What do Colleges look at to make them Accept you?

Rowan! 10 minutes from me!! Good school, most of my friends go there and absolutely love it. Just be optimistic in your essays, and have average - good grades. You don't need to be amazing, just a person who can bring good to the world and their college.

they look at college level courses you may have taken, some colleges offer summer courses to high school grads for free, look them up. colleges also look for extra curricular things, sports, musicals, volunteering. they look to see if you are well rounded in all areas, so if you are only good at classes and not a people person, or a sporty person you should look into some volunteering.

Colleges look at GPA, SAT scores, ACT scores, community service, sports, recreational activities, awards/honors, race/ethnicity, leadership, clubs, and perhaps legacy that you have at a school. Note, not all of these are treated the same. Just do well in school, get good grades. GPA is one of the hardest factors looked at, are you taking IB or AP classes? Colleges like good grades yes, but they would prefer a B in a harder class than an A in normal, shows you are a risk taker and like to challange yourself. Schools don't want you to just be in a club to slap it on for a college app, they want to see you excel and rise in a club. So you could do a bunch of clubs and not excel in them, or you could try to get a leadership position in one or two. Sports are always great, colleges love athletes. You don't have to be the star player of course, just being a team member shows you have good dedication and are exceling to some extent. Also, school sports are really great for a college application, but so are some niche sports not many people participate in, a martial art, rock climbing, fencing, etc. STUDY STUDY STUDY for the SATs and ACTs. Those could pull some big yes's. Get a group together to study, join an SAT study prep class, etc. And make sure to make the PSAT count, if you get a good score you can get a merit scholarship award. community service again, but again, don;t just do 1-2 hours at a bunch of places (but for KEY-club it's ok, since you can say X hours for keyclub), find one place to volunteer at and go there alot. SHows you have a passion for that. Leadership in something like boyscouts/girl scouts is also great. An artistic type? PLaying an instrument in band/orchestra can look great, progression and art. Or put down if you've been in reflections. Also, if you are an artis, submit one or two paintings/drawings that are your favorites. Also, your race/ethnicity can come into play. If you are hispanic or african american, you are more likely to be submitted into a college of your choice. Same goes for native-american. Middle-eastern people and indian (native to india) are also treated with higher priority, because colleges like diversity. Wish I could share more, BUt I have to go to bed now. Just read ALOT about colleges and such, and what this college likes in it's students, I'm a sophmore too, good luck.