What’s A College Admissions Expert and Why You Should Know About Them
As you make the transition from high school to college, there are a number of resources and support systems suggested by teachers, advisors, and parents. Many of these tools make a big difference in helping students properly prepare for the college admissions process.“What’s a college admissions expert?” you might be wondering. Well, you’re in the right place! Let’s dive deeper to understand this vital resource and how it can help you achieve your academic goals.
However, not all available resources are made apparent to high schoolers who are entering into a momentous time in their life. The way in which you prepare for college can have a major impact on your higher education and professional life.
That’s why it’s crucial to ensure you have all the resources at your disposal when preparing for college. The more support, knowledge, and guidance you have, the higher your chances of getting into your dream schools. Here, we’re going to talk about a lesser-known resource: a college admissions expert.
What’s a college admissions expert?
A college admissions expert specializes in helping high schoolers succeed in the college admissions process. Okay, that doesn’t quite clear things up, does it?
Beyond simply assisting students in selecting a few colleges based on their interests and providing a cursory overview of the college admissions process, these experts work closely with students throughout the entire college-preparation process to drastically improve a student’s chances of getting into their dream school.
These professionals generally offer a range of services all catered toward assisting high schoolers in better understanding the college admissions process, navigating it successfully, and achieving their academic goals.
Students can pick and choose which services are most helpful for their specific needs. Another crucial element of admissions consultants is their individual focus and personalized approach.
Instead of applying a cookie-cutter solution to all students, all college admissions experts worth their salt works closely with students individually to better understand their unique needs and goals before custom-tailoring their services for the most effective result.
What’s the difference between admissions experts and high school counselors?
When people hear about college admissions experts, they might be tempted to dismiss these professionals as lesser versions of high school counselors which most students can access for completely free.
In answering the fundamental question, “what’s a college admissions expert?”, we’ll need to explain how these experts stack up against counselors. In reality, there are some crucial differences between the services and expertise admissions officers offer when compared to high school counselors. Here are the primary differences to keep in mind:
Expertise
High school counselors are focused more on high schoolers than they are on college admissions. In reality, preparing high schoolers for college is only a tiny fraction of their overall focus.
The overwhelming majority of their time is dedicated to helping students succeed in high school. College admissions experts, however, commit all of their time and energy to support students in the transition from high school to college. This means more expertise, improved insights, and better skills.
Personalization
You have no say over what high school counselor you work with. Students aren’t consulted in the hiring of these professionals, and the vast majority of high schools automatically assign students to counselors based on alphabetical order or some other predetermined system.
Conversely, you have full freedom to choose what kind of college admissions professional you want to work with which means you can find one that best matches your needs more easily.
Commitment
A college entrance expert can dedicate all of their resources, expertise, and focus on helping a student best prepare for the transition from high school to college. After all, that’s their job! On the other hand, high school counselors are greatly limited in their dedication since they have hundreds of other students to worry about.
Experience
High school counselors can only have experience in helping students prepare in the preliminary stages of college admissions unless they have independent experience as a college admissions expert. Their experience simply falls short when compared to their college entrance expert counterparts.
Of course, this isn’t meant to disparage high school counselors by any means. These professionals are incredibly effective at what they do and an excellent resource to students which should be taken advantage of as much as possible.
The key difference to remember is that counselors are only partially concerned with college admissions while college entrance experts commit all of their time to it. As a result, when you’re looking to improve your chances of getting into your dream college, a college admission expert is the more appropriate and effective form of support.
Why does a college admissions expert matter?
How a college admissions expert can help
Is a college admissions expert worth it?
Yes! A college admissions expert is definitely worth it. There’s no better resource available to high schoolers to help them accurately and effectively prepare for the transition between high school and college.
All other resources and support structures fall short in what they offer because their focus isn’t 100% committed to helping students perfect their applications, better understand the application process, and catch the attention of admissions officers.
It’s kind of like asking if dentists are worth it when experiencing problems with your teeth. Of course, they are! That’s precisely what they do. The same is true for college entrance experts when it comes to assisting high schoolers in their preparation for higher education.
There’s simply no other professional that’s as committed, specialized, and experienced in this area. Whether you’re a parent wanting to support your child in the best way possible or a student searching for a reliable and effective guide, a college entrance expert is the way to go.
How much is a college entrance expert worth?
Now that we’ve covered “what’s a college entrance expert?” and “is a college admissions expert worth it?”, you might be wondering “how much is a college admissions expert worth?” That’s a great question, and we’ve got an even better answer for you! Although this is somewhat of a subjective point, there are some hard numbers to consider when evaluating the worth of a college admissions expert.
As both students and parents are well aware, paying for college is one of the biggest investments individuals make in their lifetimes. There’s no beating around the bush: college is a significant financial cost that requires most people to take out some form of loan or debt to cover the expenses. Despite these elevated costs, however, college is undoubtedly worthwhile. People who hold a college degree enjoy a host of advantages over their counterparts including:
- Improved job prospects
- Specialization for a certain career
- Economic stability
- Increased self-confidence and self-assurance
- Clear pathway to career advancement
- Enhanced marketability
- Higher earnings
- Robust networking opportunities
We could expound on each of these areas (for instance: college graduates earn 75% more on average than those with high school diplomas:), but we won’t focus too much on the details in this article. The point is that getting a college education is valuable and worthwhile.
With that understanding, it follows that getting into the best of the best colleges leads to even greater benefits for students since these institutions have improved offerings for students. That means even more professional opportunities, better networking opportunities, increased earning potential, and more when compared to lower-level schools.
All this information is fantastic except for the fact that millions of high schoolers every year struggle to make it into their desired schools because of the intricacies of the college admissions process. That’s what makes college admissions experts truly valuable.
These professionals offer the necessary services and have the essential expertise to help high schoolers get into the schools that will lead to all the benefits we mentioned earlier. So, if you value a college education (which you should!) then the value of a college entrance expert is self-evident.
What services do college entrance experts offer?
The college admissions process is dynamic, multifaceted, and intricate which requires a lot of preparation, insight, expertise, and focus to master. That’s why college entrance experts offer a wide range of services all designed to help high schoolers make the most of this important transition period.
Any college admissions professional that’s worth working with will provide a broad range of services instead of only focusing on a select few. As we mentioned before, one of the primary differences and advantages of working with a college entrance expert when compared to high school counselors is the various insights and expertise these professionals can have.
These skills are translated into a smorgasbord of services all of which are aimed at helping students just like you improve their chances of getting into their dream school.
Here, we’ll take a look at some of the foundational offerings of a college entrance expert. Keep in mind that the specific services will vary between providers, but these are some of the most important to keep an eye out for when choosing a college entrance expert.
Academic Guidance
The most important factor determining your success when applying to college is your academic performance. All colleges and universities take a holistic approach to college admissions which means they take a comprehensive look at a student before making a final decision.
However, how you perform academically is easily the factor that receives the most weight. No matter how impressive the rest of your application, admissions officers aren’t going to be willing to look past a poor GPA, low test scores, and a poor academic performance overall. That’s why admissions experts offer academic guidance services.
These services focus on helping high schoolers optimize their academic performance by choosing the right classes based on their unique abilities, interests, and strengths.
Admissions specialists will help you determine whether or not you should take AP or Honors courses, when you should take more difficult classes, how you can maximize your GPA, and so much more.
Any question you could have about your academic trajectory throughout high school will get covered under this service. The goal of a great admissions specialist is to help high schoolers graduate with the best academic performance possible to catch the attention of admissions officers at top colleges.
Extracurricular Planning
Don’t make the mistake of assuming academic performance is the only thing that matters in a college application. Although it plays a major role in determining your overall success in college admissions, schools also care about what you do outside of the classroom. In other words, they’re interested in what you do with your free time.
This includes classic extracurriculars such as clubs and sports but also includes part-time jobs, volunteering, and other things you might not automatically consider in this category. Acknowledging their importance, admissions officers usually offer some form of extracurricular planning aimed at helping high schoolers make the most of their time outside of the classroom.
These professionals work with students to determine which activities, events, clubs, sports, or other extracurriculars are a great match for their interests while still being impressive to admissions officers and not interfering in the student’s academic performance.
Interview Preparation
When thinking of an interview, most students only assume they won’t have to worry about it until they start applying for jobs. Well, think again! Many colleges and universities require students to engage in an interview as part of their college admissions process.
The interview usually takes place later in the application process meaning you’re already further along in the process than many other applicants. Nailing the interview is key to ensuring you get a spot in the incoming class.
Admissions officers often provide interview preparation services so you can feel completely prepared to master this portion of the admissions process. These experts know what kind of questions are going to be asked and can prep you on how best to answer them.
They can also provide tips for what to wear, how to speak, and how to conduct yourself overall so you make a good impression on your desired college. Instead of going into the interview not being sure what to expect, you can approach this crucial time confident, fullly prepared, and ready to go.
Essay Editing
When you think about college applications, you’re probably thinking about requesting documents such as high school transcripts, filling out basic information about your name and background, and gathering odds and ends together to submit to colleges.
Although there are plenty of these elements involved in preparing a college application, there are also a lot of essays that high schoolers tend to forget about. From application cover letters and Common App essays to college-specific essays and so much more, there are a bunch of essays required in the college admissions process.
Unfortunately, many students feel inadequate in their writing abilities. That’s why admissions officers often provide essay editing services to high schoolers who want to ensure they’re putting their best foot forward when applying to college.
While other parts of a college application are pretty straightforward, essays give students an opportunity to really show who they are, what makes them different, and why they make perfect candidates for their dream school.
A college entrance expert can help you take advantage of this excellent opportunity to stand out from the crowd by helping you nail your college essays in terms of content, grammar, voice, and overall delivery.
Summer Program
As we mentioned earlier, colleges aren’t just concerned with what you’re doing in school. Stellar academic performance is essential for improving your chances of getting accepted into your dream school, but so is pursuing extracurricular activities.
To the surprise of many students, this includes doing summer programs. These activities provide students an opportunity during the summer to further pursue an academic area of interest by participating in research opportunities and other experiential-learning activities to improve their understanding of a certain subject.
Understanding the sheer importance of these programs, college admission officers often provide students with assistance in choosing the best summer program based on their academic interests, personal strengths, and professional goals.
There are dozens upon dozens of summer programs offered throughout the country and choosing the right one is key to catching and holding the attention of admissions officers.
A college admissions professional can help you navigate through the various options to determine which is the best based on your unique circumstances. Furthermore, these experts will help you get accepted into these summer programs since many have a limited number of accepted applicants.
Improve your chances of getting into your top-pick schools
Transitioning into college out of high school is a daunting and confusing process that plays a major role in your future academic and professional trajectory. AdmissionSight is a leading college admissions expert specializing in helping students get into top-choice schools. Contact us today to learn more about what we offer.
