5 (More) Things To Avoid In College Application
Level 1 - Baby Steps
Welcome back! Based on some of the feedback that we received on the last Monday’s college application no-nos, we decided to provide five additional mistakes to avoid in the application season.
If you missed it, you can read about it below.
One of the most common questions we received is how often these mistakes happen.
Our answer is simple - its common enough that admissions officers consistently refer to these items across multiple colleges and universities.
Here are 5 more common mistakes we have seen in the application process.
1. Not Proofreading Essays
This may sound simple, but this is fairly common.
Sometimes, people do not even spellcheck the essays. Nothing torpedoes an application faster than an essay that is filled with common misspellings.
But this goes beyond a simple spellcheck - many applicants write their essays and do not even review them for simple grammer and flow.
While we will obviously tout our own essay services, even the most basic essay submission should come with a review to make sure it makes sense.
2. Referencing The Wrong School
When you submit an application, make sure that every part of the application references the corect school you are actually applying to. This ties into #1 above, but is a separate crime.
In our experience, this is usually the result of someone submitting an application or a component of an application without checking, but it is an egregious error that is very difficult to come back from.
Don’t apply to the University of Southern California (USC) and submit an essay speaking about how happy you are to have a chance to go to the University of South Carolina (USC).
3. Writing A Single Essay To Apply To Multiple Schools
This is a little complicated because we do advise you to have a few standard kind of essays written that can be adjusted to a given school.
But the difference here is that some applicants write one essay and then try to find a question to match the essay rather than matching the essay to the essay prompt.
This can be extremely problematic - specifically, you run the risk of not actually answering the essay prompt the college is asking. Which will doom your essay and your application.
You are making a commitment to spend the next few years at the college - if they are not worth an essay tailored to the school, you should question why you want to attend in the first place.
4. Not Dressing Appropriately for College Visits and Interviews
There are two kinds of mistakes people often make in college visits and interviews:
Dressing inappropriately (ex. wearing high heels or showing too much skin)
Wearing another college’s paraphernalia
The first can sometimes be overcome - the best way is to be professional. Remember, you can never be overdressed, but you can be underdressed.
The second is just an absolute no-no. If you do that, you are letting them know you do not care about the interview or college visit and it will be recognized as such. This is not the time to be funny and wear a Yale shirt to a Harvard interview.
5. Being An Overzealous Parent
The most important thing to remember in the application process is that this is an applicant’s decision - not the parents.
Sometimes, you see parents that will attempt to call in favors, suggest that a family member plays tennis with someone else, show up to interviews with their child, or even attempt to answer questions on their child’s behalf.
All of this is a no-no. Proofread an essay. Cheer them on. Offer them sage advice.
Do not attempt to “hijack” the application process and suggest that this is “our” application process.