Bonus Myth #1: Is My Student Compared To Students From Other High Schools?

Have you checked out the new 10-page guide, 10 Myths of College Admissions, available on our home page? As we were putting it together, it was so hard to limit ourselves to just 10 myths (college misinformation abounds!), so here’s an extra bonus myth!

Myth #11: My student’s application will be compared to other student’s applications, even students who don’t go to their high school.

This is a concern we hear a lot, particularly when it comes time for course selection. We are often asked questions like, “Will it look bad if my daughter doesn’t take Honors Spanish? Our school doesn’t offer it, but Rival High School does.”

The root fear here—and the myth that needs busting—is that when college applications are read, they’re all spread out on a table and compared to one another. But that’s just not how the process works. For starters, it would take a very large table and more time than most admissions offices have in a single admissions season.

Rest easy. Students aren’t directly compared in the admissions process, and admissions counselors are particularly careful to view students in the context of their school and what opportunities they have available to them. A student can’t take Honors Spanish if there is no Honors Spanish, after all.

So how do admissions counselors make sure they’re viewing a student in the context of their school? Well, there is actually a very important part of the college application that most students never see and most families never hear about. It’s called the school profile.

A student’s high school counselor is asked to upload the school profile along with the student’s transcript. The school profile contains useful information like the size of the senior class, the school’s grading scale, what advanced classes are available, and any other details that give the application reader insight into the high school.

Many high schools publish their school profile on their high school counseling webpage if you’d like to take a look at what colleges will receive.

One last note for students applying to highly selective colleges or competitive scholarships—just because a student’s high school doesn’t offer a lot of advanced classes and the school profile reflects that doesn’t automatically give students an excuse not to pursue any rigor in their curriculum.

Dual enrollment is usually an option for most students. In a recent counselor update call for NC State’s top scholarship, the Park Scholarship, the speaker noted that most successful students have completed at least one dual enrollment course, especially if their high school has limited options.

While colleges are looking to see students pushing themselves within the context of their school, the most selective colleges are looking for students who go above and beyond.