It’s that time of year again: high school seniors are scrambling to get their college applications completed. Juniors are looking on with intense anticipation at the two years ahead. Given this atmosphere, Lokvani took the opportunity to hold its third College Workshop for Indian American high school students at Tufts University’s Nelson Auditorium on October 17, 2004. Roughly thirty-five students and parents attended the event to listen to Allan Clemow, Director of Admissions at Tufts University, and three current college students from BU, Tufts and MIT.

Clemow could not stress enough the importance of keeping the student rather than the parents in front of the college decision and application process. “Many parents feel that their seventeen year will not do anything until they are prodded. The reality is that the students are not indifferent at all. They are very concerned and stressed about the process. Parents need to allow the student to take ownership of the process while providing all the necessary support,” said Clemow.

He suggested showing early interest in a university by attending information sessions held at high schools or hotels in the area, and if possible, by visiting the campus as well. “Universities do give importance to these visits,” said Clemow. The visits allow the student to get a fairly good idea about whether would like to apply to the particular school. According to statistics, the four most important discriminants for deciding a college are curriculum opportunities, prestige of the university, location, and size. The guidance counselor can serve as an important guide in creating a list of possible colleges using these criteria.

Clemow then stressed the importance of college essays, as they are the only personal component of the application. “Think of it as looking over the shoulder of the admissions officer – what is it that you want us to notice about you?” he asked the audience, adding that it is perfectly all right to write an extra paragraph about yourself if you feel the application has inadequately described you.

Regarding the "Common Application", which is growing in popularity, Clemow suggested to take the advice of one’s guidance counselor, although most universities claim not to have a bias regarding their own application and the Common Application. He cautioned students not to apply to universities that they are not interested in; not only does this make the final decision more difficult, but it is also a waste of money.

Finally, Clemow advised students to keep their major as broad as possible when entering college. Even if the field the student wants to specialize in involves an accelerated program, he suggested that they consider all options before committing themselves to such highly competitive six or seven-year programs. "Look at the side bar for these program and often you will find entry points beyond the first year. At this point the student can make a more informed decision," said Clemow.

Following the Director of Admissions’ speech, three students, Vidya Venkataramanan, a freshman at Boston University, Rajit Kapoor, a junior at Tufts University, and Arushi Duggar, a freshman at MIT, lent their perspectives to the college process.

Speaking about her decision to apply to certain colleges, Vidya stressed the importance of not applying to too many institutions, because it makes the final decision that much more difficult. Despite getting admission to the first school of her choice she was unable to attend it for a variety of reasons. She urged students to “make the most of the university you finally choose to attend, and you are guaranteed to be happy.”

Rajit provided an inspirational message in his talk by declaring, “College is just the beginning, not the end.” It is the place to discover yourself and to realize your dreams. By way of humorous anecdotes about his father and grandfather attempting to influence his college decision (His grandfather in India proclaimed, “The only university in the US is MIT!”), Rajit provided an interesting perspective, having already been in college for two years.

Arushi Duggar, adding to Vidya’s thoughts, also told the audience that as long as you do not go to a college disappointed that you could not attend your top choice, you will be happy and gain a sense of belonging. She suggested making a checklist so as to get all the applications completed on time.

The most frequent topic for questions was tests. While AP classes and exams helped the students in college, the number of credits granted by each university varied greatly. The students were also quick to caution the audience that an AP class is very different from an actual college course, especially in the math and science fields. All three students took the SAT twice, and all three dismissed the importance of SAT Prep Classes. “Rather than adopting someone else’s learning style,” Rajit suggested, “discover your own style, and that will help you get a better score.” Clemow added that the ACT, originally from the Midwest, is gaining more and more importance in the New England area, and should be considered as another standardized test option.

"This was one of the most useful sessions I have ever attended " said Prithi Latia , former President of Gurjar, whose son Rohan is currently going through the admission process. Overall, both the parents and students found the workshop to be very useful, for they appreciated the diverse perspectives given by Clemow and the three Indian American college students.

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