Now that Christmas is over but many are still on holiday, more ambitious students can take time to ensure that their summer holidays are very productive – especially if one has big dreams for tertiary education. “Competition for spots in university is heating up. Many dream campuses, such as those in the USA and UK, have average acceptance rates of under 6%,” says Rebecca Pretorius, Country Manager for university applications mentoring company Crimson Education. She suggests various tips to ensure that they become more ‘attractive student material’:
- Be involved – create value and impact for the world by working for a social cause that you really care about. Go beyond just volunteering and strive to be involved in an organisational or managerial capacity.
- Get a job – on-the-job training and experience in a business, or the specific profession you are interested in, is valuable. Aspire to be more than an observer or passive participant – get involved and take initiative where you can.
- Spearhead a project – innovative leadership and entrepreneurship shine on an application. Think about launching a project or small business that showcases your creativity, leadership and organisational skills. Keep social impact and sustainability in mind – you want to create positive change that can continue while you are studying abroad.
- Read – deepen your knowledge about one or two key subjects by researching them widely and signing up for online courses. You will need to demonstrate this knowledge in interviews and can boost an application by writing papers or applying this knowledge in projects during your high school years.
Crimson Education was founded in New Zealand in 2013 by two high schoolers, Jamie Beaton and South-African born Sharndre Kushor. Aged 23 and 24 respectively, they oversee the companies’ operations in 30 cities worldwide.