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WEBINAR REPLAY

How To Stand Out in College Admissions When Everyone Looks Impressive: Advice from Former Ivy+ Admissions Officers

A candid admissions-reader guide to helping a strong student turn real achievement into a clear, credible, and memorable application story.

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In this session, former admissions professionals Thomas Caleel, Founder and CEO of Admittedly and former Director of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid at The Wharton School, and Kirsten Sharett, Senior Counselor at Admittedly and former Admissions Reader at Princeton University, explain what helps an application remain memorable when many students have similar credentials. Together, they show how admissions readers look beyond a résumé to understand a student's choices, curiosity, contribution, and growth across academics, activities, essays, recommendations, and context.

This replay is designed to help families move past the pressure to add more. The goal is to make a student's existing strengths, interests, and contribution easier for an admissions reader to understand.

Key Moments

✓ Why Some Impressive Profiles Blend Together: The difference between a long list of achievements and an application that gives readers a specific, compelling understanding of how a student thinks, contributes, and grows.
✓ How a Coherent Application Story Takes Shape: How coursework, activities, essays, recommendations, and additional context can reinforce one another without forcing a student into a manufactured identity.
✓ How to Make an Application More Memorable: A practical way to identify and clarify evidence of initiative, sustained commitment, intellectual curiosity, and impact, without adding activities simply for appearance.

Ready to Take Action?

The webinar provides a useful framework. The next step is understanding how that framework applies to your student's actual interests, academic context, commitments, opportunities, and goals.

If the replay raised questions about which activities deserve more focus, how to bring a student's story into sharper view, or what would make the greatest difference next, a Strategy Call can help you explore whether Admittedly is the right fit for your family.

BOOK A STRATEGY CALL

Let the right story come through.

Admittedly works with students and families who want thoughtful, individualized support through the college admissions process. We help students make choices that reflect genuine curiosity, sustained growth, and meaningful contribution, then communicate those strengths with clarity and authenticity.