On the Road to Harvard

By BELLA SANTOS

While some high school juniors planned visits to  their colleges and universities of choice,  Tom LaSalle of Washington Township, N.J. already had his eyes on the prize: Ivy Leagues.

Whether Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth University, Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, or Yale University, LaSalle, knew that everything that he did from the moment that he took his first steps in the high school hallway as a freshman to his last steps as a graduating senior would have to be done with his goal as motivation.

LaSalle aimed for Harvard.

“The pressure that I felt to start to prepare myself and my resume as early as I did came largely from, well, me,” LaSalle said. “I had specific goals that I committed and I wanted to make sure that I worked as hard as I could to achieve my best. If I didn’t get accepted at least it wasn’t going to be because I didn’t try.”

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, NCES, more than 20.2 million students enrolled in American colleges and universities alone in 2015. Of this number, 13.2 million attended 4-year institutions, while 7-million attended 2-year institutions.

 

In 2016, the Ivy Leagues reviewed thousands of applications from hopefuls, Columbia received 3,088 Early Decision applications, Cornell received 3,609 applications, Dartmouth received 23, 110, Harvard received 4,231 Early Action applications, University of Pennsylvania received 26,690 applications, Princeton received 3,443 applications, and Yale received 4,304 applications.

LaSalle’s application was one of the thousands in a pile waiting to be meticulously studied by members of the admissions students. Brown received 28, 742 applicationboard.

Studying for the Ivy’s

With the Ivy League’s overall acceptance rates ranging from near 7% to 18% between the 2015–2016 academic year, being admitted into such prestige institutions can involve heavy competition among the pool of prospective students. How to stand out from such a large pool is often ingrained in the minds of individuals come time for filling out applications.

For years, parents and guidance counselors alike suggested that students in high school register for upper-level courses and extracurricular activities, as soon as possible, in order to build a resume that would attract the attention of admissions offices in colleges and institutions.

“It is extremely important for high schoolers to get involved in extracurricular activities before applying to college in order to have a more well rounded application,” Zac Brower, 22, a Senior Admissions Intern at Ramapo College, said. “We are always looking to see how students get involved outside of the classroom along with their scores.”

LaSalle, one of many students who heard this advice, kept those conversations in mind. Upon his freshman year of high school, he made it a point to enroll in the highest possible levels of each of his classes. Fueled by the desire to seek success later on in his academic years and further kindling his love of a challenge, LaSalle was able to separate himself from his classmates who were taking introductory level courses.

The early separation of his academic feats in a graduating class of over 600 students confirmed that he was increasing his likelihood of being noticed over other students similar to his peers.

“I took the honors courses as a freshman and transitioned to AP courses as they became available to me,” LaSalle, 18 said. “I always took the highest level classes because I loved the challenge. I ended up taking 10 AP tests before graduating high school.”

“It looks good on your resume!”

College Board, a source used by those preparing for the next chapter of their academic careers, dedicates a portion of its website to the importance of including extracurricular activities in applications.

College Board reminds students that admissions officers view the presence of such activities as an additional dimension of a candidate’s personality in which statistical data cannot represent. Participation in out-of-classroom activities serves as demonstrations of an individual’s time-management and organizational skills, their level of motivation, responsibility, and leadership qualities.

“My major activities in high school revolved around what I truly loved doing,” LaSalle said. “Of course there were some that were motivated by my need to build an impressive resume, but I was able to do so in a way that still was connected to something I was interested in as a whole.”

During his four years at Washington Township High School, he participated in Theater, Senior Directed Cabaret, Orchestra, Class Council, volleyball,

Science League, Math League, served on the Executive Board for Tri-M Music Honor Society, Interact, and National Honor Society. In his senior year, he was chosen to co-direct Senior Directed Cabaret along side of his close companion, Jon Lucich. Although their high school had a respected drama department, the Senior Directed Cabaret was one of the most anticipated production of each school year. Unlike the other shows and musicals, the show was run completely by students, without the authority of faculty and administrators.

“People always say never to work with your best friend,” Lucich, 19, said. “Working with Tom, though, was nothing but a great experience. He’s so passionate about everything he does and I don’t think I would have wanted to co-direct the show with anyone else. He really is talented in basically everything imaginable and getting to say that I worked alongside of him is pretty amazing.”

Making it a point to get involved in various activities to show a range of interests and capabilities to those reviewing his applications, balancing the idea of resume building with his passions was something that he always considered whenever increasing his commitments. Regardless of how small or large the club, organization, or team in which LaSalle joined, each of his actions reflected his end goal to attend one of the acclaimed Ivy League institutions.

Application season

When it came time to finally apply, he shared his impressive course load of a cumulative 10 AP classes and extensive extracurricular activities with several colleges and two Ivy Leagues in particular: Cornell and Harvard. As time passed, LaSalle’s attention began to shift more towards the latter.

According Harvard University’s Admissions’ page, four areas are taken into heavy consideration when reviewing applications: growth and potential, interests and activities, character and personality, and their contribution to the Harvard community.  They review candidates’ capabilities to potentially improve the institution as a whole both in and out of the classroom.

In a Question and Answer piece by The New York Times, Dean William R. Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, recognized the importance of “students’ intellectual imagination, strength of character, and their ability to exercise good judgment” as important deciding factors in the admissions process that cannot be based solely on test scores.

The university’s own goal in terms of admissions and the Dean’s comment from The New York Times’ article both reflect the effort LaSalle put into his academic career leading up to the decision to apply.

Not only did he surpass his classmates in his graduating class from an academic standpoint, but he was also able to do so while balancing an array of activities ranging from the Arts to eventually playing on his high school’s Varsity volleyball team.

During his final year walking the halls of his high school, with a cumulative grade point average of 105, he was also awarded with the highest academic honor one can receive—Valedictorian.

LaSalle once again showed his ability to separate himself from his peers in a way that featured his talents and intellectual stature. Reviewing his submission today, he still feels as if all that he included exemplified the qualities that admissions officers speculated as making up the “best” incoming freshman class.

He was right.

Big man on campus

On March 31, 2015, LaSalle received a message in his inbox from Harvard’s Admissions Office. Anxiously awaiting to read the news, he clicked on it. Excitement building in his body and tears forming in his eyes, he read the email’s first sentence.

After years of hard work and dedication, he finally received the news that he wanted. He was going to be a Harvard man. In April of 2015, LaSalle announced his commitment to the university. Now, with his  freshman year coming to an end, he finds himself reflecting on the time that led up to where he is today.

“I have this amazing opportunity to study where many of the world’s most brilliant minds both past and present have called home,” LaSalle said. “It’s an incredible feeling getting to be a part of this community where I learn just as much inside of the classroom as I do outside.”

Freshman in high school, freshman in college

Though LaSalle is not the first student to prepare for college well before typically expected, he will not be the last student to do so either. With the rates of acceptances for colleges and universities fluctuating, the importance of getting ahead of the application process as early as a student’s first year in high school is important.

For LaSalle, this strategy worked.

“The prospect of getting into your dream school looms over every high school student’s head at some time or another,” LaSalle said. “I think it’s important to have a strong support system composed of close relatives, teachers, and advisors who push you to do your best at all times and who can help guide you to your goals if you ever need help or lose sight.”