After experiencing the college application process with my daughter last year, this process is top-of-mind as I watch my son get ready to start high school this fall. While some would view this focus so early on in high school as a little hyper-vigilant, I would argue that viewing your high school experience through the lens of a college admissions officer from the very beginning can have real advantages.
Colleges like to see commitment, stick-to-it-iveness and leadership—all of which require a fairly long-time horizon. In other words, waiting to get serious about activities until junior or senior year just won’t cut it. Since students apply to colleges in the fall and winter of their senior year, their list of activities and accomplishments needs to be set by that time. Here are some pieces of advice that I hope will help you guide your child toward a successful college application experience.
Explore Early and Often
Allow your child to try all sorts of activities during their freshman year in high school so they know firsthand what they like and don’t like, and what they are good at or not so good at. They should aim to find a handful of activities that they really enjoy so they can “go long” on those activities. Spending time trying something they don’t like or are not good at can seem like a waste of time, but it could actually be a good learning experience that may even be the basis of an interesting college application essay answer.
Don’t Blow Your Budget
You don’t have to spend lots of money getting your child into experiences that you think would look good on college applications. College admissions officers are pretty good at figuring out what a student was handed versus what a student earned. (Think “I spent last summer river rafting in Europe” versus “I spent last summer working with English language learners at a local school teaching them to read”).
Grow Confidence Through Leadership
Encourage your child to seek out a position of leadership. This is almost a requirement to get into good colleges today. If they are not the student body president type, no problem. There are lots of ways to show leadership outside of the obvious positions: they could take on a role in a smaller group like swim team or math club, they could start their own club at school (and be president of it!), they could organize a group to help at the food bank together each month, they could teach their favorite sport or art form to younger students, they could participate in and recruit others to join programs at community organizations (like peer tutoring programs), or they could just find a problem in their community and figure out (and do!) one thing to solve it.
Take Notes
Start writing down every activity, award, honor, interesting/unique experience that your child has, starting from their first day of high school. Otherwise, they will forget them when they sit down three years later and try to remember while submitting applications. Talking through this record as you write down new achievements is also a great way to reminisce and learn more about what your child values in each experience.
Develop Storytelling Skills
Support your child’s growth in creative writing, humor and storytelling throughout their high school career. College application essays that make the reader laugh, get choked up, or feel like they are in the midst of a shared experience are the ones that stand out. Excellent communication and writing skills can make an essay memorable and give your student a huge advantage in the admissions process.
At the beginning of high school, it is only natural to focus your attention on the huge change that your child is going through at the current moment. But, preparing for what is coming up in the not-too-distant-future can make the difference between an impressive college application and one that just doesn’t stack up. You will thank yourself later for your foresight, and your child will, too.
Serena Swegle is the parent of two, a K-12 tutor, and the author of two books: Calculus for Middle Schoolers and Wits and Squiggles.
