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H&C EDUCATION BLOG

How to Pick Colleges to Apply to Without Visiting

One of the first and most often overlooked steps in applying to college is deciding where to apply. As a high school student, especially at a public high school but at private ones as well, you rarely receive any helpful information about what differentiates colleges. For example, my parents worked

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Why Colleges Are Going Test Optional and What It Means for Your Application

 On June 12th, Yale announced a test-optional policy for the 2020-2021 admissions cycle. This comes following the CollegeBoard’s announcement on June 2nd that they would not be offering the SAT online for the foreseeable future “because taking it would require three hours of uninterrupted, video-quality internet for each student, which

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The Art of a Great First Sentence

“Dear Human, I’m sixty percent banana.” This sentence began an essay that helped me get into Stanford. “Bonus points for anyone who kicks the ceiling” began one for my Yale supplement. Short and sweet sentences like this can be effective ways to draw in a reader at the beginning of

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How to Write Any “Why This College?” Essay

“Why Brown?” “Please discuss why you consider Duke a good match for you.” “Why does Yale appeal to you?” “Given the opportunities at Hopkins, please discuss your current interests and how you will build upon them here.” “Specifically, how will an education from Cornell University help you achieve your academic

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The Right Way to Discuss COVID-19 on Your College Applications

COVID-19 has drastically changed the lives of graduating high school seniors. From cancelling prom and graduation to having to finish classics and take classes online, the academic and social lives of students have been uprooted. As a result, students’ college applications are going to look fundamentally different. Extracurricular activities and

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How to Stay on Track for College Applications during COVID-19

Colleges internationally have shut down their campuses and in-person research operations in response to the COVID-19 crisis, but the application cycles for most remain unaffected. Meanwhile, many high school students are stuck at home. While admissions officers will take into consideration the difficulties faced by students during this period, this

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Should You Take a Gap Year?

We’ve received tons of questions from high school seniors asking whether they should take a gap year. Many students are worried about committing to a campus they haven’t set foot on. Others prefer in-person learning and would rather not spend money on online courses and virtually zero campus experience—which are

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What You Need to Know About Test-Optional Colleges

More Elite Schools Are Becoming Test Optional A growing number of schools are becoming test optional. In a statement published on its website, Cornell University announced that it won’t require SAT or ACT exams for applicants to its Class of 2025. Cornell also expressed concerns about the new possible online

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How to Get Off the Waitlist

What are my chances of getting in off the waitlist? Waitlist acceptance rates at top colleges usually range between 2 and 5%. These figures depend on the school you’re applying to, and ultimately, on how high that school’s yield is in a given application cycle (how many accepted students accept

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