How I got into college: 5 students share their secrets: sometimes getting in takes more than just being a bright well-rounded kid - Achieving Your Goals

Careers and Colleges, Sept-Oct, 2003 by Nancy Fitzgerald

Are you a BWRK (the admission slang for bright well-rounded kid)? You've done everything right in high school--you have 1350 on your SATs, you're in the top 10 percent of your class, you're captain of volleyball, and president of debate?

For many schools, you'd be a prime candidate for acceptance. But in today's competitive marker, even BWRKs somotimes need that extra something to tip the admission scales in their favor.

"One way to stand out is to have developed a passion that isn't on the laundry list of what everyone else is doing," says Rachel Toor, a former admission officer at Duke University in North Carolina, and the author of Admissions Confidential (St. Martins Press). Toor remembers one student who started a butterfly garden at her high school and another who had a fervent interest in The Federalist Papers, the series of essays used to gain popular support for the Constitution.

"Independent studies are impressive," Toor says, adding that a strong transcript and good admission test scores are still at the foundation of any acceptance. While a family history with the school makes a difference (siblings or parents who are alumni of currently attending), so does being a first-generation college student.

Geography can weigh in an applicant's favor as well. "If I had a great kid from North Dakota I'd jump for joy," says Toor. She doesn't give much value to the in-person interview, however, saying the essay gives a better personal picture of a candidate.

What are the pivotal factors that can win you a thumbs up? We asked five accepted students--and their admission counselors--to tell us how they got into college.

THE VOLUNTEER

NAME: MELISSA SIMON

AGE: 19

APPLICATION HIGHLIGHT: SOCIAL ACTIVISM

HOMETOWN: TIBURON, CA

COLLEGE: MOUNT HOLYOKE

LOCATION: SOUTH HADLEY, MA

MAJOR: WOMEN'S STUDIES

HIGH SCHOOL GPA: "A'S AND B'S"

SAT SCORE: "UNDER 1300"

ADMISSION COUNCELOR: GIULIETTA AQUINO

Melissa Simon is the daughter of an international business consultant, and she spent her childhood tagging along from one foreign shore to another--she was born in Virginia, but she's lived everywhere from Boston to Beijing. But wherever she's gone, she's managed to look around, get to know the community, and pitch in to help. She started a religious school for expatriate Jewish children in China, cleaned up a community garden in the Czech Republic, and worked at an orphanage in Israel. And when she and her family landed back in California for her last two years of high school, Simon got right to work again, serving as president of a club that fights hate crimes and homophobia. When she applied to Mount Holyoke, her commitment to social causes really made an impression.

SIMON: I was very involved in high school and one of the things I focused on was social action and social change. I think my background in that work made my college application much more appealing, I helped start the Gay-Straight Alliance at our school after a hate crime at a nearby school, where a student was attacked and beaten just because he was gay. It was a pretty nasty attack, and people were really shocked, so we wanted to raise awareness of the issue. My high school was right near San Francisco, and the assumption is that if you live there, you're tolerant of others, but that's not always the case. I had experience working with a lot of different kinds of people, and I think that really helped when I applied to Mount Holyoke, where diversity is so important.

AQUINO: Melissa impressed me in so many ways--not just with the caliber of her academics but also with all the activities she was involved in, both in her high school and in the broader Bay Area community. And she's a young woman who made transitions to different places and cultures so easily--that showed me she'd probably do well making the transition to college. Her experience helped show me that she would fit in here--she's a go-getter in terms of meeting people and in terms of community service. I like to learn about what students are passionate about, and test scores just can't measure that. (Editor's note: Interestingly, on Mount Holyoke's Web site, www.mtholyoke.edu, students can learn about the interests and passions of admission counselors.) Some students are really determined to change the world, and maybe their test scores don't reflect that when they're only 16 or 17. But over the next four years, they'll go through a profound change and accomplish amazing things.

PERSONAL STRENGTH

NAME: MARGARET BULK

AGE: 19

APPLICATION HIGHLIGHT: LOGROLLING

HOMETOWN: LACROSSE, WI

COLLEGE: HARVEY MUDD

LOCATION: CLAREMONT, CA

MAJOR: COMPUTER SCIENCE

HIGHSCHOOL GPA: 3.86

SAT SCORE: 1360

ADMISSION COUNCELOR: DEREN FINKS

Everybody who applies to Harvey Mudd College is pretty smart--it's one of the top schools in the country for math, science, and engineering. Margaret Bulk was no exception. In high school, she was a top student who excelled in math and planned to be a computer scientist.