What Great Colleges Want in a Student: Academic Potential

What great colleges want in a student academic potential

**What do great colleges really want in a student**? Academic potential.

“Is being number one in my class enough?”

“Does biology research make me special?”

“Will I stand out if I play the bag pipes or skateboard?”

There’s too much advice about how to get into college today. As a Harvard and Stanford alum who used to work for the Stanford Undergraduate Admissions Office, even I have a hard time following all the advice out there. How do you follow 25 tips for college essays and 30 tips for extracurriculars? With this much advice, it’s hard to know what to prioritize. Yes, top colleges want different types of students, which can make it seem like doing anything is fine. But what great colleges want in a student do actually care about one thing the most – academic potential. After all, a college is an academic institution first and foremost. Here are 5 ways for students to show their academic potential.

1. Get top grades

Without top grades, getting in is impossible. But good grades are really only the baseline expectation. Nearly all students applying to top colleges get straight A’s or nearly straight A’s, so this doesn’t impress anyone. Keep in mind that getting perfect grades also doesn’t impress anyone, so don’t waste your time trying to get that 95 if you already have a 93.

2. Have strong teacher recommendations

People tend to underestimate the importance of teacher recommendations. Admissions officers trust teachers the most to confirm what students say about themselves. If a student says that she wants to study history in college, but her history teacher doesn’t say that this student shows any interest in history, then this student doesn’t have a good chance of getting in.

3. Do research

In the past, research was only available to children of academics or private school students with research programs. But now, research has become much more common for all students. Although it is not necessary, research can significantly strengthen an application. Why? Because research is the most important work that a university does. The professor’s primary job is not to teach, but to produce research. As a result, most students will be expected to do some kind of research in their college courses, and it never hurts to show competency in this area. Universities simply respect research because of its importance to the institution. Read more about how to do research here.

4. Develop 1-2 areas of academic interests

One academic interest is the baseline expectation. The best applicants typically have 2 distinct academic interests. Biomedical engineering and Russian Studies. Physics and Creative Writing. Math and Anthropology. Yes, these people actually exist, and there are more of them than you think. Take our quiz to figure out which academic tracks you might like.

5. Give Humanities and Social Sciences a chance

Most of the students that I’ve worked with over the past 16 years typically choose STEM majors in college. But colleges still want to assemble a diverse class of students, so it’s a lot easier to get noticed with an interest in the humanities and social sciences. In Harvard’s Class of 2026, 44.5% of students indicated in their applications that they wanted to study Humanities and Social Sciences. That’s more than double the percentage of my former students who wanted to study Humanities and Social Sciences. But applying to college with only STEM interests is too competitive, like being a small fish in a big pond, because everyone wants to study STEM today.

Reading poetry in high school doesn’t usually make students want to become full-time poets, just like playing soccer doesn’t turn them into professional players. Again, the best students typically have an interest in humanities/social sciences AND in STEM, so it’s fine and possible to do both.

For more information on how to stand out in the Humanities and Social Sciences, check out our other articles.