college application essay lies

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College application essays: How to stop the lies

Intelligent’s report exposing the extent to which college hopefuls lie on their applications has led many admissions officials to reflect on what they could do to promote better practices among potential students; specifically, what to do with the college essay.

When David Rettinger, an accomplished academic integrity researcher, discovered the report, he was “disappointed, but not even a little surprised.” In reports he conducted through the International Center for Academic Integrity , 70% of students admitted to some form of cheating during their college career, compared to the 61% who admitted adding untrue information to some part of their college application.

With a student population prone to cheating, Michele Sandlin from the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers consulting extension is curious about what the real value of the essay is. She’s fielded complaints about the application essay for quite some time now, the reasoning always the same and completely legitimate: they’re vague, hard to score, and there are too many applications to sift through to verify the information. Large public universities can see up to 70,000 applications per year, according to Sandlin. Adding insult to injury, 34% of students claimed to write untrue stories.

“Do they have an enormous amount of time to check all this stuff? No, they don’t. They’re overwhelmed with applications,” she says.

This makes the essay portion ripe for students to take advantage of. There are s econd-review processes to check on things that don’t look right or don’t align with the rest of the application, but this happens rarely. And if a student does lie, what’s the consequence? Rettinger explained how students are motivated to lie because there is none.

“If you think about it from a student’s perspective, what’s their incentive for telling the truth? If they lie on their application, what happens when they get caught? The worst thing that happens is the thing that would have happened anyway: They won’t get in,” he said. “They’re not thinking of the bigger consequences—the cultural values.”

Rettinger, along with Michele Sandlin from the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers consulting extension, believes the best solution is to design a process that reduces a student’s ability to cheat or lie rather than just hoping they won’t.

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The remedy for the college essay problem that many schools are moving toward is asking shorter, more pointed prompts that test the experience a student listed. It’s not what experience they have, it’s what they learned.

“If you’re just getting a laundry list that’s not telling you how they’re involved, how they’re engaged, how they learned from it, those fake answers can get weeded out a lot more quickly,” she said. “A lot of the essay pieces have to do with how the questions are written, how descriptive they are, and the valuables you’re looking for in the response. We’re looking for deeper learning.”

Rettinger echoed something similar when he suggested applications should f ocus on asking questions that illicit what students can do rather than some checklist of what they’ve done.

Other portions of the application might be trickier to inhibit students from lying on though. For example, 39% of students confessed to misrepresenting their race or ethnicity, and Rettinger believes that may be due to students perceiving the application as unfair.

“Applicants have bought into this scenario that white people are being discriminated against in college admissions, and there are forces in our culture that are selling that story regardless of whether that’s true or not,” he said. “Pe ople are willing to excuse their own dishonesty when they believe the process is stacked against them. They see an exception to the rule about lying.”

Sandlin was surprised by the figures on ethnicity but found it important not to jump to conclusions.

“According to this survey, students are claiming they know they faked it or is it that our questions are too confusing and they’re picking the one that’s closest?” she said. “ I would first ask ‘Are we asking the questions wrong? Can we be asking the questions differently?’ I would look internally.”

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Is it OK to lie on your college application?

It’s never OK to lie on a college application. The best college admission advice you can get is to remain honest. Lying can result in the complete revocation of your application. Even if you get accepted, there's a risk that if you’ve already been accepted, your acceptance can be rescinded.

It's not worth the risk. If you’re concerned about putting something in your application that might negatively impact it, seek guidance from your school counselor.

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Should college essays touch on race? Some say affirmative action ruling leaves them no choice

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When she started writing her college essay, Hillary Amofa told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. About being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana and growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. About hardship and struggle.

Then she deleted it all.

“I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping,” said the 18-year-old senior at Lincoln Park High School in Chicago. “And I’m just like, this doesn’t really say anything about me as a person.”

When the Supreme Court ended affirmative action in higher education , it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions decisions. For many students of color, instantly more was riding on the already high-stakes writing assignment. Some say they felt pressure to exploit their hardships as they competed for a spot on campus.

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Amofa was just starting to think about her essay when the court issued its decision, and it left her with a wave of questions. Could she still write about her race? Could she be penalized for it? She wanted to tell colleges about her heritage but she didn’t want to be defined by it.

In English class, Amofa and her classmates read sample essays that all seemed to focus on some trauma or hardship. It left her with the impression she had to write about her life’s hardest moments to show how far she’d come. But she and some classmates wondered if their lives had been hard enough to catch the attention of admissions offices.

This year’s senior class is the first in decades to navigate college admissions without affirmative action. The Supreme Court upheld the practice in decisions going back to the 1970s, but this court’s conservative supermajority found it is unconstitutional for colleges to give students extra weight because of their race alone.

Still, the decision left room for race to play an indirect role: Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote that universities can still consider how an applicant’s life was shaped by their race, “so long as that discussion is concretely tied to a quality of character or unique ability.”

Scores of colleges responded with new essay prompts asking about students’ backgrounds.

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Parents who didn’t grow up in the American system, and who may have moved to the U.S. in large part for their children’s education, feel desperate and in-the-dark. Some shell out tens of thousands of dollars for consultants as early as junior high.

Nov. 26, 2023

When Darrian Merritt started writing his essay, his first instinct was to write about events that led to him going to live with his grandmother as a child. Those were painful memories, but he thought they might play well at schools like Yale, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

“I feel like the admissions committee might expect a sob story or a tragic story,” said Merritt, a senior in Cleveland. “I wrestled with that a lot.”

Eventually he abandoned the idea and aimed for an essay that would stand out for its positivity.

Merritt wrote about a summer camp where he started to feel more comfortable in his own skin. He described embracing his personality and defying his tendency to please others. But the essay also reflects on his feelings of not being “Black enough” and being made fun of for listening to “white people music.”

Like many students, Max Decker of Portland, Ore., had drafted a college essay on one topic, only to change direction after the Supreme Court ruling in June.

Decker initially wrote about his love for video games. In a childhood surrounded by constant change, navigating his parents’ divorce, the games he took from place to place on his Nintendo DS were a source of comfort.

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The Supreme Court’s ban on affirmative action has triggered angst on campuses about how to promote diversity without considering race in admissions decisions.

But the essay he submitted to colleges focused on the community he found through Word Is Bond, a leadership group for young Black men in Portland.

As the only biracial, Jewish kid with divorced parents in a predominantly white, Christian community, Decker wrote he felt like the odd one out. On a trip with Word Is Bond to Capitol Hill, he and friends who looked just like him shook hands with lawmakers. The experience, he wrote, changed how he saw himself.

“It’s because I’m different that I provide something precious to the world, not the other way around,” wrote Decker, whose top college choice is Tulane in New Orleans because of the region’s diversity.

Amofa used to think affirmative action was only a factor at schools like Harvard and Yale. After the court’s ruling, she was surprised to find that race was taken into account even at public universities she was applying to.

Now, without affirmative action, she wondered if mostly white schools will become even whiter.

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It’s been on her mind as she chooses between Indiana University and the University of Dayton, both of which have relatively few Black students. When she was one of the only Black students in her grade school, she could fall back on her family and Ghanaian friends at church. At college, she worries about loneliness.

“That’s what I’m nervous about,” she said. “Going and just feeling so isolated, even though I’m constantly around people.”

The first drafts of her essay didn’t tell colleges about who she is now, she said. Her final essay describes how she came to embrace her natural hair. She wrote about going to a mostly white grade school where classmates made jokes about her afro.

Over time, she ignored their insults and found beauty in the styles worn by women in her life. She now runs a business doing braids and other hairstyles in her neighborhood.

“Criticism will persist,” she wrote “but it loses its power when you know there’s a crown on your head!”

Collin Binkley, Annie Ma and Noreen Nasir write for the Associated Press. Binkley and Nasir reported from Chicago and Ma from Portland, Ore.

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Should college essays touch on race? Some feel affirmative action ruling leaves no choice

When the supreme court ended affirmative action in higher education, it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions..

By The Associated Press

5:20 AM on Mar 28, 2024 CDT

CHICAGO — When she started writing her college essay, Hillary Amofa told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. About being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana and growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. About hardship and struggle.

Then she deleted it all.

“I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping,” said the 18-year-old senior at Lincoln Park High School in Chicago. “And I’m just like, this doesn’t really say anything about me as a person.”

When the Supreme Court ended affirmative action in higher education, it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions decisions. For many students of color, instantly more was riding on the already high-stakes writing assignment. Some say they felt pressure to exploit their hardships as they competed for a spot on campus.

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Related: Gov. Abbott issues executive order fighting antisemitism at Texas colleges

Amofa was just starting to think about her essay when the court issued its decision, and it left her with a wave of questions. Could she still write about her race? Could she be penalized for it? She wanted to tell colleges about her heritage but she didn’t want to be defined by it.

In English class, Amofa and her classmates read sample essays that all seemed to focus on some trauma or hardship. It left her with the impression she had to write about her life’s hardest moments to show how far she’d come. But she and some of her classmates wondered if their lives had been hard enough to catch the attention of admissions offices.

“For a lot of students, there’s a feeling of, like, having to go through something so horrible to feel worthy of going to school, which is kind of sad,” said Amofa, the daughter of a hospital technician and an Uber driver.

This year’s senior class is the first in decades to navigate college admissions without affirmative action. The Supreme Court upheld the practice in decisions going back to the 1970s, but this court’s conservative supermajority found it is unconstitutional for colleges to give students extra weight because of their race alone.

Still, the decision left room for race to play an indirect role: Chief Justice John Roberts wrote universities can still consider how an applicant’s life was shaped by their race, “so long as that discussion is concretely tied to a quality of character or unique ability.”

“A benefit to a student who overcame racial discrimination, for example, must be tied to that student’s courage and determination,” he wrote.

Scores of colleges responded with new essay prompts asking about students’ backgrounds. Brown University asked applicants how “an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you.” Rice University asked students how their perspectives were shaped by their “background, experiences, upbringing, and/or racial identity.”

Do schools ‘expect a sob story’?

When Darrian Merritt started writing his essay, he knew the stakes were higher than ever because of the court’s decision. His first instinct was to write about events that led to him going to live with his grandmother as a child.

Those were painful memories, but he thought they might play well at schools like Yale, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

“I feel like the admissions committee might expect a sob story or a tragic story,” said Merritt, a senior in Cleveland. “And if you don’t provide that, then maybe they’re not going to feel like you went through enough to deserve having a spot at the university. I wrestled with that a lot.”

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He wrote drafts focusing on his childhood, but it never amounted to more than a collection of memories. Eventually he abandoned the idea and aimed for an essay that would stand out for its positivity.

Merritt wrote about a summer camp where he started to feel more comfortable in his own skin. He described embracing his personality and defying his tendency to please others. The essay had humor — it centered on a water gun fight where he had victory in sight but, in a comedic twist, slipped and fell. But the essay also reflects on his feelings of not being “Black enough” and getting made fun of for listening to “white people music.”

“I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to write this for me, and we’re just going to see how it goes,’” he said. “It just felt real, and it felt like an honest story.”

The essay describes a breakthrough as he learned “to take ownership of myself and my future by sharing my true personality with the people I encounter. ... I realized that the first chapter of my own story had just been written.”

Ruling prompts pivots on essay topics

Like many students, Max Decker of Portland, Ore., had drafted a college essay on one topic, only to change direction after the Supreme Court ruling in June.

Decker initially wrote about his love for video games. In a childhood surrounded by constant change, navigating his parents’ divorce, the games he took from place to place on his Nintendo DS were a source of comfort.

But the essay he submitted to colleges focused on the community he found through Word is Bond, a leadership group for young Black men in Portland.

As the only biracial, Jewish kid with divorced parents in a predominantly white, Christian community, Decker wrote he constantly felt like the odd one out. On a trip with Word is Bond to Capitol Hill, he and friends who looked just like him shook hands with lawmakers. The experience, he wrote, changed how he saw himself.

“It’s because I’m different that I provide something precious to the world, not the other way around,” he wrote.

As a first-generation college student, Decker thought about the subtle ways his peers seemed to know more about navigating the admissions process. They made sure to get into advanced classes at the start of high school, and they knew how to secure glowing letters of recommendation.

If writing about race would give him a slight edge and show admissions officers a fuller picture of his achievements, he wanted to take that small advantage.

His first memory about race, Decker said, was when he went to get a haircut in elementary school and the barber made rude comments about his curly hair. Until recently, the insecurity that moment created led him to keep his hair buzzed short.

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Through Word is Bond, Decker said he found a space to explore his identity as a Black man. It was one of the first times he was surrounded by Black peers and saw Black role models. It filled him with a sense of pride in his identity. No more buzzcut.

The pressure to write about race involved a tradeoff with other important things in his life, Decker said. That included his passion for journalism, like the piece he wrote on efforts to revive a once-thriving Black neighborhood in Portland. In the end, he squeezed in 100 characters about his journalism under the application’s activities section.

“My final essay, it felt true to myself. But the difference between that and my other essay was the fact that it wasn’t the truth that I necessarily wanted to share,” said Decker, whose top college choice is Tulane, in New Orleans, because of the region’s diversity. “It felt like I just had to limit the truth I was sharing to what I feel like the world is expecting of me.”

Spelling out the impact of race

Before the Supreme Court ruling, it seemed a given to Imani Laird that colleges would consider the ways that race had touched her life. But now, she felt like she had to spell it out.

As she started her essay, she reflected on how she had faced bias or felt overlooked as a Black student in predominantly white spaces.

There was the year in math class when the teacher kept calling her by the name of another Black student. There were the comments that she’d have an easier time getting into college because she was Black.

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“I didn’t have it easier because of my race,” said Laird, a senior at Newton South High School in the Boston suburbs who was accepted at Wellesley and Howard University, and is waiting to hear from several Ivy League colleges. “I had stuff I had to overcome.”

In her final essays, she wrote about her grandfather, who served in the military but was denied access to GI Bill benefits because of his race.

She described how discrimination fueled her ambition to excel and pursue a career in public policy.

“So, I never settled for mediocrity,” she wrote. “Regardless of the subject, my goal in class was not just to participate but to excel. Beyond academics, I wanted to excel while remembering what started this motivation in the first place.”

Will schools lose racial diversity?

Amofa used to think affirmative action was only a factor at schools like Harvard and Yale. After the court’s ruling, she was surprised to find that race was taken into account even at some public universities she was applying to.

Now, without affirmative action, she wondered if mostly white schools will become even whiter.

It’s been on her mind as she chooses between Indiana University and the University of Dayton, both of which have relatively few Black students. When she was one of the only Black students in her grade school, she could fall back on her family and Ghanaian friends at church. At college, she worries about loneliness.

“That’s what I’m nervous about,” she said. “Going and just feeling so isolated, even though I’m constantly around people.”

The first drafts of her essay focused on growing up in a low-income family, sharing a bedroom with her brother and grandmother. But it didn’t tell colleges about who she is now, she said.

Her final essay tells how she came to embrace her natural hair. She wrote about going to a mostly white grade school where classmates made jokes about her afro. When her grandmother sent her back with braids or cornrows, they made fun of those too.

Over time, she ignored their insults and found beauty in the styles worn by women in her life. She now runs a business doing braids and other hairstyles in her neighborhood.

“I stopped seeing myself through the lens of the European traditional beauty standards and started seeing myself through the lens that I created,” Amofa wrote.

“Criticism will persist, but it loses its power when you know there’s a crown on your head!”

By Collin Binkley, Annie Ma and Noreen Nasir of The Associated Press

The Associated Press

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Campus Curiosity

College and University Life Made Simple

What If I Lied on My College Application?

In the competitive landscape of college admissions, it’s not uncommon for students to feel tempted to embellish or falsify information on their applications. However, the consequences of lying on a college application can be severe and far-reaching. Not only can it jeopardize your chances of admission, but it can also have long-term repercussions on your academic and professional future.

The Consequences of Lying on Your College Application

Lying on your college application can have serious consequences. If an admission officer discovers the deception, your application will likely be rejected, and your reputation may be permanently tarnished. Additionally, if you are already enrolled in college and it is discovered that you lied on your application, you may face expulsion or academic sanctions.

Beyond the immediate impact on your college prospects, lying on your application can also have long-term consequences. It can undermine your academic integrity, negatively affecting your reputation among faculty and peers. Furthermore, in the professional world, dishonesty can have a cascading effect on your employability and future opportunities.

One of the potential long-term consequences of lying on your college application is the damage it can do to your personal and professional relationships. If your dishonesty is discovered, it can erode trust and credibility, making it difficult to build meaningful connections with others. This can have a lasting impact on your ability to form strong relationships, both in your personal life and in your future career.

Another consequence of lying on your college application is the potential legal ramifications. While it may seem like a harmless act, providing false information on an official document can be considered fraud. Depending on the severity of the deception and the policies of the college or university, you could face legal consequences such as fines or even criminal charges. It is important to remember that honesty and integrity are not only valued traits in academia, but also in society as a whole.

How Common is Lying on College Applications?

While it is difficult to determine exactly how common lying on college applications is, research suggests that it does occur. A 2019 study conducted by the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) found that nearly 30% of high school guidance counselors reported encountering students who had lied on their applications.

However, it is important to note that these statistics are self-reported by counselors and may not capture the full extent of the issue. Many instances of lying on college applications go undetected, making it difficult to obtain an accurate measure of its prevalence.

The Ethical Dilemma: Should You Lie on Your College Application?

The decision of whether to lie on your college application is not just a practical one but also an ethical one. While the pressure to gain admission to your desired institution may seem overwhelming, it is essential to consider the ethical implications of dishonesty.

Lying on your college application undermines the principles of fairness and integrity upon which the admissions process is built. It creates an uneven playing field for other applicants who have worked hard, demonstrated genuine achievements, and provided accurate information. By choosing to lie, you risk compromising your own integrity and the integrity of the college admissions process.

The Risks Involved in Falsifying Information on Your College Application

Falsifying information on your college application is risky and can have severe consequences. Colleges employ various methods to detect lies and inconsistencies in applications, including conducting background checks, verifying test scores and transcripts, and cross-referencing information with other sources.

If you are caught lying, not only will your application be rejected, but it may also be reported to other colleges to prevent similar deception in the future. Furthermore, some colleges maintain databases of dishonest applicants, which can have long-term effects on your chances of admission to other institutions.

How Colleges Detect Lies on Applications

Colleges employ a variety of techniques to detect lies and inconsistencies on applications. Admissions officers are trained to scrutinize applications for any red flags or discrepancies. They may compare information provided in essays, recommendation letters, and other supporting documents to look for inconsistencies.

In addition to manual checks, colleges also use technology and data analysis tools to identify potential falsehoods. Some institutions contract with services that specialize in verifying information, such as checking the authenticity of activities, achievements, and even personal narratives.

Real-Life Stories: Famous Cases of Applicants Caught Lying on Their College Applications

There have been several notable cases of applicants who have been caught lying on their college applications. These cases serve as reminders of the potential risks and consequences associated with dishonesty in the admissions process.

One prominent case involved a well-known actress who falsified her daughter’s athletic achievements to secure admission to a prestigious university. The scandal exposed a larger issue of fraud in college admissions, and both the actress and her daughter faced legal consequences in addition to reputational damage.

Other cases involve students misrepresenting their academic achievements, fabricating volunteer experiences, or exaggerating leadership roles. In each instance, the deceivers faced severe consequences that impacted not only their educational aspirations but also their personal and professional lives.

The Impact of False Information on the Admissions Process

False information submitted on college applications undermines the credibility and fairness of the admissions process. Admissions officers rely on accurate and honest information to make informed decisions about applicants. When false information is presented, it distorts the evaluation process and compromises the integrity of the entire system.

Furthermore, the impact of false information extends beyond individual applications. It erodes trust in the admissions process and may lead colleges to adopt more stringent verification procedures. This can inadvertently increase the burden on honest applicants who now face additional scrutiny and documentation requirements.

Is It Worth the Risk? Weighing the Pros and Cons of Lying on Your College Application

When contemplating lying on your college application, it is crucial to carefully consider the potential risks and rewards. While it may seem tempting to boost your chances of admission by exaggerating achievements or fabricating experiences, the potential consequences far outweigh any perceived benefits.

The short-term gain of admission to a preferred institution can quickly be overshadowed by the long-term damage to your reputation and future prospects. It is always better to present an authentic and truthful application, highlighting your genuine accomplishments and qualities.

Alternatives to Lying: Strategies for Enhancing Your College Application Legitimately

Instead of resorting to dishonesty, there are various legitimate strategies you can employ to enhance your college application. Start by investing time in self-reflection, identifying your strengths, and pursuing activities and experiences that genuinely interest you.

Seek out opportunities for leadership, community service, and academic growth. Take advantage of internships, research projects, and extracurricular activities that align with your passions and goals. By focusing on genuine growth and development, you can build a strong and authentic application that reflects your unique qualities and accomplishments.

Honesty as a Virtue: Why Being Truthful on Your College Application Matters

Honesty is not only a virtue but also a fundamental aspect of an individual’s character. Being truthful on your college application is not just about adhering to rules and regulations; it is about representing yourself honestly and authentically.

Admissions officers are not just looking for impressive resumes; they are interested in understanding who you are as a person. By presenting an honest application, you allow them to make a fair assessment of your potential fit within their institution. It also sets a foundation for personal growth and fosters a commitment to integrity that can have a positive impact on your future endeavors.

Navigating the Gray Area: What Counts as Lying on a College Application?

The line between presenting oneself accurately and exaggerating achievements can sometimes be blurred. It is essential to navigate this gray area with integrity and honesty. While it is acceptable to frame experiences and achievements positively, it is crucial to avoid misrepresenting information or fabricating entirely false narratives.

When in doubt, consult with your school counselor or trusted adults who can provide guidance on what constitutes honest representation. Remember that portraying yourself authentically not only allows you to maintain your integrity but also ensures a more meaningful and genuine college experience.

The Long-Term Consequences of Lying on Your College Application

The long-term consequences of lying on your college application can extend far beyond the immediate repercussions. Even if you were to successfully gain admission to a college through dishonest means, the effects can follow you throughout your academic and professional career.

Discovery of the deception can lead to expulsion, the revocation of degrees, and damage to future job prospects. Additionally, if you earn a professional license or join an accredited profession, such as medicine or law, false representation on your college application can result in disciplinary action or even the loss of your license.

Steps to Take if You Discover Inaccuracies or Misrepresentations in Your Submitted Application

If you discover inaccuracies or misrepresentations in your submitted application, it is essential to address the issue promptly and honestly. Begin by contacting the colleges to which you applied to inform them of the mistake or misleading information.

Apologize for the error and provide the correct and accurate information. While there may still be consequences, demonstrating honesty and taking responsibility for the mistake may mitigate some of the potential damage to your application and reputation.

How to Address Past Mistakes or Weaknesses Without Resorting to Lies in Your College Application

If you have past mistakes or weaknesses that you feel may impact your college application, it is important to address them honestly and sincerely. Emphasize personal growth and the lessons learned from those experiences.

Colleges value resilience and the ability to overcome challenges. Use your personal statement or supplemental essays to explain how these experiences have shaped your character and motivated you to work harder and pursue personal and academic improvement.

Advice from Admissions Officers: What They Look for and What They Disapprove of in Applications

Admissions officers are intimately familiar with the college application process and have insights into what they value and disapprove of in applications. It is essential to heed their advice and align your application with their expectations.

Admissions officers value authenticity, so focus on highlighting your genuine achievements and passions. Demonstrate your commitment to personal and academic growth and your potential to contribute positively to the college community. Avoid clichés, overly generic statements, and excessive exaggeration, as these can detract from your application’s credibility.

Lessons Learned: Personal Experiences and Reflections from Individuals Who Lied on Their College Applications

Personal experiences and reflections from individuals who have lied on their college applications serve as cautionary tales and provide valuable lessons for others facing the same dilemma.

Many individuals who have lied on their applications express regret and acknowledge that the short-term gain of admission was not worth the long-term consequences. They often highlight the importance of integrity and the value of presenting an authentic self in the college admissions process.

Building a Strong, Authentic Application: Tips for Highlighting Your True Achievements and Qualities

Building a strong and authentic application requires careful thought and reflection. Start by identifying your true achievements and qualities, focusing on those that reflect your passions, character, and personal growth.

When writing your essays and preparing your application materials, be specific and provide concrete examples to support your claims. Demonstrate how your achievements and experiences have shaped your perspective and influenced your future goals. By presenting a genuine and well-rounded picture of yourself, you increase your chances of making a positive impression on admissions officers.

The Importance of Integrity in the College Admissions Process

The college admissions process is built on the principles of integrity, fairness, and authenticity. It is essential for students to understand the importance of maintaining these values throughout the application process.

Integrity not only ensures a level playing field for all applicants but also fosters a sense of trust and accountability within the academic community. By upholding these values, both applicants and institutions contribute to the overall integrity and credibility of the college admissions process.

In conclusion, the potential risks and consequences of lying on your college application far outweigh any perceived benefits. Being truthful, authentic, and genuine in your application is not only ethically right but also sets a foundation for personal growth and future success. By focusing on building a strong and authentic application, you can present yourself in the best possible light while maintaining your integrity and values.

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How to Deal with Disciplinary Problems on your College Application

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Our chancing engine factors in extracurricular activities, demographics, and other holistic details. We’ll let you know what your chances are at your dream schools — and how to improve your chances!

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Our chancing engine factors in extracurricular activities, demographic, and other holistic details. We’ll let you know what your chances are at your dream schools — and how to improve your chances!

So you’ve found yourself in serious trouble at school. If you’re in that situation, you’re probably in the midst of facing some significant and immediate consequences. If you’re also someone who’s in the midst of applying to colleges , you’re likely also trying to figure out how getting into trouble might have longer-term consequences for your future plans and ambitions.

You may also be worrying about whether any past infraction will have an impact on your college application. You might even be tempted to omit or lie about your disciplinary history in hopes that this will protect you from being judged for your misbehavior. Don’t do that. (We’ll provide more details as to why this isn’t a good idea later in this post.)

Having a significant disciplinary problem in your history doesn’t mean you’re out of the running as an applicant , but it does mean you’ll have some extra work to do in convincing colleges that you’re a mature and responsible applicant who will be a positive addition to their school. How you account for your disciplinary record on your college applications can go a long way in mitigating the consequences of your past mistakes.

What counts as a disciplinary problem for my college applications?

Every high school has a slightly different disciplinary system and specific rules for students to follow. However, essentially every school has a graduated system of consequences that depend on the severity of the offense.

At a typical high school, a minor offense might result in you being reprimanded by a teacher or told to sit out in the hallway. Repeated minor offenses, or a slightly more severe offense, might result in a detention or an on-campus or “in-school” suspension.

If you get in trouble and you receive one of these punishments, it’s generally not something that you’ll need to report to colleges. However, if your offense merits more serious consequences, it’s a different story. This might include off-campus suspension, expulsion, or the involvement of law enforcement. If one of these has happened to you, you’ll need to report that on your college applications.

Colleges also tend to care about certain types of offenses more than others. If, for example, you got in minor trouble because you repeatedly talked to your friends too much during class, colleges likely won’t hold that against you too much. This kind of misbehavior may show some poor judgment on your part, but won’t necessarily lead a college to question your character.

One type of transgression that might make colleges concerned about your character is that of academic dishonesty. You’re coming to college primarily to progress academically, and obviously, colleges take cheating, plagiarism, and similar infractions quite seriously — at some schools, cheating may be grounds for immediate expulsion. Since colleges take academic dishonesty this seriously among their students, it’s not surprising that they also consider it when evaluating applicants .

Disciplinary issues that involve possession of contraband are also of interest to colleges. If you’ve gotten into trouble for possessing alcohol or drugs at school, you’ll need to divulge this on your college applications. The same goes for bringing a weapon or other dangerous item onto your school’s campus. You should be aware that having an infraction like this on your disciplinary record will be of significant concern for colleges reading your applications.

How will disciplinary problems affect my applications?

If you have a serious disciplinary problem on your record, you’ll need to be prepared for the reality that it may have a negative impact upon your college applications. How much of an impact this has depends on a number of different factors.

First of all, different colleges, or even different admissions staffers at the same college, may look at your application and your past mistakes differently. Some schools, such as the University of Virginia with its famous Honor System, place an especially heavy emphasis on their students’ behavior. Others, like Boston University , include specific questions about your disciplinary history in their Common Application supplements.

As we mentioned above, the type of offense you committed is also very significant. Disciplinary problems that involve academic dishonesty, drugs or alcohol, or violence will be of particular concern for colleges. Beyond that, the specific circumstances of your situation matter as well. What influenced you to make this poor decision? How did you handle the disciplinary process? Did you admit culpability, show regret, and make restitution for your actions? Was this an isolated incident or part of a larger pattern? Did you make positive changes in your life afterward?

Think about it this way: colleges expect their students to behave like adults, with good judgment and maturity, and to be accountable for their own actions. Your success in college depends in large part upon your ability to manage your own life responsibly. If you’ve made poor choices or showed considerable immaturity in the past, and especially if you’ve done so repeatedly, colleges may be more reluctant to invite you into their communities.

However — and this is very important — having a disciplinary problem on your record does not mean that you can’t apply or be accepted to a good college. Colleges don’t expect you to have never made any mistakes. What they do expect is that you’ve responded to these mistakes responsibly and maturely. If you can thoughtfully discuss what happened and have clearly learned from your mistakes, that will be a point in your favor.

What will college applications ask me about my disciplinary history?

College applications will ask you specifically if you have committed any serious disciplinary infractions. On the Common App , for instance, you’ll find a Disciplinary History section within the Writing section. If you answer “yes” to the initial question about whether you have a significant incident on your record, you’ll be given space to explain the incident, including the relevant circumstances and what this experience taught you.

If you feel it’s necessary for you to share additional information relating to your disciplinary history, you may want to include additional explanation or documentation in the Additional Information section offered by the Common App. As we’ve noted, some colleges may also include additional questions about your disciplinary history within their Common App supplements. Make sure you answer these questions in an accurate and straightforward manner.

What specific information should you include here? Generally, you’ll need to give colleges a description of your disciplinary infraction, how you were punished, and a basic timeline for when it occurred. While your description should be succinct — there’s no need to overshare — you should also make sure all pertinent details are covered, and provide enough information so colleges can understand what happened and how you were involved.

Obviously, honesty is of paramount importance here. You shouldn’t attempt to hide information from admissions officers or outright lie about what happened. If you do, there’s a good chance you’ll be caught, either though a tipoff from a third party, a guidance counselor report, or the admissions office’s own research . (Yes, admissions officers can run an Internet search too!)

If you’re caught in a lie, the repercussions can be very serious for you and your college plans. Your application could easily be rejected on the grounds of dishonesty alone. If you’ve already been accepted to a college, your acceptance could be rescinded after the fact . College admissions offices sometimes share information, so lying to one school could have consequences for your other applications as well.

How do I talk about my disciplinary history on my application?

While being forthright on your application is highly important, that doesn’t mean you can’t put thought and care into how you address your disciplinary history. Once you’ve provided a complete and honest account of what happened, you’ll need to show admissions officers that you recognize you made a mistake and that you’ve learned from the experience.

Accepting responsibility for your actions is key. You’re welcome and encouraged to discuss the circumstances that surrounded your disciplinary problem, but make sure that you’re giving explanations, not excuses. It’s very important for college admissions officers to know that you understand the gravity of what you did wrong.

If you were considerably younger than you are now when you committed your disciplinary infraction — say, if it occurred during your first year of high school, and you’re now a senior — this is worthwhile to mention. Colleges understand that young people make mistakes as a part of growing up, and while this won’t excuse your actions, it may provide context for them. If significant time has passed without an additional incident, this is a good sign to colleges as well.

Make sure to point out the ways in which you’ve grown since the initial incident. College admissions officers will want to see that you’ve learned from your mistakes and made positive changes in your life since the incident. It will help if the people who write your recommendation letters can attest to this growth as well, so you’d be wise to discuss the issue with them in advance.  

Of course, for some college applicants, explaining a disciplinary infraction will be a bit more complicated. For example, what if you got in trouble for doing something that you feel was right? Perhaps you became involved in a fight in an attempt to defend someone who was being bullied or were suspended for protesting an unfair school policy.

In these cases, it’s even more important for you to take time to explain your behavior. If you stand by your ideals, but have learned that you went about expressing them in an inappropriate way, say so! Colleges like applicants to be passionate about the issues close to their hearts, but you’ll need to show them that your passion is tempered by maturity, responsibility, and acceptance of the consequences of your actions.

Can I just not mention my disciplinary record on my application?

In a word, no. You’ll be asked explicitly about your disciplinary history when you apply to colleges , and lying on your application about anything, disciplinary or otherwise, is never a good idea. Plus, an evaluation from your high school guidance counselor is a required part of college applications, and if you’ve been in serious trouble, your counselor will almost certainly mention it in that recommendation letter.  

Again, of course, you don’t need to report every small infraction. Sometimes a reprimand for talking in class or being sent home for a dress-code violation may feel like a big deal, but generally, that type of disciplinary problem isn’t something that colleges will need to hear about. Remember, admissions officers have a lot of applications to review and don’t require every tiny detail of your high school activities and awards . You also shouldn’t include an excessive amount of information about your disciplinary history.

If you’ve gotten into serious trouble, however, it’s not something you should or can hide, and you need to be honest and open about what happened. How you handle this situation can reflect just as much on your character as the infraction itself.

For a general rule of thumb, consider this: assume that your chosen colleges will check with your guidance counselor to verify that you haven’t been in any serious trouble. Requesting more information about you is something that colleges can and will do. If a disciplinary infraction is serious enough that you’d be tempted to lie about it, it’s also serious enough for the college to check in with your counselor about it — and if you get caught, you could face major consequences, including your admission being rescinded .

If you’re still not sure whether your past actions merit mention on your college application, it may help to have a talk with your guidance counselor . Ask your counselor what information they intend to present when writing your recommendation , and how they intend to phrase that disclosure. You can stress that you’re not trying to hide important information, but making sure that your chosen colleges get a full and accurate picture of not only what happened but who you are now .

If you have a serious disciplinary problem on your record and have faced consequences for it, you already know that making poor choices can affect your life significantly. However, an event in your past doesn’t have to totally derail your future, and you still have a chance at the college of your dreams . Showing that you can address your past infractions with honesty, sincerity, and maturity will go a long way in convincing colleges that you’ve learned from your mistakes and grown into a wiser person.

For more information on addressing issues like disciplinary history on your college applications, check out the CollegeVine blog post How to Explain Exceptional Personal Circumstances on College Applications . To learn more about rescinded admissions offers and other potential consequences, take a look at our post on whether your offer of admission can be rescinded .

At CollegeVine, we’re passionate about making college guidance accessible to all. That’s why we took the guidance that’s helped 100,000 students and made it free. On our college applications platform, you can use our chancing engine, build a best-fit school list, and learn how to improve your profile—all for free. Sign up for your CollegeVine account today to get a boost on your college journey.

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I'm just curious, if someone were to lie on their college application, like exaggerate their extracurriculars, and the college found out, would there be any consequences? Do they rescind the acceptance or is there another way they handle it?

If a college were to discover that an applicant lied or significantly exaggerated their accomplishments on their application, there would indeed be consequences. It's important to emphasize that dishonesty on college applications is strongly discouraged and can have detrimental effects on an applicant's reputation, as well as their future educational and professional opportunities.

Colleges often verify the information provided in applications, particularly in areas such as extracurricular activities, awards, and employment. However, even if the discovery of dishonesty occurs after the admissions decision is made, the consequences can still be severe.

In the case where a student has been accepted to a college and is later found to have lied on their application, the college reserves the right to rescind the acceptance. This means that the student's offer of admission will be revoked, and they will no longer be eligible to attend that institution. Additionally, the student's dishonesty may be reported to other colleges, potentially jeopardizing their chances of admission elsewhere.

In some instances, if a student is already enrolled at a college and it is discovered that they lied on their application, the college may take more severe disciplinary actions, ranging from academic probation to expulsion. Furthermore, having a record of academic dishonesty would likely harm the student's ability to transfer to other institutions and could affect their future employment prospects.

In conclusion, lying on a college application is a serious offense that carries significant consequences, including the potential revocation of an acceptance, damage to one's academic and professional reputation, and possible disciplinary action. It is always best to present an honest and accurate portrayal of oneself in the application process to avoid these negative outcomes.

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Should college essays touch on race? Some feel the affirmative action ruling leaves them no choice

When the supreme court ended affirmative action, it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions decisions.

Max Decker, a senior at Lincoln High School, sits for a portrait in the school library where he often worked on writing his college essays, in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, March 20, 2024.

Amanda Loman / AP

Like many students, Max Decker of Portland, Oregon, had drafted a college essay on one topic, only to change direction after the Supreme Court ruling in June.

Decker initially wrote about his love for video games. In a childhood surrounded by constant change, navigating his parents’ divorce, the games he took from place to place on his Nintendo DS were a source of comfort.

But the essay he submitted to colleges focused on the community he found through Word is Bond, a leadership group for young Black men in Portland.

As the only biracial, Jewish kid with divorced parents in a predominantly white, Christian community, Decker wrote he felt like the odd one out. On a trip with Word is Bond to Capitol Hill, he and friends who looked just like him shook hands with lawmakers. The experience, he wrote, changed how he saw himself.

“It’s because I’m different that I provide something precious to the world, not the other way around,” wrote Decker, whose top college choice is Tulane, in New Orleans, because of the region’s diversity.

This year’s senior class is the first in decades to navigate college admissions without affirmative action . The Supreme Court upheld the practice in decisions going back to the 1970s, but this court’s conservative supermajority found it is unconstitutional for colleges to give students extra weight because of their race alone.

Still, the decision left room for race to play an indirect role: Chief Justice John Roberts wrote universities can still consider how an applicant’s life was shaped by their race, “so long as that discussion is concretely tied to a quality of character or unique ability.”

Scores of colleges responded with new essay prompts asking about students’ backgrounds.

FILE - Demonstrators protest outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, in this June 29, 2023 file photo, after the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions, saying race cannot be a factor.

Jose Luis Magana / AP

Writing about feeling more comfortable with being Black

When Darrian Merritt started writing his essay, his first instinct was to write about events that led to him going to live with his grandmother as a child. Those were painful memories, but he thought they might play well at schools like Yale, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

“I feel like the admissions committee might expect a sob story or a tragic story,” said Merritt, a senior in Cleveland. “I wrestled with that a lot.”

Eventually he abandoned the idea and aimed for an essay that would stand out for its positivity.

Merritt wrote about a summer camp where he started to feel more comfortable in his own skin. He described embracing his personality and defying his tendency to please others. But the essay also reflects on his feelings of not being “Black enough” and getting made fun of for listening to “white people music.”

Related: Oregon colleges, universities weigh potential outcomes of US Supreme Court decision on affirmative action

Essay about how to embrace natural hair

When Hillary Amofa started writing her college essay, she told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. About being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana and growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. About hardship and struggle.

Then she deleted it all.

“I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping,” said the 18-year-old senior at Lincoln Park High School in Chicago. “And I’m just like, this doesn’t really say anything about me as a person.”

Amofa was just starting to think about her essay when the court issued its decision, and it left her with a wave of questions. Could she still write about her race? Could she be penalized for it? She wanted to tell colleges about her heritage but she didn’t want to be defined by it.

In English class, Amofa and her classmates read sample essays that all seemed to focus on some trauma or hardship. It left her with the impression she had to write about her life’s hardest moments to show how far she’d come. But she and some classmates wondered if their lives had been hard enough to catch the attention of admissions offices.

Hillary Amofa, laughs as she participates in a team building game with members of the Lincoln Park High School step team after school Friday, March 8, 2024, in Chicago. When she started writing her college essay, Amofa told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. She wrote about being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana, about growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. She described hardship and struggle. Then she deleted it all. "I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping," said the 18 year-old senior, "And I'm just like, this doesn't really say anything about me as a person."

Charles Rex Arbogast / AP

Amofa used to think affirmative action was only a factor at schools like Harvard and Yale. After the court’s ruling, she was surprised to find that race was taken into account even at public universities she was applying to.

Now, without affirmative action, she wondered if mostly white schools will become even whiter.

It’s been on her mind as she chooses between Indiana University and the University of Dayton, both of which have relatively few Black students. When she was one of the only Black students in her grade school, she could fall back on her family and Ghanaian friends at church. At college, she worries about loneliness.

“That’s what I’m nervous about,” she said. “Going and just feeling so isolated, even though I’m constantly around people.”

Related: Some Oregon universities, politicians disappointed in Supreme Court decision on affirmative action

The first drafts of her essay didn’t tell colleges about who she is now, she said.

Her final essay describes how she came to embrace her natural hair. She wrote about going to a mostly white grade school where classmates made jokes about her afro.

Over time, she ignored their insults and found beauty in the styles worn by women in her life. She now runs a business doing braids and other hairstyles in her neighborhood.

“Criticism will persist,” she wrote “but it loses its power when you know there’s a crown on your head!”

Ma reported from Portland, Oregon.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org .

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How to Write the AP Lit Prose Essay with Examples

March 30, 2024

AP Lit Prose Essay Examples – The College Board’s Advanced Placement Literature and Composition Course is one of the most enriching experiences that high school students can have. It exposes you to literature that most people don’t encounter until college , and it helps you develop analytical and critical thinking skills that will enhance the quality of your life, both inside and outside of school. The AP Lit Exam reflects the rigor of the course. The exam uses consistent question types, weighting, and scoring parameters each year . This means that, as you prepare for the exam, you can look at previous questions, responses, score criteria, and scorer commentary to help you practice until your essays are perfect.

What is the AP Lit Free Response testing? 

In AP Literature, you read books, short stories, and poetry, and you learn how to commit the complex act of literary analysis . But what does that mean? Well, “to analyze” literally means breaking a larger idea into smaller and smaller pieces until the pieces are small enough that they can help us to understand the larger idea. When we’re performing literary analysis, we’re breaking down a piece of literature into smaller and smaller pieces until we can use those pieces to better understand the piece of literature itself.

So, for example, let’s say you’re presented with a passage from a short story to analyze. The AP Lit Exam will ask you to write an essay with an essay with a clear, defensible thesis statement that makes an argument about the story, based on some literary elements in the short story. After reading the passage, you might talk about how foreshadowing, allusion, and dialogue work together to demonstrate something essential in the text. Then, you’ll use examples of each of those three literary elements (that you pull directly from the passage) to build your argument. You’ll finish the essay with a conclusion that uses clear reasoning to tell your reader why your argument makes sense.

AP Lit Prose Essay Examples (Continued)

But what’s the point of all of this? Why do they ask you to write these essays?

Well, the essay is, once again, testing your ability to conduct literary analysis. However, the thing that you’re also doing behind that literary analysis is a complex process of both inductive and deductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning takes a series of points of evidence and draws a larger conclusion. Deductive reasoning departs from the point of a broader premise and draws a singular conclusion. In an analytical essay like this one, you’re using small pieces of evidence to draw a larger conclusion (your thesis statement) and then you’re taking your thesis statement as a larger premise from which you derive your ultimate conclusion.

So, the exam scorers are looking at your ability to craft a strong thesis statement (a singular sentence that makes an argument), use evidence and reasoning to support that argument, and then to write the essay well. This is something they call “sophistication,” but they’re looking for well-organized thoughts carried through clear, complete sentences.

This entire process is something you can and will use throughout your life. Law, engineering, medicine—whatever pursuit, you name it—utilizes these forms of reasoning to run experiments, build cases, and persuade audiences. The process of this kind of clear, analytical thinking can be honed, developed, and made easier through repetition.

Practice Makes Perfect

Because the AP Literature Exam maintains continuity across the years, you can pull old exam copies, read the passages, and write responses. A good AP Lit teacher is going to have you do this time and time again in class until you have the formula down. But, it’s also something you can do on your own, if you’re interested in further developing your skills.

AP Lit Prose Essay Examples 

Let’s take a look at some examples of questions, answers and scorer responses that will help you to get a better idea of how to craft your own AP Literature exam essays.

In the exam in 2023, students were asked to read a poem by Alice Cary titled “Autumn,” which was published in 1874. In it, the speaker contemplates the start of autumn. Then, students are asked to craft a well-written essay which uses literary techniques to convey the speaker’s complex response to the changing seasons.

The following is an essay that received a perfect 6 on the exam. There are grammar and usage errors throughout the essay, which is important to note: even though the writer makes some mistakes, the structure and form of their argument was strong enough to merit a 6. This is what your scorers will be looking for when they read your essay.

Example Essay 

Romantic and hyperbolic imagery is used to illustrate the speaker’s unenthusiastic opinion of the coming of autumn, which conveys Cary’s idea that change is difficult to accept but necessary for growth.

Romantic imagery is utilized to demonstrate the speaker’s warm regard for the season of summer and emphasize her regretfulness for autumn’s coming, conveying the uncomfortable change away from idyllic familiarity. Summer, is portrayed in the image of a woman who “from her golden collar slips/and strays through stubble fields/and moans aloud.” Associated with sensuality and wealth, the speaker implies the interconnection between a season and bounty, comfort, and pleasure. Yet, this romantic view is dismantled by autumn, causing Summer to “slip” and “stray through stubble fields.” Thus, the coming of real change dethrones a constructed, romantic personification of summer,  conveying the speaker’s reluctance for her ideal season to be dethroned by something much less decorated and adored.

Summer, “she lies on pillows of the yellow leaves,/ And tries the old tunes for over an hour”, is contrasted with bright imagery of fallen leaves/ The juxtaposition between Summer’s character and the setting provides insight into the positivity of change—the yellow leaves—by its contrast with the failures of attempting to sustain old habits or practices, “old tunes”. “She lies on pillows” creates a sympathetic, passive image of summer in reaction to the coming of Autumn, contrasting her failures to sustain “old tunes.” According to this, it is understood that the speaker recognizes the foolishness of attempting to prevent what is to come, but her wishfulness to counter the natural progression of time.

Hyperbolic imagery displays the discrepancies between unrealistic, exaggerated perceptions of change and the reality of progress, continuing the perpetuation of Cary’s idea that change must be embraced rather than rejected. “Shorter and shorter now the twilight clips/The days, as though the sunset gates they crowd”, syntax and diction are used to literally separate different aspects of the progression of time. In an ironic parallel to the literal language, the action of twilight’s “clip” and the subject, “the days,” are cut off from each other into two different lines, emphasizing a sense of jarring and discomfort. Sunset, and Twilight are named, made into distinct entities from the day, dramatizing the shortening of night-time into fall. The dramatic, sudden implications for the change bring to mind the switch between summer and winter, rather than a transitional season like fall—emphasizing the Speaker’s perspective rather than a factual narration of the experience.

She says “the proud meadow-pink hangs down her head/Against the earth’s chilly bosom, witched with frost”. Implying pride and defeat, and the word “witched,” the speaker brings a sense of conflict, morality, and even good versus evil into the transition between seasons. Rather than a smooth, welcome change, the speaker is practically against the coming of fall. The hyperbole present in the poem serves to illustrate the Speaker’s perspective and ideas on the coming of fall, which are characterized by reluctance and hostility to change from comfort.

The topic of this poem, Fall–a season characterized by change and the deconstruction of the spring and summer landscape—is juxtaposed with the final line which evokes the season of Spring. From this, it is clear that the speaker appreciates beautiful and blossoming change. However, they resent that which destroys familiar paradigms and norms. Fall, seen as the death of summer, is characterized as a regression, though the turning of seasons is a product of the literal passage of time. Utilizing romantic imagery and hyperbole to shape the Speaker’s perspective, Cary emphasizes the need to embrace change though it is difficult, because growth is not possible without hardship or discomfort.

Scoring Criteria: Why did this essay do so well? 

When it comes to scoring well, there are some rather formulaic things that the judges are searching for. You might think that it’s important to “stand out” or “be creative” in your writing. However, aside from concerns about “sophistication,” which essentially means you know how to organize thoughts into sentences and you can use language that isn’t entirely elementary, you should really focus on sticking to a form. This will show the scorers that you know how to follow that inductive/deductive reasoning process that we mentioned earlier, and it will help to present your ideas in the most clear, coherent way possible to someone who is reading and scoring hundreds of essays.

So, how did this essay succeed? And how can you do the same thing?

First: The Thesis 

On the exam, you can either get one point or zero points for your thesis statement. The scorers said, “The essay responds to the prompt with a defensible thesis located in the introductory paragraph,” which you can read as the first sentence in the essay. This is important to note: you don’t need a flowery hook to seduce your reader; you can just start this brief essay with some strong, simple, declarative sentences—or go right into your thesis.

What makes a good thesis? A good thesis statement does the following things:

• Makes a claim that will be supported by evidence
• Is specific and precise in its use of language
• Argues for an original thought that goes beyond a simple restating of the facts

If you’re sitting here scratching your head wondering how you come up with a thesis statement off the top of your head, let me give you one piece of advice: don’t.

The AP Lit scoring criteria gives you only one point for the thesis for a reason: they’re just looking for the presence of a defensible claim that can be proven by evidence in the rest of the essay.

Second: Write your essay from the inside out 

While the thesis is given one point, the form and content of the essay can receive anywhere from zero to four points. This is where you should place the bulk of your focus.

My best advice goes like this:

• Choose your evidence first
• Develop your commentary about the evidence
• Then draft your thesis statement based on the evidence that you find and the commentary you can create.

It will seem a little counterintuitive: like you’re writing your essay from the inside out. But this is a fundamental skill that will help you in college and beyond. Don’t come up with an argument out of thin air and then try to find evidence to support your claim. Look for the evidence that exists and then ask yourself what it all means. This will also keep you from feeling stuck or blocked at the beginning of the essay. If you prepare for the exam by reviewing the literary devices that you learned in the course and practice locating them in a text, you can quickly and efficiently read a literary passage and choose two or three literary devices that you can analyze.

Third: Use scratch paper to quickly outline your evidence and commentary 

Once you’ve located two or three literary devices at work in the given passage, use scratch paper to draw up a quick outline. Give each literary device a major bullet point. Then, briefly point to the quotes/evidence you’ll use in the essay. Finally, start to think about what the literary device and evidence are doing together. Try to answer the question: what meaning does this bring to the passage?

A sample outline for one paragraph of the above essay might look like this:

Romantic imagery

Portrayal of summer

• Woman who “from her golden collar… moans aloud”
• Summer as bounty

Contrast with Autumn

• Autumn dismantles Summer
• “Stray through stubble fields”
• Autumn is change; it has the power to dethrone the romance of Summer/make summer a bit meaningless

Recognition of change in a positive light

• Summer “lies on pillows / yellow leaves / tries old tunes”
• Bright imagery/fallen leaves
• Attempt to maintain old practices fails: “old tunes”
• But! There is sympathy: “lies on pillows”

Speaker recognizes: she can’t prevent what is to come; wishes to embrace natural passage of time

By the time the writer gets to the end of the outline for their paragraph, they can easily start to draw conclusions about the paragraph based on the evidence they have pulled out. You can see how that thinking might develop over the course of the outline.

Then, the speaker would take the conclusions they’ve drawn and write a “mini claim” that will start each paragraph. The final bullet point of this outline isn’t the same as the mini claim that comes at the top of the second paragraph of the essay, however, it is the conclusion of the paragraph. You would do well to use the concluding thoughts from your outline as the mini claim to start your body paragraph. This will make your paragraphs clear, concise, and help you to construct a coherent argument.

Repeat this process for the other one or two literary devices that you’ve chosen to analyze, and then: take a step back.

Fourth: Draft your thesis 

Once you quickly sketch out your outline, take a moment to “stand back” and see what you’ve drafted. You’ll be able to see that, among your two or three literary devices, you can draw some commonality. You might be able to say, as the writer did here, that romantic and hyperbolic imagery “illustrate the speaker’s unenthusiastic opinion of the coming of autumn,” ultimately illuminating the poet’s idea “that change is difficult to accept but necessary for growth.”

This is an original argument built on the evidence accumulated by the student. It directly answers the prompt by discussing literary techniques that “convey the speaker’s complex response to the changing seasons.” Remember to go back to the prompt and see what direction they want you to head with your thesis, and craft an argument that directly speaks to that prompt.

Then, move ahead to finish your body paragraphs and conclusion.

Fifth: Give each literary device its own body paragraph 

In this essay, the writer examines the use of two literary devices that are supported by multiple pieces of evidence. The first is “romantic imagery” and the second is “hyperbolic imagery.” The writer dedicates one paragraph to each idea. You should do this, too.

This is why it’s important to choose just two or three literary devices. You really don’t have time to dig into more. Plus, more ideas will simply cloud the essay and confuse your reader.

Using your outline, start each body paragraph with a “mini claim” that makes an argument about what it is you’ll be saying in your paragraph. Lay out your pieces of evidence, then provide commentary for why your evidence proves your point about that literary device.

Move onto the next literary device, rinse, and repeat.

Sixth: Commentary and Conclusion 

Finally, you’ll want to end this brief essay with a concluding paragraph that restates your thesis, briefly touches on your most important points from each body paragraph, and includes a development of the argument that you laid out in the essay.

In this particular example essay, the writer concludes by saying, “Utilizing romantic imagery and hyperbole to shape the Speaker’s perspective, Cary emphasizes the need to embrace change though it is difficult, because growth is not possible without hardship or discomfort.” This is a direct restatement of the thesis. At this point, you’ll have reached the end of your essay. Great work!

Seventh: Sophistication 

A final note on scoring criteria: there is one point awarded to what the scoring criteria calls “sophistication.” This is evidenced by the sophistication of thought and providing a nuanced literary analysis, which we’ve already covered in the steps above.

There are some things to avoid, however:

• Sweeping generalizations, such as, “From the beginning of human history, people have always searched for love,” or “Everyone goes through periods of darkness in their lives, much like the writer of this poem.”
• Only hinting at possible interpretations instead of developing your argument
• Oversimplifying your interpretation
• Or, by contrast, using overly flowery or complex language that does not meet your level of preparation or the context of the essay.

Remember to develop your argument with nuance and complexity and to write in a style that is academic but appropriate for the task at hand.

If you want more practice or to check out other exams from the past, go to the College Board’s website .

Brittany Borghi

After earning a BA in Journalism and an MFA in Nonfiction Writing from the University of Iowa, Brittany spent five years as a full-time lecturer in the Rhetoric Department at the University of Iowa. Additionally, she’s held previous roles as a researcher, full-time daily journalist, and book editor. Brittany’s work has been featured in The Iowa Review, The Hopkins Review, and the Pittsburgh City Paper, among others, and she was also a 2021 Pushcart Prize nominee.

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Should college application essays touch on race? Some students feel the affirmative action ruling leaves them no choice.

Hillary Amofa listens to others member of the Lincoln Park High School step team after school Friday, March 8, 2024, in Chicago. When she started writing her college essay, Amofa told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. She wrote about being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana, about growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. She described hardship and struggle. Then she deleted it all. "I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping," said the 18 year-old senior, "And I'm just like, this doesn't really say anything about me as a person." (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

CHICAGO — When she started writing her college essay, Hillary Amofa told the story she thought admissions offices wanted to hear. About being the daughter of immigrants from Ghana and growing up in a small apartment in Chicago. About hardship and struggle.

Then she deleted it all.

“I would just find myself kind of trauma-dumping,” said the 18-year-old senior at Lincoln Park High School in Chicago. “And I’m just like, this doesn’t really say anything about me as a person.”

When the Supreme Court ended affirmative action in higher education, it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions decisions. For many students of color, instantly more was riding on the already high-stakes writing assignment. Some say they felt pressure to exploit their hardships as they competed for a spot on campus.

Amofa was just starting to think about her essay when the court issued its decision, and it left her with a wave of questions. Could she still write about her race? Could she be penalized for it? She wanted to tell colleges about her heritage but she didn’t want to be defined by it.

In English class, Amofa and her classmates read sample essays that all seemed to focus on some trauma or hardship. It left her with the impression she had to write about her life’s hardest moments to show how far she’d come. But she and some of her classmates wondered if their lives had been hard enough to catch the attention of admissions offices.

“For a lot of students, there’s a feeling of, like, having to go through something so horrible to feel worthy of going to school, which is kind of sad,” said Amofa, the daughter of a hospital technician and an Uber driver.

This year’s senior class is the first in decades to navigate college admissions without affirmative action. The Supreme Court upheld the practice in decisions going back to the 1970s, but this court’s conservative supermajority found it is unconstitutional for colleges to give students extra weight because of their race alone.

Still, the decision left room for race to play an indirect role: Chief Justice John Roberts wrote universities can still consider how an applicant’s life was shaped by their race, “so long as that discussion is concretely tied to a quality of character or unique ability.”

“A benefit to a student who overcame racial discrimination, for example, must be tied to that student’s courage and determination,” he wrote.

Scores of colleges responded with new essay prompts asking about students’ backgrounds. Brown University asked applicants how “an aspect of your growing up has inspired or challenged you.” Rice University asked students how their perspectives were shaped by their “background, experiences, upbringing, and/or racial identity.”

WONDERING IF SCHOOLS ‘EXPECT A SOB STORY’

When Darrian Merritt started writing his essay, he knew the stakes were higher than ever because of the court’s decision. His first instinct was to write about events that led to him going to live with his grandmother as a child.

Those were painful memories, but he thought they might play well at schools like Yale, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

“I feel like the admissions committee might expect a sob story or a tragic story,” said Merritt, a senior in Cleveland. “And if you don’t provide that, then maybe they’re not going to feel like you went through enough to deserve having a spot at the university. I wrestled with that a lot.”

He wrote drafts focusing on his childhood, but it never amounted to more than a collection of memories. Eventually he abandoned the idea and aimed for an essay that would stand out for its positivity.

Merritt wrote about a summer camp where he started to feel more comfortable in his own skin. He described embracing his personality and defying his tendency to please others. The essay had humor — it centered on a water gun fight where he had victory in sight but, in a comedic twist, slipped and fell. But the essay also reflects on his feelings of not being “Black enough” and getting made fun of for listening to “white people music.”

“I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to write this for me, and we’re just going to see how it goes,’” he said. “It just felt real, and it felt like an honest story.”

The essay describes a breakthrough as he learned “to take ownership of myself and my future by sharing my true personality with the people I encounter. ... I realized that the first chapter of my own story had just been written.”

A RULING PROMPTS PIVOTS ON ESSAY TOPICS

Like many students, Max Decker of Portland, Oregon, had drafted a college essay on one topic, only to change direction after the Supreme Court ruling in June.

Decker initially wrote about his love for video games. In a childhood surrounded by constant change, navigating his parents’ divorce, the games he took from place to place on his Nintendo DS were a source of comfort.

But the essay he submitted to colleges focused on the community he found through Word is Bond, a leadership group for young Black men in Portland.

As the only biracial, Jewish kid with divorced parents in a predominantly white, Christian community, Decker wrote he constantly felt like the odd one out. On a trip with Word is Bond to Capitol Hill, he and friends who looked just like him shook hands with lawmakers. The experience, he wrote, changed how he saw himself.

“It’s because I’m different that I provide something precious to the world, not the other way around,” he wrote.

As a first-generation college student, Decker thought about the subtle ways his peers seemed to know more about navigating the admissions process. They made sure to get into advanced classes at the start of high school, and they knew how to secure glowing letters of recommendation.

If writing about race would give him a slight edge and show admissions officers a fuller picture of his achievements, he wanted to take that small advantage.

His first memory about race, Decker said, was when he went to get a haircut in elementary school and the barber made rude comments about his curly hair. Until recently, the insecurity that moment created led him to keep his hair buzzed short.

Through Word is Bond, Decker said he found a space to explore his identity as a Black man. It was one of the first times he was surrounded by Black peers and saw Black role models. It filled him with a sense of pride in his identity. No more buzzcut.

The pressure to write about race involved a tradeoff with other important things in his life, Decker said. That included his passion for journalism, like the piece he wrote on efforts to revive a once-thriving Black neighborhood in Portland. In the end, he squeezed in 100 characters about his journalism under the application’s activities section.

“My final essay, it felt true to myself. But the difference between that and my other essay was the fact that it wasn’t the truth that I necessarily wanted to share,” said Decker, whose top college choice is Tulane, in New Orleans, because of the region’s diversity. “It felt like I just had to limit the truth I was sharing to what I feel like the world is expecting of me.”

SPELLING OUT THE IMPACT OF RACE

Before the Supreme Court ruling, it seemed a given to Imani Laird that colleges would consider the ways that race had touched her life. But now, she felt like she had to spell it out.

As she started her essay, she reflected on how she had faced bias or felt overlooked as a Black student in predominantly white spaces.

There was the year in math class when the teacher kept calling her by the name of another Black student. There were the comments that she’d have an easier time getting into college because she was Black.

“I didn’t have it easier because of my race,” said Laird, a senior at Newton South High School in the Boston suburbs who was accepted at Wellesley and Howard University, and is waiting to hear from several Ivy League colleges. “I had stuff I had to overcome.”

In her final essays, she wrote about her grandfather, who served in the military but was denied access to GI Bill benefits because of his race.

She described how discrimination fueled her ambition to excel and pursue a career in public policy.

“So, I never settled for mediocrity,” she wrote. “Regardless of the subject, my goal in class was not just to participate but to excel. Beyond academics, I wanted to excel while remembering what started this motivation in the first place.”

WILL SCHOOLS LOSE RACIAL DIVERSITY?

Amofa used to think affirmative action was only a factor at schools like Harvard and Yale. After the court’s ruling, she was surprised to find that race was taken into account even at some public universities she was applying to.

Now, without affirmative action, she wondered if mostly white schools will become even whiter.

It’s been on her mind as she chooses between Indiana University and the University of Dayton, both of which have relatively few Black students. When she was one of the only Black students in her grade school, she could fall back on her family and Ghanaian friends at church. At college, she worries about loneliness.

“That’s what I’m nervous about,” she said. “Going and just feeling so isolated, even though I’m constantly around people.”

The first drafts of her essay focused on growing up in a low-income family, sharing a bedroom with her brother and grandmother. But it didn’t tell colleges about who she is now, she said.

Her final essay tells how she came to embrace her natural hair. She wrote about going to a mostly white grade school where classmates made jokes about her afro. When her grandmother sent her back with braids or cornrows, they made fun of those too.

Over time, she ignored their insults and found beauty in the styles worn by women in her life. She now runs a business doing braids and other hairstyles in her neighborhood.

“I stopped seeing myself through the lens of the European traditional beauty standards and started seeing myself through the lens that I created,” Amofa wrote.

“Criticism will persist, but it loses its power when you know there’s a crown on your head!”

Ma reported from Portland, Oregon.

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4 college admissions trends shaping top schools’ decisions in 2024.

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Locust Walk with students in fall, University of Pennsylvania, University City area, Philadelphia, ... [+] PA, USA

Ivy Day 2024, the day when top schools' admissions decisions are released, is a pivotal moment to explore the evolving landscape of college admissions and anticipate future directions. This year’s transformations are reshaping college application strategies in profound ways. Let's dive into the latest developments.

Return To Standardized Testing

The return to SAT and ACT requirements by institutions such as Dartmouth, Brown and MIT is a sign that many highly selective institutions may go back to requiring standardized tests. In a slight modification to the testing requirement, Yale’s test-flexible policy allows students to submit Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate scores in lieu of the standard SAT or ACT. This shift may be in response to a decline in college readiness benchmarks ; for instance, ACT exam scores are at their lowest in 30 years, even as GPAs in core subjects rise. This gap highlights a discrepancy between students' perceived readiness and their actual preparedness.

Although I foresee more colleges reinstating standardized testing requirements, I also expect the continuation of test-optional and test-blind policies. These policies serve not only to broaden application pools from underrepresented and disadvantaged groups but also as a strategy for financially challenged institutions to attract more applicants.

In other testing news, the College Board launched the first digital SAT earlier this month , introducing a significant shift from its traditional format. This new version is adaptive and adjusts the difficulty level of questions based on the student's responses, a departure from the fixed difficulty level of previous exams. Notably, students report that the math section was more challenging than anticipated, diverging from their experiences with practice exams. Unlike the SAT, which has transitioned to a fully digital format, the ACT continues to offer both digital and traditional paper-and-pencil options.

It's advisable for students to undertake diagnostic practice exams for both the SAT and ACT to ascertain which exam aligns better with their abilities. Should the practice scores be comparable, I recommend leaning toward the ACT. This preference stems from its stability in format over the years and the choice it offers between digital and paper-based exams.

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Given the evolving landscape of testing policies, including recent SAT modifications, students should embrace a two-pronged approach: rigorously prepare for standardized tests while remaining flexible to the possibility of not submitting scores where test-optional policies prevail.

Rethink The Importance Of The College Essay

Duke University has made significant changes to its admissions process by no longer assigning numerical ratings to applicants' standardized test scores and essays . This adjustment took effect in the current application cycle. Previously, Duke assigned values from one to five for essays and test scores, contributing to a holistic score on a 30-point scale. Now, the point system is applied only to curriculum strength, academics, recommendations, and extracurricular activities.

The move to eliminate numerical scores for essays arises from concerns about the rise in AI-generated submissions and the possibility of essays being ghostwritten. Christoph Guttentag, the dean of undergraduate admissions, noted that although essays play a pivotal role in comprehending an applicant's profile, their reliability as indicators of a student’s actual writing skills has diminished.

This adjustment is not a response to the Supreme Court's ruling against considering race in admissions decisions. Nonetheless, essays have frequently been a focal point in discussions about fostering diversity through admissions. It is expected that other institutions may similarly de-emphasize essays, thereby elevating the significance of academic transcripts, the depth of extracurricular activities, and the relevance and demand for the selected major .

Apply Early

The number of early applications (a combination of early decision and early action) has jumped by 1 million, a 60% increase, over the last five years according to Common Application data in a New York Magazine report . In contrast, applications filed during the regular decision period increased by 26% over the same timeframe. This suggests a growing trend among high school seniors to leverage early application options as part of their strategy for college admissions, reflecting the competitive nature of securing admission to top institutions.

Navigate The FAFSA Challenges

The recent overhaul of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid has led to significant delays, affecting students who rely on financial aid to make college decisions. This FAFSA situation has left many students in limbo, uncertain about their financial aid packages and, consequently, their college choices. Some colleges and universities are extending decision deadlines to accommodate the delays, but the fear remains that this could deter a significant number of students from matriculating.

Alongside the FAFSA, it is imperative for families to engage early with platforms such as the College Board’s CSS Profile. They can help unlock a broad spectrum of financial support options, from federal aid to merit-based scholarships offered by institutions. For example, utilizing tools like the Federal Student Aid Estimator and individual college’s net price calculators can provide early insights into eligibility for federal financial assistance, guiding strategic financial planning for college.

Master Your College Admissions Strategy

As the 2024 college admissions landscape poses its share of complexities, students and families are encouraged to embrace a multifaceted approach tailored to the evolving standards of higher education. From adapting to the reemergence of standardized testing requirements at esteemed institutions like Dartmouth, Brown, and MIT, to addressing the challenges posed by the digitalization of the SAT and the nuanced evaluation of college essays at Duke, it's clear that flexibility and strategic planning are paramount. Furthermore, the rise in early application submissions highlights the importance of proactivity and informed decision-making in securing a favorable college admission outcome. By fostering a thorough understanding of these trends and deploying an informed application strategy, students can enhance their prospects of achieving their academic and career aspirations in this dynamic admissions environment.

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Tressie McMillan Cottom

Who Would Want to Go to a College Like This?

By Tressie McMillan Cottom

Opinion Columnist

The moral panic about “woke” campuses has metastasized into actual legislation, and not just in the swampy idylls of Florida. Last week the governor of Alabama signed a bill that purports to limit the teaching of “divisive” topics in its colleges and universities. The bill is similar to Florida’s ban on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in public colleges, which was signed into law last May. Both are all-out attacks on learning by excommunicating liberal ideas from the classroom. Other state legislatures have also been busy. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that Republican lawmakers have proposed 81 anti-D.E.I. bills across 28 states. (So far, 33 haven’t become law, and 11 have.)

Because most students attend public universities, state-level threats to higher education are especially troubling. While the federal government has outsize authority, states have more direct political reach. Republican leaders in the most reactionary states are banking that their appeals to moral panics about teaching history, race, gender and identity will attract donors and political favor. Bills already passed in Florida and Alabama are examples of shortsighted, counterintuitive legislative overreach. This political theater lifts up a caricature of college, in which coddled minds are seduced into liberal ideas. Without university leaders, politicians or voters mounting a defense of faculty governance and democratic speech, anti-woke reactionaries can remake college into the very thing they claim it is: cloistered institutions that cannot respond to what their students want and need.

It is hard to combat legislative overreach in states where gerrymandering and the structure of elections favor reactionary Republicans. But unlike in K-12 schools, in higher education, the students hold a tremendous amount of power. Public colleges and universities need students’ tuition dollars. If states become hostile to students’ values, those students could choose to go elsewhere or to forgo college altogether. That would set up a standoff between right-wing political favor and students’ dollars. But first, students would have to be paying attention. They would have to care. And they would have to be willing to choose colleges that match their values.

That is why I read with interest a recent report put out by the Lumina Foundation and Gallup on how policies and laws shape college enrollment. Part of a larger survey about students’ experiences of higher education, the report left me with one major takeaway: The national debate about so-called woke campuses does not reflect what most college students care about. It is worth looking at the report’s key findings. They underscore how unhinged our national debate over higher education has become and how misaligned Republican-led public higher education systems are with the bulk of college students. It isn’t hard to imagine that students could vote with their feet, avoiding schools in states that are out of step with their values.

The report names four reactionary changes in the national policy conversation that might shape students’ feelings about going to or being enrolled in college. First, there’s the group of bills against teaching supposedly divisive concepts, as in Alabama and Florida. Second, there’s a 2022 Supreme Court decision on concealed carry permits for firearms. Students fear that it signals how states with more restrictive gun regulations will change their campus gun policies in anticipation of legal challenges. Third, there are the sweeping changes to the availability of reproductive health care that came after the fall of Roe v. Wade . The Wild West of different abortion bans, legal challenges to Plan B and birth control will shape students’ experiences of college . Finally, there’s the Supreme Court decision in 2023 that effectively ended race-based affirmative action in admissions. States are already broadly interpreting that decision to include scholarships and programming.

If you are applying to college in 2024, you are tasked with not just choosing a major at a college where you can be happy and that may admit you at a price you can afford. You are also considering if you will be safe from gun violence, able to get medical care if you need it, qualified to use some types of financial aid and likely to encounter a liberal arts education that could improve the trajectory of your life.

I read the report closely for takeaways and what some of the fine-grained data points mean. The big context is that most students still choose colleges based on quality, cost, reputation and job prospects. Because I am interested in which of the four reactionary changes matter most (and to whom), I pulled those out of the list of all things that matter to students. Students care about — from most to least important — gun violence, “anti-woke” laws and reproductive health care. Because race-based affirmative action is measured somewhat differently from the other concerns, it is not ranked.

I lived through a campus shooting last year . As I watched college students climb calmly out of windows to escape the building, I realized this is a generation raised on constant shooting drills. That might explain why 38 percent of students who study on campus said they were worried about gun violence at their schools. Campus gun policies mattered at least somewhat to 80 percent of those surveyed. And of those who cared, students who wanted more restrictive gun policies outweighed those who preferred looser policies by five to one, according to the report.

As for those “divisive” concepts? Students want them. A majority of students who cared about those issues, the report notes, said they did not want restrictions on classroom instruction. Even more notable, students’ opinions do not align with the rabid political partisanship that dominates headlines. In a look at the students who care about this issue, some political differences might be expected. And there are some. But the good news is that they aren’t nearly as partisan as one might imagine. Even 61 percent of Republicans who cared about this issue when choosing a college preferred a state that did not restrict instruction on topics related to race and gender. That’s compared with 83 percent of Democrats and 78 percent of independents.

It is remarkable, given these data points, how little politicians and the public are talking about how afraid college students are — not of new ideas but of being shot on campus.

Fears about reproductive health ranked third among these changes; 71 percent of those surveyed said that a state’s reproductive health care policies would influence where they chose to go to college. The gender split here was a mixed bag. While many men cared about reproductive health, women were, by 18 percentage points, more likely than men to prefer states with fewer restrictions on reproductive health care. It is impossible to claim causation, but hackneyed culture wars about gender are not happening in a vacuum. They animate men’s and women’s values. The data suggests that it will be hard to recruit men (who are inclined to want more health care restrictions for women) and make female students feel cared for and safe. There may not be a way for a single college to serve both masters.

The Supreme Court affirmative action decision’s role in shaping students’ college choices is harder to parse than the other reactionary changes. People do not have a common understanding of what affirmative action means or how it works. Even so, 45 percent of those surveyed said the ruling would shape their decision of which school to attend or if they went to college at all.

While the idea of woke campuses may get attention and motivate parts of the reactionary Republican base, the report says that those partisan differences are moderate among students. “Most current and prospective students of all political parties who say these issues are important to their enrollment,” the report notes, “prefer more restrictive gun policies, less restrictive reproductive health care laws and fewer regulations” on curriculums.

Put more simply: Republicans must seem like aliens — if not dinosaurs — to the very college students they claim to be saving from hostile college campuses.

Debates about what happens on college campuses are proxies for partisan politics. They are also convenient ruses for clawing back the nominal democratization that higher education underwent during the last half of the 20th century. Those of us who see education as something more noble than a political football should care about the way partisan attacks and sensational headlines will harm real people trying to make sense of their lives.

Students go to college because they want jobs, they want to be educated or they want to be respected by others (or some combination of all three). A college or university implicitly promises them that it has the legitimacy to allow access, foster learning and confer status. The trick is that when universities play into the con game of moral panics about woke campuses, they become the thing we fear.

The loudest story about American colleges is disconnected from what college students care about. Even so, the nation’s diverse, aspirational college students are trying to make college choices that align with their political values. According to this survey, they are remarkably progressive, fair-minded and unafraid of intellectual challenge. If only our politics lived up to their values.

Tressie McMillan Cottom (@ tressiemcphd ) became a New York Times Opinion columnist in 2022. She is an associate professor at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, School of Information and Library Science; the author of “Thick: And Other Essays”; and a 2020 MacArthur fellow.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

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