Keep Your Options Open to Make the Most Out of College

Summary: 

The college application process can be a bit daunting, but by staying ahead and tempering your expectations about which colleges you apply to, you’ll find a great school. You can ensure better success by:

• Finding at least 3-5 schools that meet your criteria.
• Work on time management skills to boost your credentials.
• Experience extracurriculars like online enrichment programs that bolster your college resume.

“My dream is to go to William & Mary, both my parents went there.”

“The only school I applied to is Georgetown, I’ve literally wanted to go there since I was little.”

Perhaps you’ve heard one of these phrases uttered before? Maybe you yourself have your sites set solely on attending one university, but what if you don’t get in? And, just because a school seems like the ONLY choice, surely there are others where you’ll be just as happy, if not more?

In this article, we’ll review what to do if you don’t get into the college of your choice, plus suggestions for how many universities to apply to. Lastly, we’ll touch on what to tackle while in high school to boost your chances of getting into your dream school. 

What to Do if You Don’t Get In

Obviously, putting your eggs all in one basket (so to speak) has the potential to fail. But what do you do then?

Take a Gap Year: Sometimes, you just need a break. It makes sense to work or travel for a year and reflect on what you really want out of your education. If there is a specific school you dream to attend, by communicating that you’re taking a gap year (called a “defer”), they’ll place you in the application process for the following year. However, it should be noted that many feel that you’ll lose educational momentum by taking a gap year. 

Attend a Community College, Then Transfer: Also called junior college, attending a two-year community college allows you to work your way through the more general course requirements. A student with a strong academic record at a community college can then transfer to a four-year college for two more years to finish a bachelor’s degree.  

Reapply: You can reapply to the college during the next application cycle. You can also consider evaluating your application and making improvements. This could include pursuing new experiences, speaking with an admissions consultant, or appealing the decision if you believe important information was missing from your application.

Investigate Rolling Admissions: Does your dream school have rolling admissions? These are schools that evaluate applications as they are received and release admission decisions on a regular basis. This means that there is no set deadline to apply, and students can expect to receive a decision within four to six weeks after applying.

The truth of the matter is that putting all your energy into applying to only one school is risky, and likely won’t pan out. By choosing a handful of schools, and accepting that you might not get into your first choice, you’re moving in the right direction. So, what is a better direction to take? 

How to Ensure You Succeed in the School Application Journey

As a high school student, you still have time to improve your chances of getting into that dream school. By studying diligently, improving time management skills, and focusing on rewarding extracurricular activities, you are much more likely to achieve your goals. Plus, did you know that you can boost your chances of admittance by taking college prep courses online? 

Let’s take a look.

Apply to Multiple Schools: Although there isn’t a magic number of schools to apply to, many experts suggest 3-4. Schools should be placed into either reach, match, or safety schools. To clarify:

1. Reach: Also considered your dream school, a reach school is one where your academic profile puts you at the lower end of the admittance spectrum, making it less likely that you'll be admitted. To be clear, a reach school should still be a possibility (maybe not Harvard or MIT, if you feel you don't fit their qualifications).
2. Match: A match school is a university where you feel confident you’ll be admitted because your GPA and test scores are similar to the average admitted student.
3. Safety: A safety school is one where you're confident you’ll gain admission based on your academic profile, and your GPA and test scores are notably higher than the average admitted student.
   

Improve Time Management Skills: Prelum has created a number of useful tools to help you stay on top of homework, activities, meetings, and outings. By allotting the right amount of time to specific items, you’ll be much more adept at managing your schedule. 

Focus on Rewarding Extra Curricular Activities: As we covered here, extracurricular activities (such as athletics, clubs, community volunteering, internships), demonstrate that you have a well-rounded schedule and work ethic. College admissions counselors look for variety. 

But, did you know that there is another unique way that can also help you gain an advantage with admissions boards? By taking college prep courses, you’ll differentiate yourself from the competition and hopefully be one step closer to the college of your dreams. 

Explore Your Collegiate Interests with College Prep Courses

Top universities across the nation provide college prep courses in an array of enticing subjects. Prelum, Powered by Kaplan, works with a wide variety of these renowned colleges (think Georgetown University, University of Notre Dame, Rice University, Parsons Paris, University of Rochester, and Wake Forest University) to create an impressive list of courses that allow you the flexibility to study anytime, anywhere at your own pace. These tech-forward interactions give you a behind-the-scenes look at a number of subjects — everything from more traditional subjects like finance, business, medicine, and engineering; to more specialized subjects like aerospace, video game design, and fashion design. Want to know more specifics about each schools’ offerings? Visit Prelum.org to learn more. 

Overall, the college application process can be a bit daunting, but by staying ahead and tempering your expectations about which colleges you apply to, you’ll find a great school that will help you continue your educational journey.