Eli Clarke, Associate Director of counseling, private high school, Washington DC
One of the most intimidating parts of the college process is actually sitting down to complete the application. Many students dread filling them out, and put it off until the last minute.
Yet the application is really one of the most important parts of your college search. It’s crucial to complete it accurately, while also presenting yourself in the best possible light. If you’re having some trouble getting started, check out these tips.
Give yourself enough time.
If you wait until the last minute, you have created a bigger job for yourself and will make mistakes more easily. Instead of procrastinating, look at the application early and break it down into manageable tasks. It will not seem like such a big burden if you portion out a small part of the application to work on at a time. You will end up working more quickly and more efficiently.
Remember your audience.
You are not writing this for yourself. An admissions committee will be reading your application, and although this audience is a pretty intelligent group, they may not know words, abbreviations, and activities that have become a part of your life and lexicon. For example, if you are part of a community service group that goes by a special name (i.e. “Food and Friends”) they may not understand what it is and how you have been involved. It’s important to define such terms briefly and state what your role is: “a community service group for seniors; I was in charge of our fall canned food drive.” Your audience will get a better sense of you, making your application stronger.
Answer every question.
Leave nothing blank—it makes your application look careless and incomplete. If the question does not apply to you, put “N/A” or “None.” If you don’t know the answer to a question, investigate and ask someone who might know. If there are questions that invite you to give extra information (such as “What one activity is most meaningful to you” or “We invite more comments to get to know you better”), then answer them. These are opportunities for you to present more impressive and pertinent information about yourself.
Résumé or activity section?
Almost every application has a section where you list your extracurricular activities and involvements. With this section, students frequently debate if they should fill it out or attach a resume to the application. I tell students to do both. Remember, you should not leave any part of the application blank. When you fill out the activity section, if you don’t have enough room or something needs additional explanation, then write down at the bottom of the section “Please see attached resume.”
Make sure you include indicate all current test scores.
If you have taken more than one standardized test, such as the SAT, ACT, and/or SAT II, you may wonder which scores to include on your application. It usually is in the student’s best interest to put all scores down on the application. In almost every case, schools will take the highest scores and/or highest combination of scores. But it is always a wise idea to check with each college/university on what their policy is and what they look for when it comes to scores; a few schools consider these scores a little differently.
Use a computer, type, or use black ink.
In this day and age, downloading an application or completing it on the computer is easy. Some schools actually prefer the student to apply electronically. However, with other schools, a paper application is the only option. In this case, you should try to type your application. If you cannot find a typewriter, then neatly print with black ink. The admissions committee looks at many applications in a day—by making yours easy to read, you are making it easier for them to judge you fairly.
Make an extra copy.
Whether you submit electronically or hand-write your application, you should always make a copy of your application. Accidents happen, and you don’t want to find out later that your application disintegrated in a wet mailbox, or disappeared in a computer meltdown. In case of an emergency, it’s important to have a back-up copy to give to the admissions office.
Spell check and proofread for errors.
Colleges and universities are expecting an application free of errors. Don’t kid yourself—mistakes look sloppy. Leave plenty of time to read over your application and scrutinize it for mistakes and typos. In addition, if you are using the same essay or other answer for two or more schools, make sure to change the name of the school in your document. Nothing is more embarrassing than having an admissions committee look at an essay and seeing that it refers to another institution.
Have a parent, counselor, or teacher look it over.
It is very difficult to find all of your own mistakes. Get a second (or third) pair of eyes to look over the application. You might have missed things or overlooked a section that someone else can point out to you.
But avoid having more than two or three people look over your application. Everyone will have their own opinion about what you should say and you will end up spending too much time on insignificant points. If you have one or two people look over your application, it will provide enough outside perspective to make your application shine.
Above all, take your time and organize yourself. If you keep these simple guidelines in mind, you can create a strong application that will effectively present you to the admissions committee as a potential student on their campus. Good Luck!
