December 2022 Admissions Insights
Monthly admissions insights brought to you by admissionsdecisions.com
Welcome! Each month, Admissions Decisions will provide you with things to think about depending upon where you are in the college planning process. These are meant to help you ask the right questions to get the right answers for each student.
High School:
For non-seniors, this is a great opportunity to look for and begin finalizing your summer plans.
Summer is an opportunity to stand out in your college applications outside of the classroom and showcase a particular passion or interest. When considering your summer plans, ask yourself the following questions:
What summer plans will foster the most amount of growth for you?
What summer plans will encourage you to show leadership and initiative?
Which options best support you and where you want to go?
Which options are most in line with what you need to do?
There is no “right” answer in this. For one student, the appropriate summer plans may be a summer job that earns money to save for college or other expenses. For another student, it may be traveling abroad to Francophone countries to practice French fluency. For another, it may be an immersive learning environment designed to address academic deficiencies. The only “wrong” answer is to do nothing in the summer.
College:
While you could be looking for internship opportunities for the summer, consider this:
When individuals who question the value of a college degree are asked why, approximately 70% state it is either 1) because they are not using their college degree or 2) because they are working in a job outside of their field.
The takeaway is twofold:
Make sure that there are realistic job prospects in your field. If there are not, then be aware of the competitiveness of the job market you are in and how you can differentiate yourself.
Evaluate what job opportunities may be available outside of your given field. Do not plan for a non-competitive market. Assume that there are many people getting a few opportunities. If that were to happen, what would be your back up plan?
If you are a government major, you could try getting a job working as a legislative aid or in government, but if that offer does not materialize, what is the pivot? Is it teaching? Law school?
Whatever the plan is, make sure you have thought through the other options so you are in a position to maximize your college degree.