5 College Application Red Flags (and Green Ones!)

Last Updated on October 23, 2024 by Jill Schwitzgebel

As I write this, early admission deadlines are looming.  For me, that means lots of application reviewing at this time of year.  By this time, I have an established relationship with most of “my” applicants, so they know the dos and don’ts of applications.  But occasionally, some application “red flags” do pop up!  (I’ve covered many of the most common college application mistakes here.) Fortunately, I see mainly green flags, but there are some yellow ones too.

Red Flags

Essays that are too short.  It’s really doubtful that a student can truly convey their personality to an admissions reader in only 250 words.  Yes, I often say that “More isn’t always better,” but in this case, another 200 words or so is likely to help the reader learn more about the applicant.  And no, don’t use lengthy quotations from another author to try to add to the word count.

Essays that don’t give new information.   Remember, the essay should give information that the reader wouldn’t have been able to gather from the rest of the application. For instance, if a student wants to talk about an extracurricular in the essay, it should be a personal anecdote that really illustrates who they are, not a re-hashing of what they did in the extracurricular.

Including class rank when a school doesn’t officially rank. When students see the class rank question, they often panic and assume that their high school must be weird because they don’t rank, and this will somehow hurt them in admissions.  Nope.  At least half of high schools in the country no longer use class rank.  So, don’t make it up.

Including AP scores that will not enhance the application.  Again, students often feel that they should include AP scores, since the question is there.  But, it’s not required.  And, if the scores are below a “4” (and possibly even a “5” at the most rejective colleges), including them could absolutely weaken the application.

Listing future plans or a major that that doesn’t align with the rest of the application.  First, it’s important to remember that listing future plans on the application is not a binding contract in any way and it’s perfectly okay if a student is unsure or changes their mind later.  However, if a student says their future plans are to work as a chemist, but they list their intended major as Psychology, that is going to raise some eyebrows.  If an applicant plans to major in math, while barely passing high school math classes, that is likely to make an admissions counselor scratch their head as well.

Yellow Flags?

Sending additional letters of recommendation.  Again, more is not always better.  Send the college what they ask for.  Additional letters are not going to strengthen the application and are rarely read.  Admissions counselors are reading applications quickly and this just slows them down, so they’re not really appreciated – unless perhaps the college has asked for them after a deferral or waitlisting an applicant.

Listing summer programs from other colleges.  In general, colleges do not care about a student attending a summer college program.  They are not viewed much differently than summer camp.  Plus, every college wants to believe they are number one in your heart, and for colleges really concerned with yield rate, seeing that a student attended a summer program at a different college makes them wonder if maybe they are NOT number one.  But, if there is space, go ahead and list it on the application of the school whose program the applicant attended.  It may at least help demonstrate interest.

Green Flags

Avoiding abbreviations throughout the application.  I love when students don’t make me wonder what they’re referring to – and so will the admission department readers!  Everyone at the high school might know that “LCS” stands for “Lions Community Service Club,” but remember, there is no way for anyone outside of the school to know that.  It is fine to use common abbreviations like “Pres” or “VP” on the Activities list to save characters, but even common clubs like National Honor Society, should not be abbreviated to “NHS”.  And remember, in the essay, an abbreviation needs to be written out in words before using the abbreviation.

Essays that tell me a story I didn’t know.  I love it when I read an essay and discover a new aspect of the student that I didn’t know already.  I love when an essay pulls me in with the first sentence or two and makes me wonder where the story is going.  Not required, but I love if the essay can give me a little laugh somewhere too.

GPA reported correctly.  I know, it sometimes seems confusing.  But I’m always happy when I see when a student has reported unweighted vs weighted correctly, and uses the correct scale.

Applications that are honest. When faced with the application, it’s tempting to embellish high school accomplishments.  But it is possible for applicants to present themselves in the best light, without exaggerating.