The Biggest Mistake High-Achieving Students Make On College Applications

A common application trap among high-achieving students is comparing their paths to what others are doing, a risk that can push applicants toward flashy but poorly matched strategies. The issue is illustrated by a 11th-grade girl who asked her advisor whether she should replicate a TikTok-driven example of a student admitted to Yale after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro and featuring it in his application. Lindsay Tanne Howe, founder and CEO of Connecticut-based admissions consulting and test-prep firm LogicPrep, said the answer is no, emphasizing there is no “perfect” applicant and that the best approach is the most engaged version of oneself. She also pointed to elite-school selectivity, citing Yale’s 4% acceptance rate for the class of 2030 and Harvard’s 4% for the class of 2029. Experts recommend starting planning near the end of middle school and focusing on coherent depth through limited activities on the Common App.