Perhaps one of the most stressful experiences that a would-be-college student goes through is filling out college application forms. Getting into the college of your choice is quite a challenge, especially considering the fact that you are in contention with other brilliant students from across the nation.
However, the good thing about it is that as long as you highlight your individuality as a student, you have a chance of grabbing a spot at a premier college or university. Most administrators prefer to have as varied a freshman population as possible, so everybody pretty much has equal chances of getting into the educational institution of their choice.
Factors Would-Be College Students Think Are Their Hooks
So while you are putting together your credentials for your college admissions, how exactly can you discover your 'hook'? Before diving deeper into that, let us first take a look at the typical things most senior high school students think they need in order to be admitted to a good college:
1. Excellent grades
Sure, you may have been a straight A student in high school, but someone who has a more interesting list of extracurricular activities with a mixture of A's and B's on his or her transcript may have a better chance of getting accepted than you.
Remember that it takes more than just being in the honor roll or taking hard classes for you to be accepted at the college of your choice. Think about all of the other students from across the nation who have the same set of grades that you have and who will be competing against you. What sets you apart from the pack? As a student, offer more than what your transcript of records indicates and you should be all set.
2. Perfect or almost perfect SAT/ACT scores
This is one of the most common mistakes that college students make. They think that just because they got a perfect or an almost-perfect score at the standardized tests, they can consider themselves accepted. This is not the case at all. Again, you are more than just your academic scores.
3. Recommendations, application essay and college interviews
Another mistake that most students make is thinking that getting glowing recommendations from outstanding personalities is the way to get to the college of their choice. Application essays and college interviews do count, but not as much as the real factors that will hook you to the college or university of your choice.
The Real Score: Tried-and-Tested College Admission Tips
So if it's not your SAT scores, your grades, your application essay or how you did at the college interview, what are the possible hooks that you can use to be admitted at the educational institution of your choice?
First, you can highlight the things you love doing. Think about that one advocacy, longtime hobby, part time job or accomplishment that you were so passionate about in high school.
Second, highlight your most outstanding personal accomplishments, such as being an accomplished cook or being a good leader. Talk about being in love with the place where you grew up, a vacation which has so far been the highlight of your life, your ethnic heritage, how good an athlete you are, how much your mom or your dad have been raving about the school or how you would like to follow in their footsteps by studying at the same college.
All in all, discovering your hook to getting into the college of your choice is all about pinpointing your interest, passion, a hobby or a personal experience which sets you apart from all the other college students – and proudly but matter-of-factly telling the admission committee about it in your college admissions application. To sum it all up in two words, your hook to getting into college should be your very own personal "wow factor".