501: What Colleges Want (Part 1): A Deep Dive into the Factors Colleges Deem Important & State of College Admissions Report

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On today's episode, Ethan sits down with David Hawkins, Chief Education and Policy Officer at National Association of College Admission Counselors (aka NACAC), and they get discuss, among other things: 
What are the most important factors colleges consider? 

  • What significant changes has he seen in the college admission landscape in the past few years?

  • How has the emphasis on college essays (aka the personal statement) shifted? 

  • Why has the emphasis in standardized testing changed?

  • What have the impacts been of the Supreme Court decision to ban race conscious admission? 

  • How can students, counselors, and parents use the info in this report to make their college admission process easier? 

For over 20 years, David Hawkins has worked in enrollment management and admissions to alleviate systemic barriers to accessing higher education. Hawkins has played a key role in setting NACAC's strategic direction, which involved hearing and representing the collective voice of NACAC’s more than 25,000 high school counselors and college admission officers. His priorities include making NACAC a more effective learning organization, with an emphasis on ethics and redefining advocacy.

We hope you enjoy the conversation.

Play-by-play

  • 2:04 - Introductions

  • 3:03 - What is the State of College Admission report?

  • 5:48 - How can students, parents, and counselors use this report?

  • 9:50 - Which factors of admissions decisions are most important to colleges?

  • 13:34 - How are “positive character attributes” assessed?

  • 18:00 - What are some specific qualities that are important to colleges?

  • 20:46 - How do students show these qualities in their applications?

  • 25:33 - How has the importance of the college essay shifted in recent years?

  • 27:13 - Which colleges seem to value the essay more highly?

  • 28:47 - How does a student’s interest in attending a particular school influence admissions decisions?

  • 32:30 - How are counselor & teacher recommendations assessed?

  • 33:58 - What are admissions officers looking for in extracurricular activities?

  • 37:38 - Why is high school class rank dropping in rank of importance? 

  • 39:30 - Do colleges still want to see standardized test scores?

  • 42:52 - Quick thoughts on creative portfolios, interviews, work experience, state exam scores, and subject test scores

  • 44:49 - David shares predictions on shifts in equity and inclusion in the future of admissions

  • 48:57 - Closing thoughts 

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