College Admission Tips | Ivy League Advisor — Shemmassian Academic Consulting (2023)

FAQs

Is hiring a college admissions consultant worth it? ›

A good admissions consultant doesn't just help with your applications, but rather helps throughout the entire process. In fact, many families find that starting with a consultant early in high school enables students to be most successful in the college admissions process.

Basically, there are six main factors that college admissions officers consider: AP classes and challenging course loads, high school GPAs, SAT and ACT scores (unless they are test-optional), meaningful extracurricular activities, letters of recommendation, and your personal statement.

Yes, you can get into an Ivy League with a 3.7 GPA. Though, the lower your grade, the less your chances of getting into an Ivy League, but with a strong personal statement and a properly packaged application, you can get in with a grade even less than 3.7 GPA.

On average, a college advisor will cost between $150 and $200 per hour. Alternatively, application review packages can cost as low as $1,000, with some students spending between $3000-$10,000.

Admissions counselors typically make decisions about admission with the help of a committee.

Since all Ivys use a holistic approach to admitting students, it's entirely possible that someone with a good reason could get admitted with a C or multiple Cs.

Tier I: Tier I activities are extremely rare. They are reserved for the very best students in the country (or world) at what they do (e.g. All-American Athlete, Olympic Gymnast, National President of DECA, National Debate Champion, etc.)

1. What's the easiest Ivy League school to get into? While all Ivy League schools have a low acceptance rate, Cornell University has the highest acceptance rate among them. Cornell's acceptance rate is 11%, but try not to get too hung up on the numbers.

How do you stand out in college admissions? ›

None of the Ivy League schools have a minimum GPA requirement for applications, which means anyone can apply regardless of their GPA.

Cornell University Tuition

Located in Ithaca, New York, Cornell boasts the lowest cost of attendance before financial aid at its state-funded schools. Costs for its privately-funded colleges are on par with the rest of the Ivy League.

To calculate your hourly consulting rate from your working week salary follow these steps: Determine what salary you'd like to make. Take that number and divide it by 52 (number of working weeks), then again by 40 (number of hours each week). Take that number and mark it up by 25% to 50%.

Known for their Unlimited Package that costs over $100,000, Ivy Coach is one of the most prestigious college admissions counseling companies.

Factors That Most Affect Admission Decision. Many small, selective colleges pay greater attention to personal statements and essays, teacher and counselor recommendations, leadership experiences, and the individual talents of applicants. They typically offer the chance for a face-to-face interview.

In the US admissions process, colleges and universities take many factors into consideration. Admissions officers look at “hard factors” (GPA, grades, and test scores) and “soft factors” (essays, extracurricular activities, recommendations, and demonstrated interest) to gain a full picture of applicants.

Cornell is considered the "easiest" Ivy League to get into because it has the highest Ivy League acceptance rate. While it's easier, statistically speaking, to get into Cornell, it's still challenging. It's also important to remember that students apply directly to one of Cornell's eight undergraduate colleges.

Do Ivy Leagues accept B's? ›

Can you get into the Ivy League with mostly A's and a couple of B's? Yes, you can get into top schools with some B's, but it depends on the rest of your academic profile. And you should be asking yourself a few different questions about your high school GPA for a better understanding of your chances.

Yes, you can get into an Ivy League college without straight As. Not all Ivy League students had straight As during high school. It's more important to show that you took advanced courses and a strong course load in high school than to get straight As.

While grades and test scores are important, colleges also want to see the person you're becoming and the skills you've learned outside of class. They want to know what makes you unique, and the extracurricular activities you participate in will help you stand out.

Extracurricular activities are not the most important factor in a college application. Coursework and GPA, for instance, bear more weight. However, this is not to say that extracurriculars have little or no impact on the admissions decision a student ultimately receives.

To determine the best Ivy League schools, we averaged each school's rankings from each of these lists. The best Ivy League school in 2023 is Harvard, followed by Princeton and Yale.

With a record-low admission rate of just 3.19% for the class of 2026, Harvard currently ranks as the most difficult school to get into. This rate reflects admission into Harvard College, the Ivy League university's undergraduate school.

Dartmouth is the smallest Ivy, with a total enrollment of about 7,000 students. Meanwhile, Columbia and Harvard enroll the most students of any Ivy, with over 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students.

Good Grades

Earning good grades is the most critical factor for college applications. You should learn the average grade point average (GPA) of students accepted to the college(s) you will apply to and aim to accomplish the same or better. Showing improvement in your GPA over time can also make a positive impression.

What do colleges look at most? ›

High School GPA and Class Rank

Colleges look not only at your overall GPA but also at how well you did in individual classes. If your school has a class rank, that shows how much competition you faced with grades and performance to reach a particular level.

If students fail to make progress or continue to receive low grades, the college can expel them. Schools generally avoid expelling undergraduates for one failing grade or even one semester with low grades. However, students with persistent academic problems, including multiple failing grades, can face expulsion.

Your first year and sophomore year affect your cumulative GPA, which is important to most colleges. However, a solid academic record in your junior year is likely to carry more importance with an admissions committee.

You should also have a 4.18 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score. For a school as selective as Harvard, you'll also need to impress them with the rest of your application. We'll cover those details next.

Academic Planning

Admissions officers will examine your grades during senior year, so now is not the time to take it easy. Keeping your grades high during senior year will show the admissions staff that you are responsible and determined to succeed.

However, for college applicants, the average GPA is more likely between 3.5 and 4.0. If you're aiming for a top university such as one in the Ivy League, Stanford, MIT, or others of the same caliber, a 4.0 GPA — or close to it — is expected.

Which Ivy League has least applications? ›

Harvard only accepted 3.19% of its 61,220 applicants and Penn only reported 4.40% of its applicants received admittance letters! Check out the full list of the Ivy League Class of 2026 results below.

1. What's the easiest Ivy League school to get into? While all Ivy League schools have a low acceptance rate, Cornell University has the highest acceptance rate among them. Cornell's acceptance rate is 11%, but try not to get too hung up on the numbers.

The Hidden Ivies include many small colleges, such as Davidson College, Pomona College, Carleton College, and Oberlin College, as well as some large research universities, like Georgetown University, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, and the University of Southern California.

Yes, college admissions consultants are worth it! The right college admissions consultant can help you get into your top college. College admissions consultants are sometimes also called college admissions coaches or college admissions counselors.

These consultants help optimize the chances of acceptance for their clients, who are typically candidates applying to highly selective business schools.

Securing an interview with a college admissions officer at the school of your choice can be instrumental in getting accepted. Most colleges receive a high volume of applicants, so a personal interview can make your application stand out.

This rate can range from $100 to $400 per hour, depending on the consultant's experience and expertise. In addition to hourly rates, some consultants may also charge a flat fee for their services. This fee typically covers a filing period of up to 6 hours, plus travel and entry and departure in a single day.

Consultants tend to be “nerdier” in that they are often extremely intellectual. Most consulants have an extremely good grasp of general - but also more specific - knowledge. When you're a consultant, it's not unusual to get into a discussion about unrelated scientific topics with a colleague.

What are the top 2/4 Things admissions counselors are looking for in successful student applications? ›

While most schools place a fair amount of emphasis on grades and SAT scores, many are looking for a well-rounded student with potential. In addition to looking for maturity, commitment, and intellectual potential, admissions officers are also interested in what the school will gain from an applicant.

A high GPA provides consulting firms with some reassurance that you are competent in some of the basic skills required for being a consultant, and that, overall, you're an academic achiever. This level of academic success also helps them to assess whether you have the drive and resilience to succeed as a consultant.