Step By Step Through The College Application

Careers and Colleges, Sept, 2000 by Jennifer Nichols

Can you include recommendations from a coach, boss, or other non-teacher? Go ahead--as long as you've already secured the required number of academic recommendations. "But don't give us seven or eight," cautions Jim Bock, director of admission at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. "There really is such a thing as overkill!"

FINAL THOUGHTS

Keep these things in mind before actually sending off your college application:

* Neatness counts. "We've seen applications with grease stains, soda stains," says Michelle Petro-Siraj, executive director of admission at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Also, don't fill out the application in pencil--if possible, type it.

* Make copies of everything. That way, if a college misplaces any materials, you can replace whatever is needed.

* Send the application in on time. "It can affect not only whether you're admitted, but what financial aid you receive," says Petro-Siraj.

* Don't give in to stress. "Try not to spend too much time worrying," says Bock. "In the 10 years I've been in admissions, I've never seen a student I've counseled not go to college."

* Don't slack oft grade-wise. Colleges have access to your senior year grades, and if they drop drastically, you can expect a school to take a second look--and possibly even rescind an offer.

Jennifer Nichols is a regular contributor to CAREERS & COLLEGES.

WRITING A GREAT COLLEGE ESSAY IN 3 EASY STEPS

STEP 1

For many students, deciding what to write about is the toughest part of the essay process--after all, how many significant experiences has a l7-year-old really had?

PICK A TOPIC, ANY TOPIC

"One girl said she wished someone in her family had died so she'd have something good to write about," remembers Amy Storrow, director of Essay Experts in Houston.

Often, say experts, the smaller, seemingly unimportant moments in your life are the most meaningful. "Learning how to drive could be significant," says Sanford Kreisberg, founder of Cambridge Essay Service, an Internet consulting company in Cambridge, Massachusetts. "So could the first time you argued with your parents as a young adult, or the first time you realized you didn't have to fight with your younger sibling."

Educational planner Judi Robinovitz stresses the importance of telling the reader how the experience has changed your own life. "If you want to talk about your grandmother's Alzheimers disease," she says, "you'd better talk about how it affects you."

STEP 2

The most important thing to remember is that you're not writing a term paper. "A conclusion that repeats the essay may show that you know how to write a five-paragraph essay," says consultant Johnson, "but it sure is boring." A few tips:

WRITE IT DOWN

* Fill the essay with detail. Use words and descriptions that appeal to all five senses. Include action verbs whenever you can.

* Don't forget who your audience is. In all likelihood, your essay will be read by a group of adults in their 20s and 30s and beyond. Use descriptions and language your readers can relate to. That means phrases like "My trip to France was da bomb" are out.