How Does Paragraph 6 Develop the Idea That Engaging in Music Can Help With Academic Performance?
What looks good on a higher application? It'due south the question nearly every loftier school student will ask at some point while applying to college. But is there a clear answer?
Fortunately, the answer is yes! Read on to learn what colleges look for in applicants, what looks really good on a college awarding, and what kinds of myths there are most proficient things to put on a college awarding.
What Are Colleges Looking for in Applicants?
Everyone applying to college has wondered, "What exactly are colleges looking for in applicants?" In other words, what looks good on a higher awarding?
While all colleges are different, of course, with some valuing sure qualities or skills more or less than other schools, all colleges by and large look for smart, studious, ambitious, and passionate students.
Therefore, your college application should emphasize your best, virtually impressive qualities. For case, if you play the violin and want to study music in college, y'all'll want to bear upon on this interest you have in different areas of your application.
A proficient higher application will also showcase your sincere interest in the school. Y'all wouldn't be applying to a college unless y'all had a reason to want to get at that place, right? Make certain to explain (specially if you need to write a "Why This College" essay) exactly how you became interested in the schoolhouse and why you recollect it'southward a practiced fit for you and your goals.
You don't need to be the next Marie Curie or Stephen Hawking, merely you should be open to new opportunities and willing to claiming yourself.
Overall, the basic point of a college application is to make you stand out from other applicants in a positive, memorable, and unique style.
This fact is especially important in lite of how many kickoff-year applications colleges receive each year. According to the 2022 report by the National Association for Higher Admission Counseling (NACAC), the number of first-year applications received past US colleges increased by 6% from autumn 2022 to autumn 2018.
The written report found that "the average number of applications for each access office staff member (excluding administrative staff) for the Fall 2022 admission cycle was 1,035 for public institutions and 461 for private institutions."
These trends bespeak that your awarding will definitely need to exit a lasting impression on the admissions committee if y'all hope to go into that schoolhouse.
The caste past which yous must stand out from other applicants volition depend on how selective a particular school is. In general, the more selective a college is, the more impressive and unique your application will have to exist.
Finally, what looks good on an application volition vary depending on the college and what the college values. For case, at colleges that don't place a big emphasis on standardized tests, a high Sat score likely won't exist much of a factor in admissions.
This is just a general overview of what colleges look for in applicants. So what looks really good on a college application? Upwardly next, we look at the specific qualities y'all should strive to include on your awarding so you tin raise your chances of getting accepted.
What Looks Good on a Higher Application? vii Key Elements
In improver to key personality traits, such as ambition, passion, 18-carat involvement, and academic curiosity, what looks really adept on a college application?
In full general, a slap-up application volition have most or all of the following elements:
- A high GPA (relative to what admitted students accept) and a rigorous curriculum
- Strong test scores (relative to what admitted students have)
- A specific, honest, and well-written personal statement
- A unique extracurricular involvement or passion (a "fasten," as we like to phone call it)
- Volunteering experience with measurable bear on
- Compelling letters of recommendation written on your behalf
- Work experience, particularly jobs related to your academic or professional interests
It's OK if you don't have every single quality listed above, but if you lot practise, your chances of getting accepted to the college of your dreams will go mode up!
Now and so, let'southward take a expect at each of these qualities in more than item.
#1: Splendid Grades in Challenging Courses
The first important part of the college application is the transcript, which consists of your GPA and the names and types of classes you've taken in high school.
Virtually people believe a high GPA (the definition of which can vary at different colleges) will make an application stronger. And this is true!
Co-ordinate to NACAC, 75% of colleges ranked grades in high schoolhouse classes considerably of import. In fact, this factor was ranked the most important of whatever in the written report.
What'southward truly of import, though, isn't that you simply accept a high GPA overall but rather that y'all accept a GPA that's college than the boilerplate GPA of admitted students at the higher yous're applying to.
To find a college's average GPA, search "[Schoolhouse Proper noun] PrepScholar access requirements" on Google so click our database link to that school. This page will show you what the schoolhouse's boilerplate GPA is, in add-on to other admission requirements.
For instance, if you lot want to apply to Notre Matriarch, y'all would search for "Notre Dame PrepScholar access requirements" and click the link to our Notre Dame admission reqs page, which looks similar this:
As y'all can see, Notre Dame's average (weighted) GPA for admitted applicants is iv.06. Equally a result, if you're applying hither, you'll want to have a GPA of at to the lowest degree 4.06, preferably higher so yous will be an above-average applicant.
Information technology's not just about getting a loftier GPA, though; you must as well have a range of challenging courses throughout high schoolhouse if you really wish to print an admissions committee. This means you'll want to accept non just bones-level classes simply as well some AP, honors, and/or IB courses, particularly in subjects you are good at and might want to continue to study in college or major in.
The 2022 NACAC report constitute that a whopping 84% of colleges ranked an applicant'south rigor of curriculum moderately or considerably important.
Think nigh it: though a perfect 4.0 might look groovy at an initial glance, if yous got this loftier GPA past only taking the easiest classes available and didn't claiming yourself with higher-level coursework, your transcripts aren't likely to impress college admissions officers that much.
Even if you started high school with lower grades, an upwardly grade trend is a great point to emphasize on your application. This suggests that you're capable of bouncing back from whatever difficulties you might face and are willing to put in the piece of work necessary for excelling in college.
#2: High Examination Scores
Examination scores, mainly Saturday/Deed scores, are another key part of higher applications (unless, of course, you're applying to colleges that don't require examination scores).
On the NACAC report, 83% of colleges believe admission test scores are at to the lowest degree moderately important. This is why information technology's vital that you try to get every bit high an SAT/ACT score as you can, ideally one in at least the 75th percentile for your colleges.
The 75th percentile means that 75% of admitted students at a particular school achieved this score or lower. Reaching (or surpassing) this threshold means that you lot're scoring higher than about other admitted applicants are—and well higher up that college's average score.
To notice the middle fifty% (that is, the 25th and 75th percentile Sat/ACT scores) for a school, search on Google for "[Schoolhouse Name] PrepScholar admission requirements." Click the link to our folio for the schoolhouse to see its requirements, including its average SAT/ACT scores.
For example, say you're planning to apply to NYU. Here's what the SAT scores section on NYU's PrepScholar admission reqs page looks like:
Here, we tin can come across the average Saturday score for NYU is 1440—that's pretty high, in the 96th percentile!
To actually stand out as an bidder, though, you'll want to aim for at to the lowest degree the 75th percentile. For NYU, that'due south 1510, which corresponds to the 99th percentile, or the meridian 1% of exam takers.
Since you're probable applying to more than than just one school, you'll need to set an Sabbatum/Deed goal score, that is, a score loftier enough to become you lot into all the colleges you're applying to.
To set a goal score, start by making a nautical chart of all the schools yous're applying to. You can make your ain nautical chart or download a blank template.
Below is a sample SAT goal score chart:
| School Proper name | 25th Percentile Score | 75th Percentile Score |
| Marquette Academy | ||
| University of Wisconsin—Madison | ||
| Michigan Country University | ||
| Academy of Illinois Urbana-Champaign |
Next, wait up the 25th and 75th percentile Sat scores for each of the schools you're applying to using our PrepScholar admission requirements pages. (Follow the steps in a higher place for NYU to learn how to do this.)
One time you've got these scores, write them in your chart equally and so:
| School Proper name | 25th Percentile Score | 75th Percentile Score |
| Marquette University | 1150 | 1320 |
| University of Wisconsin—Madison | 1300 | 1480 |
| Michigan State University | 1120 | 1310 |
| Academy of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | 1220 | 1480 |
Now, look at all the 75th percentile scores in your chart. The highest score will be your goal score, as this is the i about likely to get you into all the schools yous're applying to.
With our case chart, the highest score is 1480, or the 75th percentile score for the University of Illinois and UW Wisconsin. By getting a 1480 or higher, you lot'll be getting an impressive score not just for these two schools school but as well for Marquette and MSU, thereby raising your chances of getting into all colleges you're applying to.
The majority of college applicants are high school seniors, and most of the higher application advice out there is aimed at them. But what do you do if you lot don't fall into this narrow category? Our eBook on how to ready for and apply to college equally a nontraditional student will walk you through everything you demand to know, from the coursework you should have under your belt to how to get letters of recommendation when y'all're non a high schoolhouse senior.
#three: Sincere, Specific, and Well-Written Essays
The personal statement is an important role of your college application every bit it'southward one of the simply areas where you can actually showcase your personality.
Co-ordinate to the 2022 NACAC survey, 56% of schools consider awarding essays moderately or considerably important. While some colleges don't require essays, those that do usually place at least moderate importance on them.
So how can yous ensure your essay will impress the admissions committee? By and large, colleges are looking for iii main qualities in a personal essay:
- Honesty: What y'all write about should have actually happened to you and should be how you really feel. Exaggerating details and outright lying are big no-noes here!
- Specificity: Using concrete details to effectively convey your thoughts, view, and experiences volition make your essay a lot more memorable, personable, and—most chiefly—unique.
- Eloquence: Don't expect to get accepted anywhere if your essay is poorly written and full of grammar and spelling errors. A great personal statement has a sensible organisation, tells a compelling story, and is completely costless of technical errors.
Below are some steps yous can take to guarantee that your essay will take all three qualities.
Step 1: Brainstorm Significant Moments From Your Life
What you write about for your college essay will vary depending on the prompt(south) you're given from your school or the prompt you choose (for instance, the Mutual App and Coalition App allow you to choose from amongst several prompts for your essay).
In full general, you'll want to pick a topic that meets the following criteria:
- It actually happened and was significant to you: If yous're writing about a specific incident, it should be something that actually happened and that had a large bear on on how you define yourself, your goals, and/or your interests.
- It'south specific and interesting: Don't write about a wide, universal topic that can apply to tons of other applicants as well. Instead, focus on an event, consequence, person, or struggle that'southward unique to you and your life.
- It reveals something of import about you: The essay is meant to highlight something you lot think the admissions committee should know about you, such as a personality trait you have, how you overcame some sort of challenge, or how you became interested in a field of study.
- It has a positive lean: While y'all don't need to option a topic that's overly low-cal or cheery, information technology should nonetheless have an ultimately positive lean that reveals something good well-nigh you rather than something bad, controversial, or immoral.
Step two: Write Your Essay
The adjacent step is to actually begin writing your essay. Don't worry too much almost grammer and menstruum at this bespeak; simply go down your ideas and first deciding which details and examples might work well in your essay.
As y'all write, remember to channel your inner voice. This essay should sound like the existent you, not an faux of what yous think colleges want to hear. And then if you lot're the sarcastic type, you might want to include a joke or two, for instance. Don't forget that the essay is a way for the admissions committee to learn more than about you, so don't shy away from your true self!
On that same note, it's OK to get creative here. The essay isn't an academic essay you lot'd write for English grade—information technology's a story. Feel free to inject your writing with various literary techniques, such as a non-chronological organization, realistic dialogue, and memorable imagery.
Lastly, make sure you're sufficiently answering the prompt and are abiding by all technical requirements (such as length). You tin check a college's essay requirements past referring to its application requirements page or by reading the instructions on the Common App, Coalition App, or Universal College App websites (if submitting your application through one of these platforms).
An essay that's too long might get cut off when y'all submit it electronically, so be certain it adheres to all the requirements.
Step iii: Edit and Proofread Several Times
In one case yous have a rough draft of your college essay, it's time to polish information technology upward for submission.
The all-time mode to edit is to put your essay away for a few days. This will give yous some distance away from your writing, allowing you lot to look back at your essay later with a fresher perspective.
Equally yous reread your essay, mark any areas in it that are unclear, awkward, or irrelevant to the main point you're trying to make with information technology. You should likewise right any obvious typos or errors, such equally mistakes in grammer, spelling, or punctuation.
Once you've done this procedure a few times, requite your essay to someone to read. Ideally, this volition be a person yous trust, such as a parent, teacher, counselor, or tutor. Have the person you choose offer clear feedback on your essay and check that you lot've met all requirements. Edit your essay as needed in accordance with the comments y'all go.
After you lot've finished all of this, you lot should now have a perfect college essay to submit with your awarding!
#iv: A Spike in Your Extracurriculars
Almost every college will want to know what kinds of extracurricular activities you do or have washed in your spare time.
Indeed, 49% of colleges surveyed regard students' extracurricular activities moderately or considerably of import. Ask yourself: what are your interests outside of school and how do you engage in them?
The trick here is to provide not a list of all the random activities yous've done but rather a detailed overview of 1 to 2 of your most passionate interests and any large achievements you've made in them.
In other words, you need to figure out what your "spike" is, a concept which PrepScholar co-founder and Harvard alum Allen Cheng describes in his skillful guide on how to become into the Ivy League.
To put it simply, a spike is deep accomplishment in and noesis of a particular field.
As an instance, say you programme to major in biology. You'll stand out as an applicant if yous have tons of biological science- or science-related experiences under your belt. Maybe you lot're part of your schoolhouse's biological science club, or maybe you lot volunteered at a local inquiry lab, which taught you the basics of handling lab equipment.
In addition to having a diversity of experiences and sufficient background knowledge in the field, you want to highlight any relevant major accomplishments you have. For instance, maybe you won a scientific discipline off-white your sophomore year of high school; most recently, you lot submitted an award-winning invention thought to a national competition
As you tin can see, this concept of the fasten is the contrary of being well rounded, which about students assume they need to be (read the side by side section to acquire more almost this myth).
If y'all're not certain what your spike is but yet, take some time to endeavour out new activities and explore any interests you take, both in and exterior of school. Over time you lot should kickoff to get a feel for what you're passionate near and what you tin can run into yourself committing to in the future.
#5: Compelling Letters of Recommendation
Nearly colleges require at to the lowest degree one letter of recommendation from either your loftier school counselor or a high schoolhouse instructor (or both).
The 2022 NACAC survey indicates that 54% of colleges consider teacher recommendations at least moderately important, while a higher 55% consider counselor recommendations the aforementioned. Therefore, we can say it's pretty important to secure dandy recommendation letters for your application.
If y'all're request for a letter from a teacher, brand sure to choose someone whose class you got a high class in (ideally an A) and who is familiar with your abilities, ambitions, and interests. Typically, you'll demand to submit at least one letter from a teacher who taught a core class (so math, English, science, or social studies/history).
It's a skillful thought to also get a letter from a teacher who works in the field you program to major in. So if you got an A in AP English language and plan to major in English, asking that teacher for a recommendation alphabetic character would requite a cracking boost to your application.
While you don't have to be all-time buddies with the teacher you ask, they should definitely know you well, beyond the classroom, and so they tin can effectively explicate to admissions committees what makes you special, that is, what makes you worth admitting.
For example, if you did research with a particular teacher, are part of a club this instructor coaches or leads, or helped out this instructor with a project, this would be a proficient person to ask to write a letter for yous.
In one case you lot've secured a recommendation letter writer, exist sure to provide them with any materials or information they might demand to help them craft a compelling letter.
#vi: Volunteering Experience With Measurable Bear on
Colleges love it when an applicant has not simply volunteered but has also made a measurable impact with their volunteering efforts. What does this mean exactly? If you accept volunteered somewhere or for an organization, your aid should have resulted in a noticeable, positive change to the grouping, customs, or surface area you lot were aiming to assist.
For instance, say you lot volunteered at a local library. Maybe the library was struggling to get funds to continue operating, and y'all came up with the idea to concur a 24-60 minutes reading marathon in gild to raise coin. The fundraiser ended upwardly making more than $5,000, a figure that would be a concrete indicator of the positive impact your service had on the library. With your college application, so, you could specifically mention how your initiative allowed the library to remain open.
Note that yous don't need to have assumed a leadership role in lodge to have fabricated a positive bear on through your service. That said, college admissions committees are often very large fans of students who prove prove of their budding leadership skills.
#7: (Relevant) Work Feel
Although you lot're certainly not required to piece of work a function-fourth dimension job in high school, having some work experience on your higher applications, peculiarly whatever jobs that are related to what you want to study or do professionally, volition assistance yous stand out in a positive manner.
Even if your job isn't connected to a long-term bookish or career goal you take, whatsoever (part-time) work feel you accept will exist corking to put down on your application because it emphasizes your sense of responsibleness, maturity, and willingness to work for your goals, key qualities that are usually considered important for success in college.
Also, if you have any room on the awarding to elaborate on your job, I suggest explaining why y'all initially took the job and what values or skills it'south taught yous, such as the importance of responsibility or how to work with certain equipment that y'all'll likely use again in the hereafter.
4 Myths About What Looks Good on a College Application
What looks really good on a college awarding? Many students call back they know, but the truth is that in that location are a lot of myths out there about what you should include on your awarding.
Below, nosotros innovate to you the elevation iv myths near what looks expert on college applications.
Myth 1: Beingness Well Rounded Is Disquisitional for Success
One of the most pervasive myths out in that location about what looks good on a college application is the idea of being well rounded.
Many students assume they'll need to accept tons of extracurricular activities on their applications; this, they believe, will emphasize their array of interests every bit well as their noesis of a variety of fields. But all this really tells admissions committees is that you lot're stretching yourself as well thin and (most likely) lack focus on a specific endeavor in your life.
What colleges actually want to run across is a spike, that is, a single passion. This allows colleges to get a clearer feel for who yous are, what you're interested in, and what your goals are. Having a spike lets you stand out in a truly meaningful manner, whereas being well rounded will make you forgettable and seem too similar to other applicants.
Spikes are especially important at highly selective colleges and universities, such as Harvard, Yale, and other Ivy League-level schools. Yous can read more about how to develop a fasten in our guide to getting into the Ivy League. Alternatively, if you're interested in pursuing education at a liberal arts school, bank check out our article on how to figure out what to go to higher for.
If you aim for well rounded, you'll outset to look like everyone else.
Myth 2: Essays Aren't That Of import
Afterwards Time published a 2022 commodity on why college application essays don't actually matter all that much, students began to fear that all their hard piece of work on their statements wouldn't mean much in the end, if at all.
But while some colleges don't require personal essays, most colleges do require at least one or two essays—and will place a decent corporeality of emphasis on it, specially if information technology is beingness used as a deciding factor between two otherwise as qualified applicants.
Even though you should approach the essay seriously, it'south notwithstanding generally rare for an exceptionally well-written essay to make up for tons of low grades and poor test scores. On the flip side, if you accept a bang-up application simply a badly written essay, that essay solitary could become yous rejected!
Therefore, brand sure that you are following all the steps listed above and so you can craft the perfect statement for your application.
Myth 3: An A in an Easy Class Is Better Than a B in a Hard Grade
Many students believe it's ameliorate to stick to the classes you know you'll get As in, simply this piece of advice is misguided when it comes to college applications.
In general, colleges prefer students who challenge themselves past taking an assortment of difficult classes, such as AP and honors classes. And you don't have to get perfect grades in them. If you get a B in a tough AP class, for instance, this will emphasize to the admissions commission that you are willing to accept on new challenges and test your limits, traits that are necessary for succeeding in and after college.
On the other mitt, getting Every bit in all easy classes, though not totally unimpressive, is not nearly every bit interesting to colleges, as it suggests you're unwilling to push yourself and further strop your higher-level disquisitional thinking skills.
All of this beingness said, try to avert getting very low grades in whatsoever classes you lot take (regular or honors/AP). C and D grades plainly won't expect cracking to an admissions committee, fifty-fifty if you lot got these grades while challenging yourself in AP classes.
If you lot tin't get at least a B or B+ in a difficult class, it'll probably exist better for you lot to drop it and switch to either the regular version of that course or an entirely different class altogether.
Myth 4: Simply Perfect Applicants Get Admitted
Many students assume that if they have 1 trivial flaw in their application, such as a below-average test score or slightly low class in a grade, their chances of getting admitted to higher will exist slim to none.
This just isn't true.
Yes, a very low test score or a very poor transcript may cause you to get rejected from a higher, but many colleges use a holistic admission procedure, meaning they look at and consider each individual applicant as a whole. Then even if your application has a non-so-stellar component on information technology, this doesn't necessarily mean you lot'll be a reject.
In fact, at specially selective colleges, such as the Ivy League, you'll often hear of cases in which ostensibly "perfect" applicants got rejected. This is most likely because they didn't have a fasten in their applications (i.east., something that made them stand out).
Overall, merely attempt your all-time to produce the all-time application y'all tin, and then hope for a good result!
Takeaways: What Looks Proficient on a College Awarding
Applying to college is tough, and knowing what to put on your applications to make yourself stand out is even tougher. What looks actually good on a college application?
Generally speaking, colleges want to run across your passion, intellectual curiosity, willingness to challenge yourself, and academic accomplishments.
More specifically, though, colleges typically prefer applicants who have most or all of the post-obit characteristics:
- Skillful grades and a challenging course load
- Strong test scores
- Honest, specific, and eloquent essays
- A fasten in your extracurricular activities
- Compelling letters of recommendation
- Volunteer experience with clear impact on the groups or places y'all've helped
- Any relevant or impactful piece of work feel
Finally, as you lot apply to higher and effort to recollect of proficient things to put on a college application, make sure you're aware of the following truths about the application process:
- Information technology's better to have a spike than to be well rounded
- Essays are important!
- A B in a difficult form is more impressive than an A in an like shooting fish in a barrel course
- You lot can withal get into your dream school even if your application isn't perfect
What's Next?
A keen higher application volition get you admitted. Utilise our college acceptance estimator to get an estimated percentage of your risk of getting into your dream schoolhouse, based on your SAT or Human action score and GPA.
One thing a cracking college application can have is a high Sat or ACT score. Become adept tips in our guides on how to get a perfect 36 on the Human activity and how to get a perfect 1600 on the Sabbatum.
Need aid figuring out which colleges to utilise to? Our guide teaches you how to narrow downward your college choices so that yous're applying to the best schools for yous.
Want to build the best possible college application?
We tin can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our information-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students become into their summit choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League.
We know what kinds of students colleges want to acknowledge. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools.
Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.
Hannah received her MA in Japanese Studies from the University of Michigan and holds a bachelor's caste from the University of Southern California. From 2022 to 2015, she taught English language in Nihon via the JET Program. She is passionate nearly didactics, writing, and travel.
Source: https://blog.prepscholar.com/what-looks-good-on-a-college-application
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