What are institutional priorities?

What are institutional priorities, and why do they matter in the college search process?

Students have autonomy over several aspects of their admissions file – their grades, their activities, their choice of high school classes, their writing skills, and so on. Families have a crucial role too – by selecting an elementary school, supporting good study habits, setting up college savings plans, and so forth. But college admissions still can feel like a game of chance. In fact, as you embark on the search process, you will get used to hearing many colleges are “a reach for everybody.”

One overlooked element of college admissions is the priorities motivating a college when it selects an entering class. Those priorities shift each season. Parents, counselors, and teachers can’t control these factors; all we can do is make our best predictions and plan accordingly.

*I can’t give credit to the creator of this meme because I can’t remember where I first found it.