All of You
Listen to John Legend. As the soulful R&B man croons his #1 single "All of Me," he could have been advising you about what counts in your college application. Keep telling yourself this important point: all of me counts.
Contrary to what the Naviance scatter gram might imply, your GPA and test scores are not the only things that “count” when a college admission officer evaluates your application. Don’t misunderstand me: the numbers matter. The data elements of your application are certainly important as we assess your qualifications. After all, assessing your ability to do the work in our classrooms is a fundamental dimension of the admission process.
Each August, as I stand before the faculty on the Academic Quad at the Matriculation Ceremony, I make this official-sounding proclamation: “As dean of undergraduate admissions, I certify that these students have fulfilled our entrance requirements and are judged ready to become undergraduates at Tufts University.” That’s a big deal. But it’s not the only deal.
Think about it. Why would a college ask for essays and recommendations and extracurricular activities if those parts of your application didn't count? These elements tell us about your personality and interests and aspirations. They are your narrative. They introduce the person who wants to join our community. All of “you” counts. Unfortunately, the twin axes of Naviance can’t tell you how those qualitative pieces informed the final decisions of those who applied before you. And admission officers can’t distill qualities like character and kindness and curiosity into a nifty data point, as great as it would be to shout “she has a kindness quotient of six!” and have heads around the committee table nod appreciatively.
Like most selective colleges, Tufts uses a holistic admission policy. In laymen’s terms, that means we consider multiple types of merit as we evaluate candidates and shape our class. Your academic achievements are surely noteworthy parts of any holistic review. I’ll go one step further: your academic record is the foundation of your application. The courses you’ve taken (and, of course, the ones you are taking this year) relative to what your school offers by way of advanced or “honors” level work, the grades you earned in those courses, and the standardized testing that supports your transcript define your academic merit.
But here’s the good news/bad news part: last year, almost three-quarters of our 19,074 applicants were evaluated as academically qualified for admission to Tufts. Obviously, using measurable criteria like a GPA and test scores, some members of that super-majority were more qualified than others. But filling a classroom with students sporting a 4.0 GPA as the sole element of their admission would not guarantee that the discussion in that classroom would be lively or intellectually engaging or informed by diverse perspectives and interests. A perfect grade/score and intellectual engagement are not synonyms (nor are they mutually exclusive). And if a college values qualities like creativity, collaboration, citizenship and communication skills—the Mighty Cs!—how does the academic data tell us that those things are present?
When we’re reading your application, we value the qualitative parts of your file as much as the quantitative pieces. We appreciate the things you have to say, the way you say them and why you say them. We notice whether you are thoughtful, sarcastic, insightful, skeptical, introspective, happy, gregarious, moody, athletic, artistic, charismatic, funny, or snarky. (This is not an exhaustive list.) We value your past accomplishments as well as your potential ones.
We cull those observations and reactions about you from your application. You fill it out. You decide what to highlight and what to omit. We come to our understanding of you based on the thoughts you share with us.
Think of your application as a conversation with a college. It’s your introduction. It’s an opportunity to announce “here I am!” with as much clarity and confidence as you can muster. In turn, it’s my responsibility as an admission officer to populate this campus community with individuals who are smart and intellectually engaged as well as with people who are interesting and diverse (in all the ways you might interpret that word) and engaging.
So this is your opportunity. As we sprint towards the application deadline on January 1, the ball (Times Square? New Year’s Eve? Bueller, Bueller…) remains in your hands. Help us know all of you.
Media credits: Leonardo DaVinci, Soundcloud user lohnlegend, and flickr user 070305