Every year, students decide what classes they want to take for the coming year. Although most students go off of preference or future plans, college applications are always considered in some shape or form.
The most recent data on admissions for the class of 2024 has shown that colleges are becoming more selective. For example, the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) received 146,276 applications from prospective freshmen. UCLA receives the highest number of applications in the United States and has an acceptance rate of ~9%. Due to the sheer amount of applicants colleges have received, they have been forced to hold higher standards.
A majority of colleges say that they consider a world language as a fifth core class. On the admissions page for Boston College, they state that they want to see four years of math, natural science, social science, english, and foreign language. UCLA says that they want to see two years of a foreign language but recommend at least three. Another extremely popular school—University of Texas Austin—requires applicants to have taken at least two years of a foreign language. These requirements make it essential for students to start planning out their courses based on colleges as early as sophomore year.
To touch more on class choices, a lot of students have to start thinking about their course load as early as freshman year. Colleges want to see students taking rigorous courses that align with their major. Some harder classes need prerequisites so students shape their schedule around that. Nowadays, applicants choose courses that will look competitive with others on their transcripts. Universities will also take into account what classes each school offers. For example, some schools may not offer certain Advanced Placement (AP) courses in their school system. Loading a transcript with AP’s is one way that students can boost their competitiveness in applicant pools.
Another accolade that colleges and universities consider heavily is extracurriculars. The wide variety of extracurricular activities that are offered today allow students to participate in a vast amount of clubs, sports, and other teams. The main problem students face is joining too many clubs or teams in an attempt to overload their activities list. Although showing a diversity of skills is good, being in lots of clubs can spread the student’s profile too thin. Leadership is one of the most important qualities on the activities list on the Common Application. If students cannot show leadership, impacting their community or fighting for a cause can help them stand out to admissions officers.
Overall the changes in college admissions have required students to take harder classes and take leadership roles in clubs. Applicants should strive to take advantage of high-level courses that their schools offer to raise their competitiveness.
