Have you ever wondered how colleges look at your applications and accept or deny you? The whole process is a strain for both the student and the admissions office at the university. Tom Parker, the dean of admissions at Amherst, describes the feeling of deciding a student’s future: “The process of making those decisions is agonizing.” It may seem like once you turn in that application to your dream school there’s not much you can do, it just gets scanned by stubborn old men and women in suits; however, in reality the people that are looking at your application are just like you! Many people who work for the admissions office are young and understand the hardship of looking for a perfect college, so there is no reason to fret.

A committee of admission staff sits in a closed room reading through hundreds of applications a day, looking at the SAT or ACT scores, GPA, extracurricular activities, and the application essay all to form a complete picture of what that student brings to the table. Sarah Ehrich, an admissions counselor at the university of Brandeis, describes, “Every time you open up that folder it’s like putting together a puzzle, you have an essay, you have a transcript, and you have recommendations and you’re trying to build a picture of another human being.”

It’s hard for many of the admission staff to admit or deny a student because the process is quite harsh, resulting in talented and outstanding kids to look like a blank canvas on their application. “I am cognizant of some lives being changed, literally, on the other hand, yeah, I do feel badly” stated Tom Parker, on the denial of some students even though they have great attributes.

Air Academy’s College and Career Dr.Eric Beers responds to questions from students:

Do you have any advice for students trying to pick the “perfect college?” – “I don’t believe there is one ‘perfect college’. That word ‘perfect’ puts too much pressure on students. You can be happy at many different places, there is not only one fit for you. Colleges are difficult, you have to be happy at the university because you yourself are happy. Just because it’s right for a friend or a mom, doesn’t mean its right for you .”

How do you stand out of the crowd on your application?- “Pour yourself into what you are passionate about. If you love science tell them all about your love for science. If you love a sport like soccer tell them how you love playing soccer. Just be yourself and that will surely be enough to stand out of the crowd; be unique.”

Admission staff, what do they look for?  – “Many students think if I do as many sports and clubs as I can possibly do or if I help out among the community those will cover up my bad grades and low GPA or test scores. Although those may be good for an application, nothing tops academics. If you don’t have good grades, all those clubs, sports, volunteer work won’t matter. The first thing the admission staff looks for are your grades and are you academically capable for their university. The next thing they look at is who this student is and what kind of person are they and would they fit into our student body and university.”

On a different note, some colleges are changing their applications due to social standards and being politically correct nowadays. UC Irvine has six different options for sexual orientation. The six different choices include male, female, trans-male, trans-female, genderqueer, and gender nonconforming or different identity. “I feel like this is just a way of including everyone,” said Augustine Pimentel.