Cappex College Blog

Most college applications are now out, and while students wait, colleges are weighing in. According to a recent Washington Post story, applications this year are up, in some places by as much as 30 percent!

“Vanderbilt: up 30 percent. Cornell: up more than 7 percent. Johns Hopkins: up more than 7 percent, to nearly 16,000 — about 6,000 more than six years ago.

Even schools that did away with early admissions have seen an increase: a 6 percent jump at Princeton, 4 percent at U-Va., almost 19 percent at Harvard, to a whopping 27,278. And, as at most schools, a few applications have yet to arrive.

Don’t freak out. There is a college out there for you. Much of the increase is due to more students applying to more schools. Despite the increases in student applications, 70 percent of colleges admit 70 percent of applicants.

So you’ve applied. Now what?

Once you apply there are certain steps to take to make sure that everything is order.

• Confirm that your application materials are complete at each of the colleges.
  • High school transcript
  • Recommendations
  • Official SAT or ACT scores
• Set up any required interviews with the college or the alumni interviewers
• Submit a first semester grade report form to your high school so that first semester grades can be released to colleges requiring these grades.
• Set up a visit to campuses of interest
• Send any required portfolios or additional information that might help with an admission decision

If you think that you can now rest from worrying about your academic record, you had better think again. Senior year counts. Many colleges will request grades from the first semester. Regardless, students will have to send a final transcript to the college they plan to attend. Being admitted is not a guarantee that the admission decision will stand. Colleges have been known to rescind a decision based on final transcripts. Students are expected to complete high school with the same or better record that they had when they were admitted.

If you do get placed on a waiting list, follow all of the college’s instructions if you are still interested in attending. Stay on their radar because some spots will likely be opening up.

Many students use the time between applying and deciding to take college visits. Even if you’ve already visited a college once, you can still gain good insight from another visit. After all, you will be spending lots of time on campus. If you spent your first visit in the classroom, use your second trip to check out student hang-outs or the city around the school.

Also don’t forget to: Send in AP exam scores, housing deposits, waitlist confirmation cards, scholarship applications and FAFSA forms.

We’ve stressed the importance of finding the right college fit many times, but there are two numbers that really drive this point home:

• 23 percent of of students entering college will transfer
• 54 percent of college freshmen will graduate within 6 years of their college start date

First, this means that one in four students will leave a first-choice school for another, be it because of grades, teaching environment, distance from home or anything else.

Second, most students need several years to complete college. In other words, be prepared to spend significant time at your college.

In short, you need to love your college, and I don’t mean if your parents like the college or you like the college’s name or school mascot.

If you choose a college based solely on your parents’ wishes or because a friend is going there, you could be in trouble. If the college isn’t right for you, you may want to transfer - which costs time, money and, often, class credit - or you’ll be stuck somewhere you don’t like for many years.

The best way to get into the right school for you is to take charge of your college search. From day one, make the college search about you. It can be easy to turn they keys of your college search over to your parents, but for this trip you need to be in the driver’s seat.

You should:

• Use the Internet to assist in your college search
• Review your academic record and courses planned for the rest of high school
• Seek information about specific college admission criteria
• Examine your interests and college major options
• Meet with college representatives to learn about the college and the college admission process
• Talk to your high school counselor about your college search
• Visit college campuses to get an idea about large, small, public, private, urban, suburban and rural campuses
• Keep communication channels open with your parents and let them be a part of the team
• Stay focused on academics to enhance your chances of meeting the college admission criteria for colleges on your list
• Be the driver of your college search

Remember: The right college for someone else may not be right for you.

If you’ve been checking this space, you know Cappex has been awarding loads of scholarships lately. We recently spoke with the winner of our business scholarship about his college search and big business plans for the future.

Jeffrey is a senior in Cerritos, Calif., with an interest in business and health care. He hasn’t chosen a college yet, but he has set some lofty goals. Cappex is proud to help him pursue his goals of making health care more readily available in high-need areas. On the CappCast he talks about these plans, the internship that influenced him and what he’s looking for in a college.

 

 Cappex Business Scholarship Winner [4:13m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

P.S. Only 16 days left to apply for the January deadline Cappex scholarships.

The winners keep coming. Today, we’ve got the two winners of the College Tour Travel Scholarships for December: Luke M., from Belchertown, Mass., and Lauren E. from Chesapeake Va.

Congratulations Luke and Lauren!

If you were not a winner there are still lots of opportunities to take home a Cappex college scholarship, but you’ll have to act quickly. Jan. 31 is the deadline for most of our scholarships. In terms of money being awarded, Jan. 31 is the biggest Cappex scholarship deadline ever!

This is your last chance to apply for the hardship scholarship and the $5,000 Cappex College Scholarship. This is also the deadline for the English, education and political science scholarships. And finally, if you signed up for the Cappex promoter scholarship you have until Jan. 31 to sign up your friends.

Very soon we will be launching a whole new line of scholarships, so stay tuned.

Whew. That’s a lot of money for college. Get the full details on all the college scholarships.

Grades are cumulative, but junior year grades stick out larger and more than other years. So listen up juniors, the biggest semester of your high school career is just around the bend.

Junior year is the last full year used in determining college admission. For many schools, to get in you’ve got to get the grades. The second semester of this year, then, is your last chance to show potential colleges upward trending grades and academically challenging courses.

Upward-trending grades are important, particularly if you earned less-than-stellar marks during freshman or sophomore year. Some colleges do not count freshman year grades in their GPA. Others are more concerned with how you are performing as a student now, not when you were still adjusting to high school. Good marks during your junior year, even if the prior two years weren’t so great, could earn you a closer look from colleges.

A few A’s and B’s now can overshadow grades you would rather forget, especially with the right letter of recommendation from a teacher. If you are a student on the rise, a teacher can explain how your current efforts aren’t reflected in your overall GPA. Remember: It is easier to explain an upward trend or late-bloomer than a downward spiral.

If you’ve already got the grades make sure you don’t stumble. Use this semester to show your willingness to take on academic challenges. Junior year courses should include at least four academic core courses in foreign language, math, English, social studies and science.

Remember: freshman year counts, sophomore year counts, junior year counts and, yes, even senior year counts.

The wait is over! Cappex college scholarship winners are in, and we are excited to finally announce which students earned some of our biggest awards. We had lots of great applicants and the decisions were tough. Congratulations to everyone.

• Ashley F. of Tampa, Fla., wins the Communications Scholarship.
• Aparna R. of Plymouth, Minn., wins the Biology Scholarship.
• Jeffrey L. of Cerritos, Calif., wins the Business Scholarship.
• Kate D. of Columbus, Miss., and Garrett V. of Paris, Texas are winners of the Cappex College Tour Travel Scholarships.
• Corey M. of Smyrna, Ga., wins the GPA Isn’t Everything Scholarship.

We backed up our promise with the GPA Isn’t Everything Scholarship. Corey doesn’t have a 4.0, though he’s got a lot going for him. He’s class president, co-captain of the cross country team and a sergeant in JROTC. He does drama and a host of volunteer activities.

If you didn’t win, there are still several chances to take home a Cappex college scholarship. Jan. 31 is the deadline to apply for the Cappex College Scholarship, Cappex Promoter Scholarship, Hardship and our final two (for now) College Tour Travel Scholarships. That date is also the deadline for the Cappex “I Don’t Want to Pay For College” Scholarship and our English, education and political science scholarships.

Good luck to everyone applying, and congratulations again to all our winners.

Don’t forget: Tell us where you’re applying! We want to know which Cappex colleges you are sending your applications. Leave a comment below or email us at students@cappex.com.