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College Success
(Admitted to USC) |
"Without a doubt, the improvements you made to my essay made the difference. I was accepted to every school I applied to and feel that because my scores and GPA were not at the high end of the scale, my essay was the defining moment. Thanks again for your help. And yes I have recommended your services over and over again to many of my friends."
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Juilliard Horror Story
By Emily Hsieh , Columbia University
Content Provided by our
Friends at CampusNut.com. Visit
CampusNut
Okay, first off, my story is an example of what not to do for your college applications. I came to college in a rather unorthodox manner, so I don’t know if any of you will be able to relate to it, but I can still offer some valuable advice, maybe even more valuable, because you are going to learn how NOT to go about it.
So anyway, I go to Columbia University, and before that, I spent two years at The Juilliard School as a piano major. For those of you rolling your eyes just about now, thinking I’m some snob who goes to these schools and says I did the whole thing wrong, you will see how the whole thing can be a roller coaster ride (and not a pleasant one at that – more like one in which you throw up during the ride). Another thing you should know about me is that my mom and I moved to New York City (from Denver, Colorado) when I was 13 so I could study music more seriously. Talk about culture shock.
Anyway, as you can probably tell, my life in high school basically revolved around music (meaning, that was my sole extracurricular activity). I did well in my classes, and I was practicing 5 hours a day and giving concerts as well. So obviously I didn’t have a life. Anyway, come senior year, everyone expects me to go to a conservatory (which means music school), because it had pretty much been determined that I would be a professional musician (for obvious reasons). So I only applied to music conservatories (Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music, Mannes College of Music, and New England Conservatory). Lesson #1: Don’t only apply to, and definitely don’t go to places just because people – your family, friends, relatives, etc. – expect you to.
So, I end up at Juilliard. Stayed there for a couple years, hated the place because it’s all about who you know, and not true musicianship (mostly, at any rate). Anyway, out of my burning desire to get out of there, I called up my guidance counselor from high school and said I had a change of heart and wanted to go to college after all (He was thrilled. He had told me from the beginning to apply to colleges anyway.) Soooo…. I had to go back and take the SATs again. I had never taken the SAT II’s in high school because conservatories don’t require them. I took Math, English, and French, and did as well as one can do two years out of high school, and not having touched the subjects for as long. Lesson #2: Unless you’re absolutely sure that you will never go to college (and look at me, there was a time when I didn’t think I’d be going to college), take those SAT II’s while those subjects are still fresh in your memory. I did alright on them, but obviously I could’ve done a lot better and passed out of some requirements had I taken them before they had almost entirely wafted out of my memory.
I only applied to schools in NYC (Columbia, Barnard, NYU) in my haste to just get the hell out of Juilliard, and because I figured I’d rather stay where I knew people, which would make starting over easier. Here is Lesson #3: Don’t rush the process of deciding which schools you want to apply to, and certainly heed the advice your counselor gives you about which schools to apply to (assuming s/he isn’t a raving lunatic or pedophile). Because I called my counselor pretty late in the game (I think around the end of October) and because I was more concerned about just leaving Juilliard than about where I would actually go, I made the mistake of overlooking other places. I’m sure those of you planning on going to college - which I’m assuming would be all of you if you’re reading this - especially the more competitive schools, know this already.
Okay, so since I had been a good student in high school, it was pretty easy to get recommendations. I sent out my applications and waited. I got accepted at NYU and was offered a nice scholarship. While waiting to hear from Barnard and Columbia, I got a call from the Barnard Admissions Office, asking for a transcript from Juilliard (I still don’t understand why to this day. I was applying as a freshman to each place, so I didn’t see why they needed my Juilliard transcript.) Soon afterwards, I got my acceptance from Columbia and was like, screw Barnard, I don’t want to go to an all-girls school anyway. So I never sent them my Juilliard transcript and never heard back from them. (HA! Take that! I’ve just been accepted to the school across the street from you without all the hassle, so there! Oh oops. Got a little carried away. I was just kidding - well actually, not really.)
So now you know how I have ended up at Columbia. I most definitely think college is far superior to highly specialized institutions, and my last lesson for you all would be this: Go away for college! I can’t stress it enough – unless you have no choice because of financial reasons or your family’s as tight as the Brady Bunch (which would be uh, NO ONE’S), go away, leave the nest, spread your wings and learn to fly! (Okay, the cheese factor is getting a little much, but you get my drift.) I am still living at home, and let me tell you, it is not the same experience at all. It’s not only freedom from your parents – it’s the chance to learn things about yourself that you wouldn’t have known otherwise. Seriously. It’s probably the first and last time you will ever learn as much about yourself.
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