4 answers
sarah
Student
Gaston, IN
1
Question
Asked
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What is the best thing to put on college applications?
I am in Indiana.
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4 answers
Doc Frick
Career Coach and Mentor
1616
Answers
California, CA
Updated
Doc’s Answer
Sarah, college is foremost an academic pursuit—so it makes sense that academics would be high on any college recruiters list when when making their college admissions decisions.
#1) GRADE POINT AVERAGE (GPA)
The most important step you can take to make yourself a competitive candidate is, of course, to work hard in school. Your GPA is the single most influential factor that any college will consider. It reflects your performance as a student over almost four years of your life and offers insight into what sort of college student you will be. If possible, enroll in honors classes during your freshman and sophomore years, and then AP classes during your junior and senior years. These will help boost your weighted GPA (an A in an AP course is typically worth 5.0 points instead of the 4.0 points awarded to an A in a regular course). More importantly, challenging classes demonstrate to admissions committees that you have the interest and the ability to take on higher-level work. This aspect of your transcript is often referred to as academic rigor, something many students don’t realize is important in college admissions. Try to take AP classes in the subjects that you would like to study in college.
#2) YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT
Almost as important as your GPA is you can provide additional context in your personal statement or supplemental essays. It’s important when you are completing your application essays, especially the personal statement, to reveal something about yourself that can’t be found anywhere else in the application. Grades, courses, and activities are important, but they only show one facet of who you are as a student. Colleges want to see more context about who students are, what their goals are, and what motivates them. Context is key, as it helps you become three-dimensional and can help an admissions officer advocate for you as an already qualified applicant when it comes to making their final decision.
Hope this was helpful Sarah
#1) GRADE POINT AVERAGE (GPA)
The most important step you can take to make yourself a competitive candidate is, of course, to work hard in school. Your GPA is the single most influential factor that any college will consider. It reflects your performance as a student over almost four years of your life and offers insight into what sort of college student you will be. If possible, enroll in honors classes during your freshman and sophomore years, and then AP classes during your junior and senior years. These will help boost your weighted GPA (an A in an AP course is typically worth 5.0 points instead of the 4.0 points awarded to an A in a regular course). More importantly, challenging classes demonstrate to admissions committees that you have the interest and the ability to take on higher-level work. This aspect of your transcript is often referred to as academic rigor, something many students don’t realize is important in college admissions. Try to take AP classes in the subjects that you would like to study in college.
#2) YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT
Almost as important as your GPA is you can provide additional context in your personal statement or supplemental essays. It’s important when you are completing your application essays, especially the personal statement, to reveal something about yourself that can’t be found anywhere else in the application. Grades, courses, and activities are important, but they only show one facet of who you are as a student. Colleges want to see more context about who students are, what their goals are, and what motivates them. Context is key, as it helps you become three-dimensional and can help an admissions officer advocate for you as an already qualified applicant when it comes to making their final decision.
Hope this was helpful Sarah
Adeline Nguyen
Data Scientist
3
Answers
San Francisco, California
Updated
Adeline’s Answer
Hi Sarah! There are a lot of things that go into a college application - requirements like courses taken, GPA, extracurricular activities, etc. as well as the personal statement and smaller essays.
While grades, classes, and extracurriculars are definitely important, I think your personal statement/essays are where you can really stand out. The best thing you can put is details on what you're passionate about, how you can add value to their university, and what kind of person you are. This is also where you may have the opportunity to explain any lower grades, talk about challenges you've overcome, and special interests or skills you have or are interested in pursuing at their school. A lot of students take the same classes, get similar grades, are in similar clubs/sports/volunteer activities/etc. in high school so it's important to let the college get an idea of how you are different and why you are going to be a great addition to their incoming class.
While grades, classes, and extracurriculars are definitely important, I think your personal statement/essays are where you can really stand out. The best thing you can put is details on what you're passionate about, how you can add value to their university, and what kind of person you are. This is also where you may have the opportunity to explain any lower grades, talk about challenges you've overcome, and special interests or skills you have or are interested in pursuing at their school. A lot of students take the same classes, get similar grades, are in similar clubs/sports/volunteer activities/etc. in high school so it's important to let the college get an idea of how you are different and why you are going to be a great addition to their incoming class.
Sundar Rajan Padmanabhan
13
Answers
Updated
Sundar Rajan’s Answer
Beyond the list of achievements, be it GPA, extra curriculars, achievements and interests, I would say, really put in your thoughts on those short questions they ask you to answer. They typically have # of words per question limitation. That will make you to be concise, clear, to the point and try to present the best picture of what you bring to the table. Dont just be flowery in words. They want to know you.
The number and type of questions vary and depends on the college you apply. But i would recommend looking across these essay questions and really articulate, collect your thoughts and keep notes. Some of these will be useful later in future applications as well! It also gives an opportunity to review your thought processes years down the line! Of course, some of these questions show up in different forms or vary slightly and hence those thought notes are quite reusable as well.
More than satisfying your college requirements, it gives you a great opportunity to really look within. Take it as a chance to look into the mirror and tell a story of yourself. Don't look at those writeups as a chore. They will certainly help in defining and shaping up your journey.
My best wishes.
The number and type of questions vary and depends on the college you apply. But i would recommend looking across these essay questions and really articulate, collect your thoughts and keep notes. Some of these will be useful later in future applications as well! It also gives an opportunity to review your thought processes years down the line! Of course, some of these questions show up in different forms or vary slightly and hence those thought notes are quite reusable as well.
More than satisfying your college requirements, it gives you a great opportunity to really look within. Take it as a chance to look into the mirror and tell a story of yourself. Don't look at those writeups as a chore. They will certainly help in defining and shaping up your journey.
My best wishes.
Kevin Nally
Graduate School Student Services Coordinator/Advisor
8
Answers
Pullman, Washington
Updated
Kevin’s Answer
When filling out an college application it's important to not simply about your GPA but also topics like extracurricular activities that you might passionate about, previous job experience and a personal statement which would your experiences in school and how you persevered through any tough times. I'd highly recommend creating an outline to keep your thoughts straight. All the best to you