Every year leading up to admissions deadlines, you can find me hunkered down in my office doing "application reviews." I do this for any of my students in Application Nation who want me to review their full application/supplement (sans letters of recommendation) before they submit it to a college.
It is my favorite thing to do. It takes me back to my early days working on the college side of this process and doing what I loved the most—reading applications.
There is nothing better than having someone like me go over your materials before hitting the "submit" button. It puts a student's mind at ease and a parent's worries aside. Being able to make adjustments and corrections before submission allows a student to have confidence in what they submit.
But students can do this too. Here are the top 10 mistakes I am seeing this year that can be easily fixed before a student submits their application:
1. Titles on Essays
This is a huge "no-no" among admissions officers. The word count is so precious on the main and supplemental essays that it is critical to use the words you have for the body of the essay. There is absolutely no reason to include a title on any essay. It is a huge turnoff to admissions officers.
2. Quotations in Essays
I just did an application review for a student who had more dialogue than self-reflection in their essays. This is not the purpose of a main or supplemental essay. Admissions officers want to read about how you interpret things, experiences, and ideas. They don't want to hear a rehash of a scene. Including a short quote (and I mean really short) is okay. But if you find yourself using them more than once or twice, revisit your essay.
3. Including a Resume
Besides a few colleges in the U.S., resumes are absolutely not necessary for the admissions application. In fact, they rarely get read. Yet, just seeing them in an application easily annoys an admissions officer, especially when the student spent more time on their resume than the typically required activity list. Don't even waste time attaching a resume. Colleges say you can do this. But they don't want it.
4. Using Abbreviations
Don't assume that admissions officers know what you are talking about when you use abbreviations. Spell out words on the activity list, honors list, and essays so that it is clear. In a supplemental essay about the college, you should write out the full name of the institution and/or program the first time you mention it. For example, if you are writing about the PPE major at the University of Pennsylvania, spell out "Philosophy Politics and Economics" first and then refer to it as PPE after that in the essay.
5. Extra Letters of Recommendation
Just like resumes, extra letters of recommendation are sometimes permitted but rarely read. When a student sends extra letters, it weighs down the application and slows down the reading/evaluation process for the admissions officer as they search for the letter(s) they need to read. It often sends a message, just like with the resume, that the student is trying to overcompensate for a weakness in their application.
6. Listing Other Colleges' Summer Programs
It is rare for me to recommend that students list any college summer program on their activity list. Most of these programs are considered pay-to-play which is viewed as "privileged" by many selective colleges. And, when the college where the program took place is on the activity list, admissions officers assume that is where the student wants to go. Yield protection is a thing! Colleges don't want to knowingly admit a student who will end up enrolling at another college.
7. Future Plans Not Aligning with Major Choice
This one is complicated. Just because a student majors in something doesn't mean anything about what job or career they will have in the future. Yet, when a student lists a major choice (which is listed on a college's supplement) and it contradicts with one of the "Future Plans" questions (on the Common App), the admissions officer starts to question the student's intentions. For example, if a student lists a liberal arts major on a college's supplement but lists they want to go into business as a "Career Interest," the admissions officer wonders if the student is trying to get into the business program through the back door. Align your major choice (on the supplement) with the career goals (on the Common App) just to be safe.
8. Inputting Class Rank or GPA When It's Not on the Transcript
I just did two application reviews yesterday that made this mistake! The first student inputted a decile ranking on the application even though their high school didn't list one on the transcript. It's possible that the student's counselor mentioned to them that they are unofficially in the top 10%. But if it's not on the transcript, the student needs to indicate "None" for the "Class Rank Reporting" question on Common App. Later that day, I saw another student report a GPA when their high school doesn't report or calculate a GPA on the transcript. This student should have selected "None" for the "GPA Scale Reporting" question on Common App. Only report rank and/or GPA if it's listed on the official transcript.
9. Not Indicating That a Leadership Position is Shared
If a student shares a leadership role (Co-Captain, Co-President, Co-Editor-in-Chief), they need to indicate that on the activity list. It doesn't take anything away from the student's role, by the way. But it's absolutely required to be honest about it.
10. Reporting Lower AP Scores
AP scores are rarely required for the admissions process. But if a student provides lower scores, the college can use them in the admissions process. Make sure your scores will strengthen your application. At a highly selective college, even a "4" on an exam that lines up directly to the student's major choice can have implications.
READ MORE: Feeling Overwhelmed with Applications? Try This Approach
Reviewing your application and supplement for each college is essential. You don't want to hit the submit button and then realize you left something out or included something that shouldn't have been in there. The common mistakes I mention above can be quickly fixed. Take time to do this.
An application review can be done by me or you. If you end up doing it yourself, I bet you will find great joy in going through it and seeing how everything comes together. It will end up being your "favorite thing" to do just like me.
