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For a small number of colleges – those in the Ivy League, Stanford, and similar big names – college money is given only to students with demonstrated financial need. At the other private colleges in the U.S., however, students can increase their chance of scholarship money by applying to their best-fit colleges.

I say this with confidence, on the basis of approximately 50 thousand admission results from colleges over the past 17 years that I have advised college-bound students. In a recent year when 10 students with nearly identical academic credentials and financial need (measured by the FAFSA) were admitted to the same private college, the 4 students who had selected the college for best fit were offered 50% more money compared to the others. This is just one vivid example of why I advise that students and families who are scrambling to deal with college expenses think twice before randomly submitting college applications.

The college application essay that wins the “Admit” stamp is often a story written to show perspective or personal growth. A narrative story written honestly that engages multiple senses in the telling can captivate the reader (i.e., the admissions officer). More commonplace, however, are essays that tell what the student has done or experienced and leave little for the reader to discover or imagine about the student.

Such essays can be outright boring, as suggested by these tell-tale phrases found in many of them:

"Ever since I can remember . . ."

"[name the activity] is my life . . ."

"I have always . . ."