Firstly, I think I got too wrapped up in the "prestige" of a lot of schools. I applied to way too many schools that were really far "reaches" for me. That being said, I think it's important to try and apply to all the schools that you love because otherwise you'll always wonder what could've been. However, in my case, I applied to schools that I couldn't even see myself at simply because they had good name value. Time I spent working on those essays, I could've spent working a lot harder on other ones. Looking back, I would say...

By the middle of your second semester junior year, start having an idea of the teachers you'd like to ask for recommendations. That way, by the end of the semester you can ask them ahead of time so they may start working on them over summer or at least have it in their heads at the beginning of the following year. Around September/October...

Volunteer work always helps, but that's unfortunately become a little bit cliche to college admissions officers. Internships are definitely super beneficial, particularly in the field...

I did use a private admissions counselor and he was extremely beneficial! He gave me lots of advice on my essays and helped guide them in better directions. He often discussed how college admission officers are reading application after application which means your first few lines really need to stick out to them and catch their...

No, I didn't take out any loans. I didn't separately apply for financial-based scholarships, but applied by merit-based scholarships in...