Because the application process can seem fairly mysterious (Though it doesn’t have to! But that’s why you’re here.), students and families (understandably) often ask us what colleges are looking for in students they admit and how to maximize their chances of standing out in selective college admissions.

What exactly matters to colleges the most? They actually tell you. Kinda. They tell other people, who try to tell you. And we’ll help you understand how and where they do. (Since they maybe don’t do a great job of telling you that they tell you.)

In this post, we’ll review the factors that colleges look for in students and how you can be best prepared for the admissions process. Keep in mind though, that plenty of things here will be relative: the right choices for you often depend significantly on your high school context, lived experience, and personal goals.

What do colleges look for in a student?

One of the best starting places to gain an understanding of what colleges are looking for is to learn from experts and leaders in the field of admissions. One of the foremost leaders is the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC): counselors across the country rely on their reinvented State of College Admission report, with data directly from colleges that discloses the most important factors colleges consider in the admissions process.

What are the most important factors? It varies some from college to college (so your college list will be important here), but

High school grades in college prep courses
Total high school grades (all courses)
Strength of high school curriculum

and also

Positive character attributes
Essay or writing sample

are of “considerable importance” or “moderate importance” to the majority of colleges.

In case you didn’t check the link above, here’s a breakdown of the NACAC report:

PERCENTAGE OF COLLEGES ATTRIBUTING DIFFERENT LEVELS OF IMPORTANCE TO FACTORS IN ADMISSION DECISIONS: FIRST-TIME FRESHMEN, FALL 2023

Factor	Number of colleges reporting	“Considerable Importance”	“Moderate Importance”	“Limited Importance”	“No Importance”
High school grades in college prep courses	185	76.8	15.1	4.9	3.2
Total high school grades (all courses)	185	74.1	18.9	5.4	1.6
Strength of high school curriculum	185	63.8	22.7	10.3	3.2
Positive character attributes	184	28.3	37.5	18.5	15.8
Essay or writing sample	185	18.9	37.3	26.5	17.3
Student’s interest in attending	185	15.7	27.6	25.4	31.4
Counselor recommendation	185	11.9	40.0	27.6	20.5
Teacher recommendation	185	10.8	40.5	28.1	20.5
Extracurricular activities	185	6.5	44.3	30.8	18.4
High school class rank	183	5.5	22.4	43.2	29.0
Admission test scores (ACT, SAT)	185	4.9	25.4	38.9	30.8
Portfolio	185	4.9	10.8	24.3	60.0
Interview	185	4.3	8.6	32.4	54.6
Work	185	2.2	30.8	40.0	27.0
State graduation exam scores	185	1.6	6.5	18.4	73.5
Subject test scores (AP, IB)	185	1.1	22.2	25.9	50.8

What do those all mean, exactly? Let’s talk them through.

What factors do colleges consider in admissions?

Below, we’ll break down each factor from the NACAC report one by one.

High school grades in college prep courses

What are “college prep courses”? Generally, courses that focus on core subjects like science, English/writing, math, world language, and social studies (as in, classes that help you develop foundational skills and knowledge to succeed in college). While things can vary some from high school to high school, typically students are required to take

4 years of English
3 years of science
3 years of math
3 years of social studies
2-4 years of world language

But keep in mind that selective, especially highly selective, colleges expect you to go above the minimum, and generally want to see you taking the most challenging courses available to you, so in many cases

4 years of English
4 years of math
4 years of science
4 years of social studies
4 years of world language

FAQ: What if my school doesn’t offer all of that?

A: That can be fine—colleges know/can see what courses are available to you. If they see you’re showing initiative and taking advantage of the opportunities available to you, that strengthens your application. (For example, CEG’s Editorial Director, Andrew Simpson, only took 5 AP classes—because that was all the AP classes his rural Montana high school offered at the time.)

It’s likely no surprise that student performance in high school courses is consistently the most highly rated factor, so the number one piece of advice we’d have for you is to focus on being the best student you can be starting in ninth grade.

This doesn’t necessarily mean pushing beyond your limits or stretching to a point of excessive challenge, but it does mean that you should make wise choices for where to focus your academic attention to maximize your learning AND your performance.

Total high school grades (all courses)

Pretty straightforward here—in addition to the core classes/subjects above, we’re including everything here, e.g. Theater, or Physical Education, or… you get the idea. Even though some of the elective classes won’t be focused on as much for admission review, it’s best to show strong performance in every class that will appear on your transcript so that the admission office is confident in your academic ability and work ethic (and so you don’t make the reader wonder why you barely passed PE!). Keep in mind that non-core classes can be a way to show colleges alignment with the major you select on your application, so don’t underestimate their impact.

Oh, and if you are applying to the University of California system, you’ll want to ensure you make course selection choices that align with their A-G requirements, which specifically require a year of Visual and Performing Arts, among other things.

Strength of high school curriculum

You’ve maybe heard the word “rigor” used before in relation to high school classes? If so, that’s what we’re talking about here—to what degree did you take the most challenging courses available to you, and how well did you perform in them? Or did you leave opportunities on the table?

For example, if you maintained a really high weighted or unweighted GPA, but you did so by avoiding the toughest classes at your school, you won’t be fooling admissions officers. (In fact, the same AO usually reads applications from the same high schools each year—meaning they’ll know the schools and their offerings pretty well.) For example, if you want to study engineering and your school has both Calculus and AP Calc, but you choose not to take math in 12th grade, or choose Statistics instead, that will generally show a lack of rigor in your course selection relative to your major. We typically advise students to take the most challenging course load that maximizes your potential without overwhelming (or over-stressing!) your sense of balance.

If you’re curious about how admissions officers learn more about your school and course offerings, ask your school or college counselor for a copy of your School Profile. You can also often find this document on your high school’s website. This is sent to colleges alongside your transcript to help admissions officers better understand what was available to you, what you potentially “left on the table” when it comes to advanced courses, and how your performance compares to that of others in your graduating class.

Here are some questions an admissions officer will ask themself when looking at your School Profile:

Who attends this school?
What is the broader culture and community like?
What is the college-going culture like?
What curriculum is available?
What does academic achievement look like at this school?
Any “particularities” at the school (advanced course limits, tracking, special programs, etc.)?

For more insight into how admissions officers contextualize your course choices, check out our podcast on this very topic.

Positive character attributes

This is something that will vary from college to college, but some colleges will look for certain character traits—for example, dedication to community or social good, or open mindedness, or deep curiosity, or grit—that they think will help students succeed in college and also that may match the schools mission and values.

Some colleges, like Pomona, explicitly mention the valued qualities that they look for in students on their admissions website:

And here’s what Swarthmore is looking for.

We’d recommend exploring the websites of the schools you’re interested in and paying particular attention to things like their mission statements (for example, here’s Stanford’s mission statement) to see how well you and they align.

So, where do colleges look for these “positive character attributes” in your application? Here are a few components to keep in mind:

Most commonly:

Recommendation letters (from your counselor and/or teachers)
Personal statement
Additional Information section
Supplemental essays

Sometimes:

Interviews
Video responses
Activities List descriptions

Essay or writing sample

Most selective colleges will require a personal statement. In addition, many selective colleges will have one (or several) supplemental essays that you’ll have to write. We have tons of in-depth guides for writing both your main college essay and your supplemental essays, so we’ll let you explore those more fully there, but the TL;DR (too long, didn’t read) is that colleges are interested in learning more about your skills, qualities, insights, values, and interests from these various writing samples.

Students who keep this advice in mind typically have more successful admissions outcomes and paint a more comprehensive picture of themselves to colleges beyond their “stats.” Rather than asking “What does the college want me to say?” think about who you are and what is important for you to communicate about yourself in your writing.

Student’s interest in attending (Demonstrated Interest)

This also varies a lot, so you’ll want to check every school on your list to see if they track “demonstrated interest.”

This guide explains in detail what demonstrated interest is and how to check if a school tracks it, but in short: some schools keep track of how often you do things like open emails from the college and how long you stayed on their website (yes, really) or if you visited the college, or took advantage of an opportunity to interview, or engaged with the rep for your region, etc. They do this in large part to try to get a sense of how interested you actually are in the school—if they accept you, will you enroll?

You can show demonstrated interest by visiting colleges, meeting with the representative when they visit your high school, or various other ways of communication. Some people say that applying Early Decision (binding commitment!) is the ultimate form of demonstrated interest, but that’s not always the best choice for each student or family (particularly because of how binding ED and financial aid interact with family finances). As you think about the colleges on your list, just be sure you know where showing interest could have an impact and focus your attention there.

Counselor recommendation

Many colleges are interested in having a better sense of how members of your high school community—namely your counselor and your teachers—describe your context, areas of impact, academic and intellectual highlights, and more.

Counselor recommendations are often seen by most selective admissions as a useful “secondary source” on a student—meaning that it’s often a compilation of notes and testimonials from the individual student, their family, homeroom teachers, advisors, and/or core subject teachers over the years. They’re typically written by your assigned school or college counselor and vary considerably in terms of length, level of detail, and style.

Many admissions officers view these letters less as recommendations, per se, but more as letters of student advocacy. Students often worry about what’s said about them in these letters, especially since many high schools do not allow students to read their recommendations before they’re submitted. Keep in mind, though, that these letters very rarely negatively impact a student’s admissions candidacy, as most letters are overwhelmingly positive.

Further, admissions officers are acutely aware of disparities that exist from high school to high school when it comes to counselor capacity. A recommendation from a high school where each counselor supports 100+ students is not evaluated with the same level of scrutiny as a recommendation from a small private school, where admissions officers often expect a higher level of detail and a more thorough understanding of each student.

Here are some common questions admissions officers ask themselves while reading a student’s counselor recommendation:

Any notable contrasts between the student and their school community?
Key details about their home and family life? Any challenges?
How does this student’s academic performance compare to others in the school? What about their course choices?
Any areas of impact?
What are the student’s primary intellectual curiosities?
How about their future goals?

We have comprehensive guides on requesting recommendation letters that will give you more insight into how to help your school advocate for you through these writing samples—no matter what type of high school you come from.

Teacher recommendation

While a counselor recommendation is often seen as a “secondary source” or “compilation-view” of a student that includes multiple vantage points, teacher recommendations typically serve as a “primary source.” It’s a more zoomed-in view, based primarily on the eyewitness account of your classroom presence from one person: your teacher!

Contrary to what many people might assume, teacher recommendations aren’t really used as a test of how “smart” you are in a particular academic subject (admissions officers mostly look at your grades for that). They’re seen more as a way to better understand your presence in a collaborative, academic setting, and your strengths and areas of growth as a student.

Here are some common questions admissions officers ask themselves while reading a student’s teacher recommendations:

Any specific instances where the student demonstrated intellectual curiosity?
What about passion projects where they went all-in?
Any times where the student caused you to re-evaluate your teaching methods or approach?
What’s the student’s “role” in the classroom? Are they a bridge-builder, challenger, intellect, etc.?
Are there instances where they connected course material to real-world issues?
Has the student demonstrated collaborative thinking and/or problem-solving?
Areas of growth?

Similarly to counselor recommendations, admissions officers completely understand if you’re coming from a school where you weren’t able to build strong relationships with all your teachers. Additionally, many students come from high schools and cultural contexts where the idea of being a “good student” means not getting in the way/flying under the radar.

There are spaces in your college application—namely the Additional Information section—where you can explain these circumstances, especially if you’re concerned about how they might impact your admissions prospects.

Extracurricular activities

Because most U.S. four-year colleges and universities offer residential communities with an extensive array of clubs, organizations, ensembles and teams, colleges often wonder how you’ll contribute to their campus community beyond just taking classes and watching Netflix in your dorm. (Though, rest assured, you’ll be able to make time for British Baking Show marathons with new friends in no time.)

Most high school students tend to have 3-or-so activities that are their “main activities”: the ones that take up the majority of their time and that they’d be eager to continue in some capacity in college. (And in case, please keep in mind, things like working a job or caring for siblings are considered important activities in a college’s view.)

While much less important than your academics, extracurricular activities that demonstrate commitment, growth, initiative, and impact tend to be the most valuable in the college admissions process. One-off activities like summer internships, camps, volunteer programs, research projects or big fundraisers can also be great to include, but ideally you have some consistent involvement throughout high school to demonstrate to colleges.

Colleges don’t have a rigid hierarchy of “preferred” activities, but the ones that are most impactful tend to be:

Self-directed
Rooted in intellectual curiosity
Impact-focused/quantifiable
Beyond your school’s brick-and-mortar walls
Original and distinctive (includes “non-traditional teenage activities”)
Rooted in responsibility (i.e. family responsibilities)

The rule of thumb when it comes to extracurricular activities is that colleges are interested in quality over quantity. They don’t want to just see a laundry list of activities that communicates “wow, I’m a busy person”—they’d rather get a sense of how you spend your time outside the classroom, and how those experiences have shaped your skills, qualities, values, and interests, and what insights you’ve gained into yourself and the world through them.

Additionally, you don’t need to be involved in “big ticket” extracurriculars—such as impressive summer programs at colleges or expensive research programs—to stand out to colleges. Involving yourself in your own high school’s offerings is a great first step, and along the way, you may want to consider exploring collaborative activities with other high schools, community organizations, local business, or other online communities to gain perspective and create a larger impact. An impressive extracurricular profile doesn’t need to cost you an arm and a leg!

High school class rank

Many high schools have done away with things like class rank as a way to internally compare students and their academic achievement, leaning instead on things like grade distribution charts and junior class GPA ranges to communicate similar information. Schools that don’t rank students often argue that it helps avoid unhealthy patterns of internal competition between students. Thus, it’s become less and less of an important metric to college admissions officers—especially since each high school’s ranking system doesn’t always take into consideration factors like course rigor or weighted/unweighted GPA scales.

For instance, it’s possible for a student to have a very high class rank, but not take any rigorous classes beyond the high school’s basic graduation requirements. Admissions officers can smell this “tactic” a mile away!

If your school does rank students, the admissions officer will most likely consider your rank as part of their academic evaluation, but if they don’t rank, you will not be penalized or disadvantaged.

Admission test scores (ACT, SAT)

Testing has dropped a lot in terms of “considerable importance” to colleges in recent years—from 46% in 2o18 to just 5% in 2023—as more and more colleges have chosen to go test optional or test free (see that guide for an in-depth explanation).

The lack of available testing centers during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 accelerated a growing trend among many U.S. colleges, including many highly selective institutions, that were already reconsidering the role of test scores in their admissions processes. Many had been conducting long-term internal studies and analyzing data on their enrolled students to better understand the correlation between a student’s SAT and/or ACT score and their academic performance in college.

Most of these studies have yielded results similar to this one from the University of Chicago: that a student’s GPA and high school courses are a more reliable predictor of college success and graduation rates. Additionally, champions of college access and equity have long encouraged colleges to reconsider their use of standardized tests in their selection process, as study after study has suggested that test scores are inextricably linked with wealth more than intellectual ability.

The importance of test scores continues to vary drastically from place to place. We recommend paying close attention to college’s testing policies—namely their wording—to better understand how test scores influence their admissions process.

For instance, some schools use language along the lines of “we’ve found that test scores can be helpful in our process,” which can signal that they may have a slight preference for testing. And because so many colleges don’t find test scores to be helpful, some students choose not to make testing a part of their admission process at all. This can be a huge relief, especially if testing isn’t the best way to show your abilities.

Portfolio

Some colleges, such as MIT, invite students to submit a portfolio— sometimes called a supplement—as a way to demonstrate their ability in an academic subject/major interest or an extracurricular talent.

Some majors—such as art, music and architecture—are more likely to request (or sometimes require) a portfolio than others.

Portfolios are often evaluated by someone directly associated with that department—so, for instance, a professor in the architecture department, or the director of a college’s orchestra.

As the NACAC report suggests, portfolios don’t really play a role in most students’ admissions process. But if a college does offer it and you have musical, artistic, and/or dramatic talent, it can be wise to put one together to help your application stand out.

Interview

Admissions interviews are becoming less common, especially among highly selective colleges. Capacity issues are a primary reason many schools have scaled back interview opportunities, as applicant pools have swelled exponentially among selective colleges and most are unable to provide all of their applicants with an alumni, student or staff interview.

Very few colleges require interviews (Georgetown is one example of a rare exception), but they continue to be a common element of the admissions process at many selective conservatories or arts-based programs, such as Juilliard.

If a college offers optional interviews, it’s a good idea to consider taking advantage of them, even if you aren’t the most extroverted student. (They understand.)

Be warned that many colleges provide short notice when they offer you an interview, so best to plan ahead if you will need interview prep! Our guide to interviews provides some helpful dos and don’ts to help students put their best foot forward with this often stress-inducing conversation (which really is meant to be just that: a conversation)!

Work

Many students don’t have time to work with their busy academic, extracurricular, and personal obligations. However, work is a great addition to your activities list if you’ve held any type of job throughout high school.

Working in a field that aligns with your future field of study in college can be particularly fulfilling, but it’s also great if you held a summer job scooping ice cream or lifeguarding. There’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to work and having work experience can be an indication of your work ethic, sense of responsibility, and financial priorities.

If you’ve held a job that was necessary in order to contribute to your family’s finances, that’s a great thing to explain in your application. (If it isn’t in your essays, be sure to include it in your Additional Info section.)

State graduation exam scores

Some states have required exams that all students take as a part of state-wide high school graduation requirements, such as New York State’s Regents examinations. These tests rarely play a role in college admissions, although you should check to see if your high school reports state exams scores on your transcript or whether they are shared with colleges on official school documents. Most likely, state exam scores will not be given much (if any) attention in your admissions process. The grades you’ve earned in your courses will always be the more important factor when it comes to your academic viability.

Subject test scores (AP, IB)

The College Board canceled the SAT Subject Test program in 2021, but Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) scores are still very common for high school students in the U.S.

Generally, scores of 4 and 5 on AP exams signal that a student has strongly retained material from their classes—and many schools will offer students college credit for these scores. IB scores of 6 and 7—in both HL (higher-level) and SL (standard-level) courses—are also typically seen favorably by colleges (and can result in college credit, varying from school to school).

This is another area of the college process that doesn’t “tip the needle” on a student’s application very drastically. Additionally, keep in mind that colleges have no expectation that you will be sending in scores like this—especially if you don’t attend a school that offers AP or IB courses. Some students choose to self-study for these exams as a way to impress admissions officers, but as the NACAC report suggests, these tend to be efforts that don’t really yield a lot of change in the way your application will be read.

If you’ve earned these scores, however, you’ll want to consider self-reporting those on your college applications. Most college admissions offices will not request official score reports for AP or IB scores (as this is typically requested once a student enrolls at a college by the registrar).

FAQ on what colleges look for in students

Do factors vary by college/type of college?

Yes. Directly from NACAC:

“Some differences were found between public and private colleges in the level of importance given to the following factors:

high school grades in college prep courses
strength of curriculum
class rank
positive character attributes
the essay or writing sample
the interview
work
extracurricular activities
counselor and teacher recommendations
student’s interest in attending the institution.”

Additionally, liberal arts colleges vs private universities vs large public schools will vary in how much weight they give to various factors.

Generally, the schools designating “considerable importance” to the factors in this NACAC report are highly selective colleges (which are generally schools that have an overall acceptance rate of 30% or less). These institutions can be more “choosy” with the students in their applicant pools, most of whom have strong high school grades and rigorous courses. Therefore, the other factors in this report—like positive character attributes, essays, and extracurricular activities—tend to be used as ways to distinguish students who have already gotten their “foot in the door” through their academic credentials.

Pro tip: to get a better sense of how each individual college views these various admissions factors, you can look up each school’s Common Data Set (CDS). These are reports that most colleges produce on an annual basis that use standardized language and reporting methods to describe the college’s applicant pool, student body and admissions process. Sections C3-C8 in each school’s CDS are particularly helpful at understanding how much each application component “weighs” at that specific institution.

For example: colleges that don’t factor demonstrated interest into their selection process will mark “Not Considered” on the C7, or “Basis of Selection” Section, of their CDS.

Here’s a Common Data Set example from the University of Southern California (USC):

If you want to avoid Googling each individual school’s CDS, third-party websites like CollegeData.com serve as a convenient way to source Common Data Set information in a ready-friendly and streamlined way.

How have admission factors changed over time?

One of the biggest changes over the past several years is the decline in the importance of test scores. To see a detailed breakdown of how things have changed over the past decade, check out the second grid here.

What do colleges look for besides grades?

Well, basically any of the factors listed in the NACAC report! But as we’ve established, the weight these factors will play will vary from college to college. This is why, if you ask a college counselor, advisor, or an admissions officer a question along the lines of “do colleges care about X?,” their response will typically (and often frustratingly) be “it depends.”

Special thanks to Renee and Morgan for writing this blog post.

Renee Ferrerio

With 30+ years of experience as a school and college counselor, including having been a Director of College Counseling at an independent school and the Department Chair of Counseling at a public school, Renee possesses a wealth of college admission knowledge. She has assisted hundreds of students in pursuing colleges that best fit their goals and aspirations while remaining actively engaged in the field through regional and national professional organizations. Having visited 220 colleges in person, Renee approaches the art of guiding students with a blend of humor and meticulous research, exploring the expansive possibilities in the arena of post-secondary education. As a first-generation college graduate, Renee intimately understands the challenges that students face in navigating the intricate landscape of college admission. She began working with CEG in 2021.

Morgan Phillips

Morgan’s career spans 20+ years as a college counselor, admission officer, and application reader. She has helped students reach a full range of goals: applying to highly selective colleges, finding and following niche academic interests, and figuring out how to broaden (or balance) a college list! She was recognized as a ‘Counselor That Changes Lives’ (2021) by the Colleges That Change Lives (CTCL) organization, Morgan embraces the CTCL approach of dedication to college counseling practices that promote “a college search that focuses on the individual student and finding a college that will cultivate the student's lifelong love of learning.

What do colleges look for in students?

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