How do I choose a College that is the right fit for me?

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Your activities list is a very limited amount of words, and is 10 different activities. Every applicant has at least 10 different activities in their life, and if you can not think of 10, you are not thinking hard enough. The activities should be representing different aspects of your life. Try to avoid having multiple similar activities, as it is always better to try and combine activities you deem important and reasonable to do so. Additionally, it shows well-roundedness, which is what many top schools look for nowadays. Do not undermine your descriptions of your activities! This is the area of your application where you want to describe your involvement in the best light! 

Many colleges ask for a link to an online platform showcasing your talents. This is an easy way to differentiate yourself from other applicants, especially if you have skills in virtual design and media. Its very easy to upload a few YouTube videos, either showcasing your knowledge in a particular subject that relates to your major, or showcase a talent like singing or dancing. Many applicants skip this step as it can be time consuming, or they may not have the confidence to post videos of themselves online. Additionally, it puts a face to the name, and it is much easier to reject a name than it is to reject a person. 

Supplemental Essays are not asked for by every college, but they tend to have hidden meanings when they are asked for. Take example, "Why are you interested in your particular major", this may seem like a chance to talk about yourself, but this is the college really saying "what materials/opportunities do you see at our college that made you choose to apply here for that particular major". Meaning talk about professor research you like, activities you see yourself participating in,  or even specific courses you want to take. Never use fluff words in these essays, be to the point, and never degrade anything in these essays. Not yourself, not your high school, not other colleges. Only praise the college asking the question. 

Never be afraid to reach out for help when it comes to college admissions, everyone seeks help, and you are actively at a disadvantage if you do not seek help! The best people to reach out to are teachers, guidance counselors, family members who have gone through the admissions process, and professional college admissions experts. 

When it comes to writing recommendations, its best to ask 2-3 teachers who you have a positive relationship with, and 1-2 external recommenders, this could be a boss, religious leader, or coach (your parents/family members SHOULD NOT be writing you a recommendation). Make sure the recommendations balance you out as a person, meaning get teachers that taught you different subjects to write the recommendations. 

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (or FERPA) is a release authorization that waives the rights to review teacher, guidance counselor, and external recommendations. It ensures honesty in the recommendations, and encourages admission officers to trust the content of the recommendation letters. Additionally it authorizes permission for your high school to send academic records to colleges. 

CommonApp and Coalition both have areas for you to "report" standardized test scores. To most colleges, this means nothing. The most important step in submitting test scores is sending from Official Testing sites, such as College Board. Do your research, only submit the scores to colleges in which your score(s) fall within the average of. 

The Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR), is a transcript required by many schools. This is a very time consuming process, and it has you report every high school or harder level course you have ever taken, starting from middle school, as well as your GPA and class rank for each year of high school. Additionally, it asks for the credit value of these courses, course difficulty level, and course grade per grading period.  The main goal of the SRAR is to gather an idea of how difficult your senior year of high school courses are, and to see how much growth you have demonstrated. To see the credit value of a course, often times its required to reach out to a guidance counselor or school authoritative figure. 

The Student Aid Report (SAR) is a transcript released within 4 weeks of submitting FAFSA. It summarizes the main information you submitted to FAFSA, and also gives you an important rating, known as the Student Aid Index (SAI). The SAI essentially tells you how much money your household is expected to contribute to your education, and this number is shared with the colleges you apply to. Colleges use this number to determine how much financial aid you will receive from them, and private colleges claiming to "meet 100% of need" will only expect you to pay the SAI number for your tuition. 

After qualifying for the Pell Grant, you are placed into consideration for a Federal Work Study Program. This program allows students to contribute towards their tuition expenses through a part-time job, and are given a supervisor to help balance work and school.  The requirements for this program include FAFSA, Pell Grant eligibility, Satisfactory Academic Progress, Tax Documents, and an Application and/or interview process. 

Benefits of this program include...

• Availability to Undergraduates, Graduates, and Professional Students
• Referral and Recommendations from Supervisors
• Accommodations for Students School Schedule
• Payed Employment

The Federal Pell Grant is an entitlement grant, which means its money (up to $7,395 per term) that does not have to be payed back! 

Eligibility Requirements: 

• United States Citizen 
• Undergraduate Student receiving their first undergraduate degree
• Within the first 12 terms of college
• A term is 1/3 of an academic year
• Student Aid Index (SAI) around or below $6000