 

There are many online, in-class, and tutor options out there. They range from free to affordable to relatively expensive. Either way, start preparing for one of these standardized tests during the sophomore and try to take the exam at least once by the Fall of the Junior year.  

5. Build Your Resume/Activity List 
Generally your application to college will let you list up to ten activities. However, you are given limited space to describe each activity. But some colleges will let you submit your resume along with the application. 

If your resume is lacking material, now is the time to get involved. Typically colleges don’t want to see a student involved in lots of different things all at once. That tends to be viewed as superficial involvement. Rather, it’s better to be heavily involved with just a couple activities that you are deeply committed to. 

And here’s a big tip – get involved with a strategic extracurricular activity that almost no one else is doing and relates to the major you want to study. For example, if a student is applying to a liberal arts school to major in Art History and their extracurriculars are limited to just band, a school club, and maybe a school play, these activities don’t reflect the student’s desire to study Art History. This type of student needs to do something that demonstrates their interest in art history, such as intern at a local museum. 

6. Ask for Letters of Recommendation
Many colleges require two letters of recommendation as part of your application. Typically these letters of recommendation will come from teachers. But some colleges will accept a letter from a coach, employer, a supervisor from a volunteer position or internship, etc. 

Reach out to your teachers in March of your Junior year. Offer to provide them a brag sheet about yourself if it helps give them some talking points to write a more personalized letter of recommendation. As for submitting their letter of recommendation, many times the person writing it will have to create their own online account that will be tethered to your online application. So if they’re not tech savvy, you may need to help them with that. 

7. Start Writing Your College Essays
The essay is essential, more so than years past. It is the student's best chance to distinguish themselves from other applicants and showcase their personality. 

Many college admission offices accept the Common Application. Their essay prompts tend to change very little from one year to the next. Even if a college doesn’t use the Common Application, such as the UC school system, their essay prompts tend to be very similar. Enough so you can use your Common App essays with minimal tweaking for another school’s essay. 

I encourage my Juniors to start writing sample essays based on the most recent Common App prompts. My goal is to get their creative juices flowing. Plus if they find they don’t have something to talk about, they still have time to do something about that. 

The trick is to not write a boring essay that sounds like the other tens of thousands of applicants. You need to let your personality shine through. Everyone is unique. But not everyone can write about themselves uniquely. 

Don’t try to write your essay in one sitting. Draft up some ideas. Make a bullet list. Write it, rewrite it, sit on it, rewrite it…repeat. Have a friend read it. I find that sometimes friends are better at writing about someone else than themselves. With that said, I usually find parents are the worst resource when it comes to essays (sorry parents). So let your friends help you brainstorm ideas. In the end, just make sure it is your voice that is coming through on the essay.

​Regardless of whether you are applying to a competitive school or not, all these steps are important to follow. I know this is a lot, but I hope this outline helps.

Do you want more help in regards to college admission, scholarships, or financial aid? Let's talk about your situation and see how I might be able to help you. Click HERE.