Communication Conversation: The Final Push for College

Hang in there, high school seniors – the college application process is almost over. November and December are tough months for those applying to college. Those who applied “early decision” faced a November deadline, and the wait for a mid-December reply can be agonizing.

If you aren’t accepted to your first choice, the application process repeats itself, but to multiple colleges. For those applying to “stretch,” “right on” and “safety” schools – as many as six to 10 – some are just running out of gas. They put their heart and soul into that 650-word common application essay and now are hitting the supplements. The most competitive colleges demand extra essays, as many as three or four, with word counts ranging from 100 to 500 words. This surprises some students. They’ve possibly been juggling courses, sports and social commitments, all while trying to enjoy senior year with all this added obligation of college applications since September. In fact, many of my clients started last June and are glad they did now. Still, there is an urge to write off the supplements quickly just to get them done. Sorry, but this is a mistake.

College admission committees look at the supplements carefully, especially the ubiquitous one that always asks, “Why us?” Colleges want to know what you have learned from your research about them and why you might be a good fit. So you can’t just write one answer and submit it to all the colleges on your list, simply changing the college name. Why? Because just writing one forces you to stay general. “I like the campus,” “The teacher-to-student ratio is small,” “You have a good ranking in magazines,” “I like your climate,” etc. Dig deeper.

If you want to study engineering at Duke, you need to say at the Pratt School of Engineering, or for business at University of Michigan, it’s the Ross School. One client this week applying to the University of Chicago wants to study radiology, and we found two professors with their own labs researching DNA degradation and microsecond X-rays for minimal exposure. He named these professors and explained why he would hope to work on their teams as an undergraduate. It was honest and convincing, which works.

So hang in there, and keep writing. You are almost done!