The college application process calls on our children to do something that they will need to do repeatedly: add value. When selecting an incoming class, admission officers look for the applications who will add the most value to their college. Who adds the most value? In a sea of stellar applicants, the answer is athletes for sports teams, musicians for orchestras, researchers for labs, and leaders for student organizations.
Rather than doing as
much as possible just to check off imaginary boxes for the college application
process, our children should excel in areas that matter to them. Applicants
that demonstrate a knack for creative writing, a keen interest in robotics, or
a mean backhand on the Squash court earn admission. Your child’s passion,
skills, and excitement enable her to stand out in the application process by
demonstrating what she will bring to that college. Encourage your child to follow her passions and excel in them.
This leads us to the next lesson: specialization leads to further success. There are close to
375,000 women playing high school soccer this year. That is a lot of
competition for the 38,000 women’s soccer spots at US colleges. For an
applicant hoping to get recruited, soccer does not offer the best odds. On the
other hand, there are just 4,200 high school women rowers and 7,800 college
women crew spots. With such an unmet need for women rowers, applicants
specializing in this niche sport offer more potential value to an admissions
officer whose job is to ensure that her college’s crew team has enough athletes.
Instead of fighting the college admissions process, let’s
embrace what it teaches us about succeeding in the face of fierce competition
and position our children for success in applying to college and beyond.
Adapted from Greg Kaplan’s Post on HS Counselor Week
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