Attention sophomores and juniors: Important college admission advice ahead
February 19th, 2019What’s the most important document in your college application?
You already know the answer – your transcript! Colleges will review your course selection and rigor, in addition to your GPA, to ensure you’re prepared for college level classes. Course selection always entails a fine balance of challenge and manageability while continuing a strong and broad program of academic solids.
Taking a difficult course load may look great on your transcript, but only if you’re able to excel. Your teachers’ recommendations and your own intuition will help you decide on the degree of challenge you can manage effectively.
We’ve linked to an article below from Yale University as it contains excellent guidance on course selection for all students, not just those applying to highly selective universities.
In addition to choosing classes for next year, many of you are studying for the ACT or SAT. It may seem like a daunting task but the winter months are a great time to prepare. Juniors should all have a clear plan in place at this point for SAT or ACT test dates. As both exams are now offered in the summer months, some students are now incorporating a summer test date into their overall testing plan. A final note: SAT Subject Tests remain important for a small number of colleges, so be sure to keep an eye on admission requirements for each college of interest.
Article referenced below from Yale University Admissions
Many high school sophomores and juniors (and their parents) want to know what courses to take to improve their chances for admission to Yale and other highly competitive colleges. With the caveat that every situation is different, here is some advice to help guide you as you make these decisions.
A Holistic Approach to Admissions
The high school transcript is almost always the most important document in a student’s application. But it is hard to conceive of a situation in which the appearance (or absence) of any one particular class on a transcript would determine the applicant’s outcome. The admissions committee does not make its decisions based on a piecemeal review of an applicant’s recommendations, test scores, activities, or individual elements of a high school transcript. It considers each application as a comprehensive picture of that student.
Tagged: ACT, Applications, College, Course selection, SAT, Transcript
