OT- College Admissions- Well-Rounded or Angular Students

[Knight Shift]

Way back when in the 1980's, college applicants were supposed to be "well-rounded," meaning they had an application full of a variety of activities. The linked blog below (and many others) indicate that now the most selective colleges are looking for students who are not necessarily "well-rounded," but demonstrate passion and excellence for something. In other words, participating in sport, being in 5 clubs, and volunteering at a nondescript charity does not move the needle in college admissions, but being captain of a team sport, being President of a club, or demonstrating a passion for theater or science beyond classes/grades does move the needle.

http://legacy.wbur.org/2013/12/26/well-rounded-passion-college-application
Thoughts?

 

[jerseyjustin]

Personally I like being, or attempting to be, elite in one thing to help drive my success.

I remember reading Colin Cowherd's book and he had a chapter where he basically said the best quarterbacks in the NFL are guys who are dedicated to their craft because that's the only thing they're interested in and/or good at. Sorry for being vague but it was a good chapter of his book. (I'm also a fan of Cowherd).

I remember Jerry Jones called Tony Romo boring years back... but that was in reference to how good of a QB Romo is/was... football drives Romo and nothing else.

 

[Bdodger2]

The "elite" schools have modified their approach. Rather than the well rounded individual, they are now seeking a well rounded class. So they are seeking individuals who truly stand out in at least one area. The theory is that they will admit a class of folks who are each elite in an area, and that will result in a well rounded class of high achievers. Of course, to the extent an individual truly excels in multiple areas that individual will be even more attractive. The concept of filling up an application with membership in multiple clubs and basic community service is not the favored approach.

Of course, no matter what any admission officer states publicly about the holistic process, nothing else matters without premium SAT scores, excellent GPA, tough courses - preferably AP courses, with a 4 and preferably a 5 on the AP exams, and high SATII scores. For the top tier schools you need to meet all of those requirements first, and then the true evaluation commences.

That is not to say connections and legacies do not play a role. That is simply a fact of life. If you do not have the foregoing attributes, your connections have to be exceptional, and for legacies it will not play a role unless your parents are major financial supporters.

Extremely competitive situation for admission to these schools.

 

[GeorgeStreet]

I read somewhere that Harvard is more likely to accept a kid with a museum quality butterfly collection than a well-rounded kid with sports, music, art, and community service credits -- grades and test scores being about equal.

 

[Knight Shift]

The "elite" schools have modified their approach. Rather than the well rounded individual, they are now seeking a well rounded class. So they are seeking individuals who truly stand out in at least one area. The theory is that they will admit a class of folks who are each elite in an area, and that will result in a well rounded class of high achievers. Of course, to the extent an individual truly excels in multiple areas that individual will be even more attractive. The concept of filling up an application with membership in multiple clubs and basic community service is not the favored approach.

Of course, no matter what any admission officer states publicly about the holistic process, nothing else matters without premium SAT scores, excellent GPA, tough courses - preferably AP courses, with a 4 and preferably a 5 on the AP exams, and high SATII scores. For the top tier schools you need to meet all of those requirements first, and then the true evaluation commences.

That is not to say connections and legacies do not play a role. That is simply a fact of life. If you do not have the foregoing attributes, your connections have to be exceptional, and for legacies it will not play a role unless your parents are major financial supporters.

Extremely competitive situation for admission to these schools.

Thanks. After reading the linked blog and others and now your post, this confirms the modification in the way elite schools look at applicants. Understood on the academics and standardized test scores being prerequisite too. Thanks again.

 

[SkilletHead2]

The Ivies have been going for the "well-rounded class" as opposed to the "well-rounded student" for pretty much decades now. However, that doesn't mean that they don't take kids who are exceptionally good at a number of things. The top Ivies are like Bama and tOSU; they can get pretty much whom they want, just a matter of which of the best to pick.

Do they do a good job of making those selections? That's a tough question, because it is more of a philosophical issue of what being a great student means. But there is also no question that they pick the occasional clunker.