As a recent graduate on Boston College in Management, Alex Beaudet remembers what it’s like to start the college admissions and applications process. We asked him a couple of questions to give you an inside student’s view on everything from SATs to choosing an in-state and out-of-state college to how to balance studying and partying. Things you surely want to know about.

CC: What did you take? The SAT or ACT?
A: I took the SATs because of the schools that I was applying to, that’s what they recommended.

CC: Do you know people who took the ACT?
A: A few, mostly people who didn’t do well on the SAT. They just require different types of thinking, which suits some people better than others.

CC: Is the SAT still the main test?
A: The SAT is still the most popular, pretty much everyone I talk to is still taking the SAT. Most schools are still looking for the SAT, so that’s what kids are doing.

CC:What are the advantages of applying in-state?
A: It’s generally easier to get into a state school. They give preference to kids who live in-state and a lot of the funds give preference as well. State schools are also cheaper than private schools for the most part, which is an added bonus.

CC: Is there an advantage of going to a private school over a public school?
A: The biggest advantage is that there is an attitude that private schools are better, more prestigious and have a higher ranking — although I can’t say that I actually agree with that sentiment.

CC: Even though you went to a private school would you consider a state school?
A: I applied to University of Rhode Island (URI) which is a state school as a safety school. Most of my friends did the same, and I have a lot of friends who went to state schools.  In the end, the choice for a private school had more to do with the programs that were offered in relation to what I was looking for, and I happened to find that at Boston College.

CC: What would you say to students that don’t have high enough marks or enough money to get into a private school?
A: I don’t agree with the general perception of private schools. College is what you make of it. Maybe private colleges have a couple of more facilities but its definitely your attitude and what you want to get out of it that makes the difference.

CC: What did you like best about Boston college?
The campus is very small so you get to know a lot of people. Some say it’s even a party school.

CC: Did the partying make you not get your work done?
At times it interfered.

CC: What did you do to balance the studying and the partying?
A: I tried to study more during the week, which helped to compensate for lost time on the weekends. I finished with around a 3.8 GPA and still went out a decent amount. Plenty of kids had fun and did well too. It’s all about finding the right balance. College isn’t just about what you learn in the classroom but learning how to manage your time.

With classes winding down and final exams about to start, most of you high schoolers are probably feeling pretty anxious right about now.  It’s prom season, the weather’s getting nice, your friends are all planning graduation parties, and it seems easy to ignore your schoolwork in favor of hanging out with friends.  For all you college-bound seniors, though, it’s probably in the back of your minds that a few bad grades this semester could negatively affect your standing at the college you plan on attending, whether it’s scholarship money or admission status.

As someone who graduated college less than a month ago, I’ve got quite a bit of experience and insight on how to plan accordingly. I remember some of my senior year teachers using stories of kids whose admission was revoked as a motivating tool to keep you from totally neglecting that Pre-Calculus final in favor of another afternoon at the beach.  While the stories are pretty useful for the teachers to get you to behave in classes, have no fear; I don’t think there’s much merit to any of them.  While colleges technically can revoke your admission due to gross underperformance, it’s not something that’s done very often.

Four years ago, I was about to graduate from high school and planned to attend Providence College on a partial academic scholarship.  My grade-point average and class rank in high school weren’t very strong, but I made up for it with great test scores and a few clubs and sports.  At the end of second semester, I skipped out of the A.P. Exam for the Spanish class I hated, didn’t put much effort towards my other finals and got mostly C’s on the ones I had to take.  Neither my scholarship to P.C. nor my admission was ever revoked, nor was such action even threatened.

There are two important things to keep in mind: how the drop-off in grades will look from the perspective of the college and the weight of the final exam with respect to the semester grade.  Colleges are not going to take your scholarship away or revoke your admission because of one or two C’s during your last semester…but they might if it’s two or three D’s.  So be careful when you’re deciding which finals to spend less time on.  If you have a C in your American Lit class and the final is worth half your final grade, you should brush up on your Frost and Hemingway and make sure your grade doesn’t drop to a D or worse.  But if you’ve got a B+ and the final is only worth 25%, you can get a C on the exam and not sweat it.

Congratulations to all of you 2008 graduates; enjoy your last few months of high school, be safe at prom, and don’t be afraid to take it easy on a final exam or two so you can hang out with your friends…just be sure you can afford it.

-rad