You may find that schools that you’d barely considered before end up being top in the country in particular areas. How can you check? First, it’s often helpful to consult the graduate rankings in a publication like US News and World Report; although, keep in mind that sometimes graduate programs and faculty are separate from the undergraduate, and are sometimes shared. Once you have that list, comb the web sites, course guides and published information from colleges to see if they are strong in your area(s) of interest. Finally, call the school or visit and speak to professors, visit the library, check out the holdings — in short, make an informed decision about where you are applying and why.

Also, bear in mind that if you state a reason for applying to a school, it should be an academic reason.  Unless a particular school has an extracurricular program that is truly unique (and, ideally, ties in to an academic interest), the school is going to care far more about what you want to study than about the backpacking trips you want to lead and the underprivileged children you want to tutor.  Those are all great things, but clubs, community service programs, and intramural sports are available at almost every college these days.

Even a student who is No. 1 in a top public school will not be accepted to top colleges if he or she has low scores on the SAT and SAT Subject Tests. Another thing to consider is the competition: at top private schools like Andover and Exeter, only the top students get into the very top colleges. It’s actually HARDER to be in the top 5-10% of the class at a place where almost everyone is qualified versus a big public school with some “dead weight.” In short, you should make this decision based on the options, comfort level, course offerings, sports and specialty offerings for your child rather than trying to outwit college admissions officers who will not be impressed just by a big name private school.

Most importantly, students will perform better – and be happier – at a school where they feel most comfortable. If a student truly loves Andover, and the family believes that the expense is warranted, then Andover is the right choice. If the local public school has great teachers, neighborhood friends, a full line up of AP courses, and a safe environment, then it may be worth more to a student than any of the famous prep schools.

If you are one of the applicants in this pool, the odds of catching their eye in March are not great, but if you want to have any chance at all, make sure that you are an ACTIVE defer. Write a letter reaffirming that the college is still your first choice, send an extra letter of recommendation, make sure your grades go up and send your next round of grades, send updates about what you are doing in school — in short, be a PRESENCE. The only deferred kids who end up being accepted are those who make themselves into polite pests. Of course it depends upon why you were deferred in the first place, but rest assured that if you do nothing and send nothing, you will not be accepted.

More specifically, by the middle of February, draw up a one-page letter reaffirming your interest in the college, and then submit a bullet-point list of all the earth-shattering news/awards that you have won. Also, it can help to have senior year teachers send extra (not many – 1-2, no more) letters of recommendation to the school as well. Finally, your school should call on your behalf and push your case. That is about the only way a deferred candidate gets in since the odds are only about 5% depending on the school. In short, ACTIVE deferrals have a chance — those who do nothing will definitely NOT get in.

Another word about early applications: There seems to be a trend that more schools are now rejecting kids outright so that those who have no chance are not misled in the regular round. That should correlate to a small increase in the number of deferred applicants who get in. Normally at most schools the deferral acceptance rate is only 5-7% or so, not high. What can you do? The first thing is to speak directly to the admissions officer who read your application (you can have your college counselor call FIRST, then follow up) to get a sense of your chances. Sometimes there is NO chance (as in, your application wasn’t good, you didn’t stand out) and sometimes there is a specific reason — they wanted to see your grades in AP classes, they wanted new scores — all of which should be annotated on your file.

For younger students, take note that the application matters! Kids who dash off an application, even with strong scores, may be deferred. The other reason students are deferred is false confidence — thinking you stand out more than you do. It’s humbling to think that the typical Ivy applicant has 730 and up on ALL tests, several AP scores of 4-5, top rank in class and extraordinary talents. Yes, it is hard to stand out. If you are a current freshman or sophomore get working now so that you do indeed stand out in a particular academic area. How? Well, read on as we’ll give tips each week. But, focus on what you love and then notch that up by going above and beyond.

As you probably know by now, the Common Application has added a new category called WORK EXPERIENCE with five or so lines of description. Getting a job is as important today to admissions officers as community service was ten years ago. Likewise, many students are more career-oriented than ever before.

Many well-heeled and well-intentioned parents are convinced that it would benefit their children to talk to someone who could arrange an unusual or prestigious internship for summer. Their goal is to pull in a favor or two to acquire fancy internships for their kids. Colleges are not stupid and can usually figure out that someone pulled a string — otherwise, how could a normal 16-year-old with virtually no qualifications end up working in a high-profile law firm or an investment bank?  In fact, having this kind of internship often backfires because colleges then hold it against the student because he/she obviously couldn’t find his/her own job or meaningful experience without adult help.

Colleges look for students who create opportunities for themselves, not simply those who have things handed to them on a silver platter. With that in mind, here are some ideas for summer:

1. Take classes at a local community college or school to deepen your interest in a particular scholarly area.
2. Pursue an activity or hobby on your own to take it to a higher level.
3. Get a real job — try bus-ing tables, pouring coffee, bagging groceries — show that you can handle responsibility.
4. Do some serious reading and keep track of what you read – some colleges ASK what you’ve read lately.
5. Investigate in detail specific departments and programs in colleges you are interested in so you can provide real evidence as to why you are interested in X school.
6. Do not sign up for a high priced program that sends you complimentary mailings about how you’ve been “selected.”
7. If you are a top level athlete, sign up for elite sports camps where college coaches will be recruiting attendees.

RESOURCE: Sample Blogs

Vanderbilt: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/Admissions/vandybloggers/

UCLA: http://blog.admissions.ucla.edu/

MIT: http://www.mitadmissions.org/blogs.shtml

Holy Cross: http://admissions.me.holycross.edu/

University of Vermont: http://adms.blog.uvm.edu/

Juilliard: http://blog.juilliard.edu/

If you come across an admissions blog you like, let us know on our blog: www.ApplicationBootCamp.com.

Taking three tests in one day almost always results in getting lower scores on all three tests than if you took them on separate dates. Try to take at least one or two SAT Subject tests freshman or sophomore year so the burden does not fall on junior and senior year. If you’re a junior, take advantage of midyear test dates like the upcoming January test and the March test (the latter is for only the SAT I). If you plan to take the SAT I in January of your junior year and again in March, by the May test date you’ll be ready to spread your SAT Subject Tests into two distinct test dates: May and June. If you are an international student, however, there is no March test date for the SAT I. Don’t underestimate the importance of Subject Tests–colleges sometimes count them even more than SAT I’s since they provide an idea of what grading is like at your high school.

A quick tip about the essay on the SAT writing section: The longer your essay, the higher your score. All the high-scoring sample essays included in The Official SAT Study Guide For The New SAT are fairly long and well-developed, while the low-scoring sample essays are much shorter. But be careful–even though an essay scores often seems correlate with their length, that doesn’t mean that writing garbage just to fill up space is a good idea. Rather, it means is that if you’ve written a short essay, your chances of scoring high are slim. So if you think you’ve finished your essay and you still have a few minutes left, add another paragraph or two and you’ll probably earn an extra point or two!

But, we encourage students to take some time before the Christmas break to begin researching their summer plans. Many of the top summer programs at colleges and private schools fill up well ahead of the spring deadlines.

Focus on your academic interests: if you like science, then check out top science-oriented programs. If you like writing, then look into journalism camps or poetry workshops. Remember, sometimes financial aid is available on a need basis, so don’t be shy about applying. The internet is a good first step to sifting out your options. Check strong programs like summer school at Cornell, Columbia, Andover, and many others.  Advance planning now will come in handy later when you find yourself scrambling to finish these applications by the appropriate deadlines.

For now, at least, request information from 5-10 programs. You might need to organize teacher recommendations, write essays, and in some cases have interviews – so get started now.

This week we are going to go over a few reminders for students who are in the process of finishing up early applications. If you aren’t applying this year, note these tips so when your turn rolls around you are prepared. These thoughts are based on some of the most common errors we see.

1. Make sure you include the check or credit card information. Colleges won’t process your application without proper payment, and leaving it out will hold everything up.
2. Check all your essays to make sure the name of the college on top matches the school you are sending it to.
3. If there are any special supplemental essays, make sure that they match the college you are sending them to.
4. About three weeks after you send in your application, call or email the admissions office both to make sure your application is complete (or, check online) AND to make sure they have you down for early decision or early action. Sometimes things get confused and with early, the time frame is very short.
5. Finally, while you have your essays done for one school, take the extra time to complete ALL your applications and pile them up around your room. That way if you get in, you can have a giant bonfire, but if you don’t, you’ll be ready to send in the others with no fear of ruining your Christmas break. Better safe than sorry!

2009 will be the most difficult year ever in terms of college admissions! Don’t get lost in the pile of 30,000 applications at some Ivy League schools.

Join this teleseminar and learn insider information from someone who worked inside an Ivy League admissions office. Top college consultant Michele Hernandez and her coauthor of DON’T WORRY, YOU’LL GET IN (Avalon) Mimi Doe, are once again offering to move you through the process with ease and less stress.  This teleseminar will allow you to:

• Conquer the common application with our proven tips and techniques
• Create an Activity Sheet summing up high school awards, activities, and achievements
• Learn how to prepare multiple essays (including all required essays along with extra essays) that can be used for specific colleges using the Application Boot Camp™ strategy
• Develop an application strategy to increase college acceptance possibilities

 All of this and more provided by America’s premier college consultant, Michele Hernandez, author of A is For Admission and former Assistant Director of Admissions at Dartmouth College and Mimi Doe, called a “parenting guru” by Ladies Home Journal and author of Busy but Balanced and Nurturing Your Teenager’s Soul who holds a master’s degree in education from Harvard.

The teleseminar includes an in-depth, 90-minute training session on Thursday, September 25th, 7:30pm – 9:00pm (EDT) with Mimi & Michelle on how to give colleges more than they ask for and prepare applications that leverage your experience and strengths.  Click here for more information.

1. Be honest.
Students often assume that admissions office “want” a certain kind of essay, perhaps about an exotic trip or profound community service experience. But essays like those often come off as melodramatic and even insincere. Don’t make an experience sound more profound than it really was. Admissions officers have heard every story – from the trivial to the grandiose – and the subject matter almost never matters. What matters is candor, reflection, and honesty – all of which they can perceive from a mile away.

2. Don’t be afraid to be funny.
A college essay need not be a dour rumination on the state of the world. Admissions officers know that they’re dealing with kids and they know that kids like to goof around. So if a funny anecdote or turn of phrase fits into your essay, go ahead and use it! But do so sparingly: Unless you are the next David Sedaris, your essays should NOT be a comedic essay, nor should it go out of its way to garner a laugh. If you’re not funny, no big deal. Don’t force it. But if you are, don’t stifle your funny bone.

3. Hone it.
Your 9th grade English teacher is right: Make sparing use of the following verbs and verb forms: linking verbs (is/to be); has/have/got; passive voice (”he drove the car,” not “the car was driven by him;” there is, it is). Active verbs are more efficient, forceful, and descriptive.
OK: I am fascinated by Byzantine history.Better: Byzantine history fascinates me.
OK: There was one calculation that kept gnawing at me. Better: One calculation kept gnawing at me.

4.Make it personal.
Every conceivable topic has made its way into college essays. Your topic will never be wholly original, but it can be personal. If you’re discussing an activity, explain why YOU do it, not merely why it’s abstractly nice or fun. If you’re describing an academic pursuit, explain why it captivates YOU – not why it’s generically valuable or worthwhile. What is the source of your interest? What aspect of your personality does the activity/interest tap into? How do you approach the activity/interest differently than other people might?

5. Know your audience.
Assume that you have an unsympathetic or skeptical reader (not such a stretch when they have thousands of essays to read and only a few admission slots for their favorites). Your parents, teachers, and friends all love you and take your virtues for granted. In the college essay, you have to argue your case to readers who know nothing of you other than that which you put on the page. So explain yourself, provide details, show some personality, and help the reader get to know you the same way your parents, teachers, and friends do.

6. Narrow your focus.
Your essay is not your autobiography, just as a first date is not an entire relationship. So don’t be anxious about cramming in every detail of your life. Even the tiniest slices of life can reveal deep truths about your intellect and personality. If you pick the right one, admissions officers might let you in just because they can’t wait to meet you in person and learn the rest of your story!

Josh Stephens is a Princeton graduate, longtime teacher and editor with Application Boot Camp™ and an expert essay editor. Josh has mentored countless students en route to the college of their choice. A professional editor and member of the Application Boot Camp™ team, Josh combines his exceptional editing and mentoring skills with Application Boot Camp’s insights into the college process. Josh works with students around the country via email and phone.