Filling out college applications can be tedious and stressful, so News4 went to the source for the inside scoop on college admissions.
As an associate dean of admissions at the University of Virginia, Jeannine Lalonde has read plenty of college essays.
While transcripts are hugely important, they only tell part of the story about the student, Lalonde said.
“You do start with the academics, but teachers and counselors, they kind of bring the data to life that is coming across on that transcript,” she said.
So choose who is going to write your recommendation carefully.
“If the school asks for two recommendations, send them two,” Lalonde said. “Just pay attention to what they’re asking for when it comes to who writes those two recommendations.”
Students stressing about classmates who have lists of extracurricular activities the length of a football field can relax.
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“I know it’s a function of the high school culture that certain activities hold more prestige than others, but that’s not necessarily the case in the admission process,” Lalonde said. “I always tell students, if they have something that they do beyond going to school and going home, they’ve done it right.”
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