100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS We are pleased to be able to provide you a copy of the revised Top 100 Answers to Your College Admission Questions, by Danny Ruderman. This book has been approved by the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. Mr. Ruderman kindly donated copies of this book to the Education Foundation for the benefit of our students and families – we hope you find it useful! The mission of the Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation is to engage the community to invest in a vibrant educational experience for all students in the Santa Monica and Malibu public schools. The Foundation works hand-in-hand with the District to allocate funds in ways that result in the greatest impact. To learn more about the Education Foundation, the programs we fund, or to make a donation to support our students, visit www.smmef.org. 1645 16th Street • Santa Monica, CA 90404 310-396-4557 • [email protected] • www.smmef.org 2 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS CONTENTS SUCCEEDING IN HIGH SCHOOL Page 1. How can students get and stay organized? 10 2. Why should students talk to their teachers? 13 3. How can students become better test takers? 16 4. How can students get motivated to do their schoolwork? 19 5. What study skills should students be learning and how can they 22 start to apply them? TESTS 6. When is the best time to take the SAT/ACT/SAT Subject Tests? 25 7. What are the differences between the SAT and the ACT, and 27 which is better? 8. Are the SAT Subject Tests mandatory? 31 9. How important are standardized tests in the admissions 32 process? 10. Is it true that some colleges do not require standardized tests? 34 11. Do AP (Advanced Placement) scores count in admissions? 35 12. How many times should students take the tests? 37 13. What if students don’t have any AP test scores? Will it hurt their 39 chances of getting into college? 14. When should students send their test scores to colleges? 42 15. What is the best way to improve standardized test scores? 44 16. Can students with disabilities get special accommodations? 46 LEARNING ABOUT COLLEGES 17. What is the difference between a college and a university? 47 18. How do students learn about different colleges? 48 3 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS 19. How do community colleges and junior colleges work? 53 20. What if students don’t know what they want to do? 54 21. Are there colleges that provide assistance for students with 55 learning disabilities? 22. How does the number of students at a college affect the 57 experience? 23. Should students consider out of state schools? 58 24. What factors should students consider when choosing a college? 60 25. How do students find out how much diversity a school has? 61 26. Why do students get mail from colleges they have never heard 62 about? 27. Should students pay attention to all the mail that colleges send 63 them? 28. Are the summer programs that students receive in the mail 64 legit? 29. What should students know about fraternities and sororities? 65 30. What should students keep in mind about the weather? 66 31. What should students consider about a rural college? 67 ADMISSIONS 32. How can students determine how hard it is to get into a specific 68 college? 33. What is the most important factor considered by admissions 72 officers? 34. Is it better to take an AP or IB class and get a B or an Honors or 74 regular class and get an A? 35. How important is community service? 76 36. Is getting a job a good idea? 80 37. What should students do in the summer to increase their 81 4 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS chances of getting accepted? 38. Does a student’s choice of major impact his/her chance of 84 admission? 39. How much does legacy matter? 87 40. What other special categories do admissions people use to 89 “flag” applications? 41. What are Early Decision and Early Action? 91 42. Does applying early impact the admissions decision? 94 43. How should athletes go about getting recruited? What about 96 scholarships? 44. Should artists or performers submit extra materials? If so, how? 100 45. What does a deferral mean? 103 46. What does getting wait-listed mean? 104 47. What can be done to increase a student’ chances of getting 106 accepted off a deferral or a wait-list? 48. How important are senior-year grades? 108 49. How do students calculate their GPAs? 109 50. What do colleges mean by “class ranking”? 111 51. How does taking community college/junior college classes in 112 the summer impact admissions? 52. If a student’s GPA and test scores are below a college’s averages, 115 should he/she still apply? 53. How do students know what activities to put on an application? 117 54. Is it okay to send extra letters of recommendation? How many 120 is too many? 55. How do students ask teachers for recommendations? 123 56. Is it important to interview? Are there different kinds of 124 interviews? 57. What should students wear for their interviews? 126 5 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS 58. What if a student cannot visit a college in person? 127 59. If a student has a B or C average, can he/she still go to a 4-year 128 college? 60. How many schools should students apply to? 129 61. What does “creating a balanced list of colleges” mean, and why 130 should students do it? 62. What are the Common Application and the Universal College 131 Application? 63. How do students find out if a college accepts the Common or 133 Universal App? 64. What do students have to do if a college has its own application? 134 65. Do colleges look at Facebook? 135 66. Do colleges care about students’ e-mail addresses? 136 67. Do colleges verify everything students put down on their 137 applications? 68. Is it better to be well-rounded or passionate about one thing? 138 69. Do teachers submit recommendations on paper or online? 139 70. What is the CEEB code? 140 71. What if students can’t afford the application fees? 141 72. What should students put in the “Additional Information” 142 section of a college application? 73. How do students let colleges know about special 143 circumstances? 74. What happens if a student realizes he or she has made a 144 mistake after the application has been submitted? 75. What is a mid-year report? 146 76. Should students include information from elementary school or 147 middle school? 77. Do students need to create a resume? 148 6 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS ESSAYS 78. How important are the essays? 151 79. What does the typical college essay question ask? (And what is 152 the first key to answering it?) 80. What is the most important thing that admissions people look 154 for in the essay? 81. How do students come up with ideas for their essays? 161 82. How long do essays need to be? 164 83. Can students go over the word limit? 165 84. How many essays do students need for the Common 166 Application? 85. Is there a maximum length for the Common Application main 167 essay? 86. Can students use the same essay for multiple schools? 168 87. Who should students ask to edit their essays? 170 88. How do students write what is known as the “Activity Essay”? 172 89. How do students write a “Why do you want to go to this 173 college?” essay? 90. How do students write the University of CA System essays and 176 other college essays? FINANCIAL AID/SCHOLARSHIPS 91. What is the difference between financial aid and scholarships? 182 92. How does a family determine if they are eligible for aid? 184 93. What are the required forms and the deadlines to apply for aid? 186 94. Do families have to apply each year for aid? What if a family’s 187 situation changes? 95. How do students find scholarships? 188 96. What documents are needed to apply for aid? 191 7 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS 97. What if a college doesn’t provide enough aid? 192 98. What other options are there to pay for college? 193 99. What is a 529 savings plan and how does it impact financial aid? 195 100. What are five “secrets” to paying for college that you may not 197 have heard about? For Notes 200 8 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS PREFACE Hi everyone! Thanks for picking up this book. I sincerely hope it gives you a lot of answers and helps you navigate the often unnecessarily complicated admissions process. Why is it so complicated? There are conspiracy theories out there involving extraterrestrials, but I think it has something to do with the fact that just about every college has its own rules, standards, and qualifications—and a college does not want to change its structure just to play nice with the other kids. Nevertheless, as you will soon see, the admissions process is not that bad—especially if you do your homework before the night of the deadline. Parents, I am really talking to you here. Even though I have phrased many of these questions as if I were talking to one of my students (just in case a miracle happens and one of your children actually picks up this book), I really enjoy educating parents so that they know what to expect during admissions season and can help their kids stay on track. When I started writing this book, I also realized that it could easily become 750 pages of advice I have picked up over the last 13 years of working with families. But given that my goal is to make things less stressful, I have kept the answers short and to the point (with the occasional bad joke thrown in). For more information, feel free to go to my website www.dannyruderman.com There I have additional great resources to help you through the process. Thanks again, Danny 9 100 TOP ANSWERS TO YOUR COLLEGE ADMISSION QUESTIONS SUCCEEDING IN HIGH SCHOOL 1. How can students get and stay organized? I have 2 very simple suggestions for students on how to get and stay organized. Now I know that even though I’m going to write this, most of you students out there will probably say, “Oh, that sounds like a good idea!” and then in 3 weeks will completely ignore the advice. So please understand: your parents didn’t pay me to tell you this. Instead, I’m going to tell you what’s worked in the past for my students, and I’m going to say that it takes 3-4 weeks of practicing the strategy before it becomes a habit. Here we go: Number 1: You know that thing they give you in school like a “binder reminder” or a calendar where you’re supposed to write down your assignments? Well, you should actually use it, or you should use something like it. You see, what many students do is this: they start off at the beginning of the year saying, “I’m going to be organized, I’m going to have everything done, and I’m going to keep track of everything!” But then some teachers put their assignments online, some give out syllabuses, and some just verbally state the assignments, causing many students to write the homework down on the back of their hands thinking they are going to remember it. This usually ends badly. Instead, at the end of every class, rather than waiting until the bell rings, grabbing all your stuff, and running out the door, take out the calendar (or heck, even your iPhone) and write down the assignment for every class. Even if a teacher gives you the homework online, there’s something about writing it down that helps you remember what you need to do. When you then get home, 10