Chance me for Ivies?

LoremIpsum
Thu, 22 Nov 2012 05:54:52 +0000

I live in what used to be a farm town about an hour north of SF. I’m pretty close to Marin County, which is incredibly wealthy



Farm girl just outside of Silicon Valley? Sounds like a curiously interesting combination definitely worth a mention within a essay question (clash/merging of cultures?). Let’s take a moment to consider the actual process of getting accepted to an elite college.

Here’s what has to happen before you get accepted: your regional advocate will need to see you as a “real person” not just a statistic and be willing to go to bat for you in front of the committee (over other choices). At that point, your advocate will only have a few seconds to summarize you and to make a case why you stand out:

“And here I’ve got a ballet-dancing weightlifting farm girl from just outside Silicon Valley with top stats and some photography awards. Very unique!”

Your goal is now is marketing – you are the product. Make it easy in your essays and other materials for your advocate to know you and your highlights, to make those few seconds count.