How to Make Your College Application Stand Out

Harvard University‘s longtime Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William Fitzsimmons has long lamented (or bragged, depending on whom you ask!) that Harvard has no choice but to reject over five incoming classes worth of students with perfect or near-perfect grades and scores. So, what distinguishes an applicant who will … 

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How to Impress College Admissions Officers

Many students think they know how to impress admissions officers at America’s elite universities. Maybe they’ll send them long-winded emails filled with not-so-subtle brags about their accomplishments. Perhaps they’ll include recommendations from influential politicians with their applications. Or maybe they’ll get involved in just about every club and sport their high school … 

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The Pros and Cons of Applying Through The Common Application

If you’re the parent of a high school senior, you might be wondering about the pros and cons of The Common Application. But while some schools have their own applications, gone is the day when schools offer students the option of applying either through their own application or The Common … 

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Questions to Ask Admissions Officers on High School Visits

Many parents who are not Ivy Coach‘s clients come to us for a PostMortem after their children have been deferred or denied admission in the Early Action/Early Decision round. During this session, we discern what went wrong so that some of the same mistakes are avoided in the Regular Decision round. One … 

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Ivy League Application Deadlines in Fall 2023

When are the Early Decision/Single Choice Early Action deadlines for the fall of 2023 across the Ivy League? While most of America’s highly selective universities have November 1st deadlines for Early Decision/Single Choice Early Action admission, each Ivy League school’s exact Early deadline can occasionally fluctuate from year to year … 

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What Not to Write: 3 College Essay Topics to Avoid

Previously Published on March 11, 2015: College applicants sure do write about the strangest things! Several years ago, Bustle ran a piece on topics college applicants write about in their college admissions essays, topics they should never have broached — not in 2015 when the article came out and not now in … 

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