Improve your chances of getting into college,

Like all college questions, this is pertinent and important. There are many questions you need to ask yourself in order to answer this question! Do you have serious financial concerns? Are you completely undecided about what you may want to major in? Are you short course credits, or did you perform poorly in school? Did your high school have limited options that made it impossible for you to take competitive level classes, like Honors or AP? Are you returning to school and have to work full time?

Community colleges today offer many opportunities for students, even while they are still in high school, to explore different employment and educational options. For example, there are several opportunities to enter the world of hospitality management with a two year degree. And for those students who are not sure what they want to do, these types of community college courses also come with experential learning opportunities, such as internships, that can help you develop an area of interest. And if you are working, taking one or two classes in a community college during the evening allows you to engage with other students like yourself that are not always available to you in on-line courses, while also giving you an education that is convenient for time and location considerations.

Some community colleges can also help families manage financial considerations. For example, you can take one or two years worth of general credit classes, and then transfer those credits to another university or college for your junior year, thereby reducing or even eliminating some of the attendant debt load. Of course, some students also have very real concerns about their grades in high school, or the types of classes they took while in high school, feeling that these might not "look good" to a college admissions counselor. If you are not interested in being an "academic" and are just looking to get a decent job, then community college may be the best answer for you. On the other hand, if your grades were not as good as you would have liked them to be and you do want to pursue higher education, a year or two of community college can give you the credentials you need. This might also include helping you develop better learning habits that you did not develop in high school. Some students even pursue the community college route while they are still in high school, especially during the summer months, to "make up" classes or supplement what they already have (such as learning a foreign language or taking an AP level class).

Whatever your reasons for selecting a community college, consider that there are more options than not! It is up to you to find the options that make sense for you.

While many people have now heard terms such as "independent college counselor" or "educational consultant", many remain unclear as to what services these individuals provide, and therefore cannot decide whether or not such a person can help, or even what kinds of students should consider seeking such services.

To explain: an independent counselor or consultant is just that. They do not work for a school or college. A competent consultant knows about college admissions based upon their educational and/or work background, and thereby can provide information about colleges to students who need advice and/or input from someone other than their parents or their friends. They can also help students whose school counselors are working with many other students and/or can provide additional information and research to help students find the "right fit" for them.

Students who are interested in "thinking outside the box" (I want to attend a small college with a self-design major in an urban setting), who need more direction for specific areas of interest (DI or DIII sports or transportation majors), or who have learning issues (I did not take a foreign language because of my dyslexia) can benefit greatly from the services of an independent consultant. Others who can benefit from these services include those who have difficulty coming up with ideas for their essay, those who need help staying on target to complete their applications, or those who need someone to help their parents understand the current marketplace.

If you do decide to hire an independent consultant, make sure you work with someone who understands your needs, who travels to colleges and can make appropriate recommendations, and who does not "do the work for you"--after all, it is called a "personal essay" for a reason!

The race to the top is becoming more and more competitive, and students who have fewer than one or no AP classes feel like they have somehow failed. Not all schools can offer these types of classes, and some school districts have strict requirements to get there. If you miss one class in your first year of high school, for example, you may not make it to the top by your senior year--and not all first year students know in which direction they want to head!

That said, there are options. You can take the highest level classes available to you at your school, and then take summer classes at a community college or at any number of competitive level colleges that offer special seminars or course work. For example, a student attending a vocational technical school could enroll in a summer robotics class at his competitive college of choice, take an AP class at community college in the summer, and take another AP course at community college in the fall. Of course, such a student would have to perform at competitive levels, but this would be an example of what can be done if you are driven and capable of pushing yourself. Another option would be to find employment in that area of interest if the course work is simply not available. For example, a student can find an internship working in the office of a local lawyer or helping with the campaign of a local politician if they are interested in history, government, or political science.

On the other hand, if you receive high grades in your classes and take the highest level of classes available to you at your school, do not despair! College admissions counselors divide the country into areas of specialty, and more likely than not the colleges you are interested in are well aware of the limitations your school may have in terms of course work. They want to see that you have worked hard and dedicated yourself as best as possible within your current environment. That will say more about you than all the AP classes in the world!

Many students believe they need to begin searching for colleges when they are in the 9th grade, and others wait until September of the senior year. Even though it is a good idea to think about college entering high school in terms of selecting the most challenging classes you can handle, it really is early to begin looking at specific colleges. And waiting until your senior year will create a great deal of unnecessary stress for you and for your parents, and may actually place you at risk for selecting something "just to get in somewhere."

Instead, the best time to begin researching specific colleges is at the end of 10th, beginning of 11th grade. You start slowly, looking up areas of interest, and perhaps finding summer jobs or other activities you might take part in that interest you and supplement your class work, both to enhance your resume, but more importantly to help you begin the exploration process--What does interest me?

Beginning in this time frame also allows you to use your school breaks wisely and begin visiting college campuses. Begin locally, just to get a feel for what a college campus looks like. You may well fall in love with the first few you visit, so think ahead and plan many visits to different locations. Remember too that you may not get into the first school you think is perfect for you, but know that there are many wonderful possibilities out there! Be adventurous, and enjoy!

A "dedicated student" is one who is committed to learning. Your particular areas of interest may vary from other dedicated students, but it is your commitment to those specific areas that are of interest to admissions officers. So, for example, if you really enjoy History and take all of the courses you can (and do well in them!), an admissions counselor will see a level of commitment that is important.

If you can supplement that commitment with extra curricular activities that complement your interest, that is wonderful! But it is not always possible. Some students, for example, may have to hold down a part time job after school, or look after younger siblings, not leaving much time in the day for other activities. Others attend schools in areas with limited opportunities for outside activities. So, if this is the situation for you, do not panic! It does not make you look any less invested in, or committed to, your education!

If you work or take part in an unrelated activity (such as a sport completely unrelated to your academic interest), create a resume of these types of activities. You may even use that "is there anything else we should know about you" section to describe how you take care of your siblings, or engage in hobbies after school. Your dedication and sense of responsibility to the things you do will be the thing that makes you look truly dedicated, not the number or types of things.

Standardized tests are only one piece of the application puzzle. The original intent was to create a benchmark so that colleges could feel assured that a student who goes to a "name" private school and a student from a large urban public high school could display knowledge "equally". It is not a perfect system, as we all realize--some people receive tutoring to perform better, some people receive accommodations that others may view as an unfair advantage (this is not true, but that is the subject of another question!), and some people who are at the top of their class are just not good at taking these types of tests, even though everyone knows they are perfectly capable students--but it does work as part of a process to find out some specific information about a potential candidate.

What is very important to understand, however, is that because this is only one piece of the puzzle, you want to insure that you have also covered your other bases. If you get high SAT scores, for example, and have poor class grades, write a poor essay, do not take part in any extracurricular activities, and do not interview well, you are not helping yourself. On the other hand, if you get "only" average SAT scores but you have great class grades, a wonderful personal essay and recommendations, and agree to an interview, the standardized scores will become less important than other factors. Also, if your total GPA is somewhat depressed due to poor grades in your first year of high school, but you've performed better AND gotten good SAT scores, this can help you as well.

The essay is an integral and important part of the application process. For some students, it can make the difference between getting in or being deferred, or even of being rejected. A good essay conveys not only who you are but how you express who you are! As such, the essay needs to be focused and well written. By that, I do not mean use your thesaurus! If you are honest and choose a topic close to your heart, you will be able to talk about it easily--so it will be easy to write! And if it is honest and easy to write, and you have had someone check for errors, it will convey who you are--often in a way that is better than any transcript can convey.

Do: write your essay

Don't: have someone else write it for you.

Do: write about a topic of interest or special appeal to YOU.

Don't: write what you think "they" want to hear.

Do: be honest.

Don't: be overly "clever".

In short, make sure your ideas are your own. This is a personal essay. Stay on topic and don't get sidetracked by too many ideas. Come up with ways or examples to express your topic without sounding negative, angry, "cute", too eager to please. . .in other words, be who you are without going overboard. Don't rely on cliches, but don't use a thesaurus in an effort to sound too sophisticated.

And once you write your draft, don't fall in love with it! Have someone you trust look at your ideas and accept constructive feedback to improve your work. You are putting your best foot forward!