Admissions – “Wait listed” category – how to handle?

“Wait list” is a different category of decisions on the part of college admissions’ officers. It may prove helpful to many of our readers if they understand this process.

First, there is a clear upward trend line each year in the number of students being placed on individual colleges wait list. This a standby category that can feel like being put in limbo.

What is behind this practice and what does it mean to an applicant?

Students now apply on average to eight or nine colleges. This makes it close to impossible for the admission staff to know how many candidates they should admit in order to arrive at their target first year enrolled class. They know that only a percentage (which is unpredictable each year) will actually choose to accept their offer of outright admission. Therefore, the admissions committee will offer the standby category to a large number of applicants with the idea that if they underestimated the number of admitted students who will choose to enroll; they can then turn to their wait listed candidates. This policy is fundamentally a safety net for the college to be certain that they attain their desired student enrollment.

This policy can work to your advantage, if you are placed on the wait list of a college that you have a strong interest in. You or rather your counselor should keep in touch with the admission officers indicating your desire to remain an active candidate.

Essay Topics – worth practice

Select one of the following essay topics and practice a writing sample. We highly recommend that you take your time and thoughtfully prepare your essay.

• Discuss an issue of state, national or global concern to you.

• If you could live your life, fighting for one cause what would it be and why?

• Describe a time you did not meet expectations and what impact did the experience have on you?

• What gives meaning to your life?

• If you wrote a letter to yourself to be opened in 20 years, what would it say?

• Where do you see yourself in ten years?

• Why are you the right fit for ABC college ?

• What book that you’ve read recently would you recommend to a friend and why?

• What is something you are passionate about?

• If you were given 1 million dollars today what would you do with it?

• If there was one thing you could change about yourself what would it be and why?

• Define “success”.

• What’s the value of failure?

• What sets you apart from your peers?

• If you could sit down with any one person for an hour, who would it be and why?

How to handle “typical” questions in an admission form ?

Generally you come across the following questions in your application/ supplement form:

• How would you describe your personality?

• What areas of personal development you need to improve upon?

• Why admission committee should give you admission?

The admissions officers want an honest self appraisal of what you are like in terms of  your personality (shy or outgoing, confident or unconfident, mature socially or immature, disciplined or lacking in self discipline, serious about studies or casual, goal oriented or uncaring, independent or dependent  upon others).

You should be honest to state what aspects of any of the above areas you believe you can improve upon.  Honest responses always impress the admissions officers.

The admissions committees are asking you to tell what makes you a strong candidate for their rigorous programs. You want to tell them that you are a serious student, motivated to learn, independent, determined to become a professional pharmacist, intelligent, and have a solid academic foundation to take on specialized higher educational studies.

This assumes that you can honestly state these positives based on your school performance and personal activities.

How to Convert Your GPA to a 4.0 Scale ?

Colleges report GPA (grade point average) on a 4.0 scale. The top grade is an A, which equals 4.0. This is the standard scale at most colleges, and many high schools use it.

If your high school uses a different or weighted system, you need to convert your GPA to a 4.0 scale for this tool. Talk to your school counselor or get a rough conversion by substituting these values:

A+ (97-100) = 4.0
A (93-96) = 4.0
A- (90-92) = 3.7

B+ (87-89) = 3.3
B (83-86) = 3.0
B- (80-82) = 2.7

C+ (77-79) = 2.3
C (73-76) = 2.0
C- (70-72) = 1.7

D+ (67-69) = 1.3
D (65-66) = 1.0
E/F (below 65) = 0.0

Source : http://www.collegeboard.com/

Liberal arts colleges – their benefits!!!!

Basically, a liberal arts education is neither liberal in the political (American or British/ European) sense of the term, nor focused in the visual or performing arts (though one can concentrate in these areas).

The notion of a liberal arts education is to study a broad body of knowledge in several different areas, which colleges organize differently. Basically, these tend to be the humanities (history, philosophy, literature, etc.), social sciences (political science, psychology, sociology, etc.), sciences and mathematics, visual and performing arts.

You might find them categorized differently, but the idea is that students will explore a variety of fields and develop a broad educational background. As they progress through college, students will “major” or concentrate in one or more disciplines, gaining more detailed and advanced understanding in those areas. Second, a liberal arts education teaches students how to think, how to reason critically, approach problems analytically, communicate in writing and speech, how to digest and synthesize information, and so on.

How to make my essay / personal statement work?

The essays on the college applications or rather personal statements have two purposes:

One is to reveal the ability to write a coherent statement using mature and appropriate language and grammar. How well one writes is as important as what one writes.

The second purpose is to provide insights into an applicant’s personality, values, special interests, goals and dreams for the future, what he or she hopes to take from the college experience.

So you do not have to have had extreme positive or negative experiences in your young life. Focus on the elements listed above and provide examples from your school and personal life that reveals who you are.

Excitement and energy are contagious when a student writes essays on the college applications and articulates in interviews their genuine commitment of time and emotion to a good cause.

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The
essays on the college applications or rather personal statements have two
purposes:One is to reveal the ability to write a coherent statement using
mature and appropriate language and grammar. How well one writes is as
important as what one writes. The second purpose is to provide insights into an
applicant's personality, values, special interests, goals and dreams for the
future, what he or she hopes to take from the college experience. So you do not
have to have had extreme positive or negative experiences in your young life.
Focus on the elements listed above and provide examples from your school and
personal life that reveals who you are.Excitement and energy are contagious
when a student writes essays on the college applications and articulates in
interviews their genuine commitment of time and emotion to a good cause.
Excitement and energy are contagious when a
student writes essays on the college applications and articulates in
interviews their genuine commitment of time and emotion to a good cause.

What do colleges look for in references?

Colleges like to see recommendations from individuals, who know you well and can speak to your abilities as a student and qualities as a person, which will help you be successful in college and contribute to the college and campus community.

Impressive names and credentials are less important in a reference writer than direct connections to you and experience working with you in an academic setting (particularly important for the one or two teacher recommendations required by many colleges) and/or overall school or community setting.

Sometimes it makes sense for a student to add a recommendation from an advisor, a coach, music or art instructor, a youth leader or an employer.

What is a “non-competitive” college ?

When a college is listed as “non-competitive” it simply means that it admits a large percentage of applicants who meet the required standards of grades, academic courses and admissions tests. This absolutely does not mean it is in it for the money only. Quite the contrary, it means the college wants to give the opportunity to enroll and impart learning to the students, who are maturing into serious students.

College education in U.S v/s Europe

You will typically find more choice in the U.S. There is a huge variety of educational options here, among several thousand two and four year colleges and universities. There will probably be several institutions that fit almost any student’s needs and interests, and which are available for reasonable admissions.

America primarily hosts liberal arts programs, or a wide ranging, balanced Bachelor of Arts degree. There are many pre-professional programs, to be sure, including business, arts, communications, engineering, nursing, education, and so on. However, most American students start with a broad-based, four- or two-year educational path and then choose their major field(s) over time.

Cost is typically higher in the U.S., as parents and students are expected to fund the largest part of their education. There are many government and private sources of financial assistance available, but the average loan debt of four-year graduates now tops $20,000. The system is a blend of public and private institutions, with the latter charging a lot more in terms of tuition, but also supporting a lot more financial assistance.

Europe is a big collection of dramatically different higher educational systems. In Europe (major generalizations), fewer students go to college. They tend to specialize at an earlier date, and study for fewer years at the college or graduate level. They pay less for primarily government funded institutions, of which there are fewer options. Admissions is more exam based and limited, with fewer entry points and paths of movement.

A student’s resume – its basic contents

It is typically a good idea to begin to develop a resume, that can be used in a variety of ways. You can give the resume to your teachers, who will work on your recommendations.  That will help them to get to know you more broadly, as opposed to just their experiences with you in their class. You might even  submit the resume as part of your college applications , if the resume adds important details about your activities which you don’t feel are adequately described in your application forms and essays.

The resume can take different forms depending on its use. For example, a sport-oriented resume featuring academic details (test scores, advanced courses taken, GPA, etc.) as well as a focus on a particular sport can be useful to give to coaches, who might be interested in recruiting you. A resume without the academic piece, which would be covered elsewhere in your applications, but with a lengthier focus on one or more activity themes (community service, leadership, music, etc.) could be a helpful component of your applications. We often encourage students to add several sentences of narrative detail to their resumes where they describe what they have done and learned through their various activities.