Giving Colleges What They Want

Each year, thousands of students hoping for acceptance to the college or university of their choice flood admissions offices around the country with applications. Limits on the number of new students force admissions officials to sort and evaluate all of the applications to determine who to invite to attend the school. While the criteria for each school will be different, here are seven things that nearly every college or university will require from an applicant. 

High School Curriculum
Colleges want their students to be successful in the pursuit of higher education. Therefore, they want to know that you are prepared for the courses you will take when you attend their school. Your high school transcripts should clearly show courses that were challenging and provided the academic tools necessary. Admissions officials will look for honors or advanced placement courses and the number of college preparatory courses as opposed to electives. However, the elective courses are important as well, provided that they are in some way related to your future educational objectives. Much like the desire to provide you with a well-rounded college education, most schools want you to have a well-rounded high school experience too. 

Grades and Grade-Point-Average
Despite popular belief, grades are not the primary determining factor in the application process. Grades and grade-point-averages show how well you did in the past and do not always provide a reliable indication of how well you will do when you move to the next level of your educational pursuit. There are many factors that influence high school grades, including variations in the way schools compute grade-point-averages. While it is still important to do the best you can, not receiving straight-A's will not necessarily keep you out of a highly competitive school. Receiving a "C" in Advanced Physics will carry much more weight that an "A" in Introductory Golf.