Connor, Florence, AZ
My ultimate goal for senior year was to somehow gain acceptance into an Ivy League university. It was a bit of a lofty goal, I will admit, but I knew I had what it took to get in. After all, I had straight A’s, very high ACT scores, multiple extracurricular activities, and a large amount of volunteer hours to my credit. However, I had a crucial thing going against me, that being the fact that my parents and I didn’t know what to do, where to go, how to do things in regards to my college search, and we didn’t know anyone we could turn to for advice. I live in a small, poor, rural town where not a lot of people go to any kind of college, which made it incredibly difficult for me. In fact, my school’s academic advisor had no knowledge or experience with the Common App, as none of her students have ever had to use it before. I felt very lost and overwhelmed, and I didn’t know what to do.
However, that all changed when I started with CollegePoint. I was called out of the blue one day and asked if wanted to be part of the free program, and seeing no harm in it, I said yes.
I was then matched up with Lauren, my advisor, and we began having weekly video calls going over various parts of the application process and the applications themselves. Over the course of a few months, she helped me get things straightened out. I learned how to choose what colleges to apply to, how to do admissions interviews, how to apply for financial aid, and especially how to create a fantastic application. We spent hours poring over my essays, going over every little detail to make sure my answers were all unique and flawless, even going so far as to take my essays to other advisors for their critiques and suggestions. This was especially true when it came to the all-important personal statement, which ended up being one of the best pieces I have ever written.
When the time came to turn in my applications, I was very confident due to the work my advisor and I had done, and that confidence was justified with my acceptance to Dartmouth College, where I will be attending in the fall. I can honestly say that without the help and resources CollegePoint provided to me during the first half of my senior year, my college process would have looked a lot different, and I definitely wouldn’t have had a shot at getting anywhere close to an Ivy League school. It is a fantastic program, and I would recommend it to any high school student in a situation like mine.