Barnard is an all women’s college in New York City. There is a huge sense of community and there has been a 60% increase in applications over the past five years. Barnard students can take classes at nearby Columbia University, but steer clear of writing about Columbia in your supplement. The acceptance rate for the class of 2024 was just under 11%. We’re breaking down their supplements below. Please note that the last question is optional, which is a trap. There is no such thing as an optional supplement when a school’s acceptance rate is 11%. It’s crucial that you submit a response to all three prompts.
How to Write the Brown Supplement Essays 2020-2021
Brown University is an Ivy League school that is located in Providence, Rhode Island. Just over 7,000 undergraduates attend the school, and the acceptance rate for the class of 2024 was 6.9%. Brown is known for its open curriculum, but there is a common misconception that it’s an ideal fit for students who want to figure out things along the way. This is false, and you certainly shouldn’t mention the words “open to exploring Brown’s many options” in your supplement. To succeed at Brown, you need to be a self-starter who can think ahead and structure their education in a meaningful way.
How to Write the Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) Supplement Essays 2020-2021
Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, with an undergraduate student body of around 7,700. Many students seek out WashU for their exceptional research programs, opportunities, and facilities, but the university is more than a just petri dish for research. One in every three students take part in study abroad, 75% participate in intramural (club) sports, and 80% pursue multiple majors or minors. It’s also a geographically diverse school, as 90% of undergraduate students come from out of state. Despite coming from far and wide, the campus community is very close, and there are many traditions that foster deep bonds among students and faculty. One of our favorites is DUC N’ Donuts — or free donuts and coffee on the first Friday of each month.
College Tuition: Coronavirus/COVID-19
There’s a lot of chatter right now around the price of attending college online. Colleges are basically charging the same price for a significantly downgraded product. They’re hoping that their demand is relatively inelastic so they won’t see a drop in their yield and revenue. Most parents and students think this is W I L D (why would you ever pay full price if you’re getting, at best, 10% of a product?). There are a ton of class-action lawsuits surrounding this. Fun.
Williams Reopening Fall 2020: Coronavirus/COVID-19 Update
Last week, Williams announced a plan for reopening in the fall. The announcement, which you can read here, detailed plans to move forward with an in-person semester with additional safety measures in place. College life will be different this year, and the letter mentions “significant adjustments to the way we live and learn.”
Creating a College List During Coronavirus/COVID-19
If you’re reading this blog post, you’re probably in the process of creating your college list. This is a good thing because schools will be releasing their supplements next Month, and ideally, you’ll have your list narrowed down by then. But between the daily test-optional updates, vague news stories about school openings and safety measures, and the fact that you might not have been able to visit any colleges due to their early closings, we understand that creating a school list might be harder than you had anticipated.
Coronavirus Question: Should I Go to a Local College and Then Transfer?
Students often have thoughts about how they can creatively work around the competitiveness of the college admissions system. In fact, some have tried to cut in line by transferring to lower-performing schools for their junior and senior years to graduate with a better standing for their resume. While this scenario isn’t cutting in line, per se, one question we’ve gotten from students is whether or not they should go to a local college and then transfer to a college they’d prefer to attend. Here are our thoughts:
Summer Job Ideas for High Schooler Juniors
Tips for Applying to Brown During Coronavirus/COVID-19
ICYMI, Brown is test-optional for the upcoming school year. We broke down their announcement here. Their statement is unnecessarily wordy and yet despite its length, it does not provide any groundbreaking information. Essentially, send in your scores if you’ve done well because Brown says, verbatim, “we will continue to review test scores that are submitted.”
Harvard is Test-Optional for 2020-2021 because of Coronavirus/COVID-19
It’s official! Harvard released an announcement stating that not only are SAT Subject Tests optional (which they announced in March) but now SAT and ACT scores are also going to be optional for this upcoming application cycle. In their introduction, Harvard states that due to elevated levels of anxiety and uncertainty, that they are making this adjustment because they: “want to be helpful in any way we can.”
Tips for Applying to Yale During Coronavirus/Covid-19
If you’re familiar with our blog, you probably already know that the entire Ivy League is test-optional for the class of 2025. This might ~seem~ like good news to those aspiring Yale students who are yet to sit for a test. But it actually means that even more people will be applying to Yale this year, which will lower their acceptance rate. Spoiler alert: it’s still really hard to get into Yale. Your application will still be considered without test scores, but this means that all other components will matter more. Below you’ll find a few tips for applying to Yale:
Yale is Test-Optional for 2020-2021 because of Coronavirus/COVID-19
Here we go. Yale is officially waiving their SAT and ACT requirements for applicants to the class of 2025. It isn’t entirely surprising, given the fact that every other Ivy League has now announced that applicants are not required to submit testing with their applications if they so choose. Even so, it’s a big year for many reasons and it’s worth taking a bit of a closer look into Yale’s specific policy’s wording.
Tips for Applying to Harvard During Coronavirus/Covid-19
In keeping with the rest of the Ivy League, the small liberal arts school just outside of Boston more commonly known as Harvard is now test-optional for the upcoming round of applicants. Before you jump for joy, please understand that it will still be extremely difficult to get into Harvard this year. Even harder than last year. This is because more people will be applying in light of this recent shift. At TKG, we have made our stance on applying to Ivy League schools “just because” quite clear. If you’re planning on applying to Harvard, you need to have already been working towards this goal long before the school went test-optional. It is worth noting that Harvard will still consider your scores if you send them in, which means that you should definitely send your scores in if you did well. Keep reading for our tips on applying to Harvard this year:
Tips for Applying to Princeton During Coronavirus/COVID-19
A wise man once said, “better late than never, but never late is better.” Well, Princeton must have heard these profound Drake lyrics because the school just decided to hop on board the test-optional train. A bit late, but they did it. Please direct yourself to this blog post that breaks down their announcement, which includes a decision to remove their single-choice early action offering.
Princeton University Early Action: a History
Princeton eliminated Early applications this year...again. So, what? When Princeton announced it’s switch to test-optional for this upcoming application cycle, we weren’t surprised. They were the last of the Ivies (and a number of other schools) to announce, and we thought it was pretty likely that they’d follow suit. In a less expected twist, though, they also included in their announcement that they were switching to one (Regular) application deadline/cycle, thus eliminating their Single Choice Early Action option that they’ve had (on and off) for the last couple of decades.
Princeton is Test-Optional for 2020-2021 because of Coronavirus/COVID-19
Welcome, Princeton. Your bros let you sleep in and you missed the bus, but you got an Uber so you’re only a few days late. Princeton announced that they are joining the rest of their “Ivy League, etc.” friends in going test-optional for this upcoming 2020-2021 application cycle. Plus...TWIST...they’re getting rid of their single-choice early action option and moving to one collective Jan. 1 regular decision deadline/application option.
Brown University is Test-Optional for 2020-2021 because of Coronavirus/COVID-19
Choo choo! Brown is hopping on the test-optional train. Finally. We’ll see if Stanford hops on and joins its other high-achieving friends who have climbed aboard over the last few weeks. Stops in Hanover, Cambridge, New York, New Haven, Ithaca, Philadelphia, Princeton, and now Providence have all been fruitful. Brown is, we’re sure, thrilled to join the party.
How to Write a Common App Essay
SAT 2020-2021 Coronavirus/COVID-19 Policy
On June 2nd, the college board put out a statement asking colleges to “show flexibility in admissions this year” amidst the ongoing challenges with providing universal access to standardized testing. So, when the college board released the upcoming summer and fall test dates, they asked colleges to extend their deadlines for receiving test scores from prospective students AND to also equally consider students who were unable to take the test due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Here’s an exact breakdown of the three ways that the college board asked for flexibility from colleges: