Three quick questions with Haverford College

Three quick questions with Haverford College

For Three Quick Questions, I send the same three questions to admissions representatives at colleges all over the country (the subject line of the e-mail is “Three quick questions”), and then I hope to hear back from them. When I do, I post them on Apply with Sanity. It’s that simple.

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Tyler Clausen-Wolf, Admission Counselor at the Haverford College in Haverford, Pennsylvania.

What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to Haverford College?

Three quick questions with Case Western Reserve University

Three quick questions with Case Western Reserve University

For Three Quick Questions, I send the same three questions to admissions representatives at colleges all over the country (the subject line of the e-mail is “Three quick questions”), and then I hope to hear back from them. When I do, I post them on Apply with Sanity. It’s that simple.

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Rodrigue Lembven, Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.

What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to Case Western Reserve University?

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Things are more steady for Breya

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Things are more steady for Breya

Thanks to Breya, I learned what a Dorm Haul video is, and now I’m watching them too. (It seems you can have a pretty sweet dorm room if you have Bed Bath & Beyond or The Container Store giving you lots of free stuff.) But Breya isn’t just watching videos. She’s sending off early applications, applying for scholarships, and even joining a new school organization. Things aren’t great—she’s still in virtual school and anxious—but her tone sounds more calm and steady than last month. Read the full interview below.

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Julianna is optimistic and happy. No, really.

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Julianna is optimistic and happy. No, really.

I sent these questions to Julianna—and heard back from her—on election day. On top of one of the most contentious elections in American history, we’re in the middle of another wave of the Covid pandemic, with US cases up over 40% from where they were two weeks ago. It’s not a great time to be a high school student trying to figure out college next year, or even to be a high school student trying to figure out high school this year. But Julianna is still optimistic, still excited. Read this month’s interview below.

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Think of admissions like a party

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Think of admissions like a party

As much as we understand the concept of holistic admissions, it’s hard to remember how it actually works. I’ve talked to many, many people—both students and adults—who can tell you what holistic admissions means, but then go on to say that it’s “really” all about test scores. Or that someone got into a particular college because of their essay. Or didn’t get into a particular college because of their essay. But holistic means that there’s not one single piece of information that leads to your acceptance or denial. It’s just hard to really believe that colleges take the whole application into consideration, and then evaluate it in a nebulous, non-checklist kind of way. So let’s use an analogy to perhaps make the process more intuitive.

Three quick questions with the University of Chicago

Three quick questions with the University of Chicago

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Rebecca Kahn-Witman, Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois.

What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to the University of Chicago?

Three quick questions with Willamette University

Three quick questions with Willamette University

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Amarit Ubhi, Admissions Counselor at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon.

What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to Willamette University?

Where should seniors be in the application process right now?

Where should seniors be in the application process right now?

Alright, class of ‘21, let’s do a quick check-in and make sure you’re on track for an efficient and effective application season. It’s Mid-October, and most of your applications are probably due in early January. Where should you be in the process right now?

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Tyra is working through a mess

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Tyra is working through a mess

Tyra is ok, but she’s not having the best fall. She hasn’t seen her best friend in a long time, her grandfather’s not doing well, she seems less certain about her vet program than she did a month ago, and about ten percent of her school has tested positive for Covid so far. Read the full interview below.

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Breya is working alone

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Breya is working alone

I caught up with Breya this week to learn a bit more about her and her college plans. She’s been very involved in her school, and she has an impressive list of colleges where she may go next year. But at the moment, like so many high school students right now, Breya is mostly working alone at home. Read the full interview.

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Happy birthday to Apply with Sanity!

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Happy birthday to Apply with Sanity!

The first blog post on Apply with Sanity was on September 28, 2016. It was just a short welcome and explanation of what the site is about, and all those things are still true four years later:

I want to reduce the amount of pressure you feel, not increase it.

I want to empower you to feel in control, not feel like a passive product for schools to consider.

I know that you, a unique and interesting person, are important regardless of your college situation.

I understand that a big-name, highly marketed college isn’t necessarily a path to happiness.

I feel that self-knowledge is the most important knowledge.

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Five key ideas about paying for college

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Five key ideas about paying for college

It’s really hard to talk about paying for college with a broad audience, because every individual’s circumstances are different. And individual circumstances are really important to college affordability, since the price of college depends to a huge degree on your individual circumstances. One of the great things about college education—but also one of the complicated things—is that most students pay different amounts for the same education. However, as we’re coming up on application due dates and FAFSA opening up on October 1, there are some key ideas that are applicable to everyone, no matter your individual finances.

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Three quick questions with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

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Three quick questions with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

For Three Quick Questions, I send the same three questions to admissions representatives at colleges all over the country (the subject line of the e-mail is “Three quick questions”), and then I hope to hear back from them. When I do, I post them on Apply with Sanity. It’s that simple.

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Theresa Abbott, Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York.

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Three quick questions with Davidson College

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Three quick questions with Davidson College

For Three Quick Questions, I send the same three questions to admissions representatives at colleges all over the country (the subject line of the e-mail is “Three quick questions”), and then I hope to hear back from them. When I do, I post them on Apply with Sanity. It’s that simple.

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Abby Vidmer, Admission Counselor at Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina.

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Three quick questions with Muhlenberg College

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Three quick questions with Muhlenberg College

For Three Quick Questions, I send the same three questions to admissions representatives at colleges all over the country (the subject line of the e-mail is “Three quick questions”), and then I hope to hear back from them. When I do, I post them on Apply with Sanity. It’s that simple.

The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.

This response is from Bailey Fulginiti, Assistant Director of Admissions at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania.