Dispelling Myths

Admissions officers answer lots of questions. It’s part of the job description. And many students ask us similar versions of the same questions. The blogosphere is filled with viral rumors about college admissions, about what “counts” and what doesn’t and why. These ideas fester in high school cafeterias and cyber spots like “College Confidential” and Facebook, among others, so we want to use this corner of the Internet to clear the air. In random order, here are some of the myths we hear every day:

Let's tackle the myths:

It's better to get a lower grade in a harder course than it is to get a higher grade in an easier course
If my test scores are below a certain number, I won't get in
Anything that's "optional" on a college application is actually secretly "required"
It looks bad if I take the SAT (or the ACT) too many times
I have a better chance of getting in if I go meet my admissions officer, send them emails, and get an interview with them
I need to be the president of every club I'm in to be competitive in my college application
It's easier to get in Early Decision
I won't get in if I didn't do community service

Sending 8 letters of recommendation and an additional essay will give me a better chance of getting in
If 30 people apply from my high school to one college, it's harder for me to get into that school
If I get into college Early Decision, I don't have to worry about working the rest of the year
Admissions officers check up on your Facebook accounts
If I send in all of my test scores, admissions officers will hold the lower ones against me
If a coach calls me, it means I'm being recruited
If anything arrives after the deadline my application will be denied (or looked at more harshly)

It's better to get a lower grade in a harder course than it is to get a higher grade in an easier course

Well, yes and no. Part of our academic assessment of your application is a consideration of curricular rigor. We determine the availability of advanced coursework at your school (AP, IB, honors, etc.) and evaluate your transcript on a scale from “most demanding available” to “below average.” Your GPA is evaluated in that context, so yes, sometimes the "lower grade in the harder course" is "better" than the "higher grade in an easier course." But that doesn't mean that a transcript full of Cs in AP classes is better than straight As in classes a step down. Know yourself and put together a schedule that will challenge and engage you but not cause you to flounder academically.

If my test scores are below a certain number, I won't get in

Nope. We use no score cutoffs when we read applications. Academic strength can be measured in lots of ways, and testing is an imperfect metric for determining the preparedness of every student for college. That's why we combine all the work you've done in the classroom by looking at your grades and the rigor of your curriculum alongside your testing (if you choose to submit scores) to determine your overall academic strength. So while we do use test scores as one predictor of academic success at Tufts (for students who choose to submit them), we think about those scores in context and in conjunction with so many other factors. We simply cannot have a test score "cutoff." The only exception is with English proficiency tests, for which we do have recommended minimum scores. You can read about that here.

Anything that's "optional" on a college application is actually secretly "required"

The “optional” sections of an application are not covert opportunities to trip you up. Seriously. If an essay or a standardized test or an interview is labeled “optional,” there is truth to that blessed adjective. The college has given you a choice. Use it or dispose of it as you see fit. Don’t over-analyze it. It’s not a trick question, and you won’t be “penalized” if you skip it. That’s why it’s “optional.” If it says something is “recommended,” well, that’s a different conversation…

It looks bad if I take the SAT (or the ACT) too many times

*For the classes entering in the Falls of 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026, we are test optional!* For those who choose to test...Taking a certain test "too many times" is a very subjective, nebulous concept, and it doesn't hurt your application - we do not penalize students who take the same test multiple times. For your own sanity, however, you should retake your SAT or ACT purposefully. Taking the same test five times is a strain on you and your family - both financially and, let's face it, when it comes to everyone's happiness. And the reward is often at that point not worth the sacrifice. If you feel that taking a certain test a second or third time will improve your score to one with which you'll feel happy, that is an excellent reason to take the test again. Otherwise, let yourself be done.

I have a better chance of getting in if I go meet my admissions officer, send them emails, and get an interview with them

While we welcome your questions and you should feel free to reach out to us with specific concerns, this type of contact with us is not going to “help” your application. We don’t offer interviews with our admissions staff as part of our process, and you don’t need to meet with the admissions officer who reads for your territory on your campus visit – in fact, you shouldn’t. The individual presenting at your information session is happy to answer questions and has the same knowledge and expertise as the person who will eventually read your file.

The lesson here is don’t send emails or request meetings just for the sake of it. There are better ways to show us “demonstrated interest.” If you can visit campus, meet us if we visit your high school or come say hello at a college fair, we will appreciate the fact that you are making the effort to get to know Tufts and assess whether it is a good fit for you. If you write fabulous, specific responses to our Tufts short-answer questions (particularly “Why Tufts?”) based on research you did online, we notice, and it helps. So when thinking about showing demonstrated interest, please be purposeful.

I need to be the president of every club I'm in to be competitive in my college application

Picture this: 12 people who were president of the mock trial team in high school join mock trial at Tufts. What happens? Most likely you have a room full of people yelling at each other. The success of any club depends on leaders but also listeners, decision-makers but also peacekeepers, doers but also thinkers... you get the idea.

Of course, extracurricular engagement is one of the areas we consider when evaluating applications, and leadership roles demonstrate outstanding commitment to an activity. But so do things like consistent and extended involvement and personal contributions. Use the space you're given in the Activities section to explain your official or unofficial role on the team was so we can begin to picture your role in your extracurriculars in college.

It's easier to get in Early Decision

Not true. The students we accept in Early Decision are of the same high quality as the students we accept in Regular Decision - on average they have the same grades, scores, extracurricular commitments and vibrant qualities that make our applicants qualified. You should never apply to a school Early Decision for strategic purposes - Early Decision is an opportunity to apply if you know that you would choose Tufts over any other school on your list.

To be honest, though, this particular myth requires a response that's a little more nuanced than that. So we had Associate Director of Admissions Beky Stiles write a blog about it. You can check that out here!

I won't get in if I didn't do community service

Community service is a great thing, and it's something that really matters to Tufts (we do have an entire college of Civic Life for a reason). But, there is no requirement for acceptance that says you have to do community service to get accepted, and plenty of the students we accept haven't done any. We generally prefer that the activities you do are things that are meaningful to you. And that goes for everything, not just community service! So you should try community service (and athletics, and music, and anything that you think you might love) - if you really like it and end up doing a lot, great! If not, spend that time doing something else productive (sorry, watching Friends re-runs on Netflix doesn't count as productive). Start a band, join mock trial, play a sport, or write short stories - whatever makes you happy. Your application will be much stronger if you follow your passions rather than spending your time checking off boxes for admissions officers.

Sending 8 letters of recommendation and an additional essay will give me a better chance of getting in

This is one of those scenarios in which "less is more" is generally true. We require each item in our application for a reason, and an application with too many "extras" can actually dilute your message and take attention away from the salient points we asked for. It is actually more helpful to send us two recommendations from teachers telling us distinctly different things about you than it is to send us six recommendations from teachers saying the same wonderful things about you.

If 30 people apply from my high school to one college, it's harder for me to get into that school

We read files by school so that we can better understand your success in the context of your environment. For that reason, we do evaluate your application in the context of the other students in your class. This helps us put your performance into perspective, especially as it pertains to the rigor of your curriculum. But there is no quota from each school. If 10 students apply from your high school and all 10 students impress us, it’s possible that everyone could be accepted. The best advice we can give is don’t worry about who else is applying from your school. Give us your best effort.

If I get into college Early Decision, I don't have to worry about working the rest of the year

All of the students we admit in Early Decision (and in Regular Decision) are notified in their acceptance letter that we expect them to “maintain the level of academic and personal excellence that distinguished them as an applicant.” In other words, if you slack off later in your senior year, we notice, and it could jeopardize your acceptance.

Admissions officers check up on your Facebook accounts

No, we don’t. Seriously (and that goes for Instagram, Twitter, etc.) If this type of inspection would be useful to our decision-making, we would ask you to send us a link to your Facebook page so we could evaluate its content. But there are enough things in your application for us to evaluate and, frankly, there are some things we should not see. Facebook is one of them. (That’s why it’s called “creeping,” isn’t it?) Having said that, Facebook is a public space and a reflective pause before you post is always prudent, especially if it’s on a college’s admissions page.

If I send in all of my test scores, admissions officers will hold the lower ones against me

Everybody wins when we use your highest test scores. No matter which tests you are submitting to Tufts, we will take the highest scores on each section of that test to evaluate. End of story.

If a coach calls me, it means I'm being recruited

Getting a call from a coach doesn't mean you're getting recruited. It means the coach called you, and may be interested in recruiting you at some point. Once a coach has told you that you have their support, this is not a guarantee of admission. It means that the coach's support will be considered by the admissions office as part of the holistic review of your application (alongside your academic strength, extracurricular achievement, and personal qualities). The coach's support certainly makes an impact, but we'll still be looking for students who are strong academic and personal fits for Tufts, even when evaluating recruited athletes.

If anything arrives after the deadline my application will be denied (or looked at more harshly)

Your part of the application— the Common Application, the Coalition Application, or QuestBridge Application —must be received by the deadline. But, your Secondary School Report, teacher recommendations, alumni interview, and standardized testing can—and often do—arrive after that date. We understand that different high schools are on different schedules, test scores often take a long time to process and send, and teachers are writing many recommendations and often need some additional time to get those in - and that's OK. For more information on material deadlines, refer to this page.