Some students may assume that if they want to study math in college, larger universities make more sense because of their graduate-level programs. Math courses at larger schools are often bigger ones that get split into small groups taught by TAs (and TAs can be great!) and not by the research professors themselves. Students often don’t get the opportunity to work across disciplines in the same way they do at liberal arts colleges (LAC). It’s important to know that you can still find advanced, rigorous math courses at small LACs, and the advantage of a LAC is that you can then study subjects that aren’t math, too.
The Best Activities for the Summer After Sophomore Year of High School
You’re officially *in* high school now. You’re a rising junior, which means that next year is going to be your most intense yet. Your summer should reflect that. Hopefully this year you’ve done some work exploring and solidifying your interests within the context of your extracurricular activities, outside-of-school efforts, and your reading and online courses. We know we’ve said this before, but it’s important to reiterate: colleges look at how you spend your free time. Summer is a big chunk of free time that is yours for the taking (or wasting).
The Best Small Liberal Arts Colleges for Computer Science
Computer science is one of the broadest and most relevant fields today. While most people think of schools such as MIT and Carnegie Mellon when computer science is mentioned, there are a number of small liberal arts schools with strong computer science programs. Nearly every discipline today is and/or can be impacted by computational thinking, and studying computer science at a liberal arts school that emphasizes the importance of critical thinking and communication skills is worth considering.
How to Talk to a Teacher About a Bad Grade
We’ve all been there. And let us be the first to tell you: it’s going to be okay. But most of the time, poor grades on your transcript are avoidable. It’s not like you get As on all of your papers and then all of a sudden get a C in the class because the teacher feels like it. Course grades are a cumulative reflection on how you did over a period of time, and oftentimes, students don’t react as quickly as they should to warning signs like Bs or Cs on papers or tests before the final grades are submitted.
The Best Activities for the Summer After Freshman Year of High School
The summer after freshman year is your first “real” summer, and we find that the time is best used to explore initial interests in certain areas. That doesn’t mean that you can’t see your friends or that you aren’t allowed to have fun, we’re just saying that colleges look specifically at how you spend your free time as an indicator of success and work ethic and summer means a lot of free time. You could spend it at camp, but that won’t do much to further your interests. We’d like you to use this free chunk of 2-2.5 months to do something that is both fun and related to something academic that you’re interested in. And make sure that you find time to be active and play basketball with your friends. Here are some initial ideas that we have that are perfect for freshmen beginning to explore their interest(s):
Books that Look Good on College Applications
We love to read. We are voracious and committed to reading all sorts of books all of the time so that a) you don’t need to, and b) we can guide you on your literary journey(s). It’s our favorite work to do with students. The books that we recommend they read aim to challenge their perceptions about certain topics. And then we talk about it. That’s really our favorite part.
The Pros and Cons of Being Pre-Med at a Liberal Arts School:
While it’s true that biology, biochemistry, biomedical engineering, and chemistry still top the list of the most popular majors for students who are pre-med, it’s also entirely possible to graduate with an undergraduate degree in the humanities, take the MCAT, and then attend medical school. Another option is to study STEM at a liberal arts school, and then follow the same path. We’ve found that most people think that pre-med students are better off at large research universities. This blog post will detail the pros and cons of attending a liberal arts college if medical school is your ultimate goal.
How To Transfer Colleges as a Freshman
While it’s true that transferring colleges is common, there is a major misconception floating around about the process. A lot of people think that transferring is easy, and that if you want to end up at Harvard, you can start out at a state school and transfer in your sophomore year. This is very much not the case.
College Tour Itinerary Template
We recently wrote a guide for how to choose a college to tour, and this blog post is about the logistics of planning the tour once you’ve decided where to go.
Deferred Early Decision with No Backup Plan
Before we get into the specifics of the next steps, let’s discuss what being deferred actually means. A lot of students think that colleges defer them “to be nice” or “to not hurt your feelings.” This is not something that colleges do. When you are deferred, you are put into the regular decision pool of applicants. It means that the school wants to see how your application will hold up once everyone else applies.
Online Courses as Extracurricular Activities for High School Students
We’ve found that how students use their free time is a big indicator of success (or lack thereof) during and after the college application process. That’s exactly why we emphasize the importance of spending free time, whether it is short or long breaks from school, , that 2-hour block before bed when you play video games, doing something that expands their academic interests. We’ve written in the past about how , like college-credit courses and online courses, . While there’s no one guaranteed path to gaining a college acceptance letters, we do know that colleges don’t like kids who waste their free time. In fact, it’s this non-school, , and , in addition to your , that we think most determines whether or not you’ll be accepted.
Choosing a College for Early Decision or Early Action
Subject: Choosing a College
Message: Hi! I’m going to be applying to college very soon. I have my three top choices, but I have been back and forth on which one I want to apply ED to and cannot figure out how to decide. I know I would be happy at all three of them, but if I apply RD, my chances of getting into any of them goes down. This decision is making me physically and mentally sick! Any advice for how to make it?
Rejected Early Decision with No Backup Plan
Being rejected early decision is not easy. We recommend taking a day to feel however you’re feeling and clear your head. It’s understandable that you’re upset, so try doing something to take your mind off of what just happened before diving back into the process. And we aren’t saying that being rejected isn’t painful! Rejection is hard. But you now need to make a lot of moves in a short amount of time, and getting that process started might be a welcome distraction from focusing on what isn’t going to work out. Before you start, remember this: it’s going to be okay. This happens a lot. And while that doesn’t make it any less upsetting, knowing that many other students are in your boat might offer a sense of comfort.
Top Materials Science and Engineering Undergraduate Colleges & Programs in the US
Materials engineers are detail-oriented, careful, and accurate workers with an eye for incongruities. If you love to solve puzzles, materials engineering might be for you. Potential career industries for materials engineers include biotechnology, tech, aerospace, and research labs, among others. The fact is that materials engineers are highly sought after and can contribute to any industry that ‘creates,’ which is essentially every industry. Fun fact: Materials Scientists and Engineers have some of the highest starting salaries upon graduation from their undergraduate program.
Tulane’s Acceptance Rate Explained
How to Request a College Class Visit Over Email
If you’re planning on visiting a college, you should seriously consider trying to sit in on a class. Some admissions offices are willing to schedule this for you, especially if you are an international student or are already doing an overnight. Most schools, however, leave it up to potential applicants to schedule their own class visits — and so most students don’t do it.
Guide for how to Choose a College to Tour
Before you get your hopes up about finding the right school on your first try, cozy up to the fact that you’re not going to walk away from your first college tour knowing that you want to attend that college. And you shouldn’t! If you do feel that way, you haven’t done enough research and you haven’t gone on enough tours.
8 Tips for Writing Transfer Essays
This post includes tips for both writing transfer essays and the intense prep work it requires to transfer. We’ve written a lot about the transferring process, and it’s important to keep in mind that transferring isn’t as easy as most people think. And you need a better reason than simply wanting to trade up. But if you’re reading this, you might already have your reasons for wanting to transfer. If you’re unsure but want more information and/or validation, read our “Should I Transfer” post.
Starting an Extracurricular Club in High School
Extracurricular activities are an important aspect of the college application process. But not in the way that many students think they are. Deciding which extracurriculars to pursue is an exercise in branding yourself, and it starts freshman year. Let’s compare two different activity lists and then discuss:
Where Should I Go to College?
The “college prep” process usually starts with high school students asking themselves: “where should I go to college?” Or maybe someone asked you where you’re thinking about applying, and you realized that you have no idea. It’s the question that comes first, and it can be seriously overwhelming. If you’re beginning to think about the future, this blog post will tell you where to start.