Paving a path to college acceptance

Last week, I had a moment to reflect on the entire college process as a whole. Many people believe that this process begins around the end of junior year, as high school students start to think about which colleges they want to attend.

I do not necessarily think this is true. Having the opportunity to be a speaker at the sophomore college night made me realize that my journey on the path to college began well before last year.

Whether I knew it or not, my first day in Lawrence Woodmere Academy’s upper school is the day I started to shape myself into becoming a person that I would want colleges to see. Listening to LWA’s college guidance counselor, Susan Lettieri, speak to the 10th graders, I realized I had been shaping my image all along. As she talked about how to choose classes that best fit your personality, I recalled my personal experiences. I remembered in 11th grade, I thought about how I had a bit more freedom in selecting my schedule.

When it was my turn to speak, I related to the sophomores how I decided to take more classes in subject areas that I liked. For example, I took two English classes because English is my strong suit in school. This helped raise my grade point average as I applied to colleges, as well as allow them to get a better understanding of whom I am.

I then told the 10th graders about my experiences in school clubs and activities. I added how important it is to take part in leadership roles, and how critical it is to stick with these activities for all four years. This way, college admissions counselors have an idea of what  you are like outside the classroom. My position as class president, captain of the soccer team, founder of the Israeli Culture Club and member of a few other clubs helped me to get accepted into my dream school, the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

My closing remarks at college night to the class of 2018 was that the journey to getting accepted to college should not be the stressful, tiresome process it is notoriously known as. Paving the path to a college acceptance should involve surrounding oneself with activities and classes that students can enjoy. This will lead to success in getting accepted into the college of one’s dreams.