College Admissions can be among the scariest times in your high schooler's young life, as the "fear of rejection" levels start to shoot through the roof. Questions start to pop up in their mind: What if I don't make it into college? Maybe I'm not smart enough, or maybe I'm not really college material! Naturally, you want to say something to assuage their fears, to ensure them that everything will be okay. After all, it's your fear too: What if no school accepts my child, and they're stuck at home with me forever! The college admissions process can seem complicated and difficult to understand, but by breaking it down into simple pieces you can conquer college admissions.
One of the biggest components of the college admissions process is the dreaded student essay. Usually, these essays allow students leeway to express themselves and say what they wish to say, giving them very general guidelines. The problem, of course, is that "what students wish to say" - especially under the pressure of college admissions - can often come out confusing and all mashed together, which is not the picture you wish to convey to college admissions officers. When your high school student sits down to write their college admissions essay, offer to help them! Brainstorm with them; give them tips on how to say what they wish to say; suggest ideas to them; even hire someone to professionally edit the letter, so you can be certain it presents ideas in a seamless, easy-to-understand manner. Hiring someone for such a small project will not cost you much money, and the benefits can be immense.
Another huge part of the college admissions process is a student's SAT or ACT score. While many students sit for their SAT or ACT with little-to-no preparation or study behind them, make sure that your child does not make this mistake. As colleges pay closest attention to percentiles - in other words, how a student scored compared to all other students - your child is in competition with high schoolers across the country. If your child is better prepared than most of the others, they will be more likely to perform better on the test!
Lastly, a big bonus in a college admissions packet is community service and other leadership-related activities. While it might be difficult to convince your high school student to take up such activities, do your best to encourage them in this! By adding just a few small highlights such as these to a college application, your child will stand out from the students around them.
College admissions can seem like a scary process, difficult to understand or conquer, but by breaking the process down into smaller pieces and doing what you can to master each, the entire thing becomes a whole lot easier.
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