How to get admitted to the Ivy League and other top colleges and universities.
By:
Gerald Bradshaw
Bradshaw College Consulting
Get ready to deal with a lot of numbers if you plan on applying to an Ivy League college this fall. Be prepared for a lot of surprises as well. Take Jessica, who graduated from a highly regarded suburban high school in North Chicago. Each year, this high school sends on average of one or two students to Harvard and produces nearly 50 National Merit Scholars.
Jessica was number one in her class out of 450 graduating seniors. She scored just short of perfect 800s on her SATs: 775 verbal, 770 math. She scored 750 or higher on each of her three SATII tests, an additional battery of tests required by all major colleges and universities.
Jessica was a powerhouse of academic and extracurricular activity. She was editor of the school newspaper, president of the regional French club during her senior year and president of the State French Club for two years. During both her junior and senior year she earned Thespian Honoree and was an All-State Band Member. She was a member of the girl's soccer team for four years, in addition to winning a dozen other important awards for extracurricular and volunteer activities. On the Harvard scale of numerical ratings, she was a top candidate for admission.
Yet she was turned down by Harvard. She was turned down by Yale. Princeton placed her on a waiting list. Her second choices all came through with letter of acceptances-Brown, Dartmouth and the University of Pennsylvania. But they were not her first choices. She wanted Harvard or Yale and had prepared her entire high school curriculum around that goal.
Who can explain why some Ivies thought her worthy of acceptance and others did not?
Let us compound the problem even further. Consider the fact that two American presidents, John F. Kennedy and George W. Bush, had SAT scores much lower than Jessica's-in the low 600s, in fact. Scores like that are barely high enough to get one admitted to most state universities. And yet both men were admitted to Harvard and Yale. Something does seem rather patently unfair.
It helped that both men were the sons of former graduates-"legacies" as they are called by the admissions committee. That pulls a lot of weight. Almost every college sets aside a certain number of openings for the sons and (now) daughters of former graduates. (Yale admitted its first female in 1970). Yet the majority of applicants to Harvard and Yale are not legacies. But this might be only one issue among many as to why Jessica was turned down.
Consider the odds in broader terms. Each year, over 20,000 high school students apply to Harvard College for admission. Unfortunately, fewer than 1,650 applicants will be accepted, regardless of academic standing or accomplishments. This situation is true for all highly selective colleges and universities. All top universities have admissions guidelines divided broadly speaking into four main categories: academic, extracurricular/athletic, personal qualities, and the overall impression the student makes with the written personal statement and the alumni interview. Why was Jessica rejected with such outstanding credentials? To find an answer we need to look at her application more closely.
According to Jessica's high school record, she rated very high in the first three categories. Many students get into Harvard and Yale with similar academic records. That leaves Jessica's personal statement and the alumni interview. Being able to write about herself and convey her personal qualities during an alumni interview are crucial. Somewhere between her personal statement and the interview, she managed to slip under the bar. Her other strengths and outstanding accomplishments were not strong enough to make up for these shortcomings. I suspect that she had the ability to do well in these areas, but she was never trained how.
Here is where I call upon my own personal experience with this process and as an International college consultant. Preparation for the right college or university requires more than test scores or grades. Schools have become more selective in an effort to create a diverse population of students from a variety of backgrounds, experiences and financial standing. They seek intellectual curiosity, life goals, tenacity, evidence of personal growth and excellence. Students are expected to demonstrate strength of character, qualities of leadership, a commitment to their community and an enthusiasm for learning with their peers. They also need to be able to communicate those attributes.
I customize my program for each individual; to help each student achieve his or her personal goals and prepare for one of the greatest challenges of a lifetime through curriculum planning, test evaluation, and college application assistance, including test prepping and personal interview coaching. It is very rewarding to see young people get accepted into the school of their choice-with the confidence that comes with the right preparation and opportunity for self-discovery.
Mr. Bradshaw was educated at the University of California Berkeley and Harvard Law School.
gerald_bradshaw@post.harvard.edu
www.BradshawCollegeConsulting.com
Toll Free: 866-687-8129
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