Written By Adam Shlomi
Expert SoFlo Tutor Christin Sanchez navigated the admissions process with a strategic approach – balancing academic goals, financial considerations, and personal preferences like geography. From weighting the benefits of in-state options like UIUC to ultimately choosing Vanderbilt for its flexibility and opportunities, she made informed decisions at every step. In this feature, Christin shares her insights on building a school list, crafting compelling essays, preparing for standardized tests, and making the most of the college application journey.
How did you approach your college applications?
When walking through my college application process, I generally applied to schools that were good for Engineering and a few reaches that I thought sounded interesting by their website. It’s really important to evaluate things like geography, weather, and culture if you are picky about that sort of thing. I’m a really flexible person though, so I didn’t spend as much time researching that as I should have.
I think it can also be difficult to understand what these factors mean in the context of going to school. For me, I was indifferent about going to school far away or close (but I was leaning towards staying in-state). If you go to school further away, you have to spend more time (and money) regarding logistical things (shipping your stuff if it doesn’t fit in your car or buying more things there, airplane costs when you go home, storage units for the summer if you don’t wanna lug all your stuff home). These costs could also be subsidized by extra help your school may provide, but they are things to think about if you are expected to be completely financially independent.
When approaching my list, I segmented it into safeties, targets, and reach schools. I did not ED into any school because for me, there was no school that I wanted to commit myself so heavily towards. I also know that ED was a very binding commitment, and it was really important for me to evaluate the financial aid packages each school offered to me before I committed anywhere.
Some of my safeties included University of Illinois Chicago and Illinois Insitute of Technology. These were both close to home. UIC was one of the public in-state options for me, and I could also commute to class if necessary. They had a wide variety of programs too. I debated applying for their GPPA program, which is an option for in-state students. Their GPPA program gives students guranteed admission to post-undergraduate education options. That means that as a high schooler you could get guaranteed entry into their Medical School, Dentistry, or PhD programs. I was heavily considering their GPPA Med program, but I decided against it because I kept bouncing between pre-med and not pre-med. I also felt very crunched for time with the applications process and didn’t feel like I had the time to write a very worthwhile application for the program (I recommend better time management skills than I had). Illinois Institute of Technology was also a nearby option where I also heard people were offered merit scholarships.
Looking at target schools, some of mine were Purdue, Northeastern, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Purdue was a strong school that was not too far away, and I also knew some people that went there already. Northeastern was also a strong school. It also had no extra supplemental essays, so it was an easy add to the list. UIUC was one of my top choices. It had in-state tuition, and I was fortunate enough to earn merit money from them. I also had a really strong network of friends that went there already. Many people from my magnet high school and original home high school went to UIUC. It was about three hours away, which was close enough to get back easily for a weekend but not too close. They also had a strong transport system from UIUC to Chicago or outlying suburbs. On top of that, UIUC has a very strong ranking of its majors, especially for engineering but also across different disciplines as well. UIUC is in the middle of the cornfields, though, so it felt like it could be isolating. Looking back, I really had no qualms with University of Illinois Urbana Champaign as an option. I just ended up choosing Vanderbilt in the end.
Why did you choose Vanderbilt? What factors did you consider?
Getting into Vanderbilt was a huge surprise for me. I didn’t have high expectations for college applications because every year they said it gets more and more competitive. Vanderbilt gave me some distance from home (but was still close enough that it wasn’t so hard to go back if necessary). I also liked how flexible Vanderbilt felt in comparison to other schools. I remember feeling a lot of unease in what direction I wanted to go in life, but it felt like Vanderbilt offered a lot of different resources no matter what pathway I chose. It had some name-brand recognition and a good reputation, and these were helpful things when looking for a launch pad for my career. I think I was risking it a bit when I committed to Vanderbilt because I had a lot of things pulling me towards UIUC, but I think it was a good decision in the end. The flexibility aspect was also pretty big. I know there are some schools that make it difficult for you to switch your major or there are certain majors that are nearly impossible to switch into. It takes a few emails for me to add/drop or switch any minor or major (now making sure I get into the required classes for all these is completely different matter…)
What was your testing journey like?
For my testing journey, I only took the SAT and not the ACT. I felt more comfortable with the SAT because we did PSAT 8/9 testing when I was in middle school, so it was more familiar to me.
I had a very unique high school experience where I applied to a magnet school for my state which had a very similar process to college applications. Therefore, I had taken my first SAT when I was in 8th grade and another one in 9th grade. For my actual college applications, I took it twice.
The most helpful resource for me was Khan Academy. It had a large test bank of questions (and their corresponding explanations) and practice tests. I’ve been told the SAT Prep Black Book is also a really helpful resource, but I’m not sure if it’s content is up-to-date for the current online SAT. This resource is particularly helpful if you’re already in the 1450-1500 range and really trying to perfect your score as much as possible. It focuses less on the specific content and more on perfecting your strategy when taking the test.
Outside of actual active test prep, there were a few factors that I think passively helped me. The fact that I had already taken the SAT before had helped me come in very relaxed and experienced. Putting in the effort to learn the material when you’re in your normal math class helps build a strong foundation for these skills, so you don’t have to worry about relearning it when it comes to studying it. For the Reading portion, I just really enjoy reading in my free time – short stories, poetry, literature, etc. Although I wasn’t answering questions about the stuff I was reading in my free time, this helped me read faster and get better at reading comprehension. I also was exposed to more vocabulary, which was helpful for those Words in Context questions.
The testing game is also very mental. Walking in confident, calm, and collected is just as important as the hours you put in preparation. I always packed myself a really good snack for the breaks in-between as well. It was like a little treat for getting through that first part.
As for studying, I think it’s really important on finding a schedule that’s sustainable because if you are really dedicated to improving your score, then it’s a longer process than just cramming for a few days. Even if you’re just doing a few practice questions a day, it’s better than nothing!
What did you write about in your college application essays?
A lot of my schools supplemental essay was a “Why Major”. I think it was important to have a strong storyline here and then for different schools, you could mix-and-match reasons why their offerings drew you in. For choosing a “Why Major”, it can be helpful to look at your extracurriculars or coursework and draw on those personal experiences. It helps draw a common thread through the heart of your application.
My common application essay centered around my all-time favorite song at the time “Dancing Queen”. I kind of explored the idea of what it meant to be the “Dancing Queen” and tied it in with how that idea in my head transformed as I underwent specific life experiences and my relationship with my self changed. I spent a lot of time journalling my thoughts in high school and took a creative writing class, so when it came to my Common App, I think I had a good grasp on how to lay my emotions out in a way that allowed the reader to connect with it.
When thinking about where to get started when writing your common app, I would start with just reflecting on the kind of story you want to tell. What traits do you find core to yourself? What traits do you want this college admissions officer to see? Why do these matter? I started by writing down a few core experiences to who I am as well as just things that felt very “me”. More important than just thinking though is to just start writing. I think one roadblock that comes with writing is the weight of the expectations. Maybe your first draft will really suck. Maybe you will completely scrap the idea entirely. These original sloppy discarded drafts are not wasted time because it takes a lot of work to craft something you can be proud of. It takes a whole lot of fixing, but you can’t fix something if nothing’s there.
Did you apply to any scholarship or honors programs?
I applied to a few Honors college programs. Some of the colleges I applied to had Honors/Scholarship programs that I got to interview for or was considered for even though I didn’t directly apply to these programs. This is also another reason to always put your best foot forward in your applications even for schools that are not your top choice. Illinois Institute of Technology had a whole two day event where they paid for a hotel for students to come and interview for a full-tuition scholarship, and when you weren’t interviewing, they had events to introduce you to their offerings. You got to experience their campus dining options, walk around their buildings, and also just talk with current students to hear their own experiences. Other schools had online zoom interviews for scholarships .
Do you have any advice for students applying to colleges? Any advice for students taking the SAT/ACT?
My two pieces of advice are slightly contradictory but 1.) Put in the time 2.) It’s never that deep. I do think it’s important to dedicate a significant amount of time, effort, and brain power to writing strong applications, even for safety schools that you are almost guaranteed to get into. Putting in the time sets you up really nicely for getting extra scholarships that you don’t even have to directly apply for or extra Honors programs privileges that put you a few steps ahead when you get to college. Putting in those extra few hours now could save you thousands of dollars or set you up with some really nice opportunities.
At the same time, college really is only one stepping stone in life. I think some people feel like getting into their “Dream School” is the “end all be all”, but it’s not. After the first semester of college freshman year, a bunch of high school friends and I were chatting. A lot of people were going to some of their top choice schools but still faced a lot of unhappiness. Out of 10, most people rated their experience a 6. Your dream school will not fix your problems. It will give you different ones, but it’s up to you to choose what you want those problems to be. You’re choosing between homesickness or feeling too close. A strong network of people you already know vs a completely new fresh start. Wherever you go, you will deal with the challenges that this new phase of life will bring. Have confidence in yourself that no matter what the outcome will be, you will be fine and make the most of whatever place you end up at.
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