Survey for College Students/Grads: What got you into college?

Question

What do you think got you into college?

Was it good GPA, extra-curricular activities, sports, or something else?

Answer 1

GPA (3.85) and ACT (30)

and the fact it's a state school that will let in the vast majority of people willing to pay.

Answer 2

There are some serious flaws in your survey!  Your survey assumes that all college students and graduates went to college straight out of high school, but for many that is not the case.  Your survey also assumes that they have all started at a 4 year college, which again is not the case.  As can be proven by myself.  I had a low high school gpa, never played any sports, wasn't involved in any extra-curricular activities, never took the SAT or ACT, and didn't even bother getting letters of recommendation and yet, I recently graduated from the university.  How did I do it?  After years of working my behind off at low paying dead end jobs, I finally realized that college was important.  I enrolled in a community college, which has an open admission policy, I did very well- 3.56gpa and then transfered to the university.  So, what got me into college?  My desire!

Answer 3

My SAT score (1420 on a 1600 scale) helped me a lot more than my GPA (3.6) did.

Sports and extra-curricular activities had nothing to do with it, only private schools pay much attention to that.

Answer 4

Good grades, extra-curricular activities, a good SAT score, and the fact that my mother was an alumna.  That last bit helped, but wouldn't have worked if the grades, extra-curricular activities, and SAT score were poor.

You CAN get into college if you [generic] have not-so-great grades or few extra-curricular activities, as long as you can really explain these in your essay.  For instance, I had a student who not only got in, but got a full four-year scholarship with pretty good grades, but low extra-curricular activities or sports levels because she wrote a phenomenal essay talking about her life's challenges and the hardships she had overcome.  This won't work for everyone, but the key is to try everything.

There is also nothing wrong with taking a break between high school and college so that the time spent in college isn't a waste, and you're really focused about what you want from the experience.  I wish someone had given me that advice when I was in high school!