From a summer job at the ice cream shop to attending your dream college to landing that perfect job after graduation, there’s one thing that they likely have in common: an interview. You will probably do many interviews over the course of your lifetime, and for some students, the college admissions interview is their first experience with interviewing.

As an academic advisor, it is not uncommon for my advisees to find a subject they are passionate about but express concerns that it is a poor choice to declare as their major. After all, with STEM majors increasing in numbers and taking center stage these days, and their marketability and professional trajectory obvious, students interested in the social sciences and humanities can feel like they have chosen a major with an ambiguous career or graduate school path.

One of the most daunting parts of the college application process is the pressure to decide right now what you want to study and the type of career you plan to pursue. First, you should know that being unsure about these things, or even having no inkling at all of what you want to do after graduation, is normal.

Similar to undergraduate applications, graduate applications usually have a prompt to submit additional information or an optional statement. Applicants often wonder if and how they should use the ‘optional’ prompt and whether it is tacitly required. The short answer is — no.

While graduate admissions committees read A LOT of recommendation letters that often sound very much alike, some recommendation letters truly stand out and enhance an applicant’s profile. It’s important to ensure that your recommendation letters add value and depth to your graduate school application. 

From helping you manage time and attention to solving problems and maintaining emotional control, executive functioning skills are invaluable for navigating the complexities of daily life and achieving your goals. These cognitive processes can have a significant impact on your quality of life. Keep reading to learn more about executive functioning and how you can improve these skills. 

If you’re wrapping up junior year of high school, there’s a lot to think about: college tours, signing up for standardized tests, applying to summer programs – the list goes on. There is one more thing you should be prioritizing as you look toward your senior year: developing your writing skills.

Graduate school offers a rigorous curriculum in a fast-paced environment. ­One way admissions officers determine your ability to be academically successful is by reviewing your transcripts. Official transcripts from each institution you have previously attended showing all undergraduate and/or graduate work included will be a required component of the application materials.

As a former academic advisor and faculty member at a public college, I often found that this question struck fear in the hearts of first-year college students, turning a conversation about potential majors into an existential identity crisis.

In S2 E1 of our podcast, IvyWise experts explain how the transfer admissions process works and share tips on how students can build their balanced college lists and perfect their application materials. Tune in here!