Ivy League Schools-Getting Accepted

When I thought about writing an article about Ivy League schools, I almost felt out of my league. After reading up on these schools, I realized that I am out of my league. Ivy League schools are elite. They are the best of the best in America and have been that way since the American Revolution or earlier. With this article, I would like to share a few things that stood out about the amazing seven universities and one college, which make up the Ivy League, that are known for their academic excellence.

Brown University, Columbia University, Harvard University, Princeton University, Yale University, University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth College, and Cornell University comprise the Ivy League. The oldest university is Harvard University founded in 1636 and Cornell was founded last of the eight schools in 1865. The name Ivy League is said to come from the ivy that grows on the outside of these old buildings that make up the campuses.

The league has been competing against each other in sports as long as there have been sports in college. The first event held in the United States was between Harvard and Yale's boating team in 1852. Since then, they have added every sport from baseball to water polo with fencing, football, lacrosse, rowing, and squash in between, just to name a few. They officially became the Ivy League in 1954 even though they had been unofficially referred to by that name long before.

The Ivy League came to an agreement in 1954 to extend their already established agreement for football to all their intercollegiate sports. The agreement states that applicant's to the universities or college cannot be give aid because of athletic ability. Essentially, they do not award athletic scholarships. Scholarship money is given to students for their academic excellence instead. In most other colleges and universities across the nation, students can be admitted with less than standard performances in academics as long as they can perform on the court, field or whatever arena they compete in. I find it fascinating that this is not the case with Ivy League schools.

The Ivy League schools are committed to excellence in the classroom. The acceptance rates each year range from about 9% to 20% and that is the best of the best. The college admissions process can be a hard battle at any university or college across the country, but here it is downright brutal. At times, students with very high test scores are rejected from their first Ivy League school of choice for no apparent reason. These schools have such a high number of applicants that the process is never a sure thing.

I was also surprised to find out that even students with better than average test scores are sometimes not admitted to Ivy League schools. The college admissions office looks at the students as a total package. They look at grades and test scores, but also they also weigh in the extracurricular activities, leadership positions, memberships in clubs/societies, and the ever elusive "X" factor.

I have come to the conclusion that they are an excellent place to get an excellent education, but the key is getting accepted. The best way to do that is to know how to present yourself in a way that will catch the eye of the college admissions offices. Not something like Elle did on the movie Legally Blonde, but something more along the lines of putting all your information in one place where any of the universities could go to see everything about you in one quick stop.

Of course, you still have to have those good test scores and grades to even be given a chance even if you are the world's best squash player because Ivy League schools do not give out college scholarships based on athletic ability.

College Admissions Made Easy

Do you want to simplify the college admission process? If you are going through it I know I would hear a resounding yes. I had to go through it once, and I can tell you that it is not the easiest or most exciting thing to do. I played sports and high school and wanted to be recruited to play in college. However, I didn't have many opportunities to show the colleges who I really was.

Let me tell you the whole process. A recruiter from a school travels around the United States visiting high school state tournaments. Because my school didn't have the best players around I had to rely on my coach and who she knew so that my name would be the name being discussed amoung college scouts. I was limited to be recruited by only the people who knew my coach. How cool would it have been to take the power from her hands and put it into my own to show every coach around that I was ready and willing to play my heart out for them.

Good athletes who standout have coaches who find them. I had to do my own search to find a college that was best for me. I was able to compare colleges close to home after being contacted by them. Fortunately, my coach knew really well the coach at a junior college that was very noteworthy in the junior college atmosphere.

I lucked out and found a great junior college to play for, but even though I found a team, I still wonder what could have happened if I had a college search tool available to me or even a place on the internet where I could put my academic information and showcase my athletic abilities for coaches and college admissions offices.

My luck didn't end there. After I finished junior college a university in Alaska found me and offered me a full-ride college scholarship to play for them. While I feel truly blessed in how my college sports career turned out, I wondered if there was an easier way to get college scholarships or to even do a college search. I pictured a place where students could go to find a college and where colleges could go to find students or athletes in my case.

I am familiar with the recruiting process that coaches go through. They go out searching the country for players that they can recruit to their team. This costs them time and money. Even when they don't travel, they are at home trying to find players. I remember helping my own coach, the year after I finished playing, fill and address envelopes to every college, university, and junior college in the country asking if they had any players available. What a waste of time, paper, and energy.

Now, after all that here comes the exciting news. Imagine a place where students can post highlight videos of them playing basketball, baseball, golf, or whatever other sport they are involved in to be recruited by the college of their choice. Or imagine a student posting essays that he or she has written in order to impress the college admissions officers. Or if the student is musically inclined, how about imagining him or her posting a breathtaking solo performance for every college in America to hear and see. Can you see the power?!