How to Fill Out a College Application Form

Yes, college is becoming more competitive. But so are you! You are SURROUNDED by the resources to make yourself stand out from the crowd.

You've already picked colleges for which you qualify academically. Everybody's got the same scores on their SAT and about the same grades. So what now? Your college wants to know that you're dynamic, social, and well-rounded. Here's what to do:

1. Step 1
   • Step 1 - FOLLOW DIRECTIONS. Many applications are online now, and have very specific directions. Some are placed there solely to test whether you can follow them! So if they say 472 word essays, that's what you give them. Three adjectives which describe you? Give them 3 ADJECTIVES. (I've seen some CRAZY questions on these common apps.)
   • Step 2
     Step 2 - COMMON APP QUESTIONS. There are many common app questions, and questions in general which are BEGGING for originality or a sense of humor. Use yours, and don't be afraid of it! Colleges are looking for the best fit, and so should you. Don't be vulgar, racist, or over the top, and you'll be fine. Example I saw on a common app: "Your favorite book and why?" Answer: "1984 By George Orwell. Because thank God, it didn't come true!"
   • Step 3
     Step 3 - ESSAYS. Remember, admissions officers are people too. They, like your SAT essay readers, will give the essay that you spent HOURS on maybe 2 minutes of their time. So make it count. Fill it with buzzwords they want to see - specific things you know and like about their school. Example: Instead of, "I really like molecular biology and I know your school is good at that" try "Professor Glugenschophel's paper on The Mating Habits of Amoeba piqued my interest in the program, and I also noticed that you sponsor internships at Merck, a company which I would definitely work for." Get me?
   • Step 4

     Step 4 - VIDEO!!! That's right - a well-kept secret of the Ivy bound kids is that they're using that webcam to separate themselves from the crowd. Get in touch with your admissions officers and ask if you can send a video response to essay questions or scholarship questions. Make a video, and send it in! You're on that cam all the time anyway. Use it for something...well...USEFUL! There's more kids doing this than you think, but not so many that it won't make you look like a total GOD to an admissions officer. Take it from someone who graduated Ivy League -- use the resources you have in an imaginative way, and you can't go wrong. Good luck!