Streamline Your Shortlist

By Quetzal Mama • October 23, 2017

Alexandrina thinks applying to college is straight-forward. She’ll pick a handful of colleges she likes, complete a few applications, and press “submit.” Then she’ll just sit tight and wait until next March to learn where she’ll be headed next Fall. Yeah, she can follow this approach. But, it’s a terrible plan. And, it’s a plan that nearly guarantees Alexandrina will be left with no offers, no contenders, and no options. Instead, Alexandrina should ask herself these 3 questions before she makes her shortlist of colleges:

Question #1 – What if My Scores Don’t Match? If your SAT or ACT exam scores are lower than the typical admitted student at your dream campus, then you should take note of the dangers of “College Application Roulette” and learn the truth about entrance exam scores. If you are still determined to attend a competitive college, but worried about your scores, you now have the option of applying to Test Optional or Test Flexible campuses! These campuses don’t require test scores in their admission criteria, or they give you the option of submitting alternate criteria to help them understand your intellectual talents. In Quetzal Mama’s 2017 Infographic of 60 Selective Colleges, see the salmon colored bubbles representing test optional or test flexible campuses.

Question #2 – How do I know if I Can I Afford This College? Nutshell, read What Type of College Can You Afford first! It details how college systems dole out financial aid. Alexandrina needs to know there is a 2017 list of 66 selective colleges that meet 100% of financial need for admitted students. If she knew this, she could have applied to some of these campuses. I’m sharing below my 2017 infographic highlighting 60 campuses with color-coded icons for an easy read. These campuses have larger endowments, which means they have greater discretion to dole out grants, scholarships, and other sources of gift aid. All of these 60 campuses state they guarantee they meet 100% of financial need.

Question #3 – Should I Apply Early or Regular Decision? Typically, students like Alexandrina learn too late they could have increased odds of admission by applying Early Action to a preferred campus. But, there are big differences between Early Action and Early Decision. Early Action means you’ll get your decision notification the first or second week of December (versus March 30 or later), you can keep your other applications open, and you have until May 1 to give your decision. Besides increasing admission odds, students also feel psychologically relieved to know they got into their #1 choice and can now relax. Early Decision is different. Students also learn early of their admission decision, but, if they are admitted to this campus they must cancel all other applications and accept the financial aid package offered. Ouch. That’s a huge risk. What if other campuses offered much stronger financial aid awards? What if the package is not reasonable or do-able for Alexandrina’s family? For that reason, I do not recommend Early Decision for students who are not excessively wealthy.

After reviewing these 3 questions and viewing Quetzal Mama’s 2017 Infographic, you're ready to create your shortlist of colleges to be financial savvy, increase odds of admission via Early options, and bypass some testing criteria that could have diminished your admission odds. Good luck!