Know Your Audience

What do colleges want?

It's a question that confounds so many applicants, but the college admissions officer's agenda isn't so hard to understand.

It's not a numbers game.

Liberal arts colleges in the U.S. are unique in how they asses applicants. They're not looking for a bunch of "perfect" applicants. They're looking to build dynamic, diverse (not just racially or ethnically, but in every way -- class, experience, geography, etc.) classes make for interesting and exciting learning environments for all of their students. Having perfect grades and test scores is not enough. You need to have passion. You need to have a story.

Should you be "authentic"? Sorta, sometimes...

Your college application is an application. This isn't a time to talk about your anxiety disorder or deepest, darkest secrets. Successful applications can feel very inauthentic. Your college essays aren't really personal. A lot of strangers are reading them. This isn't a journal entry... It's more like a memoir... that's also a job application...

Admissions officers want to understand who you are as a person, with a caveat. They want to understand what kind of community member you will be on their campus.

You want college admissions officers to understand the positive contributions you will make to their campus. Because you want them to envision you as a net benefit to their community. You want them to believe that you will be a student and alumnus/alumna that will make them proud!

It's true that you want your college application to be honest -- but it should also show your best self. You should be humble and vulnerable, acknowledging that you still have more to learn and are eager to do so, but not so vulnerable as to reveal weaknesses unnecessarily.

The #1 Rule: Be Inspiring!

The most important thing a successful college application does is inspire the reader. Your personal statement should be hopeful. It should make the reader feel good about you and excited about contributing to your future. So you want to make them excited about how you will leverage their school's resources to make a positive impact on the world and create a better future.

Intellectual Vitality

Remember that colleges, first and foremost, are schools. They want curious learners who will engage actively in their course work, who are excited to contribute to classroom learning. They want students who will do the reading, who will complete assignments enthusiastically, who love the subjects they study.

You want your application to demonstrate your love for learning. Yes, this means good (not perfect... you can get a lower grade in calculus/test score in math if you want to study Comp Lit and have great marks in English and literature...) grades and test scores. But it's also very helpful to show this in your college essays. Do you love Vergil? Wordsworth? Is Maya Angelou? Maybe reference a line of poetry. Are you inspired by Nikola Tesla or Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin? Or maybe Fannie Lou Hamer, Angela Davis, or Dolores Huerta? Tell your readers about it! This might not be "everyday" relevant in your life, but it's "college application" relevant; the people you admire tell your reader something about the future you might pursue youerself.

Collaborative Learners

Socratic seminars and group labs are a big part of college. Admissions Officers know that they need students who will start a seminar discussion, who will make their shy lab partner feel comfortable. They want students who will help create positive classroom environments. Show them how you do this!

Leadership

Remember when I said (wrote) that colleges want alumni that will make them proud? Colleges want leaders. If you're someone who creates change, tell them how you do that! Did you create a healthy masculinity discussion group for your football team? Did you start a One Love fundraiser with your lacrosse team? Did you create a fair trade partnership for your school cafeteria? Did you overhaul your school yearbook to be more inclusive when you became Editor-in-Chief? Definitely talk about these kinds of things. Large or small, share how you started something, transformed a culture, helped make a community that you belong to become richer or more inclusive.

Community Builder

College admissions officers are considering whether or not to invite you into their communities, so show who you are in community. They want people who will shape their campuses for the better. So show the reader how you bring people together! It never hurts to demonstrate that you are as good at supporting others are at leading them. Everyone loves a generous community member who knows when to step forward and when to step up.

Kindness

Are you the kind of person who notices when someone else is feeling left out? Do you go out of your way to make sure they're ok. This is such an important part of college life. The transition to college can be tough and colleges want students who genuinely care about their peers and who will go out of their way to forge the meaningful friendships that ensure others aren't left behind.

Students who will actually enroll

Have you heard of a student with a 4.7 GPA who was rejected from a school with a 47% acceptance rate? It happens! Why? Probably because the admissions office didn't think they'd really attend...

Everyone knows you need reach, target, and likely (safety) schools, right? Well, no one wants to be your backup plan. Make sure you are genuinely excited about the schools on your list because the moment your "why" essay falls flat can be the moment you get rejected from a "safety" school. Pay special attention to the supplement for your likely schools. Making those sing will help you have the options you're hoping for!