Based on my over 20 years experience as a college admissions advisor and admissions strategist, I thought I would share some advice with students who have been receiving disappointing decision results.
Admissions committees give careful, individual attention to each applicant. They review each applicant with a magnifying glass and compare each applicant to other qualified applicants. They accept applicants who will inspire those around them during their college years and beyond.
My firm’s strategies involve widening the lens through which our applicant-clients are viewed, recognizing and valuing the different dimensions that shape each student. We understand, in real-time, how an admissions committee at a particular college may view each dimension separately and collectively in comparison to other students during the selection process by visiting schools and talking with admissions officers. As an alternative to settling for a rejection decision (which most students do) to a student’s first choice school, I posit this possible solution:
The student may consider reapplying as a transfer student. It is not too early for a high school senior to consider this. I call it our Admissions Second Chance Program. I review and investigate what went wrong, because, in all cases of rejection decisions, something wasn’t right! Usually I find innumerable mistakes or homogeneity on the Common Application and/or school-specific supplemental essays. Many times I have discovered that no matter how “amazing” the student sounds on paper (top grades, high GPA and SATs, volunteerism, extracurricular activities, recommendations, ESE (Expensive Summer Experiences), to me, they were unconvincing to the admissions committee at a specific school for many reasons. In these cases, we make recommendations to improve the student’s profile and properly connect the dots within their application and beyond. In unique cases, we have been retained by clients who were initially rejected and after our review and intervention the student’s application was reconsidered and ultimately accepted for admission.
By visiting the Ivies and highly selective schools, understanding the dynamic changes and nuances in individual colleges, and knowing what to do to make a student stand out amongst other applicants, my team and I gain an insightful perspective of each school and develop strategies to help our clients get accepted.
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?” – Dr. Paul Lowe.
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected. and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors.
Dr. Paul Lowe - Admissions Expert 