Sometimes admission outcomes don’t seem to make sense. You may be asking yourself: How could I have been admitted to the #1 ranked university in the country but not to the #40 ranked university?

Well, first of all, rankings aren’t everything. But there’s more to it than that.

The Smith College campus is beautiful — the requisite old buildings, an exquisite library, amazing houses (dorms), a world famous greenhouse, and Paradise Pond as the backdrop to crisp fall days and lazy spring mornings. But the most compelling aspect of Smith is its student body: women who are eager to engage, challenge, grow, support, laugh, and learn. 

In a recent op-ed in the New York Times, Emi Nietfeld reflects on her initial “overshare” about her mental health challenges (and its perceived consequences, including a rejection from Yale) and the ways in which she was able to reflect upon and ultimately convey her story in a way that was more compelling for her college applications.

So what is the appropriate degree of disclosure in a college application?

Federal data illustrates the toll the pandemic has taken on students’ mental health, but the issue of parental involvement—always a source of tension between parents and students in the college process—has also intensified. As a parent, what can you do to support your child during this stressful but exciting time in their life?

So you’re waiting for mid-March when colleges will release a flood of seemingly life-defining decisions. It’s a nerve-racking time, so Sean offers some helpful tips about the dos and don’ts of waiting for college decisions!

Remember how your application was read by two different admissions officers, either individually or in a team? As a result of their evaluation, your application has now been sorted into a bin. There are many pathways to getting deferred/waitlisted or denied, but only one way to get admitted: the Selection Committee.

If you’re a high school senior, chances are you recently hit the submit button on at least a few of your college applications – congratulations! Now you’re probably wondering what’s going to happen to that application over the next 2-3 months while you await the college’s decision. Olivia dives into the nuances of application reading and review in the first post of our Inside Admissions series.