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Do the top factors in admission decisions vary by type of college?

Across all four-year colleges surveyed, high school grades and strength of high school curriculum are uniformly rated as the most important factors. However, some differences were found between public and private colleges in the level of importance given to the following factors:

• high school grades in college prep courses

• strength of curriculum

• class rank

• positive character attributes

• the essay or writing sample

• the interview

• work

• extracurricular activities

• counselor and teacher recommendations

• student’s interest in attending the institution