Do admissions counselors read your application?

Did you know every admissions counselor has a unique approach to reviewing college applications? Admissions counselors also read every word of your application – including the essays.

Who reads my college application?

Your essay will be read by the admission committee, which will include admission counselors and in some cases professors. Typically, the counselor that either works with students from your area or evaluates applications for the major to which you have applied will be the first person to read your application.

Do colleges read applications as they come in?

No way of telling since every person is different and the system each college uses is different. More often, the decision is made as a group. Each person reads the application as each comes in, rate it, on a score sheet.

Do admissions officers read resumes?

It is important that you understand that admissions counselors review thousands of applications and resumes each year, so making yours easy to scan and to read quickly is vital.

Do admissions officers read common app essay first?

Many admission offices will read your Common App essay first, simply because it's embedded in Common App itself, and that tends to be the starting point of an application review.

College Admissions: Inside the Decision Room

How fast do admissions officers read applications?

Every admissions office has a goal for the number of essays that must be read during any given week. However, college admissions officers and admission readers may read approximately 50 applications per day, spending approximately 15 minutes per application.

How many admissions officers read your application?

At least one reader scores each application, but at selective institutions, as many as three or four readers may score an application.

What is a red flag for admissions officers?

What is an application red flag? Simply put, it's something on a college application that can make an admissions officer second guess how qualified an applicant is or if they're a good-fit for the school. A red flag can be as serious as a disciplinary infraction, or as simple as not following application directions.

What not to ask admissions officers?

What you do when you get to college is ultimately your business. But all the same, it's not a good idea to ask about the school's party culture or anything related to drugs and alcohol. Questions that make you seem uninterested. Don't ask the admissions officer questions that compare them to other schools.

How do admissions officers look at applications?

Most U.S. universities use the holistic review process when evaluating college applications. This means admissions officers place emphasis on the applicant as a whole person, not just his or her academic achievements, so soft factors may be given just as much consideration as the empirical data present in hard factors.

Do admissions officers see your name?

At many large public universities, no human may ever see any of an applicant's materials. They tend to use fully automated, algorithm-driven evaluation. Someone will see a name if the student makes some other contact with the office, possibly to take a tour.

Do admissions officers read applications in alphabetical order?

Each school will have its process for reviewing applications: some may sort applications by alphabetical order or region and assign each group an admissions officer; others may have applications read by a person or a team. You can find out who your admissions officer is at the college's website or a college fair.

How do you know if you got into a college on Common App?

Selected students then receive a direct admissions offer email from Common App. The email has 1 or more offers from colleges and links to find details about each offer. Each college may have different requirements or exceptions to their offer.

Do multiple people read your college application?

Although the method for evaluating applications will vary at each school, it is safe to say that your application will receive multiple reviews from several different readers.

Do admissions officers check for AI?

Hi! It's great that you're putting thought into your college essays. To answer your question, yes, many colleges do use AI plagiarism detectors to scan college application essays.

Do college admissions read the entire essay?

It Depends

They might just read the essays of those who are “on the fence.” Other colleges (mostly smaller schools) may try to read every single essay, and in some instances, there is more than one reader for each file, so your essay might receive multiple reads.

Do admissions officers look at all activities?

More than ever before, admissions committees are viewing students' extracurricular involvements and activities outside the classroom as demonstrations of their motivation, leadership skills, and commitment to their core passions.

Do admissions officers compare you to people at your school?

Admissions officers sort applicants by region first, and then often subdivide within regions by other factors, which can include race, gender, intended major, or smaller geographic areas. Thus you are compared to other applicants from your high school, but not directly.

How do you stand out to admissions officers?

Admission officers seek students with strong character traits such as integrity, leadership, resilience, and initiative. Such attributes should shine through their essays, letters of recommendation, and extracurricular involvements.

Can a bad college essay negatively affect my application?

A bad essay will prompt an admission officer to assume one of two things: 1) either you don't care enough about your future at their school to take the time to write a good essay or 2) you aren't academically up to attending their college or university. Neither of those assumptions will help you get admitted.

Will one C affect college?

Will one “C” ruin my GPA in high school? While receiving a “C” will impact your GPA, it will certainly not ruin it. That “C” won't ruin your chances of getting into college either. However, how leniently colleges view the “C” will largely depend on what grade you received it in.

Does emailing admissions officers help?

If you have specific questions about academic programs or campus life (or just want to touch base with the admissions officer assigned to your geographic region), sending an e-mail to college admissions will get you the essential information you need AND show your enthusiasm for the school.

What is the single most important thing admissions officers consider in an application?

Academic Achievement

This may seem like a no-brainer, but it's important for college-bound students to understand that grades are the most important factor that colleges will consider when evaluating applications.

How old are most admissions officers?

Admissions coordinators and counselors (median age 30) tend to be considerably younger than heads of admissions (median age 40), chief admissions officers (median age 45), or higher ed professionals in general (median age 43).

Do admissions officers fact check essays?

Typically, admissions officers do not have the capacity to fact-check every detail in your essays.