Supercharge Your Early Decision College Application

Back to school season is here! For high school seniors, that means a lot of last firsts: last first day of high school, last first Senior Trip, and the last first college applications.

Soak. It. All. In.

Although deadlines are approaching for early action and the first round of early decision, there is still time to make key improvements to the applications you submit.

YOUR COLLEGE APPLICATION: DOS & DON’TS

Let’s start with the positives:

Do submit a piece of your creative or academic writing for publication (or your art or photography) now to show colleges your talent. There are tons of opportunities for young creatives to reach a wider audience online or IRL for their work. Look locally (like your public library or city website) and more broadly for contests or online outlets that will notify you of acceptance before December 1 (for any early schools) or before February if you hope to notify regular decision schools of your accomplishment. You can always send in an update after applying through your applicant portal.
Do read your personal statement aloud. Does it sound like you? Did you stumble over a thesaurus-sourced word that you don’t actually know how to pronounce? Did you start three sentences in a row with “I”? Did you leave out a word or forget a comma where you naturally paused? Professional writers swear by this practice, as you can hear mistakes and imperfections your eye glides over on the page.
Do some research to determine whether to submit your SAT or ACT scores to test-optional schools. You have the ability to select the schools that will receive your scores, and you don’t need to wing it. Use the College Search function on Niche to look up a school, and scroll to the Admissions & Acceptance section, where you’ll find the middle range of SAT and ACT scores of enrolling students. If you are at or near the bottom of, or below, this range, submitting your scores will not increase your odds of admission.
Do consider demonstrating your interest by interviewing at schools that offer the option. Jump on scheduling interviews now, as slots fill up fast, and deadlines will be coming up. If you have concerns about presenting yourself in person or online, see our post Simplify Senior Year with Summer Interviews for some tips on preparing and information on interview availability.

Mock Interview & Analysis

Gain practical experience and valuable insights to excel in interviews.

sharpen your interview skills

Now that you have boosted your odds of presenting a stand-out application, make sure you avoid these pitfalls:

Don’t turn to Dr. Perplexity or Cousin ChatGPT to generate your personal essay. As we detailed in a recent post on How AI Is Changing College Essays, the result is unlikely to showcase your unique story or engage your admissions reader. Writing a compelling personal essay takes time, and an AI shortcut will not help you stand out. If you are still struggling, reach out so we can help you make a plan to get your words on the page/screen. Editing comes later; now is the time to write.
Don’t blast through all the questions on individual colleges’ Common App sections: these matter! A college might ask you to identify your academic interests: don’t select 5 that interest you that day in the dropdown menu order. Carefully select the main academic interest you have showcased in your application, and list it first. Then, if you have a strong secondary interest that you are considering double majoring or minoring in, list it second. Do you have another field that you’d like to explore? List that third. You don’t need to fill in every box but try to list two to show you will contribute outside of your intended major.
Don’t order your activity list randomly. Remember: your application will be reviewed thoroughly but quickly. The first 3 activities you list will get the most attention; the last 3, sadly, may get only a glance. What first impression do you want to make? That you are an athlete? That you were a member of a club? We recommend highlighting your top academic activities on this list because you are presenting yourself as a strong student who will be an asset to your future department and classrooms.
Don’t wait until the last minute to fill out all the boring parts of the Common App: Profile, Family, Education. You must leave time to carefully proofread each section (use the Preview function, save as PDF, then review). Admissions readers at selective schools are distinguishing among top students, so misspellings and grammar mistakes do make you stand out—but not in the way you hope for!

You’ve got this! Use the time remaining before application deadlines to strengthen and polish your submission, then be sure to enjoy those last firsts of your senior year!

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Dr. Tina Brooks

Senior Private Counselor at Top Tier Admissions

Tina joins Top Tier Admissions after five years serving as Associate Dean of Admissions at Pomona College. Her career in higher education has included extensive experience as both a faculty member and admissions professional. Tina worked as Assistant Director of Admission and Transfer Coordinator at Scripps College before joining Pomona College, where she oversaw all communications and directed transfer admissions, in addition to her role evaluating first-year applicants in the admissions office. As a professional writer and editor, she has published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Fodor’s guide to Los Angeles, and many college alumni magazines. Having served as a mentor for Scholar Match, a scholarship evaluator for the Davidson Institute for Talent Development, and an interviewer for the Gates Scholarship and the Posse Foundation, Tina loves working directly with students on their writing, academic and outcomes goals. She holds a B.A. in English with Honors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Ph.D. in English from the University of California, Berkeley.

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