Fmr. Asst. Dean of Admissions at Stanford sharing U.S. College Admission tips
Summary
TLDRThe video discusses the university application process, highlighting differences between public and private institutions. Public universities tend to focus on grades and standardized test scores, while private schools like Stanford evaluate candidates more holistically, looking for intellectual vitality, passion, and leadership. The speaker emphasizes the importance of personal attributes beyond academic achievements. They also discuss the competitiveness of admissions due to increasing applications, advising students to differentiate themselves and focus on career exploration and financial aid opportunities. The goal is to find the right fit for long-term success, not just getting accepted.
Takeaways
- 📊 The evaluation process at large public universities is typically straightforward, focused on grades, SATs, and program choice.
- 🏫 Private universities tend to have a more in-depth and holistic application process, considering personal characteristics and achievements beyond academics.
- 📚 Grades are a fundamental factor in both public and private school evaluations, though private institutions look for more holistic qualities.
- 👥 Private school applications evaluate whether the student would be a good fit for their community, akin to determining if they would be a desirable lunch companion or dorm mate.
- 💡 Key qualities private schools look for include intellectual vitality, passion, purpose, leadership, and character.
- 🚗 Example of a poor challenge essay: A student wrote about not getting a new Lexus for their birthday, which showed a lack of genuine struggle or personal growth.
- 🎓 Stanford, specifically, looks for students who demonstrate engagement in learning, self-discipline, and take responsibility for their own education.
- 🌱 Out-of-the-box thinkers and students with entrepreneurial mindsets are highly valued at Stanford, more than just standardized test scores.
- 📈 College competitiveness has increased due to more applications and similar school lists among students, making it harder to stand out.
- 🎯 The ultimate goal of college counseling is to help students find the best fit, not just for college admission, but for a long-term career path that aligns with their strengths and vision.
Q & A
What are some key differences between applying to a large public university and a private university?
-For large public universities, the application process focuses on basic metrics like grades, SATs, and the chosen program. Private universities, on the other hand, use a more in-depth evaluation process, looking beyond academics to assess qualities like character, leadership, and intellectual vitality.
What is the first aspect universities consider in applications?
-The first thing universities, both public and private, typically consider is the student's academic performance, including grades and test scores. This acts as a primary filter for the application.
What personal qualities do private universities look for in applicants?
-Private universities focus on personal qualities such as intellectual vitality, character, leadership, and passion. They want students who demonstrate an active engagement in learning and take responsibility for their own educational growth.
Why are letters of recommendation and personal essays important in the application process?
-Letters of recommendation and personal essays help universities evaluate a student's personal characteristics, such as leadership, challenges they've overcome, and intellectual curiosity. These components allow schools to assess whether the applicant is a good fit for their community.
What is meant by 'intellectual vitality' in the context of college applications?
-Intellectual vitality refers to a student's active enjoyment and engagement in the learning process. It reflects a genuine love for learning, curiosity, and the ability to take initiative beyond what is required by the school.
How do universities like Stanford evaluate non-academic qualities?
-Universities like Stanford look for qualities like maturity, self-discipline, creativity, and a willingness to take risks in learning. They value students who can demonstrate responsibility for their own learning and show the potential to contribute to the campus community.
What kind of applicants do universities like Stanford aim to attract?
-Stanford looks for out-of-the-box thinkers who are not just satisfied with good grades and test scores. They seek students who are curious, entrepreneurial, and engaged in their learning, rather than those who are focused solely on academic achievements.
Why might having a high SAT score potentially hurt an applicant's chances at Stanford?
-A high SAT score could be seen as a sign of excessive focus on standardized testing, which Stanford does not view as the best measure of a student's potential. The university values a broader set of qualities, including creativity and intellectual engagement, beyond test scores.
What makes the college application process so competitive?
-The competitiveness of the college application process is due to an increasing number of applicants, many of whom apply to the same top-tier schools. This creates a high level of competition, making it important for students to differentiate themselves through unique experiences and personal qualities.
How does the script suggest students approach choosing colleges to apply to?
-The script advises students to avoid applying to the same schools as everyone else and to create a college list based on personal fit, not popularity. The focus should be on finding a school that aligns with the student's strengths and career aspirations.
Outlines
🎓 The University Evaluation Process: Public vs. Private Schools
This paragraph discusses the evaluation process at both public and private universities. Public schools focus primarily on grades, SATs, and the chosen program. In contrast, private schools, such as Stanford, Harvard, and Princeton, incorporate deeper evaluation methods, looking at holistic factors like personal qualities and intellectual passion. The speaker compares the evaluation process to a job interview, with admissions officers seeking students who demonstrate qualities they'd enjoy sharing a meal with, rather than simply academic performance. They emphasize the importance of personal traits such as leadership, character, and intellectual vitality in the private school application process.
💡 Stanford’s Approach to Admissions: Intellectual Vitality and Maturity
This section delves into Stanford University's unique evaluation approach, prioritizing intellectual vitality, maturity, and responsibility in the learning process. Stanford seeks students who are not just academically gifted but who actively engage in learning and take responsibility for their education. The school values students who exhibit maturity, self-discipline, and a drive to go beyond standard school assignments. The paragraph also emphasizes the entrepreneurial spirit of Stanford, highlighting that memorization is not rewarded, but rather innovative and out-of-the-box thinking is encouraged.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Evaluation process
💡Grades and SATs
💡Holistic evaluation
💡Personal characteristics
💡Intellectual vitality
💡Challenge met and overcome
💡Leadership
💡Letters of recommendation
💡Entrepreneurial economy
💡Standardized tests
Highlights
The evaluation process for universities includes various hurdles, with large public universities focusing on grades and SATs, while private universities take a more holistic approach.
Private universities, like Stanford and Harvard, emphasize personal characteristics, intellectual vitality, leadership, and maturity, beyond just academic scores.
The admissions process can be compared to selecting a lunch companion—looking for someone interesting, not necessarily a superstar.
Letters of recommendation and multiple essays are crucial in providing insight into personal attributes that separate students in the admissions process.
Intellectual vitality, purpose, and passion are key qualities that elite schools like Stanford look for in applicants.
Admissions officers seek evidence of intrinsic motivation and active enjoyment in learning, where students take responsibility for their educational journey.
Maturity and self-discipline are highly valued, especially when students demonstrate the ability to go beyond standard school assignments.
Universities like Stanford look for original thinking, creativity, and an entrepreneurial spirit in students, rather than those who simply aim for high standardized test scores.
The competitive nature of college admissions is driven by an increasing number of applications, creating a need for students to differentiate themselves.
It is essential for students to research and find colleges that align with their personal fit, rather than applying to the same few elite institutions.
Career exploration and self-discovery are key elements of the guidance process, helping students find the right college and career paths.
The program offers a comprehensive online testing system with customizable questions, designed to build on students' strengths and weaknesses.
The test platform includes audio, video, and text explanations for each question, ensuring a multi-modal learning experience.
A week-by-week, day-by-day program is available for students to help them prepare for standardized tests, offering flexibility to fit individual schedules.
The program also offers support for financial aid, with a dedicated team working to identify colleges offering need-based or merit-based aid, particularly for international students.
Transcripts
they took the evaluation process at the
University and is being kind of a series
of hurdles that your application goes if
you're applying to a large public it's
only a couple how will your grades what
we are SATs
what program are you studying it did us
a make any sense at all you know it
feels pretty like go above you know
pretty straightforward hurdles but when
you're doing a private school side
there's going to be a serious much more
in-depth hurdles you know everything
will always begin with this where they
are this poor that full it always begins
with power your grades and I hate to say
it but that's just your best way to kind
of measure where the scene this app and
a concert environment because whether
it's Stanford or whether its mission in
the classroom
now you go from Cal Berkeley across the
bay to Stanford nurse or any private
school
Harvard Yale Princeton Stanford and this
is what that first thing in this never
taught me they're like what whoever's
internet was the plan and I realized was
like writing evaluation every year
you're kind of coming up with your 40
I equate I acquit not with a job
interview getting admitted to Princeton
are real Christmas answer is doing
Christ
[Music]
it's like it's more than just days it's
actually getting invited over to
something done something where the
leaders looking at that application
saying I like that now put it into
student perspective it's like who would
you want to share lunch with you got it
right what is fine what qualities are
you looking for the let me ask you what
qualities do you look for in a lunch
companion this lunchtime you've got a
45-minute breathing you're sitting there
you're eating your lunch what what give
you some descriptive attributes they
need to have a good taste in food so
they sit down here I go let here's some
smelly will official life and not eating
with you right okay good
what are you looking forward to what's
convenient interactive yes there's
nothing worse than sitting down and
trying to talk to someone less than is
not doing anything and there's just
nothing there that I find interesting
please understand that I didn't say you
have to be a superstar not to you know
stay five lights in weeks and bring
peace to the Middle East of it no I just
wanted something in the file room like
that's interesting that's kind of like I
would mind I mean the most common test
we had a sample was not how smart of it
were the event so that it's like would
you want to share a dorm with this
for you the first one is certainly
numbers and the second fun holistically
is an evaluation of your personal
characteristics this is why we ask for
letters recommendation this is why you
write multiple ethics I'm just trying to
figure out do I want to have you over to
the dinner party so here are some the
terms you know big one intellectual
vitality
you know purpose passion and we need
challenges net nerve economy character
and leadership that's the stuff you look
for in the application essays and the
letters of recommendation or things like
that you know this is the stuff that
certainly separates you now one time I
was reading a challenges men overcome
essay might be the worst I ever in my
life here was this students challenge
met in overtime and if you milli or
California I'll start on the survey
phases Orange County this is just south
of LA just north of San Diego and the
challenge that this poor student men
overcome was for her 16th birthday she
was expecting a new Lexus sadly she got
her grandparents like a year and had to
divide that to school this was her
challenge met and overcome that was a
quick that I so you know challenges met
number coming looking for real things
character leadership vitality now the
next slide is actually a screenshot from
Stanford University when I work there of
their evaluation rubric first nos Hogan
vitality shows that the student has and
an active enjoyment of an engagement in
the learning process active enjoyment
oh and engagement in the learning
process are you sure you love go to
school you love learning you're engaged
in the process you're on fire alright
let's see Yuma some significant
responsibility for their own learning
process you you're not relying on the
teachers to teach you everything you
assume responsibility
you taking that lesson you said okay I
was so struck with that big penis then
on my own I really pushed it show
maturity and self-discipline the
fulfillment of a project that goes well
beyond the limits of a school assignment
are you looking at your feet agreement
with AirPlay know my father's ever so
long so you've got that you know
original figures showing maturity this
was it we look for this stuff in the
application in judging the or to thing
you want people to have discussed
intrinsic attic
well I think that for now not for also
just for Stanford now let's think about
where separate is it's in the tillage
about it's in the heart of kind of this
entrepreneurial economy this is not a
place for kids that like to memorize
this is not how the school was set up
it's not going to reward that it's the
place for the things that are kind of
like I want I've gotten again I want to
try it
that was our that was our ethos that was
what we decided our campus was about you
know so for this particular case study
and it'll be a really great thing that
we have a lot of time here we should go
through an every college that I had
shoot some good here's the p-value but
there's this one it's like yeah at
Stanford we were looking for kind of
out-of-the-box thinkers we were looking
for takers we're looking for kids that
remember satisfied with just I got my a
I got a good SAT score I'm moving on I
actually thought at times at Stanford
that having to current SAT hurts you and
represented a commitment to standardized
tests that we definitely think measured
much just like what will happen in the
process is you'll get a fail now last
question might be this why is it so
competitive
I would say that there's three main
reasons why he's got that at home in
terms of the competitiveness of many
colleges first more apps person so do
some research try to break out about
that whole thing of sameness you know
don't go houses Mexico and don't apply
it you know share a college list and if
everyone's got the same ten schools on
the list you're in trouble you know you
probably think I'm fine with the same
five the little books options access
please try to create a program which is
comfortable for you to remember right in
the beginning what I've told you while
we do help you find the best fit
colleges for yourself and get admission
in there our aim is not to get you kids
into college on imagery to bring a
journey that works for you in terms of
journey divorce in the long run to you a
career in college journey that can take
you towards a vision that you keep you
happy
start with career exploration our
testing is also done as far as possible
in a self-discovery structure so start
to fill your guidance we have a national
debt resolution for methods and press
which is an online test web program it's
a very high quality of our questions and
quizzes that can be customized or you
have to start working to it according to
your strengths and weaknesses in what we
need to work on each question as audio
video and text explanation for students
to look at it has a excellent week by
week day by day program which is the
span of a few minutes every day that
spend on it then extensively program and
the package is available to you for a
year but you can really play with it
according to when you are giving the
test record run you have a run up that
really works for you you can also have
equity as well as apts so you can check
out both and see which one's work
schedule please to the red serpent we
have a team with a dedicated team that
works with financially that creates
great that is useful for you from the
financial aid perspective you know
colleges that offer financial aid to
international students colleges that
offer metaphase the need-based is who
would be looking at what would be the
known opportunities there will be
creating more partnerships from
financial aid with politics represent
about dedicated team or finance based on
data that will work with your students
to create financial aid conditions for
them and a percentage tip of the working
is college counseling which is a very
fundamental offering from all of us for
you where you have certified counselors
to work with where you can either have
regular one to one section till you
reach the college acting or you can
customize something that works
essentially for you
you
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