If you’ve applied to any college and still anticipating your decision or you are yet to apply to a college, here are few things you should do to increase your acceptance chances.
If you will also love to know the major factors that determine college acceptance, then this will also be helpful.
There are 8 sure ways to increasing your admission decision and your chances of getting into the college you applied to or wish to apply to.
These are no magic but they’ve worked for so many students and we believe you wouldn’t be an exemption if you apply them as guided.
Note: this will work perfectly for those that have already applied to a college and those that will want to apply to a college now or in the future.
See Also: 6 important things to do while waiting for college decision
Factors that Determine Your College Acceptance.
What are the top 3 factors that determine your college acceptance?
The three important factors that determine college acceptance are:
- GPA/Grades
- Your Match with the College
- Recommendations
1. GRADES
Almost all colleges consider the applicant’s grade as one of the most important criteria for selection.
The grades may includes grades from high school and grades in college preparatory courses.
Meanwhile, test score is a less considered criteria for admission. In fact, some colleges have totally eradicated the submission of test scores while many others have made it optional.
2. YOUR MATCH WITH THE COLLEGE
There are so many factors that determine “Your Match with the College”. Criteria that colleges use to determine your match include your:
- Demonstrated interest
- Extracurricular Activities
- Essay
- Personal Statement
3. RECOMMENDATIONS
The college is also interested in knowing what your counselor & teachers say about you and your academic abilities.
As such, the recommendation letter(s) from your counselor or teacher plays a vital role in the admission process.
How to Increase your College Admission Chances
1. Go for Early Action/Decision Admission:
While this is not important to many, statistics have shown that many colleges admit more via the early action or early decision admission plans than they do for the regular decision plan.
Check out: Early Action/Decision Acceptance rate for all Colleges
So it’s advisable to apply to colleges during their early decision or early action rounds if the college you apply to offers early admissions.
But note: early decision binds an applicant a single institution (this means you are committed to attend that institution if you get admitted) but early action is not agreement-binding.
2. Make a Perfect Match:
What is special about you and what you do outside the classroom are very important to the college you apply to.
You can perfectly tell the college who you’re and convince them that you are a perfect match through your personal statement (essay).
Writing an excellent and compelling personal statement is an opportunity to communicate to the college who you are and how a perfect match you are with the college.
Presently, many colleges who do not consider test scores prefer the applicants’ personal statement alongside their GPA as an important determinant.
Personal essay gives applicants the to market themselves to the college they apply to. So be sure to write an enticing and compelling essay that tells engaging stories of you.
3. Take Hard Courses:
What challenging courses have you taken? Presently, many colleges considered your curriculum important. They prefer students who challenged themselves by taking hard and higher-level courses.
AP, IB, and honors’ courses are all challenging courses that are considered good and solid.
To maximize your opportunity of getting into some colleges, you’ve to make sure you take challenging courses during your junior and senior years.
4. Schedule/Accept Interviews:
We’ve at often times heard counselors advising that being offered an interview is a bad indication of your application status. But could that be true?
Oppositely, it is even recommendable to schedule interview with your college, or if the college offers you an interview, it is the best opportunity for you to spice up your chances.
If you are lucky to engage in a interview that is conducted by an admission officer, then it’s a great opportunity for you y explain why you choose the school, what you want do while in the school, what you want to achieve during your studies, and how you rank the school.
A good interview can help the school to determine if you’re a perfect match or not and also increase your chances of getting into the college. But can hurt if gone wrong.
5. Submit Strong Recommendation letter(s)
The college you apply to considers your letter of recommendation as the best way of knowing what your counselor and teachers say about you and how much those things match with the kind of students that the school is actually looking for.
Letters of recommendation helps the college to know more about you, what you can do, your accomplishments, your character, your skills, your likes, etc.
6. Demonstrate Your Interest
The college you apply to is so much interested in knowing how much you love and prioritize them. Demonstrating your interest is an important way to increase your chances of getting into a college.
Some of the recommended ways to demonstrate your interest includes:
- Visiting the campus
- Scheduling and participating in interviews
- Contacting and interacting with the admission representatives
- Going on a campus tour
- Participating in seminars for prospective students.
- Getting in touch with professors in your major
7. Consider Taking a Standardized Test
Although many colleges have made the submission of test scores optional, submitting a test score is still a better strategy.
But make sure submit good SAT/ACT scores. If your scores are poor, then consider retaking the test before submitting to a college. Good test scores can impress the school’s admissions committees, even at test-optional schools.
8. Have Good Grades:
A good grade is a better option to start with. Almost all colleges consider grades as one of the most important criteria for accepting an applicant.
Those are 8 ways to increase your college admission chances. This are sure tips that will work perfectly for you if done properly.