Many high school students believe they have to navigate the college admissions process, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Parents, teachers, and guidance counselors can all play an important role in helping you prepare your college applications.

On top of these resources, you can also look to a college admissions consultant for help. Consultants have an in-depth knowledge of the college admissions process and know exactly what admissions officers will be looking for on an application. They can use their expertise to guide you through the process and give you a better chance at admission.

Consultants are particularly useful if you’re interested in applying to colleges that are notoriously difficult to get into, like Ivy League schools. These schools are often very particular about the students they admit. Out of the tens of thousands of applications they receive every year, most Ivies will only accept between 3% and 7% of students. 

If you hope to become one of those few accepted students, you need to write the best application possible, and a consultant can help you do just that.

Here are the top strategies college admissions consultants use to prepare you for the Ivy League admissions process and increase your chances of acceptance.

What Makes Ivy League Schools Different

So, why exactly is getting into an Ivy League school difficult? What makes their admissions processes different from other schools?

As I already mentioned, Ivies receive tens of thousands of applications every year, but they have a limited number of seats available to each new class. That means they have to be extremely selective about the students they choose. They want to make sure they pick out the best of the best, so only applicants that excel in many different areas will be selected.

Let’s look at Harvard as an example. For the Class of 2027, the school received 56,937 applications. Out of all those applicants, just 1,966 students were admitted, with 27 getting in from the waiting list. That’s only about 3.5% of applicants.

Now, compare that to a popular public school like Ohio State University. In 2023, OSU received 76,764 applications and admitted 35,551 students. That’s an acceptance rate of 46%. Clearly, most schools are not nearly as selective as the Ivies when it comes to admitting new students.

Students who want to stand a chance at getting into an Ivy League school will have to take steps to ensure that their application is well-rounded in terms of academics, test scores, essays, and extracurricular activities. You must be able to show off your unique attributes, abilities, and values and demonstrate that you can make contributions to the school that others cannot.

How College Admissions Consultants Can Help

Whether you’re feeling overwhelmed by the prospect of applying to an Ivy League school or you simply want to increase your chances of getting in, college admissions consultants can be a great resource. Many consultants who specialize in Ivy League admissions have been on the admissions team of an Ivy League school themselves and thus have intimate knowledge of how the process works and what the schools look for in application.

Here are some of the ways a college admissions consultant can help you put your best foot forward when applying to Ivy League schools.

Knowing When to Apply

At many Ivy League schools, admissions rates tend to be much higher for early admissions applicants compared to regular admissions. According to the schools themselves, this is typically because students who apply for early admissions programs typically have some of the most competitive applications out of the entire pool.

This is an important factor to consider as you decide when to submit your application. Some students may hear the statistics about early admissions rates being higher and try to rush their applications to meet the deadline, only to end up submitting a subpar application. Others may feel intimidated by the high number of competitive applicants and delay their submission to regular admissions despite already having a highly competitive application.

An admissions consultant can eliminate this anxiety by evaluating your application and working with you to figure out an application timeline that works best for you and maximizes your chances of acceptance.

Creating a Personalized Application Strategy

A good application strategy encompasses much more than just good grades, high test scores, and meeting deadlines. To get into an Ivy League school, you need to create a compelling narrative that helps you stand out from other applicants. Each part of your application should communicate a different part of your story and tell admissions officers who you are.

An admissions consultant can help you pick out the qualities you want to highlight about yourself and work them into your application in engaging, creative ways. If they have an in-depth knowledge of Ivy League schools in particular, they can even point out ways to align your strengths, interests, values, and goals with those of the school.

Essay Coaching

Many students make the mistake of overlooking their application essays, but they can be a huge factor in your admissions decision. After all, this is your moment to let the school know more about who you are outside of your grades, scores, and other accomplishments.

Admissions consultants can assist you with two major aspects of essay writing: coming up with a topic and revising. Consultants know what the Ivies are looking for in application essays, and they can steer you away from generic topics in favor of intriguing ones that will catch the eyes of admissions officers. Plus, they can give feedback from the perspective of an admissions officer, something you can’t always find from resources at school.

Activity Planning

Extracurriculars are another important piece of every Ivy League application. Lots of students don’t know which extracurricular activities to pick and end up bouncing from one to another throughout high school. But, most schools, including Ivies, want to see students who are committed to a few activities rather than those who have tried everything once.

If you partner with an admissions consultant early enough in your high school career, they may be able to help you plan out your extracurricular activities to maximize your chances of getting into an Ivy League school. They won’t force you to enroll in activities you don’t want to do, but they will show you how to find that crucial balance between depth and breadth of involvement.

Interview Prep

Not all Ivy League schools will ask students to complete an interview. However, if you receive an invitation to interview, you are highly encouraged to accept, even when it’s listed as optional. Interviews are a great opportunity to set yourself apart from other students and demonstrate why you’re interested in attending the school.

It’s natural for a student to feel nervous about an interview, especially for a school at the top of their list. Luckily, admissions consultants can help with that too! They can walk you through the entire interview process, conduct mock interviews with you, provide feedback on your responses, and teach you techniques to handle unexpected questions. If you’re even a little bit nervous about interviewing, talking to a consultant could make you feel way more confident.

College Admissions Consultations with Prep Expert

Prep Expert offers several college consultation services, including:

• Planning for grades 7 to 12.
• Guidance for building an application.
• College admissions consulting for students and their families.

Every year, 96% of Prep Expert students are admitted to at least one of their top 3 colleges and win millions of dollars in merit-based scholarships. You could join that pool of successful applicants by scheduling a free consultation today!