Last spots for Class of 2026 seniors — get expert college counseling before deadlines. Submit inquiry.
Last spots for Class of 2026 seniors — get expert college counseling before deadlines. Submit inquiry.
As parents today well know, the landscape of college admissions has changed considerably from the time in which they applied. With a variety of evaluative tools, it’s important to consider what factors are weighed most heavily by admissions officers.
According to the National Association of College Admission Counseling’s (NACAC) 2014 State of College Admission, here are the 12 most important aspects of an application. Rankings are based on the percent (%) of U.S. colleges and universities attributing “considerable importance” to the following factors:
It’s important to remember that these numbers are fluid, changing each year and fluctuating based on the specific school. Whether it’s a large public university or small test optional college, each factor will be weighted differently.
Marc is the author of Untangling the Ivy League, a best-selling guidebook on the Ancient Eight. He earned a BA from Cornell University and an MBA from University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Marc chaired the admissions ambassadors at Cornell and the admissions advisory board at UNC.
