College admissions in the United States

College admissions in the United States refers to the annual process of applying to institutions of higher education in the United States for undergraduate study. This usually takes place during the senior year of high school (usually around the ages of 17 or 18). While dates and deadlines vary, the entire application process usually begins in the autumn and concludes in the spring of the last year of high school.

Overview

Main article: Colleges

University of Houston

Although most educational institutions in the U.S. are non-profit, some are for-profit. Colleges and universities in the U.S. vary in terms of goals: some may emphasize a vocational, business, engineering, or technical curriculum while others may emphasize a liberal arts curriculum. Many combine some or all of the above.

Two-year colleges offer the Associates degree (A.A.) and four-year colleges offer Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) or Bachelor of Sciences (B.S.) degrees. These are primarily undergraduate institutions, although some might have limited programs at the graduate level. Universities service both undergraduate and graduate student bodies. Graduate programs grant a variety of Master's degrees including M.B.A.s or M.F.A.s. The highest academic degree is the Ph.D. Medical schools award either the M.D. or D.O. while law schools award the J.D.

Liberal arts colleges are four-year institutions that traditionally emphasize interactive instruction (although research is still a component of these institutions). They are known for being residential and for having smaller enrollments, class sizes, and student-teacher ratios than universities. These colleges also encourage a high level of teacher-student interaction at the center of which are classes taught by full-time faculty rather than graduate student TA's (who teach the classes at Research I and other universities). The colleges are either coeducational, women's colleges, or men's colleges. Some are historically black colleges, or secular, while others are involved in religious education. Many are private. Some are public liberal arts colleges. In addition, colleges such as Hampshire College, Beloit College, Bard College at Simon's Rock, Pitzer College, Sarah Lawrence College, Bennington College, Marlboro College, New College of Florida, and Reed College offer experimental curricula^{[citation needed]}.

Public and private universities are research-oriented institutions which service both an undergraduate and graduate student body. These institutions usually have a large student body. Introductory seminars can have a class size in the hundreds^{[citation needed]}, but lab groups are generally smaller and more intimate. The more popular sports schools are typically larger universities, though not exclusively.

Application process

The admissions process usually begins in the autumn in the beginning of the student's last year of high school. In applying, students must apply separately to each school they wish to attend. Colleges and universities usually have their own application forms, with the significant exception of institutions that use the Common Application. There is no limit to the number of colleges or universities to which a student may apply, unless the student is applying under early decision programs or some early action programs. The majority of undergraduate colleges and universities admit students to an entire college, and not to a particular department or major, unlike the practice in many European countries and graduate admissions. (However, there are some programs, such as architecture or engineering, which are often admitted off of a separate list due to curriculum demands.) Decision letters (except in early action and early decision) are usually mailed to applicants in the spring. Students may be accepted to the institution, rejected outright, or wait-listed. Wait-listed students may be later admitted if another student who was admitted decides not to attend the college or university.

Admitted students may also be awarded financial aid. There are two kinds of financial aid: need-based aid, awarded entirely on the financial specifics of the student's family, and merit-based aid, given to students judged to show exceptional academic promise.

Depending on the size and values of the school, admissions criteria can vary from being almost entirely formulaic to involving significant subjective judgment regarding the student's "fit" for the institution. Criteria include standardized test scores (generally ACT and/or SAT), class rank, grades (as shown in the high school transcript), degree of extracurricular involvement, and leadership potential. Many colleges also rely on personal essay(s) written by the applicant and letters of recommendation written by the applicant's teachers and guidance counselor. Institutions place different weight on these criteria: for example, some schools do not require or even accept the SATs for admission.

The Common Data Set Initiative, a collaboration between colleges/universities and commercial publishers, does a voluntary annual survey of all colleges and universities, requesting information in a common format. This data is then complied and used in a variety of publications from magazine/books to websites on various subjects from basic college information to admission requirements. While the complied list of data is not available for download, many schools publish their responses on their own website. Sections on the survey include information, provided by the school itself, on the admission process, admission requirements (including the importance of GPA, class rank, SAT/ACT scores, extra curricular activities, etc. on their particular admission process), fees, financial aid, class size, and information on faculty.

Early Decision, early action, and rolling admission

Many schools have implemented a system through which students can apply at a time other than the most common deadline (January 1 of the senior year) to lighten the load on students and admissions officers.

• The Early Decision program permits students to apply a few months early (usually November 1 or November 15). These students are promising to attend the school if offered admission in mid-December. This benefits schools because they can increase their yield (the number of accepted students that choose to attend) and helps students as they need only submit one application if they get into their top choice. The one situation under which a student may back out of the binding agreement of Early Decision if accepted is if the financial aid offered is not enough.

• The Early Action program is similar to Early Decision in that students apply early and find out the results early, but it differs in that they are not bound to the school if accepted.
  • There are two subprograms within Early Action: single- and multi-choice early action. Single-choice early action schools only permit students to apply early to one school while multi-choice early action schools let students to apply to many schools. Currently, the only six users of the Single-choice early action process are Harvard University, Princeton University, Stanford University, Yale University, Boston College, and Tulane University.

• Rolling Admission is a program used by many schools with a large number of applicants. It allows prospective students to apply at any time between the fall and spring and to receive their result a few weeks later. This releases stress on the students because they do not have to apply at the same time to all of their schools, but is often criticized for favoring the earlier applicants. It is generally recommended that students apply as soon as possible to their rolling admissions schools.

Need-blind, need-Aware admission and guaranteeing to meet full need

In need-blind admission, applicants are evaluated without regard to their ability to pay. However, need-blind admission does not necessarily mean that the financial need of an admitted student will be met. Only a handful of schools in the U.S. guarantee to meet 100% of the demonstrated financial need of all admitted students. All students applying for financial aid must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Many colleges and universities, particularly those who provide financial assistance beyond federal and state aid from their budgets or endowments, require additional forms from applicants. International students have additional forms to complete before they can enroll, including a statement of finances required by the U.S. government.

Rankings

Two well known college and university rankings guides offer annual issues which rank colleges and universities. They are the U.S. News and World Report [1] and The Washington Monthly's "College Rankings" issue.[2]

2007 movement

Main article: Criticism of college and university rankings (2007 United States)

On 19 June 2007, during the annual meeting of the Annapolis Group, members discussed the letter to college presidents asking them not to participate in the "reputation survey" section of the U.S. News and World Report survey (this section comprises 25% of the ranking). As a result, "a majority of the approximately 80 presidents at the meeting said that they did not intend to participate in the U.S. News reputational rankings in the future."^[1] However, the decision to fill out the reputational survey or not will be left up to each individual college as: "the Annapolis Group is not a legislative body and any decision about participating in the US News rankings rests with the individual institutions."^[2] The statement also said that its members "have agreed to participate in the development of an alternative common format that presents information about their colleges for students and their families to use in the college search process."^[2] This database will be web based and developed in conjunction with higher education organizations including the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities and the Council of Independent Colleges.

On 22 June 2007, U.S. News and World Report editor Robert Morse issued a response in which he argued, "in terms of the peer assessment survey, we at U.S. News firmly believe the survey has significant value because it allows us to measure the "intangibles" of a college that we can't measure through statistical data. Plus, the reputation of a school can help get that all-important first job and plays a key part in which grad school someone will be able to get into. The peer survey is by nature subjective, but the technique of asking industry leaders to rate their competitors is a commonly accepted practice. The results from the peer survey also can act to level the playing field between private and public colleges."^[3]In reference to the alternative database discussed by the Annapolis Group, Morse also argued, "It's important to point out that the Annapolis Group's stated goal of presenting college data in a common format has been tried before [...] U.S. News has been supplying this exact college information for many years already. And it appears that NAICU will be doing it with significantly less comparability and functionality. U.S. News first collects all these data (using an agreed-upon set of definitions from the Common Data Set). Then we post the data on our website in easily accessible, comparable tables. In other words, the Annapolis Group and the others in the NAICU initiative actually are following the lead of U.S. News."^[3]

See also

• University and college admissions
• Common Application
• Senioritis
• Cooling Out

References

• Christopher Avery; Andrew Fairbanks, Richard Zeckhauser (2004). The Early Admissions Game: Joining the Elite. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. ISBN 0-674-01620-3. 
• Howard Greene; Mathew W. Greene (2000). Greenes' Guides to Educational Planning: The Hidden Ivies: Thirty Colleges of Excellence. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-095362-4. 
• Loren Pope (2006). Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will change The Way You Think About College. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-303736-6. 
• Jacques Steinberg. The Gatekeepers. New York: Penguin Group, 2002.
• Compiled and Edited by the Staff of the Yale Daily News (2007). The Insider's Guide to the Colleges, 2008 (34th edition). New York: St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-312-36689-6. 
• United States Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (2006-2007). Occupational Outlook Handbook. 

Notes

1. ^ Jaschik, Scott (20 June 2007). "More Momentum Against ‘U.S. News’". Inside Higher Ed. http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/06/20/usnews. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "ANNAPOLIS GROUP STATEMENT ON RANKINGS AND RATINGS". Annapolis Group. 19 June 2007. http://www.collegenews.org/x7131.xml. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Morse, Robert (22 June 2007). "About the Annapolis Group's Statement". U.S. News and World Report. http://www.usnews.com/blogs/college-rankings-blog/2007/6/22/about-the-annapolis-groups-statement.html#read_more. 

External links

• How To Choose a College That's Right For You - NPR