what are the things that colleges look at when you apply from HS?

Question

especially yhe ones that are hard to get in like Yale Unniversity
lists will be fine


thanks!

Answer 1

They will focus on these things:

1. ACADEMIC GPA
This is NOT your weighted GPA. I don't even know why those exist, because no colleges give a crap about them. Most selective colleges in the US will want to see you with an Unweighted GPA of
around 3.8-4.0.

2. ACADEMIC PROGRESSION
They want to see improvement in your grades throughout higs school. Obviously this isn't possible if you are al all-time 4.0'er, but most people aren't. This is what I had, and it shows a great example of this:
Freshman: 2.7
Sophomore: 3.7
Junior: 4.0
I got better every year, and that helps them realize that you are in the process of turning yourself around. If yor grades make a DOWNWARD trend, you may want to reconsider, because that looks really bad to selective universities.

3. INTERVIEW
Most selective colleges either require this or offer it as an option. If it is not required, I highly reccomend doing it. You want to present yourself well, and be sure to thank them for their time.
DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, WEAR A SHIRT THAT REPRESENTS THE SCHOOL TO YOUR INTERVIEW. It is sooo gimmicky, and looks like you are begging.

4. EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
Sports. Music. Leadership. Clubs. Theater. Jobs. ANYTHING that you did outside of class that was productive towards making you the best that you can be. This is totally where I shined, and it helped me out a lot. List EVERYTHING, no matter how small. You don't want your list to look like a "laundry list," so organize it into what activities will help you succeed at the college that you are applying to.

5. ESSAYS/PERSONAL STATEMENT
This is the easiest part. Just write a really professional essay about something that you did in the past, and how you benefited from it, and how those benefits will help you at the university.
Be sure to avoid begging in your essay. I lot of my friends applied to WashU as great applicants, but begged and got denied.

6. RECOMMENDATIONS
This is really important. Go to the three teachers in HS that you had the best rapport with and ask them to write a recommendation.
You don't have much control of what they say, so be sure to pick the right people. For all you know, they could write: "Do not admit this student. All they do is screw off in class and procrastinate. They treat people badly, and represents the school in a horrid manner." You really don't want that. Neither does the university.

7. ACT/SAT SCORES
This is another place to shine. Try to do your best on these tests if you have not yet taken them. Start studying during sophomore year... your score will thank you.

So... Everything in your application is all about you, so make it the BEST possible. If its you against another person, you want to have something that will stand out.
TELL THEM that you are better than EVERY other applicant (don't word it that way, though) and that you BELONG.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Schools like that assume outstanding grades and test scores. They also look strongly of the rigor of your high school program, so taking easy classes in an effort to keep your grades high is discouraged. Some look strongly at class rank, as a way of making sure that your good grades are not just due to grade inflation!

Once you have those things, then they select among other things which might make you stand out. For example, what sorts of extracurricular activities do you have, and what was your role in them. A musician or athlete who won competitions or was team captain, for example, looks better than someone who joined a million clubs. What sort of community service did you do, and does it seem that you did it just to meet a school requirement, or do you seem to be passionately involved in it?

Your application essay will be important. If it is a standard answer to the prompt, or you use it as a way of making excuses for weaknesses in your record, you may not go too far, but if it suggests a unique way of looking at things or an intellectual curiosity that is unusual for a high school student, it may capture their attention.

Recommendations count. They are looking for people who really know you to confirm the authenticity of the rest of your application. For example, if you claim to be a great humanitarian who wants to relieve the crises in less-developed countries, and you get a reference from a corporate executive or congressman who never mentions your interest in these things, they would assume that this person really doesn't know you but is doing a favor for your parents, while if your high school counselor or teacher talks about how you motivated the whole campus to support an event to relieve human suffering, it means much more.

The big two, however, are your grades and scores. If your GPA and SAT scores are low, no amount of anything else, not extracurriculars, not family connections, not a great essay, will make up for that.

Answer 3

cumulative GPA
ACT or SAT scores
extracurricular activities(government, sports, band/orchestra)
financial aid needs
essay/writing scores
language classes-usually need at least 2 years
ethnicity

Answer 4

Also how hard your H.S. is/ how hard of classes you took.