How did this artist get into her dream school?

A few months ago, Malia* and I sat down to celebrate her acceptance to Pitzer College.

With A’s & a few Bs’ for grades, no test scores, and a pretty quiet extracurricular activity list, she wasn’t an automatic shoe-in to a school that boosts a 14% RD acceptance rate. 

Though she is a gifted artist with a huge heart for social activism, she wasn’t sure she had what it takes.

“On paper, I wasn’t anything spectacular,” she reflected humbly during our chat. 

So, how did she manage to stand out?

Two things: 1. Digging deep into her college research; and 2. finding the right stories.

An innovative spin on researching colleges 

It sounds fairly straightforward, right? But in fact, researching colleges requires a lot more creativity than clicking around a bit on a school’s website. As I do with all of my students, I helped Malia dive deep into dozens and dozens of hours of research. 

We not only looked closely at the academic offerings for each school, but we also looked carefully at their social impact. What were they doing on their campuses to address racial injustice? How were they addressing gender issues? What was their stance on sustainability and climate change?  What kind of initiatives were they creating in their local communities?

We also hung out on the presidents’ pages, read their articles, and listened to their podcasts. 

In other words, Malia didn’t glance at the brochures and spend a few minutes on the home pages. She became an expert on each college.

In fact, she took her research so deep that her interviewer wasn’t even aware of one of Pitzer’s new outreach programs that had so impressed her. 

As Malia said, that research helped the college fall in love with her. It helped them see that she was the perfect fit for them. 

This is what most students get wrong!

And THIS is what most students get wrong. They do their cursory research, relying on US News and World Report to tell them what schools they should apply to instead of taking the time (and it’s a lot of time!) to learn as much as they can about each institution. Even their safeties. After all, what student (or parent!) wants to commit to four years at any school, no matter how prestigious, if they’re not sure it’s the right fit? 

AND, how can the colleges really know if you’re a good fit for them if students don’t speak to the very specific qualities that each of them offer?

Well, I helped Malia do exactly this. And it paid off beautifully.

But we didn’t just stop there. We also took the time to talk for hours until we’d found the right stories.

How to dig deep to find the right stories

Finding the right stories takes a lot of time. In fact, over the years, I’ve discovered that when I am willing to devote many hours of deep, curiosity-fueled conversations, every time I am able to help my students discover the stories that best express who they are and what they have to offer the colleges. 

Especially in the first month, it often looks like we’re just hanging out and chatting. Or, as Malia put it, like we’re going through some kind of empowered therapy sessions. But the whole time, I’m listening for the essence of who this student is. Of what they really need to communicate about themselves in a way that will make the admissions officers fall in love with them.

And, even before we hear results from the admissions process, I know I’ve done my job well when the parents are moved to tears. 

As Malia put it, “Both my parents cried when they read my personal essay. ‘This is you on a piece of paper!’ they said.”

Would you like to create the same experience for your student?

I would love to support your student to create the same results. Simply fill out a brief application form here, and I will be in touch right away. 

P.S. Would you like to see the conversation with Malia and me? Send me a little note here, and I’ll send you the link!

*Malia’s name changed to honor her privacy.