Liberal Arts Colleges

Liberal Arts Colleges

At the other end of the spectrum from the large research universities , you have the liberal arts colleges. Faculty at liberal arts colleges typically do not have many research commitments and as a result are entirely focused on  teaching.  Classes are also taught in  a seminar style rather than lectures Its not unusual for faculty to   take great   interest in their classes and students. Classwork often involves  independant or group project work  and grading is based around one's   involvement in the class rather than mere test performance.

 These are often in suburban or rural locations which means that  even social life  is centered on the campus.   As a result  students form very tight bonds with each other.

 There is a criticism  that  liberal arts colleges   do not teach students  job skills but  a good liberal arts education will  teach you how to think critically and how to communicate and work with others which are skills that  come in useful  in many professions. Many liberal arts students choose to go to gtaduate school for a doctorate after graduation.

Comprehensive Research Universities

Comprehensive Research Universities



  Most students aspire to go to a large comprehensive research university.   Most of the top ranked universities are comprehensive research  focused institutions. 

 These institutions often have over 10,000 students and cannot offer the same individual attention that a small liberal arts college can. However , a large research institution gives  its students  unparalleled access to  new technologies and  opportunities to gt involved in  research.  For example, many students already have access to 3D printers.

 One needs a different mindset to  get the most out of a big university.   With 20,000 students around,  you are bound to find others who share your interests , no matter how quirky. You need to  get out  and find peopple who share your interests. There is bound to  be a club  for people who share your hobby. If there is not- start the club yourself.

Also at a big university  you have to keep in mind that the faculty is primarily focused on their research. You have to  work  to develop a relationship with your teachers - a good way is to take interest in their research projects .

 On the whole, big research universities  are undoubtedly  some of the best educational options available.

STEM universities

STEM  universities


Along with Liberal Arts colleges, there are several institutions that  are  STEM focused(  Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). STEM schools  tend to be research universities.
 STEM  universities are often popular with international students.

  To apply successfully to a STEM school you need to showcase your academic interests and accomplishments in related fields.    STEM schools tend to value a "learning by doing" mindset  and you are expected to  enjoy   the creative and  getting your hands dirty  aspect,  Prior laboratory or workshop experience is highly valued.


Some highly regarded STEM schools are:

• MIT
• Caltech
• Carnegie Mellon University
• Georgia Tech
• Case Western Reserve University
• Rice
• Purdue
• 
  

 There are several excellent Early  Action admission options.  I have evaluated
Caltech and  Georgia Tech  in other posts and will look at MIT  and CMU  as well.

A liberal Arts Education

A liberal Arts Education


 One of the  defining features of a  US university education is the liberal arts  focus.
 The term "liberal Arts" is highly misunderstood and often maligned. It dates back to an era where education options were mostly vocation trades and the  term liberal arts was used   for all non vocational   education. A liberal arts education  meabs that students are exposed to  a variety of disciplines from  the humanities to sciences. The emphasis is on  developing a strong appreciation for various  studies and often involves having to work in interdisciplinary ateas   such as cognitive science where   physical sciences such as neuroscience and  humanities such sd linguistics  are both involved.A liberal arts education also stresses  team work rather than pure individual effort. At some smaller liberal  arts colleges , the professors also act as  team members .

 The university of Chicago, and Columbia University are two  institutions that take great pride in the core curriculum   that all students must go through a common core curriculum  in the beginning and   this helps foster a spirit of working together

 This article by Barry Schwartz, a professor at Swarthmore  presents a well thought out and structured argument fpr  a liberal arts education.     Appropriately enough  learning to   articulate and express  your opinions in writing is one of the main benefits of a liberal arts education.

 It is argued  that in today's modern economy that  students should   be taught job skills for  high paying professions, but a world of  venture capitalists,software engineers and  hedge fund managers would be a dull place.
 Regardless of profession , successful people are very good at a handful of skills

•   communicating with people
• disciplined work habits  and ethic
•   ability to  acquire new skills
• getting things done

 It should be fairly obvious that a  strong liberal arts background   offers a   very strong foundation for  fiture professional  success  regardless of profession chosen.
 The   main advantage of a liberal arts  approach  is that the faculty is primarily focussed on teaching  undergraduates and not  on their research  and work with graduate student labs.

time to get started

time to get started


As summer ends,  the admissions season begins in earnest.
By now , you should be done with campus visits and research.   You should havre created a gortlist of universities that  you plan on applying to.  Hopefully you have gone through the common essay prompts and identified   the one  you want to write.  See last weeks posts for  detailed information and advice for the common app essay options.

It is now time to gret the  Application process srarted .
 Start by approaching your teacers and college counsellor  at school  for recommendations. Keep in mind that they will be doing this  for  several students so you need to give them time. Make sure you give your references   enough information  both academic and extraciricular to work. It is also good tp share your college list with your teachers- They may have advice such as adding some universities  you overlooked. Read this post for more on letters of recommendation.


 Get started on your common app essay. Also start looking at the supplementary essays  you will need to write. By the end of the application period , it may involve writing over 20 essays.

 Also decide on your Early Decision and Early Action  choices if any.     Universities need your appication to  be complete by November 1 to be considered for Early Action or Early Decision. This leaves the October date s the last  date for  a retake of the SAT or SAT Subject tests.

Common App Essays Summary

Common App  Essays Summary

 The common app essay is one   of the best opportunities the student has to give  an admissions officer a look into his mind..


 Now that we have discussed  all five common app essay prompts, Here is a brief summary of Dos and Dont's  for this.

Dos:

•  Be honest-  this  s not a creative writing assignment
•  Focus on your academic and intellectual aspirations 
• 
  
• Write simply  -  try to keep your  essay meaning ful and to the point. You have a 650 word limit, avoid unecessary descriptive  paragraphs
•   use the active voice
•   proofread - a single error gives the impression that you are not serious and  don't care - not the kind of student you want 
•  One idea is  to   phrase it as if you are writing for an  relative  who has not met you in a while
•  Keep your essay general. Don't write with just one university in mind as your audience. The same essay will  go to all the universities you apply to through the common app:  A good policy to   stick to your  interests and ambitions. You can  make your case for a particular school in their supplementary essays or interview.
•  Many of the prompts  have multiple parts. Usually the first is descriptive sand the subsequent parts are analytic.   Dont  omit to address the analytic  aspect in clarity.   When writing its a good idea to keep track of the word count  periodically 
•  eyeballs-   get other people to read your essay and  make sure it is a good representation  of you.

Some Don'ts:

• Use cliches- nothing loses a readers interest faster than a cliched story, Try to avoid these:
• family - every student has a family that  had a big influence on who they are.Chances are  Yours are not that special.
•  Asian students  often have a cliched "immigrant story - of generations of sacrifice so that 
•  the "hero" story.   Winning a big game or  delivering a great performance may have been an important event in your life but its unlike that  it impacted you intellectually or shaped your academic  mindset  which is what an admissions officer is looking for.write
• Don't try to copy  someone else's style.  This is both difficult and pretentious.
•  Loose track of the word count. 650 words is not a lot but its enough 

 The next   few sets of posts will focus on the and t supplementary essays. Iwill look at the options from several prominent schools  including the ivy league universities

 I  am also going to go through the list of  programs outside the common app that you may want to consider- the mos prominent being the University of Californis system.

Common App essay Option #5

Common App essay  Option #5

 The  fifth  and final common app option is:
Option #5: Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.


 On the surface this  appears to be  one of the more basic prompts as there are only   no subparts.
 However keep in mind  that maturity is a process and rarely a single discreet event.  You can discuss the process of  growth that led to some  accomplishment.

 What a admission officer will look for in this will be   a honest , introspective essay  which will ideally showcase the student as a mature , young  adult ready  for  the intellectual challenges of college.

 Some topics to avoid-

•  the hero story,   winning a big match or staring in a important performance does not automatically transform you into an adult

 the " coming of age" ceremony, be  it a bar mitzvah or a  Hindu  thread ceremony,   Going through a  ceremony does not change  you  intellectually  or confer  genuine adulthood  status.

 It is better to talk about an accomplishment,  in which you matured and transformed by taking on adult responsibilities.  It goes without saying that Honesty is a key  aspect of any essay on this  prompt.

Common App essay Option #4

Common App essay  Option #4

 The  fourth common app option is:

: Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

 Another  very open ended question.   Once again there are several sub parts

• describe a problem
• explain its significance
•  steps you took  or could take to  solve this

 One key is not to  focus on the first aspect,  you need to spend more effort  on analysis rather than the description.

 Keep in mind that it is clearly specified the scale is not important.   You can talk about an  issue that impacts your  town, community , school, family or one that is purely personal.   What needs to be clear is why this matters to you. Use this essay to talk about your  intellectual interests or personal values.  If you read the prompt carefully you can see that this  can be about an issue you anticipate, your essay can talk of problems that  will need to be solved in the future.

 As always a honest, introspective approach that  gives a real insight into  what matters to  you  is  the way to approach this

'Common App essay Option #3

'Common App essay  Option #3

 /The  third common app option is:

#3: Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?
___________________________________________________________


 Yet another open ended question asking for an introspective answer.
 Make sure you respond to all aspects of the question:

•    a time you challenged a belief or idea
•  what prompted you to act
•  would you do it again

 This essay is  a good way for you to talk about your beliefs  and ideas. Ideally this should  give the reader a window into one of your core personal values.

 The    answer to the "dop it again" component need  not be yes- sometimes challenging an idea can  can be too time-consuming or  result in a personal cost.

 topics to avoid:

•  stay away from political  and/or religious beliefs
•   Make sure you dont convey an impression of being a self-righteous   know-it -all, who is  trying to convert people to his viewpoint.

 Again the essay needs to focus on your values and beliefs anfd not the background story.

 If the reader does not learn something  new and unexpected about you  after reading your essay , you have not  taken full advantage of the  nature of this topic.

Common App essay Option #2

''Common App essay  Option #2

 /The  second common app prompt is:

 . The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
___________________________________________________________



 Once again  this seems very open ended but  you must notice that   there ar three distinct parts of  this prompt.

1.  recount the failure
2.  how it affected you
3.  what you learned  from  the experience.

 You need to realize that its  not the story of your failure that an admissions officer  will be interested in but   your reaction and  learning.  An essay that demonstrates your intellectual maturity by focusing on your learning  and personal growth will impress  the  admissions   team more than a weepy story of failure and redemption.

 cliches to avoid.

• Its is tempting and too easy to write a sports story here.   Avoid this as  what is an important match or game for you  is generally meaningless to others
• Avoid being preach and   making the essay about  your morals. No one want ta lecture on morals from  a teenager.
• A romance that did not work out.  While this may have been  heartbreaking and  painful for you, the reality is that it is a part of growing up. It is unlikely that  a failed romance could impact  your worldview or academic interests.
•  happy endings -  this is not Hollywood, every failure need not have a happy ending- focus  instead on your  learning and growth

 Introspection and honsety are the key elements of this essay option

Common Ap essay Option #1

Common App essay  Option #1

  This week , we will discuss the various common app essay options

 The first and most popular option is:
1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
________________________________________________



 The advantage  of this prompt is its open ended nature.  Please note that your story need not be  about your personal life.   This is a great way to reveal something about your academic   interests and  aspirations.   If you are interested  in an esoteric or interdisciplinary  subject  like  Artificial intelligence models  of neural structures, this is  your chance to  talk about it.
Keep in mind that the essay is about your fundamental identity and your intellectual mindset.  Show how wevents in your life have  have shaped your interests.

 Cliches to avoid: 
 Far too many Asian students  talk about  how their parents and  grandparents lived simply and made sacrifices to educate  the next generation.  This is a swell worn cliche one should avoid, focus on yourself  and not your family.
Another cliche  is overcoming difficulties, unless these have shaped your intellectual  interests in some way, avoid this. The essay should  relate to academics  directly  For example,   one student wrote about having a learning disability which   made reading a challenge. However he was very skilled in working with his hands which is why he aspired to study engineering.


 One way to  keep your essay interesting is to  allow  for a focus and discussion of abstract ideas such as   how you   learn best   when ir involves real world work rather than  mer classroom activities.



 I will be discussing  the other essay prompts during the coming week.

Supplementary Essays

Supplementary Essays

If you are interested in applying to a   selective university, which most readers of this blog probably are,   you will need to write one or more supplementary essays  for each university.   Multiply this by 10 applications and you can see that this can be a daunting task.

 The supplementary essays are important because  every university tends to have a unique culture  and mindset 

 for example  one of Caltech  essays directly addreses its honor code:

Members of the Caltech community live, learn, and work within an Honor System with one simple guideline; ‘No member shall take unfair advantage of any other member of the Caltech community.’ While seemingly simple, questions of ethics, honesty and integrity are sometimes puzzling. Share a difficult situation that has challenged you. What was your response, and how did you arrive at a solution? (200 word max)



 as you can see, the essays are  often a way for the admssions team to judge if you would be a good fit for the campus culture.   It is  common knowlede that one of the reasons students want to study at elite univesities is the peer group  and alumni network . Interact with alumni and current students to get a first hand feel of the  culture.


  It makes a big difference if you visit the campus  as you can speak to students an get a genuine feel of the student profile   and mindset.
 Internet research can also help in gauging  the university culture. For example Carnegie Mellon's motto is " My heart is in the work". The students are often  very passionate and involved in their major.


 It is a good idea to decide on your list of colleges  to apply to early so you have time to visit  and do research.  Once you have a feel for a place , its easier to write a meaningful essay  that is natural and not forced.

Common App Essay options

Common App Essay Options 


  One of the most important parts of the common app is the essay. You need to write a 650 word ( about one page)essay on one of the following topics:

Option #1: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

Option #2: The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

 Option #3: Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? 

uld you make the same decision again?

Option #4: Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma--anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

 Option #5: Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

 Don't get stressed looking at the list  You only have to write one of these 

 The essay is a key part of the application as it   is the only way for a student to  show their personality.While the options seem very diverse but they are all  fundamentally asking the student to talk about him/herself.    To start with  Honesty is the most important  principle here. Write a well thought out honest  essay about  who you are, what matters to you and  the people and events that have influenced you intellectually. Dont write what  you think an admission s officer wants to see. A phony made up essay is easy to spot as is an essay written by someone else. 

 Its good to ask for help but eventually  keep in mind that this has to be your voice. Let people help  you with grammar and phrasing but not content. The essay should give the reader an insight into who you are as a person including your values. It should also incorporate your academic interests and goals for college.

  

 In the coming days  we will look at each essay  option individually  and give tips and advice.

 Mid august is a good point in time to  start thinking about which essay you want to write

Choosing which colleges to apply to

Choosing which colleges to apply to




Deciding which  universities to apply to can be confusing.   College brochures and websites are full of  appealing  photographs and its easy to start picturing oneself  on campus.  There are also  several  rankings  which can be misleading.

 Because   all colleges look very appealing , it is not uncommon for students to end up  applying to  more than 15 universities and even upto 20 schools.. This is unnecessary and a waste of  time and money. University application fees   range from $50 to 100.

 It is recommended you apply to  around 12 universities.
 A good way to go about selecting the universities is to  start by making a big list of all the places  you are interested in.    They should be divided into  3 groups.

1.  Aspirational  - basically highly selective schools  including ivy league programs
2. Realistic -  universities where  your odds of admission are over 20% but  probably below 50%
3. Safe - universities where the chance of admission is over 40%.
4.  Ger advice from your school counselor and  friends at universities regarding this.

 Its useful to start with a big list of about 20 universities in each category.

 As  your   SAT and  SAT I scores come in  along with your  school results , its time to reevaluate your lists. If you have excellent scores  you  will see that  schools move from inspirational to realistic and from realistic to safe. Conversely if you   did not perform well you will  see the opposite happen with safe schools becoming realistic and the realistic universities  becoming aspirational.

 At this stage , you should have formed a long list of universities and   start  grouping  them  based on your profile.

 fell free to email us  your profile to get a  list of universities by group  for you  to  consider.

International Student Applications

 International Student Applications


 International  students  are now an omnipresent aspect of the  university system.
Almost every major university  proudly  mentions  the number of different nationalities in each class ( often well over 50).
 Not surprising China and India account for the largest  foreign student populations and Asian countries  are especially well represented  at institutions with good science and engineering programs.
 In both India and China, university Admissions depend on  results in entrance examinations.  Competition for the best universities is  intense and students often spend  an entire year  preparing for the entrance examinations.  Often   whatr you end up studying is determined by an examination score.
  Because  of the issues involved in university admission in India and China, many students and their families  are looking at  US Universities as a n alternative.

  Most European students have  access to  high quality and free education in their  home countries  and only opt to study in the USA if they are interested in a major which is not swell  represented in their home country. Computer Science and business studies  departments are where the majority of European students  can be found.

 International students  face  many  difficulties in applying to  US universities. Contrary to expectation, standardized tests  like the SAT and SAT I subject tests are the  least challenging aspect, the most challenging aspect for a foreign student the writing.   Writing a meaningful and introspective essay that provides a real insight into one's personality is challenging enough for anyone, let alone for someone for whom English is  second or third language.
Also  small aspects like getting  teacher or counselor  recommendations can be complicated as teachers are also not used to writng about their students  and often do not have  the right perspective to be able to help.

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of Recommendation



 Most universities will require  2 letters of recommendation  as part of the common ap.
 These are an important aspect  the application  that many students neglect.  Apart from the essays , this is one of the main insights int a students personality and intellectual maturity.


 Recommendations are important because it is a way for a university to gauge if you are ready for the  intellectual challenge of college, therefore a good  recommendation is more about a students potential and soft skills than  academic or classroom performance.
 Here are some tips to getting good recommendations

•  Identify the right people. Pick teachers  who have known you for some time  and have seen you develop as a  student. If you have  work experience or have  done an internship, a boss or colleague is also a good reference. Some universities require one reference from a school counselor
• Ask people early. A good letter  takes time to write.  Even if you tell people well in advance, chances are you will still have to remind them once or twice to get this done before the deadline
•  Share information. Make sure your  the people writing your letters know which universities  you are applying  to, as well your   intended major.  A good   recommendation will highlight the qualities  that you need for your  major.   An engineer and liberal arts student  have different skill sets that should be highlighted in these letters
• Ask people to  mention  past examples of  the way you have worked. Real life incidents 
•  If your  essay tropic is  school related , share it with your teachers and  ask them to corroborate your story.

At this date, you should have identified  the peopleyou will be asking for recommendations.

Early Action and Early Decision

Early Action  and  Early Decision

 Many colleges and universities  have  multiple  admissions rouns.
  Simply put , there is an early round  with a Nov 1 deadline with results being released in mid december and a Regular Decision round  with a Jan 1 deadline. and  acceptance letter coming in early April.

 Most schools offer-an  Early Decision  option.  Early   decision applications are usually due on November 1. and students will be  notified by mid December.  Early decision applications are binding,   if accepted  you are supposed to enroll  and   not apply anywhere  else in regular decision.. You can only apply to one  school under Early Decision, but its   possible to apply to one university ED and a few more  in EA.

 A few  universities offer an Early Action cycle, this is  similar to early decision  but is not binding. You can aply  t mutiple colleges in Rarly Action.  There are no restrictions with EA applications but you cannot apply EA if you are already applied to an REA institution

 To confuse matters a few of the most prestigious universities have a REA ( Restricted Early Action)  option. If you apply REA you cannot apply to any other institution under EA or ED.  This is also referred to as Single Choice Early Action
 Harvard, Yale , Princeton and Stanford are the  REA universities.


  Recommendation->

•  It often seems that it is easier to be accepted under  the early cycle  as there are fewer applicants but keep in mind that almost all students applying in an  early program will  have a strong profile.
•  If  you have your heart set o n one of Harvard/Yale/Princeton or Stanford and are happy  with  all your tests scores and   overall profile - apply  under REA. The admissions odds are slightly more favorable.
•  If you have a clear first choice which is not one of the REA schools - apply there ED and apply to a few others  n EA
•  Remember this does not guarantee anything-    be prepared to apply to  other universities in January

 At this point  if your  profile is more or less complete - you should  starting thinking about applying to 

the common application

 The Common Application
 If you are applying to   some of the more selective schools  that have a holistic admission process  chances are  you will need to  use the common application ( popularly called the common ap).
 Over
 The reality is that the common ap can actually simplify a students  effort considerably  as it is accepted by nearly 600 colleges and universities

 The common ap is a  application form that you can complete online  Each student is assigned a unique common ap id number. The ap includes biographic and academic information  as well as a written essay.

 The essay is a key part of the application  as it is one of the  best ways to  showcase one's personality to a university. The essay topics and strategies will be discussed in greater detail in a future post.
Recommendations from  teachers and school counselors also have to be uploaded to the common ap portal.
  Students can also include an artistic portfolio  if they feel this will  strengthen their  profile.

 Many  universities will include  an extra  writing supplement that needs to be included.


Where  you should be in the application stage  now ( August4)

 Early August is a good time to start filing up the common ap online.  Its good to scan in  your  transcripts and any award certificates  to upload.

Welcome to the Clearsky Education Blog

Welcome to the Clearsky education blog

•  This is a blog to  guide school students through the  process of applying to  a US undergraduate university.
• 
  
•  While  the primary audience is  for students based in India  most of our content is equally valid for  other international and even US based students.
•  This blog will serve as a guideline to  applying to  university.
• 
  
•  I will  explain all the terminology and provide regular updates on the admissions  cycle
•  Applying to college can seem intimidating and looks  like a lot of work  but it need  not be.  It can and should be Fun  If done properly it can be  easily spaced out over the course of your final school year and apart from the required standardized  tests and application deadlines  it should not be a stressful process. In fact if done  in the right frame of mind , it can be an enjoyable  process and will  help you  think about why you really want to go to college and what you want to accomplish.

Where  you should be in the application stage  now ( August3)
by now  you should have completed your standardized tests - the SAT and SAT subject tests.   The next test dates are  Oct 3 and  November 5.