The Common Application opened on August 1st. 

There are two required writing submissions:

1) Common Application Essay

2) CU Boulder Short Answer  (250 word limit): What do you hope to study, and why, at CU Boulder? Or if you don't know quite yet, think about your studies so far, extracurricular/after-school activities, jobs, volunteering, future goals, or anything else that has shaped your interests. 

High school transcripts are being accepted as both unofficial copies that a student can upload themselves into their application status page or as official copies sent by the school counselor. Any final transcript must be submitted as official.

A minimum of one letter of recommendation must be submitted (we recommend no more than 3 total).

ACT or SAT scores are not required for first-year students, but you may provide self-reported scores if you would like us to take your scores into consideration when reviewing your application. 

ALL EHS DOCUMENTS (TRANSCRIPTS, LETTERS OF REC, ETC.) NEED TO BE SUBMITTED BY 11/15 FOR EARLY ACTION!!

DID YOU MISS THE CU BOULDER VISIT AT EHS ON FRIDAY?  IMPORTANT DETAILS BELOW:

1. All materials need to be into CU Boulder by 11/15 for the Early Action deadline, so please order your SAT or ACT reports now (they take 10-14 days to get there).

2. Please review the weighted GPA and test score ranges for each college (Engineering, Leeds, etc.) at CU Boulder at the link below.  Amanda Johnson, the admissions counselor (and associate director of Admissions) who visited with us Friday, emphasized that if your GPA and test scores are below the range for each college, you will most likely be denied admission to CU BOULDER if you indicated that college on your application.

If you are applying to the Leeds School of Business, for example, and your GPA is below a 4.0 and your test scores are below a 1390, you should switch your application to the College of Arts and Sciences and choose a major such as Economics or Mathematics.  This applies to all the other competitive colleges, such as the College of Engineering (min GPA 3.97, min SAT 1360).  If your GPA is in the range, but your test score is below the range, you can write Ms. Johnson and ask her to remove your test scores from consideration with your application.  CU Boulder is still test optional (for the next 4 years).

For the College of Arts and Sciences, if your weighted GPA is below 3.67, you can still be considered for admission, just please write an excellent supplemental essay for them as well as a thorough explanation of your grades in the Challenges and Circumstances section of the Common App (see #3 below).  The colleges with the two lowest GPA ranges are the College of Communication, Media, Design & Information (GPA 3.54) and the School of Education (GPA 3.43).

Ms. Johnson's email address:  amanda.johnson-3@colorado.edu

3. If you have one or more Cs, Ds, or Fs on your transcript, you need to provide an explanation for those grades in the Challenges and Circumstances section of the Common App.  This section can be found in the Writing tab, under Additional Information.  Please describe what you consider to have been the challenge in that class(es) and what efforts you took to rectify your challenge (sought extra help from the teacher, worked with a tutor, etc.).  They want to know that if you are accepted to CU Boulder and you run into challenging coursework, you know how to access resources and help yourself overcome the difficulties.

4.  Other than your GPA and possibly your test scores, Ms. Johnson emphasized that the most important part of your application is the ACTIVITIES Section, so please take your time with this section and carefully write about your activities. You want to think about all aspects of your life from sports, clubs, work, volunteer, family responsibilities, informal activities, etc.  Please see me for guidance on this section if you need help - we can make sure it looks as good as possible!

IF YOU HAVE ALREADY SUBMITTED YOUR APPLICATION, YOU CAN WRITE MS. JOHNSON (amanda.johnson-3@colorado.edu) TO (a) CHANGE YOUR INTENDED MAJOR TO SOMETHING LESS COMPETITIVE, (b) DESCRIBE YOUR CHALLENGES AND CIRCUMSTANCES RELATED TO GRADES, AND (c) ASK THAT YOUR TEST SCORES NOT BE CONSIDERED FOR ADMISSION IF YOU ALREADY SUBMITTED THEM.

Please stop by with any questions or concerns.