Getting Accepted into College

What criteria do colleges consider?

• Most colleges and universities evaluate the following:
  
  -GPA -(Grade Point Average) - Your cumulative average from grades 9-12
  -Class Rank - Your class ranking in comparison to other students in your grade.
  -SAT scores - Some schools have specific cut-off scores that they require for admission.  If you are interested in a specific school, make sure that you know what type of SAT scores are typcial of students accepted at that school. 
  
  For example, the average SAT score of students at Penn State University, Main Campus last year were:  Reading, 578 and Math, 612 = 1190 (for Math/Reading ONLY)
  
  -Course difficulty - Are your classes compatable with your career goals?
  
  For example:
  If you plan on entering a science field, have you taken all or most of the science courses offered in your school?  
  Students thinking on majoring in fields such as healthcare (nursing, physician's assistant, pre-medicine, physical therapy, occupational therapy, pharmacy, etc.), engineering, or a sceince field should take the following courses in high school:
  College Prep Biology, College Prep Chemistry, Physics, AP Biology, AP Chemistry 
  
  Have you taken Algebra, Geometry, Algebra II, and possibly Trigonometry and Calculus?
  
  Have you taken at least two years of a foreign language?
  
  -Extracurricular involvement - What do you do besides go to school?
  Do you hold a part-time job, volunteer in the community, or participate in athletics or clubs?
  Are you in the band, involved in dance, or involved in Karate?
  Do you hold any leadership roles in these activites?  i.e. Are you cheerleading co-captain, drum major, or president of your class?  If yes, these are great ways to demonstrate your active involvement vs. just another name on a roster. 
  
  --It's better to be actively involved in two or three activities than to participate in seven or eight.  It's not the number of activities that matters; it's the commitment that you demostrate based on your involvement. 
  

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