It is difficult to think that after working for nearly 3 years on the admission blog, this is my final post. Reflecting on my time as an admission counselor at USC is bittersweet. We learned a ton, I’ve grown professionally, and I was challenged day in and day trip. But, more important than the things I’ve achieved or contributed within my job, I get to go on from this chapter of my life with amazing memories, hilarious stories, and best of all, some pretty incredible friends.

The silver lining for me personally is that I’m not making the college admission world entirely—I’ll be transitioning to ‘the other part of the desk’ as we like to state in this profession by working in a high school as a college counselor. I am excited to continue working with students and families in this capacity and I feel so happy to have had such a wonderful experience at USC to help guide me dancing.

Saying goodbye is not easy, but much like it’s hard to graduate from high school and start your life as an university student, life is really all in regards to the transitions and embarking on new and exciting chapters. So, that’s how I’m going to treat this change—I’m ‘graduating’ from my 4 years in the admission that is undergraduate at USC and simply moving about the next chapter of my entire life. I am leaving USC with amazing memories and going into my next adventure with a available mind. Best of all, my experience at USC will be a part always of me personally — Fight On!

Tips and Tricks for Tackling the Personal Statement

Calling all seniors! The institution is right around the corner, and that means it’s time to start thinking about college applications year. While grades and test scores are definitely a important section of the application, at USC, we conduct a holistic review of files, meaning that we simply take all components associated with application into account when coming up with an admission choice.

Therefore, we expect one to put a reasonable amount of time and energy in to the qualitative aspects of the application; particularly, your essay and answer that is short. This 12 months, the popular Application changed the essay prompts to the following (you pick one):

Some students have actually a story or background that is so central to their identity they think their application would be incomplete without it. Then please share your story if this sounds like you.

Recount an incident or time once you experienced failure. How did you be affected by it, and just what lessons did you discover?

Think on a right time whenever you challenged a belief or concept. What prompted you to act? Would you make the decision that is same?

Describe an accepted place or environment where you’re perfectly content. What do you are doing or experience there, and just why is it meaningful to you?

Discuss an event or accomplishment, formal or casual, that marked your change from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or household.

While there is not just one topic that is preferable to another, we do expect a things that are few you. Firstly, your essay ought to be free of grammatical and spelling mistakes. This may seem very obvious, but you’d be surprised at just how many personal statements we see that contain errors. Many are little, it does ultimately look careless and, does not mirror well on your application in general. Make sure you have few people—parents, counselors, instructors, etc.—look over your writing to make sure it is spotless!

Your writing should also be authentic and show your personal unique sound. Do not you will need to wow us by making use of fancy terms you found in a thesaurus. We want to hear your story, your struggles, your triumphs. You’ll share this while staying true to your writing style.

Do keep in mind that your personal statement is a chance to share something, well, individual about yourself, and to let an admission counselor know who you really are outside of one’s GPA and standardized test score. The writing components of the application are your chance to paint a complete image of whom you are to emphasize something that may not shine through elsewhere.

While admission counselors cannot review any personal statements before these are typically officially submitted, we are here to respond to any questions you may have about the procedure. Happy writing!

On the trail Again!

As summer comes to a detailed (where did the right time go?!), my peers and I are turning our attention to Fall travel season. A lot of us will visit upwards of ninety high schools throughout the months of September, October, and November, in nearly 50 states and in over five countries that are different. We will additionally be attending receptions and interview that is holding in major towns like Seattle, New York, Boston, San Francisco, etc.

And we have been not alone. A great deal of colleges and universities around the world is going to be visiting high schools in an effort to satisfy great students and generate interest in their respective institutions. We realize that these ‘college visits’ can seem overwhelming, confusing, and yes, maybe even a bit repetitive, but there are ways to help make the many out of the college visit. Here, we wanted to talk about a few recommendations:

1. The individual who’s visiting your highschool is most most likely reading your application. Many institutions implement a ‘territory supervisor’ system, where in fact the nationa country ( and sometimes, the world) is divided up into different territories. These territories are then assigned to people that are various any office. The first person to read your application, and is also your direct contact throughout the entire application process at USC, the person visiting your high school is in fact.

2. Make a good impression! No, this does maybe not mean shower us with gifts and compliments (though wouldn’t that https://shmoop.pro/ be nice after the visit and telling the territory manager a bit about your interests, and potentially writing a follow-up e-mail or note if we could accept them!) Making a good impression means doing your research about the institution, remaining attentive during the visit, asking insightful questions, introducing yourself.

3. You shouldn’t be nervous. a college visit isn’t an interview. There’s a process that is separate that. This is your opportunity to gain just as much information you can concerning the university or college.

4. Sometimes, two colleges you may be interested in will be scheduled on the same day, as well as at the same time. We understand that in between your AP/IB classes, tests, and extracurriculars, you may not be able to attend every see that passions you. It is possible to still link with a representative by sending an email and introducing yourself. We’ll always leave extra materials in the counseling office for people who cannot attend.