Tuesday May 15, 2012
The Common Application gained 37 new members for the upcoming application cycle. That brings the total number of colleges and universities that accept the Common Application close to 500. A growing number are public institutions. Most of the country's top universities and top liberal arts colleges accept the Common Application.
The Common Application evolves from year to year in an effort to best meet the admissions needs of member institutions. For the 2012 - 2013 application cycle, however, the changes are minor. Like last year, the essay needs to be in the 250 to 500 word length. It's a decision that has many critics -- 500 words isn't much space in which to present a fleshed-out idea -- but the hope is that admissions officers won't have to slog through so many long, rambling, poorly edited essays (learn more in this article on essay length).
The Common Application will go live on August 1st, but some applicants may want to start thinking about the essay before then. The actual essay options have not changed since last year. In 250 to 500 words, students should respond to one of these prompts:
- Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.
- Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.
- Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.
- Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.
- A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an
experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.
- Topic of your choice.
You can get a preview of the new application on the Common Application website. Changes are highlighted in yellow.
Related Reading:
Tuesday May 15, 2012
The consequences of a really bad semester in college can be severe: dismissal. Most colleges, however, provide a student with the opportunity to appeal an academic dismissal. An effective appeal can result in a student being readmitted to the college, while a bad appeal will accomplish nothing more than wasting everybody's time. An effective appeal has several qualities:
- The appeal must be painfully honest, even if the circumstances for your poor academic performance are embarrassing.
- You should appeal in person if you have the option.
- You shouldn't try to blame others for your academic performance.
- Your appeal should include a plan for future academic success.
To learn more, read these
six tips for appealing an academic dismissal.
Tuesday May 15, 2012
The Ivy League includes many of the most prestigious and most selective universities in the world. To learn more about the eight members of the Ivy League including acceptance rates, average test scores, costs, financial aid and popular majors, read each school's admissions profile:
Dartmouth College
Brave Sir Robin / Flickr
If you want to see just how tough it is to get into these highly selective schools, check out this chart: Ivy League Acceptance Rates for the Class of 2016.
What standardized test scores do you need to get into an Ivy League school? These charts show a side-by-side comparison of the score range for the middle 50% of matriculated students: Ivy League SAT Scores | Ivy League ACT Scores
And you can explore the campuses in these photo tours: Columbia | Cornell | Dartmouth | Harvard
Monday May 14, 2012
Your college admissions essay is the one place in your application where you can truly showcase your personality and passions. The success of your essay, however, isn't about just what you say, but how you say it. Even if you have a wonderful topic for your essay, it will fall flat if the prose is wordy, flowery, full of clichés or lacking energy.
These nine tips for improving the style of your college admissions essay can help you avoid some of the most common stylistic problems admissions officers find in application essays.
More Admissions Essay Writing Tips:
