[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 163 (Wednesday, November 17, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S14743-S14745]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         NICHOLAS W. ALLARD ON THE COLLEGE APPLICATION PROCESS

 Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, families across the country know 
that a college education is essential for their children. A college 
graduate earns twice what a high school graduate earns in a year, and 
close to three

[[Page S14744]]

times what a high school dropout earns. More and more students are 
applying for college each year--over 2 million freshmen began college 
last year. The result is increasingly heavy pressures on schools, 
families, and colleges.
  No one understands these pressures more than prospective college 
students and their families who are now filling out applications, 
visiting college campuses, and preparing to make the all-important 
choices for their futures.
  An article by Nicholas W. Allard, in the Washington Post last week, 
provides excellent common sense advice to prospective students and 
their families about the college application process. Mr. Allard, whom 
many of us recall from his years as a staff member of the Senate 
Judiciary Committee, has had extensive experience in interviewing 
college applicants. I believe his article will be of interest to all of 
us in the Senate, and I ask that it be printed in the Record.
  The article follows.

                [From the Washington Post, Nov. 9, 1999]

               Navigating the College Admissions Process

               (By Nicholas W. Allard, Associated Press)

       A friend who is intelligent, high educated, and a wonderful 
     parent recently called me in a meltdown panic over whether to 
     give white or manila envelopes to their teenager's teachers 
     for college recommendations.
       My anxious friend has lots of company. Every year this is 
     the season when tree leaves turn color and drop, while common 
     sense about college admissions heads south. Aside from the 
     uselessness of self-inflicted pressure, important decisions 
     by college prospects are often based on inadequate 
     information and worse advice. So I can't resist offering some 
     food for thought.


                apply to the colleges you want to attend

       Pretty basic, huh? Yet how many times have you heard advice 
     such as: ``You need some `reach' schools.'' Or ``Where's your 
     `safety' school?'' In other words, you're often encouraged to 
     think about schools in a way that ranks their desirability 
     according to the difficulty of being admitted. This approach 
     will make you feel like you are ``settling'' if you decide to 
     attend anywhere but one of the most selective schools.
       According to Peterson's Annual Survey of Undergraduate 
     Institutions, in the United States there are almost 2,000 
     accredited, public and private four-year colleges and 
     universities. They vary tremendously.
       Find a handful or so of colleges out of this very large 
     number you would be enthusiastic about attending. Then, once 
     you've got your working list together, turn to the issue of 
     how to be admitted to your favorite schools.


                     the early application program

       In you're considering participating in an early application 
     program because you are very, very sure that a college is 
     your top choice, then go ahead. If you're not sure, then 
     don't do it. Think about it. What if you succeed and are 
     admitted to a place that you are not sure is your first 
     choice?
       If the early acceptance is nonbinding, you're going to 
     apply elsewhere anyway. If it is binding, then you are stuck. 
     You are not going to find any college that will tell you it's 
     relatively easy to be admitted at the early stage. But you'll 
     tell me you are worried that some colleges admit so many 
     students early that there seem to be very few places left if 
     you wait.
       Keep your head. Those people who are so well qualified that 
     colleges are sure they want to offer them a binding offer at 
     the early stage are taken out of the pool of applicants. They 
     are not filing multiple applications to schools that may 
     interest you. You even may appear to be a relatively stronger 
     candidate in the remaining pool come spring, especially after 
     your strong academic performance this fall.
       And, remember, many, if not most, college applicants are 
     not accepted at the early stage. Are you sure that you want 
     to go through the angst of applying to college for the first 
     time, and then suddenly finding, without any counter-
     balancing good news, that your hopes have been dashed and you 
     must apply in earnest to several other colleges?


                    you and your guidance counselor

       Your job is to learn enough about yourself and about 
     colleges to think clearly about where you would want to 
     attend, and then for you (not your parents) to take the lead 
     applying for admission.
       Many high school college advisers act as if their job is to 
     make sure that you and all your classmates have been admitted 
     somewhere, anywhere. Also, understandably, they are concerned 
     about managing the bureaucratic demands of processing a large 
     volume of college applications.
       It's not necessarily a bad thing if your list of favorite 
     colleges makes counselors nervous. Maybe they'll pay a little 
     more attention to your file. The best high school counselors 
     help you match your preferences with colleges. They also can 
     assist your campaign to be admitted where you want to go. 
     That takes a lot of time and dedication.


                          make the process fun

       Think about what it's going to be like to be on your own 
     and to live, study and goof off in a new place, meeting new 
     people. Take advantage of the need to pause, to make a 
     detailed report about what you've accomplished in this first 
     part of your life. In this way the college application can be 
     more than a chore. It can be a satisfying inventory of 
     positives and promote honest self-evaluation of how you want 
     to grow or change or improve.
       The application process doesn't have to be nerve-racking. 
     If you only apply to schools that really turn you on, then 
     you really don't have to worry about being accepted to the 
     wrong place.
       In the unlikely event that you do not gain acceptance to 
     any of your favorite schools, maybe you should take another 
     year and do something that interests you or prepare yourself 
     to reapply to colleges after spending some time better 
     equipping yourself for college.
       The dirty little secret is that there simply is no single 
     school that will make or break your future.


                          be a `smart shopper'

       You are in the market for one of the most expensive, most 
     valuable things you will ever acquire; a college education.
       Have you talked to people who have recently attended the 
     colleges that you are considering? What have you read about 
     the colleges? Have you visited colleges that you are 
     seriously considering, alone, without your family?
       The traditional family summer tour of colleges is a nice 
     starting point and often can be very helpful in eliminating 
     college choices. But in terms of getting a good feel for what 
     it's like to be a student on campus during a term, there is 
     only so much you can learn by staring at bricks and mortar 
     from the outside of empty buildings, while trying to act as 
     if you are not actually part of your family encourage--how 
     embarrassing.
       Thump the melon, test-drive the car, try to get, on your 
     own, to the few colleges that most interest you. Bring a 
     sleeping bag, arrange to stay, if you can, in the dorm room 
     of a friend or somebody who graduated from your home area 
     high schools. Attend class, find out how bad the food is in 
     the dining hall, attend an athletic event or concert, go 
     read, in the library and work on some homework in the midst 
     of other students doing the same thing.
       If you're already in your senior year and haven't done 
     this, it's not too late. And, of course, after you are 
     accepted at a college you certainly have the opportunity to 
     visit before you make your decision.


                              be yourself

       When you're applying to college you certainly want to put 
     your best foot forward and present an accurate and compelling 
     case for admission. But above all things, remember to be 
     yourself.
       Suppose, if by some miracle, you actually were able to 
     gussy up your application and essays to come across as a 
     different person or convincingly act out a role in an 
     interview. Would the college be accepting the wrong person? 
     More practically, it just often doesn't work to try to be 
     someone else. Phoniness is difficult to maintain, and in most 
     cases it's transparent.
       This also means that the application form that you complete 
     should be your own work. Relax; take the task seriously; do 
     the best job you can and don't forget: Parents, teachers and 
     consultants who have too large a hand in preparing 
     applications leave very visible fingerprints.


                         the interview process

       Colleges generally do not require interviews, but, if 
     available, they provide an opportunity to learn more about a 
     school and to supplement your written application.
       If you have an interview with an alumni volunteer, remember 
     they are not decision makers. Their task is to collect 
     information and pass it on. They can be very good or very 
     bad. Count on this: Whatever they report to their alma maters 
     will be taken with a full shaker of salt. Their views will 
     not outweigh the record you have built over time, the 
     evaluations of professional teachers who have seen you in a 
     class context or your own words on your application.
       Still, alumni interviews can help uncover or reinforce 
     strengths and corroborate the profile that appears on the 
     written application file. Again, be yourself, and be prepared 
     for a variation of the inevitable final interview question: 
     ``Is there anything else you would like to ask me?''
       Also, if you're wondering about what to wear to an 
     interview, the acceptable range of attire is very broad. On 
     matters of dress, and all such questions about your 
     application, let your own good judgment be your guide.


                   don't worry about other applicants

       It is simply not true that somebody else in your school or 
     your neighborhood is competing with you for a spot that they 
     might take away your space at a college that you want to 
     attend.
       At the very most selective colleges you are not competing 
     against the person sitting next to you in a classroom, you'r 
     competing against the national pool of applicants.
       In colleges that are less selective, if you make a 
     compelling case that satisfies its requirements, you have a 
     very good chance of being accepted. Your case for acceptance 
     is not diminished, it is not less compelling if other 
     qualified candidates in your community are accepted.
       In any event, know that any information you have about 
     other candidates for acceptance is suspect: What somebody's 
     board

[[Page S14745]]

     scores supposedly are or are not; whether or not a particular 
     college has a quota for your high school; what a college has 
     supposedly communicated to a candidate; what athletes have 
     been told; whether students with learning disabilities get a 
     fair shake--it's all unreliable.
       None of it helps you make your case and it will get your 
     stomach juices roiling if you pay attention to such gossip.
       Have confidence in yourself. Focus on what you can do 
     something about, which is your own application and at the end 
     of the day things will work out just fine. Be happy if people 
     you know also are accepted to a college of your choice. 
     You'll already know people to embrace or avoid when you get 
     to campus in the fall.


                          making your decision

       Don't torture yourself about the choice you make. Remember, 
     you've carefully compiled a list of schools that make sense 
     for you. Be liberated in the idea that you can't make a wrong 
     decision.
       Attending college is expensive. Whether or not you receive 
     scholarships, take out loans, or get a part-time job, it's 
     likely your college education is going to cost a lot. Talk 
     this over with your family and determine your realistic 
     options.
       In the end, after you carefully weigh the different factors 
     that are important to you, it's probably going to come down 
     to a gut reaction. Trust your own instincts. Make up your 
     mind and then get excited about it. Also make sure to thank 
     your parents, other family members, teachers and advisers.


                              and, finally

       I'm not a professional admissions officer or an educator. I 
     don't know any particulars about you or your situation. I 
     just suggest you think about the questions raised.
       Don't let hopes about college become a black cloud over the 
     best year of high school.
       Oh, either white or manila envelopes are fine, but don't 
     forget the postage.

                          ____________________