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Don’t Be Perfect and Other Tips for Your ZeeMee College Admissions Video

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Your story matters.

During the college admissions process, sharing your story as part of your application provides context and gives you the opportunity to introduce yourself. In the past, this has been accomplished by submitting at least one essay with your college application and at some schools, scheduling a personal interview.

Thanks to technology, today’s Snapchat Generation can also submit a concise video specifically geared to the college admissions process via digital video manager ZeeMee.

ZeeMee’s smartphone app helps you create a three-part video that can be viewed in a minute or two. It’s free of charge. Students own their content. Privacy settings prevent a student’s video from being searchable. And no special equipment is needed to make the video beyond access to an iOS or Android smart phone.

“Selfie-style is genuine and real,” says Courtney Vaughn, an admissions officer at Elon University in North Carolina. “Don’t hire a professional — keep it casual.”

Vaughn credits the ZeeMee videos with helping her “connect with applicants on a deeper level.” When she can glean additional knowledge about an applicant from their video, she says she will “take that nugget of information to the admissions committee” to advocate for the student.

To be clear, Vaughn says that “the students who are in the middle of the applicant pool at Elon benefit the most” from submitting a ZeeMee video. Providing the additional information, as well as taking the time to show interest and effort, says Vaughn, contributes another positive layer to an application that might need the extra boost.

Other ZeeMee partner schools may also consider a student’s submission to help them create a well-rounded class; or to select among applicants for competitive honors programs or majors. If you are applying to a school that encourages submission of a ZeeMee video or you would otherwise like to create one, here are some additional tips.

The Basics

There are three parts to a ZeeMee video: your Profile Information, the Video Feed and the Photo Album.

Your Profile Information features a snapshot of you with your name, high school, and graduation year, superimposed on a default image. (Later, you can select the photo you want in the background.)

The Video Feed gives you the opportunity to tell colleges, in your own words, what you want them to know about you. You have the option of recording a brief introduction, for example, and/or speaking about a topic of your choice. Optional question prompts on the Chat tab can help you decide what to share. Some examples of ZeeMee question prompts are Describe your high school and what you like most about it. Or, Who would win, Batman or Spider Man? Or, How would your friends describe you?

These prompts can get you thinking more about how to best showcase your character and values. Are there certain topics that resonate with you?  Do you have a compelling anecdote to share? What motivates you; or challenges you; or captivates you?  Take some time to think about what you want to say. And if you change your mind and want to delete or rerecord your video, you can!

Videos (whether your own, or responses to prompts) are limited to no more than 26 seconds each — but you can record as many as you like. You’ll make your own decision about how many videos compose your Video Feed; just remember that a shorter one is more likely to be viewed in its entirety, so try to keep your points succinct.

If you are camera-shy, no worries — not only is ZeeMee always optional, there are a variety of ways to tell your story — for example, a teacher, friend or slideshow can serve as your introduction.

Use the Photo Album section to bring your activities to life with images that showcase who you are and what you do. These images can spotlight your athletics, talents, hobbies, projects, skills, jobs, ideas, interests, family, and more! You’ll add captions of up to 5000 characters to describe what is happening in each photo to help the reader get to know you better.

Details and Dimensions 

Once you have the basics in place, continue to refine your presentation. Layer your Photo Album with a variety of images to tell your story, not just the ones that show off your accomplishments.

For example, if you have discussed several types of art mediums you enjoy, include photos of each, as opposed to five pictures of your watercolors, even if watercolors are the only ones that have earned you accolades. (Because your whole story includes your efforts with chalk and charcoal, too.)

If you love soccer, five images of yourself scoring goals will be redundant. Consider adding a photo of you working out with your teammates; or of your soccer jersey collection; or of whatever conveys more facets of your story. (After all, your ten-year relationship with soccer surely isn’t primarily about the goals you’ve scored…)

Students with just one or two activities can showcase those activities more deeply. If you do only make drawings in watercolor, for example, feature images that express variety another way, such as subject matter or color choice or even a progression of your art throughout high school, as opposed to five similar watercolors you produced for the same project with the same theme.

Or, if baseball is your thing, include all of the ways you express your passion — sure, you have some great photos of yourself in action as your high school team’s shortstop, but what about all those impromptu neighborhood street games you started in the summer and the trips to your favorite professional team’s stadium and the hours you spend playing catch while chatting with your best friend? Those are part of your story, too.

(Note: If you plan to use photos that feature friends or family, get their permission first.)

Prepare, then Share

If you open your ZeeMee account early in high school, you can upload possible content to your Photo Album as soon as you want. Later, when you are ready to put your video together for college applications, you can select the best photos, add captions and record your video responses.

To share your finished ZeeMee video with colleges, you’ll paste your video link on your applications ‘s ZeeMee field for partner schools. For other schools, you can add the link to the Additional Information or Anything Else You Want to Share section.  Other options for sharing your ZeeMee video with colleges include adding it to your resume; mentioning it in a thank you note to the college; or emailing it to your regional admissions rep. Also consider providing your ZeeMee link to your school counselor and anyone who will be writing you a letter of recommendation — it can help them get to know you better, too!

Short and Sweet

The last tip is to make every second of your ZeeMee video count by targeting the things that are most important to your story; be thoughtful about every image, caption or video you include. And again, welcoming the viewer to your world from a more informal, homey, casual perspective will help you connect more authentically with your application reader. Think: heart and soul, not perfect and polished.

Will a well-done ZeeMee video alone get you admitted to a school? No, but it won’t hurt, and could help boost a borderline candidate’s admissibility or increase the odds for selection to a more competitive program.

It will also be good practice — it is highly probable that this college admissions video will be just one of many personal digital portfolios our technology savvy Snapchat Generation will create during their lives. In today’s world, says ZeeMee director Ethan Lin, “a digital identity is no longer an option.” Lin points out that students already have a professional side that their activities and academics and experiences all speak to; with ZeeMee, they can showcase their story in an easy-to-use smartphone app where they are in control of what they share.

Ten Tips To Elevate Your Extracurricular Activities

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Elevate Your Extracurriculars!

If you are a high school student keeping up your grades and keeping busy with some activities you enjoy, while also spending time with family and friends, congratulate yourself! You are obviously managing your time well as you work towards your goals.

Having said that, many students decide they want to do more. Specifically, they hope to differentiate themselves on their college applications with an outstanding extracurricular resume.

It’s a problem, however, when students think this translates to taking pricey service trips abroad; or starting a club for the primary purpose of claiming the title “founder”; or gaining membership in multiple organizations without really doing anything.

To develop a resume that will truly stand out, one that deeply showcases your interests, highlights your leadership skills, and underscores your values and character, consider other ways to upgrade your involvement.

First, What Not To Do

It is meaningless to randomly join groups or undertake projects that do not underpin or intersect with the things that are important to you. Be thoughtful and selective about how you spend your time; a school counselor, mentor or other advisor can give you some feedback for your ideas if you’re unsure about where to start.

Also, don’t wait until the end of junior year to decide you need to do something… (Anything… and quickly!) There is nothing wrong, of course, with trying something new senior year; but an activity that represents a natural progression of your interests — rather than a resume line you’d like to fill — will authenticate your interest and involvement.

Being authentic — being true to who you are at your core — and perceptive about what motivates you, is key. Choose activities that help you grow (at your own pace). You’ll know you are on the right track when you feel challenged, but not overwhelmed; energized, but not depleted, by your choices. Here are some ideas to help you elevate your extracurricular activities:

  1. Promote a passion

Maya’s favorite pastime was knitting. She learned it from her grandmother, who enjoyed it as a relaxing social activity. Knitting also provided an outlet for Maya’s creativity and developed her problem-solving skills. After her grandmother passed, Maya decided to organize a group at a nearby senior center, exchanging tips with other knitting enthusiasts and inspiring novice knitters to learn more.

  1. Explore a career interest

Job internships for high school students are limited and competitive. You’ll need to start early and do some research to land one. But remember, there are other ways to learn more about your fields of interest. Some ideas include job shadowing, summer programs, personal research, a community college class, or a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course).

  1. Create your own opportunity

If what you want doesn’t exist, create it! Here is one example: Jen wanted a temporary means of earning money to pay for a summer engineering program, but babysitting and tutoring weren’t adding much to her savings. She used her mechanical inclinations to her advantage by buying old bikes, cleaning and repairing them, then reselling them for a nice profit. She paid for her summer program and learned some basic lessons of entrepreneurship, too.

  1. Step outside your comfort zone

When Devin resolved to create his own opportunity to explore his career interest in teaching, it made sense to combine it with his love of dance — he’d been dancing competitively for years. With the support of his dance studio, Devin initiated a year-round weekly dance class for students with special needs. He was a little nervous at first because he did not know what to expect — and he was in charge! But he took a risk, reached out to an underserved population, and in the end, reinforced his faith in both his desire and his abilities to instruct and connect with others.

  1. Solve your problem

Do you shake your head on a regular basis wondering why something is the way it is, and how you’d like to make it better? If you want to improve something, start where you are. Whether your inner engineer cringes at the poor design of the school cafeteria’s lunch line or your heart for social justice longs to inspire a local service group, step up to see the difference you can make in your own world.

  1. Commit to your community

Even as a sixth grader Ray could not get enough of math. After competing in middle school math competitions, he realized he would have loved that same opportunity years earlier. He began a math club at his old elementary school, starting with games, adding tutoring the next year, and organizing district competitions the next.

  1. Learn logistics

Ray’s math club required preplanning to lay the groundwork. He needed to secure permission from the school principal, enlist the aid of a club advisor, arrange for classroom space, get help with publicity, and set up a system to communicate with parents. As he gained further insight into the tasks required behind the scenes, he also gained self-confidence in his abilities to execute his expanding plans.

  1. Demonstrate dependability

Part of developing maturity and cultivating success is following through. This means that if you commit to a part-time job or volunteer position every Saturday morning, you arrive every Saturday — in the morning. This is not to say you won’t ever have a scheduling conflict or fall ill, but if you find yourself regularly making excuses to cancel, rethink your choice of activity.

  1. Leave a legacy

Let’s return to Ray – although it was difficult for him to think about leaving his math club, he wanted to make certain it would endure. During senior year he trained two of his former students (who were now high school freshmen) to co-lead the group once he left for college; they will do the same when they are seniors. Ray’s longer view of this activity further conveyed his commitment to improving his community.

  1. Uplift others

Some students demonstrate high achievement and involvement in athletics or academics or performing arts, for example. But if everything you do seems to focus entirely on yourself, try to incorporate some of the suggestions above to find activities that will also uplift others.

You may or may not find a new passion in service; but at the very least, you’ll have a better appreciation for your own advantages. And without a doubt, colleges will be noting what you’ve contributed to the greater good, as opposed to just yourself, when they envision what you might contribute to their campus.

College commitment to global volunteerism reflected in Peace Corps numbers

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Colleges and universities showed high levels of alumni commitment to global volunteerism in 2016, by making impressive showings on lists of top volunteer-producing schools recently announced by the Peace Corps. And the numbers reveal campus cultures that strongly support international study and understanding.

“Peace Corps service is an unparalleled leadership opportunity that enables college and university alumni to use the creative-thinking skills they developed in school to make an impact in communities around the world,” Acting Peace Corps Director Sheila Crowley said. “Many college graduates view Peace Corps as a launching pad for their careers because volunteers return home with the cultural competency and entrepreneurial spirit sought after in most fields.”

For the first time in three years, the University of Wisconsin-Madison reclaimed the top spot among top volunteer-producing large colleges and universities. There are currently 87 Badgers serving in 40 countries around the world.  And UW-Madison has maintained its place as the second highest all-time volunteer producer with 3,239 alumni having served since 1961. Denison University topped the list of small schools, while American University came in first among medium-sized schools.

In fact, DC-area schools continue to have a strong hold on spots in the medium-sized colleges and universities category with American University’s across-town rival, George Washington University, ranking No. 3 this year. Georgetown University and Howard University earned the No. 6 and No. 14 spots, respectively.

For the 13th year, the University of Mary Washington also found a place on the Peace Corps’ list of top colleges among schools with fewer than 5000 undergrads, jumping six spots from its No. 8 ranking last year, all the way up to No. 2. In all, 253 UMW alumni have served the 27-month commitment since the Peace Corps launched in 1961.

Now serving in Kedougou, Senegal, in West Africa, Maura Slocum, came to Mary Washington for precisely that reason.

“I read that UMW had such a high number of alumni who go on to serve,” said Slocum, who discovered her passion for providing for others on a mission trip to Guatemala. “The University of Mary Washington was fundamental in my journey to the Peace Corps.”

Celebrating over a half century of promoting peace and friendship around the world, more than 225,000 Americans have served with the Peace Corps in 140 host countries.  Although a college degree is not mandatory for service, relevant experience in areas such as education, health, business, environment or agriculture is required.

The Peace Corps’ eight regional offices, located across the US, recruit and provide information and guidance to prospective volunteers including current undergrads. Potential applicants can connect with local recruiters on the Peace Corps website.

And returning Peace Corps volunteers may receive support from the Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program, which partners with more than 90 universities across the country.  Among DC-area colleges and universities supporting this program by offering graduate fellowships are American University, Catholic University, the College of William and Mary, George Washington University, Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland-Baltimore,  UMBC, University of Maryland-College Park, and Virginia Commonwealth University.

For more information on the Peace Corps or the Coverdell Fellows Program, visit the Peace Corps website.

Colleges Reject Waiters and Accept Actors

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We’re not talking about servers at restaurants or performers on the stage. Instead, we’re focusing this pretty important pep-talk on students who WAIT to be asked to join a group or activity versus students who ACT on their passion without needing an invitation. Get more expert undergraduate admissions advice at http://admissions.blog.

A Truly Unique Summer 2016 Extracurricular Experience

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US Olympic Team in Rio

Members of US Olympic Team enjoying Rio, Brazil.

Learn about a once-in-a-lifetime extracurricular experience for those to like to take a walk on the wild side. You can pursue this activity only in August 2016 in an exotic setting and celebrating a truly global event. Disclaimer: Not for those who like to play it safe.

US Men's Gymnastics Team

Members of US Olympic Team enjoying Ipanema in Rio de Janeiro.

This One Characteristic Trumps Leadership

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Don't Copy; Be Original

Forget about the leader-follower paradigm, which argues that to get into a top college you need to be a leader and not a follower. There is something that is even better than being a leader if you want to give yourself the best shot of admission to all the colleges and universities on your list.

10th Graders Need an Extracurricular Intervention

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After getting comfortable in high school during freshman year, students need to take a serious look at their extracurricular interests, output, and goals during the first half of their sophomore year.