How are students getting into the top universities in the world? What characteristics and attributes are propelling them to success at the highest level? And what is their recommendation for students who also want to be top-performing, and ultimately earn acceptances to their dream university?
We are glad you asked!…because in this blog post, we are going to dive into the top five characteristics by none other than one of our top students, Sashan, who just earned an acceptance into Princeton University—also known as the #1 university in the United States by the U.S. News and World Report, and one of the premier educational institutions in the world!
First, a big congratulations to Sashan for this huge accomplishment, and we are so grateful to have been able to work with him for the last two years helping him with his college planning game plan and strategy.
We asked Sashan, ”What are the top 5 recommendations you would give to students who also want to be successful with their college planning and admission goals?” What crucial characteristics do you feel were the most important and the BIG needle-movers for being successful with your admission goals?
Below are Sasha’s top five non-negotiable, high-performance factors that helped propel him to one of the best, and most prestigious universities in the world—Princeton University!
And the best thing about these factors is that anyone can apply them to their lives to level up their game plan and strategy…and why not!
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The Top 5 high performance factors
1) 💪 Strong Work Ethic — Having a strong, unwavering work ethic is paramount to success in anything someone does, including succeeding in one’s educational pursuits. Whether it is mastering academic coursework or leading a club initiative, or devoting the time and energy necessary to perform well on standardized exams including the SAT/ACT or AP exams, having a strong work ethic is the driving force, and rocket fuel, for upward mobility, and success.
The bottom line is you can’t be just hanging out “chilling’” all of the time and expect to get anything done, and advance in your educational pursuits. Always have an excellence mindset with how you work, and toward accomplishing your goals because this is the mindset of students earning acceptances to top universities.
2. 🔥 Pursue things you are interested in/passionate about — This may seem simple and obvious enough, but some students get caught up in doing things that don’t truly inspire and empower them. It’s important to pursue those areas that a student desires, and feels right to him/her. Things should feel authentic and genuine, and the simple question is, “Do I want to do this?” If the answer is “yes,” then do it. If the answer is “no,” then move onto something that you feel you would be interested in, or inspired by.
Being authentic in your educational pursuits will allow you to cultivate and grow in those areas that truly empower you. Whether it is joining a club or organization, playing a musical instrument, or joining a sports team or pursuing research opportunities, it’s important to pursue those things that feel right to you, and better yet, you feel excited about!
3) ⏱️ Prioritization and Time Management — Successful students know how to prioritize higher value tasks and objectives over lower value things that don’t matter when it comes to college planning and admissions. They architect and design their lives for maximum success and know that if they fail to plan, then they plan to fail. These students have a high level of intentionality to their decisions, and move through their day executing on goal-driven tasks.
Also, they guard their time and use it wisely. They avoid distractions, especially social media, and evaluate their schedule daily and weekly, and cut out unnecessary activities that aren’t part of the bigger plan to propel them forward. Everything is about focusing time, energy, and attention on those factors that will advance their lives each day toward success with their educational goals.
4) 👥 Surround Yourself with Good Company — Successful students also surround themselves with other successful students, and understand that “you are who you surround yourself with.” To keep having upward mobility, you have to surround yourself with individuals who are going to support and empower you, and who think positively and have high ambitions. Choosing to associate with people who have no ambitions who are always negative and pessimistic, and who are going nowhere in life is the surest and fastest way to join them!
If you want to be serious about your education and about your life, it is essential that you associate with those people and circumstances that are consistent with being successful! As the old saying goes, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Choose people that will encourage, support, and help you grow to your fullest potential. Gravitating toward people who are driven, ambitious, and kind will allow you to grow into a successful, happy, healthy, and prosperous individual!
5. 💖 Be Kind, Respectful, and Humble — Being kind and respectful to everyone, no matter who they are, are foundational characteristics that guide successful individuals, and lead to their “wins” when it comes to college admissions. Winning with college admissions is a comprehensive approach, and you are evaluated on your personal qualities and character, among many other factors.
This is why people who aren’t kind, respectful, or humble oftentimes fall short in the college admissions process. Even though they have an amazing quantitive profile including a solid gpa, strength of course planning, and test scores, along with an impressive list of extracurricular activities, leadership, and many honors and awards, being successful with college admissions also relies in many ways on one’s individual personal qualities and character.
To get great letters of recommendation and glowing marks on your counselor report, people have to not only like you, and feel really good about your character and values, but they also have to be your strong “cheerleader” and support you with their letters. Additionally, for those colleges that don’t use counselor or teach evaluations, someone’s character shines through in other ways—personal statement, supplemental essays, descriptions of extracurricular activities.
Know that being kind, respectful, and humble are core characteristics of successful students, and keeping these attributes at the forefront of who you are will help propel you to more success with college admissions!
You’ve just learned the top 5 factors that helped Sashan earn acceptances to some of the best universities in the world! We hope these factors will help guide your educational journey, and level up your comprehensive approach to doing those things that are extremely important for college admissions!
To Your Success!
Drs. Jeff and Brian Haig
