The question, “How many Colleges should I apply to?” is a question that a lot of high school graduates ask.
In this article, I will give you a quick guide on”How many Colleges should I apply to?” and some factors you need to have in mind while selecting the right college.
There is no DEFINITE answer to number of college to apply to…
Just like everyone is unique in understanding and disciplines, that’s the same way there are for the application into college.
So, in a situation in which you want to apply to multiple colleges, consider that there are costs associated with it.
The schools you can apply into are divided into three:
Safety Colleges:
These are colleges that you have a high chance of getting admitted to. The requirements for the safety school have flexible admission standards that allow students to get admitted easily. Most students apply to just one safety college in case of an issue.
Probable Colleges:
These are colleges that are not necessarily the first choice of the student but a student can happily attend in case he/she doesn’t get admitted into the first choice of college. Most students apply to two or four probable colleges in case of an issue.
To get admission into the Probable colleges, the student should meet the basic academic and social requirements to have the partial assurance of admission.
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Reach Colleges:
The reach colleges are the first choice of the students. Most students apply for these top colleges but little admissions are given out.
This is because the admission requirements are not met by all students or the grades of the students are below average. Most students apply to just one or two reach colleges in case of an issue.
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How many Colleges should I apply to?
Factors to consider while applying for Multiple Colleges:
Cost and Time of Application:
Application into college is not free and thus requires some payments to be done. The only way it gets lesser or free is if you are on fee waivers which are only for students on financial needs.
Thus the cost of application into college is about $75 coupled with fees of standardized test scores and AP scores. So, imagine you want to apply to 5 colleges, it means 75*5 which is $375 for college application excluding other fees.
On the other hand, the SAT and ACT have costs of $11.25 per report and $12 per report respectively if you exceed the requirement of four free score reports for college application.
Further stress comes to the application process on the time it takes to apply for each college, taking into consideration important details to avoid a mistake you will regret during studies or graduation.
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After College Acceptance:
The question, “How many Colleges should I apply to” becomes more enticing when you get acceptance notice towards the beginning of the first quarter of the year (April), from some of the colleges you applied to. Then, you have less time to decide the college you want, considering the fees, aids, and their mode of operation.
How many Colleges should I apply to?
Final tips:
While answering the question, “How many Colleges should I apply to?“, you need to provide a list of all the colleges you have in mind and why you chose those schools.
Rank each of the schools based on how good they are and analyze the ones that could give you admission depending on your ACT and SAT scores.
On the other hand, while filling your application form, always make mention of any athletic skill that you’ve got.
This is because if there is an excellent competition in the admission process, some of the extracurricular abilities you have will make you unique.
NB: Don’t apply to a college that you won’t like to study unless it’s going to serve as a safety school.
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