Preserving Student Authenticity in Applications

When should students use AI in their college applications? Although educators have not come to a consensus, one thing’s for sure: AI is here to stay! 

Last month, I attended the Independent Educational Consultants Association’s (IECA) annual conference in Baltimore. One presentation I found particularly important was “Preserving Student Authenticity in Applications,” presented by Meredith Lombardi (Director of Education and Training Common App), Katherine Nerona-Balog (Independent Education Consultant Admit-Ed), and Samantha Scanlan (Senior Assistant Director Towson University). The presentation's central question: “How can students take ownership over their personal essay while incorporating emerging technology into their writing process?” 

Student authenticity is central to a strong essay. Schools aren’t looking for “perfect” students, but ones who exemplify their character through real-life examples that demonstrate their motivations and possible contributions to the campus community. While using AI to write an essay runs counter-intuitive to this goal, there are ways this technology can assist students.

How AI helps students varies. Some software programs like Grammarly and Wordtune check over grammar and clarity in personal statements. Others like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini serve to help brainstorm ideas. They can also be “research assistants” in the college search (although information about schools isn’t always accurate). The Common App’s Student Advisory Committee has acknowledged how AI is used to review writing, organize requirements, and offer guidance. However, AI-written essays are prohibited (and generally obvious).

Some colleges are embracing AI for brainstorming and editing while others have strict bans against any uses. Take Georgia Tech, a STEM driven school that calls AI applications “powerful and valuable” tools to help refine an application. WashU allows students to use AI that checks spelling, but notes that essays should be honest representations of students' work. Under CalTech’s AI FAQs, it says “if you are still wondering whether your use of AI in crafting your essay application is unethical, ask yourself whether it would be ethical to have a trusted adult perform the same task you are asking of ChatGPT”. Differences between AI policies means it’s important to know where a school stands before applying.   

Students may choose to use AI to write their essays because of how embedded the technology has become in everyday life. Nevertheless, many admissions officers might interpret unethical AI usage as demonstrating a lack of integrity or reliability, putting students at risk for rejection. Afraid your AI use is unethical? Check where it falls on this chart: 

The Common App holds students to a standard of authenticity, requiring a signature attesting to that. Examples of fraud include (but are not limited to) falsifying documents, impersonating school officials, or misrepresenting your background. The inclusion of misrepresentation through artificial intelligence in August 2023 is an expansion of this policy. 

It’s not limited to students. Admissions officers are experimenting with AI in their jobs as well. For instance, admissions officers are using Slate AI, which allows them to “average” grades and locate certain details on a student’s application. This tool is built to help colleges streamline their process, not plug students into an algorithm. In a constantly changing world, many admissions officers are embracing innovation while keeping human perspectives at the core of building a college class.

The college essay is one of the few places in an application where a student gets to speak directly to an admissions reader as a full human being. I am comfortable with a student using AI to research what a specific college values in its applicants. Everything else, I ask students to keep in their own hands. This is evolving territory for everyone in my field, including me. What I can promise is that I will stay intentional, stay honest with you, and always keep your student's best shot at admission at the center of every decision I make.

Look for my AI stance in a coming broadcast.

Thanks,

Pamela

Pamela Kwartler, M.A. 

Certified Educational Planner

Less College Stress Consulting

De-stress the College Process℠ 

www.lesscollegestress.org

IECA Professional Member

From Adelphi to Stevens: A Whirlwind Tour of Northeast Gems

College visits can feel like a blur — campus after campus, admissions rep after admissions rep — but my recent whirlwind tour of TEN nearby schools left me energized and impressed. From Long Island to the Hudson Valley to the Capital Region and beyond, here's what stood out.

We kicked things off on Long Island with Adelphi and Hofstra, two mid-sized schools that punch well above their name-recognition weight. Adelphi's Center for Psychological Services is nationally recognized, offering all students, including those on the ASD spectrum, real learning and mental health support. Hofstra's career placement numbers are quietly stellar, with strong employer connections that translate into jobs and internships fast, especially in the health fields, sports management/broadcasting, and communications. Both campuses had a welcoming energy and happy students.

Heading north into the Hudson Valley, Manhattanville, Pace, Marist, and Bard each offered something distinct. Manhattanville's Portfolio System — where students design their own academic journey — fosters the kind of self-directed learning that employers love. Pace's bucolic Westchester and busy New York City campuses give students an unbeatable professional playground, with internship pipelines into finance, media, and tech. Marist consistently ranks among the top schools for its renowned learning assistance program and graduate outcomes, and its riverfront campus is genuinely gorgeous. Bard, meanwhile, is in a league of its own for creative and intellectual culture — if your student loves deep thinking and spirited debate over a cup of coffee, this is their place.

Further north, Rensselaer Polytechnic and Union College brought serious academic firepower. RPI's research output and STEM career outcomes are exceptional, and its robust counseling and wellness programs show that the school takes student wellbeing seriously alongside rigor. Seeing RPI’s quantum computer (only one in the Western Hemisphere) in a 100 year old church was a study in contrasts and incredible beauty! Union's tight-knit Greek and club culture means students rarely struggle to find their people, and its trimester system keeps academic life dynamic. It was my third visit to RPI and my fourth to Union, and I am never disappointed–they taught me everything about all types of engineering on my last tour.

We also stopped at SUNY Purchase, known for its thriving arts conservatory and fiercely creative student body, Purchase has a social culture unlike anywhere else on the tour — think open mic nights, student film screenings, and impromptu gallery shows as a normal Tuesday. But it's not all art for art's sake: the school offers solid academic support services and counseling resources that help students navigate the intensity of conservatory-style learning. Graduates go on to impressive careers in the arts, media, and beyond, backed by a passionate alumni network that actually shows up for its own.

Finally, Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken closed out the trip on a high note. With a near-100% career outcomes rate for engineering, business, and computer graduates and a green, tucked-away campus perched above the Manhattan skyline, Stevens offers students professional momentum and a cool social scene boosted by proximity to one of the world's great cities.

Ten schools, one common theme: incredible opportunities hiding in plain sight, right in our backyard. See my photos as they are posted in Instagram and on the Notes for each college. Why not plan your own trip?

Read This!

I often tell parents to not focus so much on acceptance rates because they do not separate out the admit rates for more selective majors. However, in a world where colleges are receiving so many applications, its yield, and how it's evolved the past few cycles, that truly explains why to look past those acceptance rate numbers.

From Jeff Selingo, Author of Dream School:

Families often obsess over acceptance rates when judging a college’s popularity or quality.

But inside admissions offices, another number matters even more: yield, or the share of admitted students who actually enroll.

Yield rates have steadily declined at most colleges over the past two decades as students apply to more schools.

That creates a ripple effect. When yield drops, colleges have to admit more students the following year to fill the same class. That means acceptance rates rise.

But here’s where families get tripped up: If we treat selectivity as a proxy for quality, we assume a higher acceptance rate means a school is getting worse. In reality, it often just means students have more choices.

The result is a widening divide in admissions: a small group of colleges with rising yield rates that can count on most admitted students showing up, and everyone else trying to predict a much more uncertain market.

Bottom line: Acceptance rates don’t tell you nearly as much about a college as you think they do.