Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Students, & Artificial Applications: How to “be real” in an increasingly artificial world.

Today, there is no doubt an increase in artificial information floating around—whether “fake news” or “fake people,” we hear these words in nearly daily conversations. With growing pressure on students to distinguish themselves in an increasingly public, increasingly social, and increasingly fast-paced world, many students are resorting to expanding their academic profiles and interests—and even their personalities and characters—through various “artificial means.”

What do we mean by this?

With unprecedented access to technology, A.I. generated emojis and personas, and easier access to launch website, nonprofits, companies, and even academic projects, students are navigating parallel worlds of reality and fabrications. Not only does this further difficult the already difficult growth and personal discovery of “self” and “identity," but this also leads to growing pressure to be constantly creating content to keep up with their peers and the society around them. However, this leads to a series of “quick start, quick stop” projects, along with the possibility to lose one’s authentic self when it comes time to apply to colleges. In one way or another, every college is after the answer to one question—and one question only—who are you?

Admissions officers all have a heart, so you should show yours, too!

When in comes to admissions, I often tell students the importance of being real. I call this the “heart of the application,” and to continue this metaphor, what is the “beat” that drives everything you do?

Admissions officers at top colleges are looking far beyond grades, test scores, and even awards and accomplishments for their few coveted spots. They are looking for students—that if admitted—that have heart, passion, and drive for genuine curiosities and interests that are at the foundation of all they do. A college will not be convinced by a quickly put together blog or the creation of a nonprofit this year that raised $5,000. Rather, they are looking for a student that for years has been dedicated to a select few interests and dived immensely into those interests to develop deep understandings of topics, along with multi-year results in their respective areas of interest.

Then, they look for the most authentic, genuine students. Anyone can say they are passionate about something but do nothing on the topic (or even do a lot of work in a field because it will “look good” but without real care). For this reason, I often advise students that the entire admission process comes down not to what you say but what you do.

Be real. Be You. Be Authentic.

Show the admissions offices who you are, don’t tell them. The most successful students are the most candid, open, honest, and revealing of their true selves. Admissions officers want to feel the emotion behind every word, ever action of the student. They want to understand what your actual academic, personal, and professional journey has been like—not what a student creates, imagines, or even exaggerates for what they believe will “impress” the colleges.

For example, if you are a student that enjoys putting on your best costumes and dancing around your room in your free time or putting on your best hiking shoes to explore, that is the picture you want to paint to the colleges—not a student that wears a suit and tie or formal dress (now, if you are interested in politics, law, and other professional pursuits as hobbies, then these would be appropriate).

In summary, current and future students are going to struggle more and more in the admissions process as our artificial world, content, and people (yes, even people with our robot peers soon to be walking among us) continues to expand. But regardless of this, if a student focuses on who they are—and only who they are—that drives everything they do, they will find great success getting accepted to their top colleges. If you read any news story titled “Student gets accepted to all eight Ivies,” I encourage you to continue reading about their life, story, and interests, and I guarantee that you will finish the article with strong admiration, understanding, and feelings, too. (Here is one example)

Tell the admissions officers what no one else sees—even on social media!

Keep in mind, the admissions officers are the only ones to read your applications, not any friends, family, or even social media followers. And you can tell them all and anything with trust and confidence, so I encourage you to take advantage of this unique and rare opportunity to express who you really are. When a student says to me “not even my parents know this” or “don’t tell my parents, but…”, I know we are on to something!