MISTAKE #1:  Believing that it is much, much harder to get into college than ever before. 

While it is true there are more high school graduates than ever applying to colleges, Ms. Springer noted that of the 2,100 four-year colleges in the United States, only 150 accept less than 50% of applicants.  More significantly, most four-year colleges accept 75% or more of their qualified applicants.  She reassured parents that there are more than enough spots for qualified students who want to attend a four-year college.

MISTAKE #2:  Believing the more well-known or selective a college is, the better that college must be.

The fact is there are many colleges offering a fine education.  A student should not just focus on whether the college is “good,” but whether it is a good fit for the student.  A student should apply to colleges where that student will thrive academically and socially, across an array of selectivity.

MISTAKE #3:  Not doing careful self-assessment and research. 

Reading US News & World Reports college rankings issue is not careful research.  First, the student should ask him/herself a series of questions to help narrow the search for a good fit.  Good questions to ask include:  What are my academic interests?  How do I learn best?  (e.g., do I need small classes with one-on-one contact with the professor? do I love large lectures taught by leading researchers?  do I want a mix?)  What activities outside of class matter most to me?  How important is prestige to me?  Is diversity important to me?   What kind of social/cultural environment would I like to be in?  (e.g., do I want to go to a liberal or conservative college? do I want to go to an “artsy” college? do I want a women’s college?)  Where do I want to live for the next four years?  (e.g., do I want to stay close to home? do I want to live in a city or rural environment?  what kind of weather can I live with?)  Do I want to attend a liberal arts college (with an emphasis on teaching undergraduates) or a research university (with an emphasis on research and developing graduate students)?  After answering these questions, students can research colleges online to find several good fits. 

MISTAKE #4:  Believing you can control the outcome of the admissions process at a selective college.

            Most colleges look at a combination of the following factors:  grades in the context of the rigor of the curriculum; standardized test scores; extracurricular involvement; leadership; community service; and a student’s passions and personal qualities, life experiences, etc. as reflected in essays and recommendations.  Students have control over these things.  Beyond these criteria, however, colleges consider a number of other things over which students have no control, including athletic needs, legacy status, race, gender and ethnicity, and geographic/socioeconomic diversity.  Students have no control over these institutional priorities and they can significantly affect a college’s admissions decisions.

MISTAKE #5:  Not making all your choices “first choices.”

            Ms. Springer emphasized that it is a mistake to think of any school as a last resort school.  A student should only apply to schools that s/he thinks are a good fit.  The list should start from the “bottom up.”  In other words, from the list of schools that are a good fit, start with those the student has an excellent chance of being admitted.  Then build the list along a range of selectivity.  That way, any college into which the student is admitted is viewed as a good choice for the student.

MISTAKE #6:  Not understanding the financial aid process.

            There are two kinds of financial aid—merit based and need based.  Needs-based financial aid is pretty much a calculation question—numbers are filled in and a student qualifies or not.  Merit financial aid is more complicated.  It is ultimately an inducement to come to a particular college.  Thus, the more selective a college, the less available is merit aid.  On the flipside, a less-selective college may be very generous with a highly qualified candidate, in order to attract the students it most wants.

MISTAKE #7:  Procrastination.

            Procrastinating is anxiety producing and makes the process more difficult and less satisfying.  There is less time for research, less time for campus visits, and less time to prepare a thoughtful application. 

MISTAKE #8:  Failing to keep your perspective throughout the process.

            This is your student’s application, not yours.  The admit or deny decision made in the admissions office of a college is not an evaluation of someone’s worth as a student or a person.  Nor is the decision a measure of the success of a parent’s child rearing efforts. 

If you are interested in more on this topic, read Admission Matters:  What Students and Parents Need to Know About Getting Into College, by Sally Springer and Marion Franck.

Additional web resources:

www.collegeboard.com

            Contains useful information about all aspects of college search and selection

www.nacacnet.org

            Geared for high school and college counselors, but useful section for students with helpful information

http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cool

            Database of thousands of schools that allows search by location, program and degree offering

www.utexas.edu/world/univ/state/

            Links to home pages of four-year colleges; links are arranged by state but they can be sorted alphabetically

www.californiacolleges.edu

            Source of information on public and private colleges in California, including admissions requirements and financial aid

www.fafsa.ed.gov

            Federal site for free application for Federal financial aid. 

www.fastweb.com

            General site with scholarship search and family contribution calculator