College Admissions Officer “Ask Me Anything”

The college admissions process can appear intimidating and mystifying. For example, test scores, interviews, and certain essay prompts may say "optional" but do schools prefer when you take the option? Conventional wisdom says that you shouldn't tell admissions officers "what they want to hear" in your personal statement, so what do they really want to hear instead? And since nobody's perfect, how should you balance being well-rounded vs. specialized, or taking challenging classes vs. getting perfect grades. If only there were a way to know what admissions officers are really thinking… Now there is! Each month, this series features an admissions officer or reader from a top school–including Harvard, Columbia, UCLA, Wisconsin, and others–available to answer your most pressing questions about all aspects of college applications, school research, improving your candidacy, and getting into the perfect school for you.

Live Q&A With Admissions Insiders Each session features an admissions officer or reader from a top school, ready to answer your most pressing questions about all aspects of college applications.

Optional Test Scores and Essays Find out how schools really treat optional test scores, interviews, and essay prompts, and whether they quietly prefer that you take the option.

What Belongs in a Personal Statement Learn what admissions officers actually want to read in a personal statement, and why telling them what you think they want to hear is not the answer.

Balancing Breadth, Rigor, and Grades Weigh being well-rounded against being specialized, and challenging coursework against a perfect GPA, with insight into how admissions readers see those trade-offs.

Research, Fit, and Candidacy Get guidance on researching schools, finding the right fit for you, and strengthening your candidacy across every part of your application.