College admissions is increasingly competitive, with admissions officers seemingly expecting more every year from high school students. This can be daunting, especially for students who realize this late in the game. We don’t blame students for this, after all, why should freshmen be thinking about college already? That is, unfortunately, the state of the world however, and so many students come to start thinking about college at the end of their junior year, and realize just how competitive it is. In this article, we’re going to look at what you can do to impress colleges at the last minute, the tips and tricks to bulk up and fill out your resume in the summer and fall before you apply. This may fall short of projects worked on for a long duration, but you can still accomplish some remarkable things, and greatly increase your odds of acceptance. Let’s find out how!
Last Minute Summer Programs
Many rising seniors we work with aim to complete capstone projects in the summer before their senior year, something big and grand they can brag about to colleges, showing off their skills and potential. We do not recommend doing one of these at the last minute, but there are still some things you can do during the summer to show off your talents and interests.
Now, most summer programs require you to apply sometime before July, but there are still opportunities available now. Most notable are summer jobs, the staples of lifeguard or restaurant work, or other opportunities. These are often overlooked in the admissions process, but can be an amazing source of both experience and subjects for essays.
Having worked a job shows colleges your maturity, and gives you a taste of life after high school. Most jobs are also frequently hiring, making it easy to find a position at the last minute. Now, not all jobs are fun, but that too can be an important learning experience.
Besides jobs, you can also work on independent projects over the summer. These require even more work than a job in most cases, but can give even greater results. Now, many projects do require a long lead up period, but others can be started now, with little preamble or preparation. What projects are available depend on your own skills and interests.
Last Minute Capstone Projects
So if you want to create a capstone project right before your senior year with no prep-work, how do you go about doing it? The first, and most important, step is to decide what kind of project you have the means to accomplish. Coding an app, for example, may be difficult if you’ve never done any coding before.
Thus you should determine what skills you have, and how these can be brought to bear. Here are some examples of projects students have done with Ivy Scholars, to give you an idea of the variety of things you can attempt:
- Making a short documentary about a local issue the student wanted to draw attention to.
- Undertaking and publishing original research.
- Coding an app based on the student’s love of philosophy.
- Working as an intern at a nonprofit and helping them organise their database in a more efficient manner.
Now, not all of these are equally approachable, but you likely have skills and talents of your own you can use in service of a grander project. Once you have determined these skills and the project you are going to undertake, the next step is figuring out the timeline.
Capstone projects, by their nature, require a lot of work over a long period of time. You should of course begin as soon as possible, and your goal should be to finish by the time you submit your first applications. For most Early Decision schools, that gives you a deadline of November 1. This does limit some projects; you may be able to complete a research project, but not publish it, or film a documentary, but not find a venue to display it.
This is fine, because the work of doing a project is often beneficial in and of itself. You can also tell colleges that research has been submitted for publication, or a film submitted to a festival, even if it hasn’t been made public yet. We advise doing so; sharing one of these projects is the final stage, and makes the accomplishments far more impressive.
Last Minute Major Interest
Colleges frequently ask what you want to major in, and ask you what you have done already that relates to this subject. This is especially important for the most popular majors; business, computer science, and engineering. Thus, if you are looking for last-minute ways to build your candidacy, then focusing on things related to your major of interest is a good idea.
This doesn’t necessarily need to be big capstone projects (though these can be very useful); even smaller ventures can lend much needed experience and expressions of interest. This is good, because most of the largest and most involved projects are going to be too time intensive for you to accomplish much before applications are due.
Here are some examples of how past Ivy Scholars students have gotten involved with their majors of choice, even when they didn’t have much time before applying:
- Volunteering to teach children coding through their local library.
- Organizing and running a blood drive at their school.
- Getting a job at a local business
- Investing some of their own money in the stock market
- Volunteering to help register people to vote
Volunteering is especially helpful here, because most charities are constantly looking for people who can help them with their mission. This does depend a bit on the charity in question, and it may take some work to find one that meets your interests, but colleges also love to see students giving back to their communities.
What Not to Do
We’ve covered some great ways to get involved at the last minute, but there are some common missteps we see students make as well that you should be wary of. It can be easy to panic at the last minute, and we do not blame students for making these mistakes; we simply don’t want you to spend your time and effort fruitlessly, as doing so often leaves you more stressed with little to show for it.
Joining a Dozen Clubs
A common reaction to realizing you may not have done as much as colleges want to see is to immediately jump to the other extreme, and sign up for as many clubs and activities as you can. This is a bad idea for two reasons. First, it comes off as disingenuous; admissions officers may doubt your commitment to all of these organizations you joined at once, and think you are just doing this to try and appeal to them.
Next, joining so many clubs leaves you unable to focus on any one thing. Picking a few activities and throwing your energy into them will lead to greater results, and require less of your time overall. This is the same as our overall extracurricular strategy with our students, which you can read more about in this article.
Doing Nothing
The other thing we often see is students throwing up their hands and declaring that the situation is hopeless, that too much time has passed, and that there’s no point in trying anymore. This too is a key mistake; we have helped students starting as late as a week before the deadline; while there is not much time to build candidacy then, starting now gives you something to write about when it comes to waitlist appeals or followups.
It can feel hopeless, but the amount of difference effort now can make can be tremendous. Colleges want students who will strive for themselves, who are self-motivated and eager to face challenges, and so starting something, even if it’s late, will appeal to them greatly.
Acting Cynically
Finally, every activity you do should be something you are genuinely interested in. It doesn’t necessarily need to be your favorite thing, and you don’t need to enjoy all of it; you can love the game of football and still grumble about having to run sprints. You may not enjoy every aspect of a project or activity, but it should be something you are genuinely passionate about.
Colleges care about authenticity, and admissions officers can often sniff out when students participate in activities they don’t like just to score points, or because they think it’s what admissions officers want to see. They far prefer students who are active in their passions, regardless of what those passions may be.
Final Thoughts
College admissions demands a lot of high school students, and by the time many students realize the full scope of this, they often feel like they’ve already lost. We hope this article has helped show that it isn’t too late, that there’s always benefit to doing new things and improving your candidacy, both for your own sake, and for your chances of getting into a top college.
If you want help plotting out your own candidacy building efforts, or mapping your road to college acceptance, then Ivy Scholars can help. We work with students in every phase of the admissions process, and have a long experience helping students get into the colleges of their dreams. Schedule a free consultation today to learn more; we’re always happy to hear from you.
