Let’s face the truth – today students are usually over-busy and extra committed. Taking that into consideration, it is highly important to carefully consider what they are going to include in their application projects. When it comes to the most typical mistakes that are usually found in application materials, they are usually as follows:
- Having your parents write your application essay or fill out the application.
- Grammar or spelling mistakes.
- Failure to sign the application or pertinent accompanying documents.
- Overestimating self-reported test grades.
To cut the long story short, you have to be focused, honest, work on your applications materials yourself, as well as ensure you have all materials prepared.
Poor Punctuation and Grammar
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When you’re working on your college application essay, don’t forget that you’re not texting with your best friend. Your readers will expect you to use a strong command of correct punctuation and grammar. Your task here is to make sure you do nothing that might put your application materials in the reject pile. However, the reality is that proper punctuation and grammar will 100% boost your chances to get there. If you’re an ESL student, make sure to approach a competent native speaker to ask them to check your writing. Or, if you need essay writers for hire, make sure to get in touch with expert online writers to ask them to review your work for obvious errors in punctuation, word choice, and grammar. It’s no doubt, no one expects you to submit the best quality piece of writing. Nonetheless, do your best to have an online professional check and fix your grammar.
Mixing Up Application Deadlines
This one is definitely the easiest mistake to avoid but at the same time, it is one of the easiest to make. Taking into account how long college lists are, and how many dates one has to keep in mind, it’s no wonder that you may miss some of the application deadlines. To avoid a situation like that, ensure to create a list of all the colleges and deadlines. Put down the college name and the date that you have to submit your application papers by. If you’re in need of a backup plan, use your phone to set all important reminders in order to get all the alerts before the deadline.
Letting Your Mom and Dad Fill out Your Applications
If you’re too busy, you might believe your mom and dad are the ones to help you with your applications. While on the one hand, it may seem like a great idea, having your parents fill out applications will definitely turn into a real disaster. The point here is that colleges can tell the difference between your application and your parent’s. While the application that you have filled out yourself sounds as if a 17-year-old boy or girl worked on it, the document that your parents dealt with sounds like it came from a middle-aged person. No matter how hard both your mom and dad try, they will use different words and produce text that is more sophisticated than yours. What it comes down to is that you should take the time to fill out all the documents yourself. There’s nothing wrong with approaching your parents for a bit of advice – as long as you make sure to write everything using your own words.
Not Attending AP Classes
Taking AP classes includes loads of advantages for those who are applying to college. If you make sure to attend AP classes, you will have an opportunity to boost your GPA, check some new demographic for college options, as well as have something nice to include in your college application. When the reps of the college admission board see that you took AP classes, they will be impressed by the fact that you have challenged yourself and exerted every effort to get high scores.
When the scores that you receive on your AP exams are high, you will definitely enhance your GPA, as well as get more study tools needed to deal with ACTs and SATs. In other words, you have to ensure that you take your AP classes seriously.
Personal Statement Mistakes
When it comes to your personal statement, it is important that you use it as a chance to sell yourself, as well as let the college application reps know how serious you are with your academic intentions. If you provide an inaccurate or apathetic personal statement, you will ruin your application. For that reason, it is important to:
- Show your genuine passion and interest in the chosen discipline.
- Provide explanations on why you would like to study at the chosen college.
- Proofread and edit your personal statement in order to identify and fix all grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.
- Discuss your favorite extracurriculars.
When you’re done with the personal statement, make sure to approach someone else to check it. Your personal statement is an integral part of an application, so don’t fail it just because you were too lazy to scan and edit it.
Choosing the Most Common Essay Topic
Essays are a fundamental component of your application process because they inform college reps on who you actually are. For that reason, it is important to choose your college application essay topic wisely. Your task here is to tell your story in an impactful, interesting, and unique way. Don’t forget that the heart-warming stories that have changed your life completely probably happened to some other potential students as well. So make sure to stay away from the essay topics as follows:
- The story behind your parents’ divorce
- Your first love
- Death of one of your family members
If you’re still willing to discuss one of the issues mentioned above, make certain to think deeply about how you can write your essay to hook your readers’ attention. The point is that sometimes students choose the most common topic but they know how to present it in a unique way that will let the admissions officer recognize your potential.