Page 5 - KnightTime News May 2019

KNIGHTtime News On “Standing Out” in the
Application
“Always include a link, whether it be a YouTube video of you singing or code that you’ve written, in the additional comments section of the application...otherwise, how will admission officers know who you really are?”
That’s not how any of this works. The reality is that admission officers are looking for evidence
of who you are in the essays, extracurricular activities, and letters of recommendation, and not in
the additional comments section. Don’t include superfluous information and always work with your college counselor to understand if this is a section that is even worth filling out!
On Showing “Fit” with the College
“Include names of professors you know of who teach at the college. It’ll show that you’ve done your research.”
Nope. The only thing it will show is that the student is quite competent in the art of Googling. A better
way to show fit is to research the mission of the school and show ways in which the student aligns with the mission. This notion of fit with mission was something that was constantly discussed at the various committee tables I’ve been a part of and was a big reason why the student was admitted or not admitted.
GUIDING YOUR COLLEGE PROCESS
If there is one takeaway from this article it should be this: the advice that comes from Menlo School College Counseling is based on years of working in the field and near-constant discussion with colleagues on the university side; thus, believe your counselor when they say you don’t have to fly your student from one professor’s office to the next, record YouTube videos, or look up obscure professors to stand out in an application. Our advice will be grounded in empirical evidence and with your student’s best interests at heart.
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