Unsure of How to Wow the College Admissions Committee?
When trying to get accepted into your dream college, it can often take more than good grades alone. Of course, colleges are impressed with solid grades, especially if you have achieved all A’s throughout high school. But the college admissions committee may be looking for more than this if it is really an elite school. Here are a few ways to guarantee your acceptance into your college of choice.
Nail Down a Great Score on Your ACT or SAT
There are certain colleges and universities that will admit students based on standardized test scores alone if the teenager scores high enough. Whether you are choosing to take the ACT or SAT, keep on taking it until you believe college admissions will love your score. If you are feeling you are less than sufficient in test-taking, iAchieve can certainly help. We offer tutoring for both exams and test prep packages as well. By working with us, you can greatly improve your chances of earning a higher score that is bound to impress.
Don’t Write a Generic Essay
Many colleges will ask you to write an essay describing why you think their school is the perfect one for you. Take this opportunity to make yourself stand out. Don’t just write about how they have a great Education program and you want to be a kindergarten teacher. Tell them a little about your life. Write about things you have had to overcome and how attending their college will be the icing on the cake. This is an essay that should not be written in a couple of hours and then mailed off. You need to write and rewrite. Ask people’s opinions on it and consider ways to improve it each time.
Keep in mind, though, that your final essay should be able to fit on one side of a piece of paper. If it goes much longer than this, you are going to lose your audience because the college admissions committee has thousands of applicants to get through. If you can’t get your point across in one page, then your summarizing skills probably could use some work.
Colleges Want to See Extracurriculars
The college admissions committee wants well-rounded students attending their school. This means you should have a list of extracurriculars that you would like to tell them about. College is not just about getting good grades and earning a piece of paper saying you have graduated. It should be a time to explore who you are as a person and grow even further for the better.
You May Be Asked to Come in and Interview
For certain colleges, they may ask you to come in for a sit-down interview with someone from the college admissions committee. You should take this chance to make a strong impression as they are interested in admitting you, but are still at least a little unsure.
Hopefully, you know the basics about how to introduce yourself, offer a strong handshake, and look the person in the eye. The committee member is looking for a responsible young adult, not a teenager that still is led around by their parents for everything. You must take this opportunity to not just answer the questions they may have about you, but ask questions of your own about the school. In essence, you should feel that you are interviewing them as much as they are interviewing you. After all, you need to know for certain that you will want to spend tens of thousands of dollars and your next four years of your life there.
Sometimes Things Just Don’t Work Out
Even if you are strong across the board at all of these things, there is always a chance that the college won’t accept you. In the long run, that is perfectly okay. It might crush you at the moment and you just may shed a tear or two, but a little failure breeds champions. Perhaps you are meant to go to a different school. You just never know. Just keep your chin up, keeping on sending in college applications, and you may come across another college that is even more perfect for you.
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