College is a coveted opportunity for most, seen as one of the best ways to culminate an education and reach greater heights in order to secure a safe and happy living. But, of course, there are some that stand out from the rest. From the UCs on the West Coast to the Ivy League on the East Coast, there are outstanding colleges that have earned a reputation for raising the best and brightest minds, who will determine the future of mankind. Thousands apply, yet thousands each year are rejected, waitlisted, or deferred, being deemed unworthy as students of such universities. So what’s the secret to getting into such prestigious schools?

Despite claims that it isn’t as important as it seems, one of the defining factors toward college acceptance is GPA, or Grade Point Average. This is a statistic that takes a student’s letter grades and converts it to a 1-5 (or 1-4) scale. Of course, a 4.0 or 5.0 is the best score a student can get, but for those who fell in expectations, getting accepted into a strong college isn’t impossible. Indeed, while a terrible GPA can definitely cripple your expectations for college admissions, that’s not to say a mediocre to almost-good GPA isn’t recoverable. Other factors include your own personal situation, and how hard you work. For example, if you did rather badly in your early semesters of high school, you can still work furiously to catch up and do well in your later years. Another thing you can do is invest in extracurriculars and activities outside of school that can give you an edge in the competition. For example, let’s say there are two people with a perfect GPA. However, one has won a national award in violin playing and has been playing for 11 years. Obviously, the one with the extracurriculars and awards would have a higher chance of getting in. These sorts of extra things can help boost your chances for acceptance as well. Another extracurricular that can help you get accepted is sports. Colleges often place high value on talented athletes, and reward them with scholarships and acceptances to join their college teams. These athletes will then go out and compete on a college level against other schools in Divisions 3, 2, or even 1.

Of course, you might ask, “Well, I already won’t have a 4.0 or good activities, what’s the point in doing well later?”

Well, one unspoken thing that college admissions officers often enjoy is a story. Think about it: There are millions of people in the world who have gotten perfect grades. What sets people apart are their stories and motivations for such things. Colleges don’t want someone whose goal is school, they want people who aim for the future. Even if you didn’t do so well early on, the story that is painted by your hard work is “this is a student who fell short, but realized their mistakes in order to reach their full potential,” instead of “this is a student whose capacity is limited to low effort and low grades.” And even if you didn’t start out doing sports or music, a late start is better than nothing. There have been people who have inadvertently discovered their hidden talents while trying new things out in high school. As the saying goes, “You miss every shot you never take.” Giving up should never be a response, no matter how under accomplished you may feel you are.

The last thing that should be considered is the act of choosing a major. Often, certain majors are extremely popular among students, giving way to high competition in those sectors. These majors include Biology, Biochemistry, Computer Science, and Psychology. The students applying for these majors are probably on the same level or even better than you. This is not to discourage applying for these majors, but to enlighten you that there are other options available. One way to get into a school with your passion is to consider doing more than one major. This way, you show the college that your talents and passions lie not only in one subject but others as well. Of course, in the chance that you do get accepted, college life will be harder, since doing two majors is obviously more difficult than doing one. However, the reward of acceptance into a possibly prestigious school probably makes the hard work worth it in the end. Another tactic students may try is either entering with an uncommon major and switching to their interests later. Since the STEM sectors have high appliance rates, one might consider applying to the liberal arts or language sectors in order to get accepted, take one year of that major, and then switch to the subjects that they are actually interested in. Of course, this does not always work, since the more popular majors often have no room to spare (or block off such moves entirely), but it should be possible in many cases.

All in all, while college is one of the most important experiences of one’s life, one should not despair if they had a late start or lack some things their peers have. Indeed, while the admissions officer might just see numbers and letters on a page, those numbers tell a story of nobody else but you. Each and every person is unique, and playing on your own strengths is what makes you stand out to get accepted. Of course, this is not to say hard work is not needed or GPA is irrelevant; in fact, these are two extremely important factors in college admissions. This is just to say that there is still hope left for anyone who lagged behind or chose not to work hard early on. From east to west, I truly hope that each and every one of you young readers fly far and above your expectations and reach the sky in the future.