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Newsletter August 2011
In This Issue
Advice from the Class of 2011
Common Application Tips
Staying Healthy in College
Register Now: College Essay Workshop
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"The Slowest and Fastest Four Years of Your Life": Advice for High School Students from the Class of 2011  apple logo
 
It is hard to believe that August is already here. Soon, it will be time for high school students to trade their summer jobs and days at the beach for classes and extracurricular activities. To help you start the year off right, we got some advice for high school students from members of the class of 2011.

Take Advantage of the Opportunities High School Offers

If you were to take a sample of all of the movies and television shows about high school, it would be easy to assume that high school activities mainly revolve around sports like football and basketball or musical theater. Luckily for those of us who aren't jocks or theater geeks, actual high schools offer a myriad of opportunities that appeal to a lot of different interests.

 

"Try new things and think outside the box," says Jocelyn, who cautions against sticking with the activities that you are already familiar with. "You've heard these words a thousand times, but it is valuable advice. Apathy isn't an option."

 

Part of the reason this is so important is because being involved helps you build connections with teachers and other students. Even though she was busy in high school, Kendra considers the clubs and sports she participated in, including dance and art, vital to her experience, since they "helped to build the strong feeling of community that made high school enjoyable."

 

Focus Your Interests

Although you should take advantage of the opportunities your school offers, resist the urge to join dozens of clubs and teams just for the sake of padding your activities list. Besides not helping you during the college admission process, this can also cause you to be overcommitted and overstressed. Jocelyn pursued her interest in community service through work with her local public library and with organizations like Heifer International.

 

"Once you find your passion, whether it is a sport, community service, debate, or even watching movies, stick with it," she advises. "It will make your experience in high school that much greater."

 

Don't Procrastinate

For seniors, the class of 2011's advice focused on the importance of keeping on schedule when applying to college. "Start writing your supplemental essays early in the fall because you will want to enjoy your winter break," urges Kendra. "It's hardly a vacation when you have to write two essays each day to meet your deadlines. I wrote supplemental essays all during winter break, and it was not enjoyable."

 

Do a Reality Check on Your Apply List

In addition to staying on task, recent grads also advised seniors on considering the difficulty of admittance when choosing where to apply. Rather than limiting yourself to colleges that have extremely competitive applicant pools, Jocelyn suggests that your final apply list consist mostly of schools where you have a good chance of being admitted, because rejection is hard to take. "Make sure that every school you apply to is one that you love," says Jocelyn. "To do this, you need to take the time to research your schools." 
Common Application Pitfalls and Tips

Common Application logo

The Common Application, accepted by more than 450 colleges, has launched for the class of 2012 and those planning a college transfer. While the application is pretty straightforward, here are some things to look for as you register and complete it.

 
  1. Keep Track of Your Registration Information. Record your username and password along with the email address you used at registration time so you can easily access it. You may think you will remember it, but we have learned from our students' experiences that this is often not the case.
  2. Preview and Collect Essential Data. Review the entire application (you can print a sample application from the home page) and get answers to questions such as your parents' college graduation years and whether your family is applying for financial aid or not before you sit down to complete the application.
  3. Less is More for Activities. Avoid the temptation to fill up every field in the activities section with pursuits that you abandoned long ago or with one-day initiatives such as charity walks. This section should focus on those activities with which you have been most involved and are the most meaningful to you. If you spent four years working for the school paper and you deeply enjoy your work as a reporter then list this activity above your three-year dance participation if dance is somewhat less important to you.
  4. Additional Information Section. While it may make sense for some students to leave this section blank, others may put it to good use. A student who did summer research at a science lab might write a summary of the research findings and his role. Artists and musicians (if they are not completing the arts supplement) might include a link to an electronic portfolio or website featuring their creative talents. Students with discrepancies in their academic record due to factors such as illness or a learning issue often use this section to write a paragraph explaining their situations. Sometimes students upload a resume here, but only do so if it provides different and more in-depth information than what is listed in your activities page descriptions.
  5. Optional Information on Supplements. Some colleges will ask you to list the other colleges to which you are applying. This is a way for the college to collect marketing data. You do not need to answer this question. 
  6. Save, Save, Save. Save your work before moving from page to page. The box that says, "Save and Check for Errors" helps ensure that you properly completed a page before moving on.

Keep in mind that the most challenging part of the application is the 500-word personal statement and the 150-word short essay on an extracurricular experience, so you need to dedicate a lot of time writing and revising these responses. Don't forget to proof them and have another person review your writing before you upload them to the application.

Staying Healthy in College
by Terri Suico

A recent article on Yahoo Health highlighted a number of health hazards in college dorms, ranging from the common cold to the dreaded (and very serious) meningitis. Although most of these things aren't little known, they certainly can catch freshmen by surprise. To help you avoid some of the most common health problems, here's some advice I learned the hard way:
  • Get a Flu Shot: In the whirlwind of classes, projects, papers, and other commitments that all tend to hit in the middle of fall semester, it is tempting to postpone (or even avoid) getting a flu shot. As a graduate student, I ignored my mom's suggestion to get a flu shot one year, and I managed to catch H1N1. Besides missing almost two weeks of work and class, I was under orders to quarantine myself in my apartment during that time. Suffice it to say, I've gotten a flu shot every year since!
  • Don't Ignore the Warning Signs: If you aren't feeling well, go to student health. I had a classmate at Vanderbilt who contracted a serious form of meningitis. Luckily, her roommates realized that something was very wrong and immediately took her to student health. Not only did the school credit the roommates for saving the girl, their quick actions allowed other students who risked exposure to get the medicine needed to prevent the disease.
  • Don't Share Everything: Yes, sharing might mean caring, but you don't need to share every single thing with your friends and roommates. Beyond the obvious, like drinking out of someone else's water bottle, you should be particularly careful when sharing things like cosmetics. Besides the usual suspects like the common cold and cold sores, diseases like pink eye are very contagious and can be easily spread through eye shadow and mascara.
  • Think Twice Before You Shop the Streets: At the end of every semester, the streets of Boston (and other cities) become a veritable flea market of abandoned furniture as students who are moving decide not to take sofas, chairs, desks, and the like with them to their new apartments. Although it might seem very tempting to score a new couch or table for nothing, keep in mind that the furniture in question might be harboring bedbugs.
  • Take Care of Yourself: This might seem like common sense, but hear me out. During the college years, it is easy to get too little exercise, eat too much junk food, and stay up way too late. Instead of going to the vending machine for every meal, take advantage of the healthy choices many college campuses are now offering in their cafeterias. Put your college fees to good use and use the facilities at the student recreation center. Finally, while pulling an all nighter is almost inevitable at some point during your college career, don't make it a habit. Not only will this prevent your immune system from being run down, it will also help you keep up with the craziness of college life. 

Do you have any additional suggestions for college students? Please feel free to weigh in on our blog or on our Facebook page.

College Essay Workshop -- Last Chance to Register!
 

For rising seniors, now is the time to start thinking about writing the college essay. Our essay writing workshop will help students get a jump start on the process. At the end of the workshop, students will leave with a solid first draft of a compelling personal statement to use during the college admissions process.

    

Each workshop offers two experienced writing teachers for 6 students. Fee: $325. A meal will be provided. 

 

Please click on the link below to RSVP to the workshop. Registration closes on Wednesday, August 10th, so register today. The first four registrants will get an additional 1/2 hour essay review via email following the workshop!

 

Sunday, August 14 from 10:00 am - 1:30 pm

 

Rising Juniors: Time to Start Thinking about College

Educational Advocates guides juniors in setting goals to get the most out of an all important year and helps students begin to develop criteria for what they are seeking in a college experience. We also help parents think about how to pay for college and more. Email us at [email protected] or call 617-734-3700. 
 Educational Advocates
College Consulting Corp.
1622A Beacon Street, Suite 203
Brookline, MA 02446
617-734-3700

College Admissions Advising
School and Boarding School Placement with Tory Dodge
Graduate School Advising with Steve Gibson
Newsletter editorial staff:
Joan K. Casey
Terri Suico