Part 3 Answers From Princeton’s Dean of Admission

By JANET LAVIN RAPELYE

Do applications go through a series of rounds (filtering)? If an application is strong, is it reviewed by multiple readers?

— Do

Princeton’s process for reviewing undergraduate applications is extremely detailed and comprehensive.

As I’ve noted in an earlier post, when we say that the process is holistic, we mean it is designed to discover all the potential qualities of our applicants, qualities that we know cannot be assessed by evaluating just academic grades or standardized scores, although these are important components of an application.

Last year, Princeton received more than 26,000 applications. We thoroughly read every application twice before rendering a decision; some applications received three and four reviews. Almost 2,100 students received letters of admission. The entire process ensures the integrity and confidentiality of each application. Here’s how it works at Princeton:

When a student’s file contains all the required materials, an admission officer begins a thorough first reading of the student’s application. The staff member reads the file cover to cover, including teacher and guidance counselor recommendations, the student’s essays, transcript, standardized test scores and any other supporting materials. The grades and the rigor of the student’s course of study, as well as the extracurricular activities and summer experiences, are taken into consideration. In some cases, faculty members are engaged to review supplementary materials that the students submit.

After the admission officer summarizes the candidate’s academic performance, achievements, talents and personal qualities, the file is read completely again by a senior admission officer who is knowledgeable about the high school and the region.

The application is then sent to a committee that includes admission officers, the director of the admission office and me.

Every candidate goes through the committee process, and the files with the most promise are discussed in the committee. It takes many weeks of very long days, evenings and weekends to conclude the work. In the committee meetings, the summaries prepared by the first and second readers are often read out loud and discussed. After deliberating, the committee votes on whether to admit, deny or, in the case of early admission, defer a student. During the regular admission cycle, we also vote to place students on the wait list.

As you might imagine, at each step there are moments for conversation and further discovery. We are always looking for reasons to admit students. The admission process is more of an art than a science, and we have developed it in a way that we believe assures all students the opportunity to present their best case.

Every year we receive applications from thousands more qualified candidates than we can accept. The consolation for us is that we know these are extraordinarily gifted students who will be excellent college students wherever they decide to go.

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Finding the Right College Fit

How would you suggest a student determine the culture of a school and whether or not it would be a good fit? Suggestions for both on-campus visits or schools that one cannot visit would be appreciated. I think this is a very hard decision for many 17-year-olds.

— Older and hopefully wiser

Determining culture and fit is indeed difficult for a high school student looking at colleges. If you are a parent, you want to do your best to support your son or daughter throughout this process.

On paper, a school might seem to meet all the right criteria: selectivity, number and choice of majors, resources, quality of faculty, student-faculty ratio, size, location, climate and extracurricular offerings, among others. Until your student has actually had a chance to visit, however, it is difficult to answer the all-important question, “Will I like it here?”

I have always been a strong proponent of the campus visit. Parents often marvel at how quickly a student can formulate a response to that question after a visit. For some students, the reaction is visceral and immediate.

The visit is most valuable because it gives prospective students an opportunity to talk to undergraduates, meet with faculty or even sit in on a class.

Students, when you arrive at the school, it is important to let the college or university know you are on campus by signing in at the admission office, even if you are taking just the tour. As you are leaving the campus, jot down your impressions so you can remember the highlights of your visit.

If you are visiting a college or university that offers interviews on campus, take them up on their offer.

Be sure to read about the school before your trip so you can ask good questions in the interview, such as how students choose majors at that institution, or are freshmen allowed to participate in a particular program of interest in the first year.

We know, however, that a school visit is not always possible. Many schools are making investments in a variety of visit proxies, everything from videos and virtual tours to online chats and blogs hosted by students, professors and administrators.

College Web sites can also be a valuable resource. Most are packed with information that can supplement the printed materials schools generate. We host off-campus information sessions around the country and the globe. These sessions give parents and students a chance to discuss whatever they wish with our admission officers.

College fairs at high schools and other nearby locations are useful resources, too.

Finally, person-to-person research should not be overlooked as an important research tool. Your college counselor may be the most important resource for you. Alumni and current students also can help parents and students determine if a school might be the right choice.

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