Jenna’s admissions experience is really great to read, because it reminds us how many bright, successful students have a story that’s quite different than the ones we tell ourselves over and over about how college applications work. By early November, she’s already applied to at least nine colleges—and been accepted to at least two! She has a preferred major, but she knows it’s likely to change. She wants to write a great essay, but has also gone quite a way into the process without having one finished. Jenna is just one of hundreds of thousands of college-bound seniors who are working hard and are aiming high, but aren’t agonizing over the one perfect application to the one perfect super-selective school because they think it will give them a perfect life. Cheers to Jenna!

Meet the Class gets updated each month from September to May. Each installment features an interview about both the facts and the feelings of where the student is in the process.
Interviews may be edited lightly for clarity and grammar. Names may be changed to protect privacy.
Jenna ATTENDS A Public HIGH SCHOOL IN Michigan

When we last spoke you had sent off two applications and had already been accepted to Wayne State University. Congratulations! You also said you were pushing to get some applications out by November 1st. Where all have you applied this month?

As of this month I have applied to Michigan Tech. University, Cleary University, Oakland University, Northern Michigan University, Eastern Michigan University, Central Michigan University and University of Michigan Dearborn as of which I also got accepted late October so that's fun. Also, on November 9th here in Michigan they're having an event that's similar to a college fair. So at the place there will be a ton of college admission officers from schools all around Michigan and you can be admitted to up to 5 colleges that day. Between 8:30-10am we drop off our transcripts and other requirements. Each school has slightly different requirements on what to bring with you that day and then you come back between 2-3:30 and you'll know on the spot whether you got in or not. Its super nerve-racking to think about if you got in or not during those few hours but I'm glad an opportunity like this has arisen.

You were also really focused on Homecoming, which you were helping to plan and execute. Has it happened yet? If so, how did it go? If not, how are preparations?

Our homecoming game was October 18th and the dance was the 19th. All went really well and smoothly but stressful at the same time. I actually found out I was on homecoming court about two weeks prior to the game and it was super cool to be nominated but made it a little more stressful to scramble and find a dress and all of that while trying to finalize other details for the dance. On the day of the game, everything fell right into place which was super relieving and so after that everyone could pretty much relax and enjoy the parade, game and dance.

I assume at least some, if not all, your applications require an essay. Would you mind sharing with us what essay prompt(s) you've answered, and give a brief summary of your response(s)?

At this moment I actually haven't started writing any essays or even looked at any yet. Everywhere I applied has had no application fee or essay requirement. I will admit I will try to avoid writing an essay if I can although I know it’s inevitable. I applied to those colleges first because I could do it quickly since all of this was in the middle of homecoming so I didn't exactly have a ton of free time. When I write an essay, I want to be able to take my time to write something that I’ve thought about thoroughly. I don't want to rush writing the essays and my work comes out sloppy, unorganized and brief. So that's why I decided to apply after November 1st to colleges that require an essay.

Last month you were feeling pretty confident and grounded when it came to college applications. That's wonderful--and rare. Are you still feeling the same?

I am feeling a bit of the heat again now in the college process. Deadlines are coming up quickly and it’s just now processing that I still have a million things to do. Also the fact whether I will or won't get into a college is really stressful and what kind of scholarships they're willing to give me. I know when I took the SAT and ACT I didn't do as well as I would've liked so I have to retake at least the SAT some time in December and update my scores to colleges and hopefully get better scholarships.

Let's look at you college list. As of last month, it was:

Stanford (top choice)

University of Michigan Ann Arbor

University of Michigan Dearborn

Henry Ford Community College

Michigan State

Central Michigan University (applied)

Madonna University

Wayne State University (accepted!)

Do you have any changes to that?

As for my college list I actually do have some changes.

1. Central Michigan University

2. Eastern Michigan University

3. Michigan State University

4. University of Michigan Ann Arbor

5. University of Michigan Dearborn

6. Wayne state

7. Madonna

8. Henry Ford Community college

I've changed the order, because lately I've been a bit interested in Biomedical and I haven't seen a ton of schools offer that as a major. But also what’s important to me is how many and what kind of other majors the school has. You know things change and people switch majors and if I figure out Biomedical isn’t for me, I have other options and variety. Plus I've spoken to some admissions counselors from different schools on the list and learned new interesting information about almost every single one, which is why I changed my order.

Thanks for reading! If you have college admissions questions for Jenna, leave a comment or email me. You can find Jenna’s past interviews and other Meet the Class responses here. Please send this to someone who would like to read it, or share it on your social networks.

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Photo by Angela Elisabeth.