There鈥檚 little disagreement that the past year-plus has had its share of challenges and obstacles brought on by the pandemic. While few demographics were spared, student were hit especially hard by the demands of virtual school and the almost complete lack of campus and outside activities and socialization with friends and classmates. Until very recently, this year鈥檚 graduating class of high school seniors were pretty much 鈥渇lying blind鈥� to quote a CDB Scholar when it came to visiting any college and university. And those rare campuses that did allow visitors on site offered no campus tours, in person interviews or informational sessions outside of Zoom webinars, with their student community attending virtual classes.

High school seniors also faced the reality that many of the nation鈥檚 highly selective colleges and universities dealt with a surge in applications, as the previously mandated SAT and ACT tests were optional for the 2021 application year. This resulted in applicants who previously would not have met test standards stipulated at certain universities and colleges took the attitude of 鈥渨hat do I have to lose?鈥� and applied to schools that in another year might have been out of reach by virtue of their test scores.

In spite of this changing college application landscape, the CDB high school seniors鈥攖he class of 2021鈥攑ersevered and figured out alternative ways to conduct their college research. As a class, they applied to over sixty colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. Many of the senior Scholars reached out to CDB alumni who currently attend the colleges and universities they were interested in learning more about from insiders at the various schools. I was delighted to hear back from many CDB seniors that the CDB alumni not only responded to their inquiries by phone, email and Zoom sessions, but also reached out to them to let the seniors know who they were and what particular schools they attend to start a dialogue. As more schools opened up in April and May, some of the seniors were able to visit the colleges where they were admitted and meet with CDB alums in person鈥攎asked and safely socially distanced.

This year鈥檚 CDB seniors will matriculate to colleges and universities throughout the United States and abroad, schools that match their academic interests and offer them the opportunity to pursue ongoing areas of interest as well as many course possibilities to explore. One CDB  Scholar will be taking a gap year and plans to pursue advanced educational and service projects before starting college in 2022. Another CDB Scholar will be attending Oxford University in England.

CDB Scholars from the class of 2021 have been recognized with multiple academic, service and achievement awards and recognition including Presidential Scholars, National Merit Scholar Finalists, Valedictorians and Saluditorians of their class as well as matriculating to honors programs at their upcoming colleges and universities.

CDB welcomed ten new schools and programs to our international list of colleges and universities attended by CDB Scholars since the inaugural class of 2002 Scholars. Here is a list of the schools and programs the CDB class of 2021 will attend this coming fall. Several Scholars are still deciding among their admission options:

• Brown University
• Brown University鈥檚 PLME program (an eight year program for students who are committed to a career in medicine and who also want a broad liberal arts education)
• Bryn Mawr College
• Columbia University
• California University of Technology
• Columbia University
• Georgetown University
• George Washington University
• Harvard College
• Macalister College
• Oxford University
• Stanford University
• University of Florida Stamps Scholar Program
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pennsylvania Management and Technology Program
• University of Texas  Agriculture and Mechanical Honors Program
• Washington and Lee University
• Webb Institute
• Wellesley College
• Whitman College

The 优蜜视频 and CDB communities wish our graduating high School seniors a successful and engaging next chapter of their lives and look forward to staying in contact with them as they continue to thrive.

As the Program Manager for the program, I鈥檝e been asked by prospective applicants how to 鈥渂est鈥� prepare their application so that it not only gets read, but stands out. There really are no gimmicks or tricks to this, but there are effective guidelines that I鈥檝e seen throughout my 12 years at 优蜜视频 that I鈥檓 happy to share:

1. Take the application instructions and directions seriously.

Allow plenty of time to complete your application, so you have time to review and double-check it. Stay within the maximum word counts for your essays and short answers. This lets our selection committees know that you understand and know how to follow directions. Don鈥檛 include extra items if specifically given number limits in certain categories such as recommendations. The CDB Scholarship asks for two recommendations. We know that you鈥檙e a spectacular applicant, but, again, this falls under the follow directions rule of thumb.

2. Start your preparation early.

Be mindful of the CDB application deadline. To ensure you meet the deadline, start gathering everything you need, begin brainstorming essay ideas and request letters of recommendation months ahead of time as a courtesy to your recommenders who more than likely have a lot in their schedules to take care of aside from your recommendation鈥� and potentially for other program applicants in addition to yours.

Be sure to check the deadlines of upcoming ACT and SAT test dates and register as early as possible to be assured of your requested test date and the location of your test center. It also doesn鈥檛 hurt to do a 鈥渢rial run鈥� to the test site so you know in advance not only where it is but how long it will take to get you there, whether driving or on public transportation. The less stress you can put into test day realities, all the better for you to focus your energy on the test itself鈥� and not on getting there.

3. Choose recommenders wisely.

Make sure that your recommenders know you well enough to support a positive letter of recommendation that makes it clear they know you in the context in which they are writing your letter, and that they have the time to write and submit your recommendation in accordance with the deadline. It is YOUR responsibility to give your recommenders all of the necessary details and deadline information, not theirs to research. You do not want to make this process difficult for them, but should focus on presenting yourself in a positive light to any person willing to support your application. You can certainly provide your recommenders with details, as they may think highly of you but not remember your record-setting time in the 100 meter butterfly or the essay you had published in the school鈥檚 literary magazine. Many teachers and coaches routinely write multiple letters of recommendation over the course of an academic year. It鈥檚 fine if you supply them with appropriate data on YOU鈥攚hich is not to say that you write your own recommendation for them to sign. Any recommender who asks you to do this is NOT a recommender that would be appropriate for you to utilize.

4. Don鈥檛 lose focus of the detail.

Make sure that you know and are eligible for the specific requirements of the CDB Scholarship. Overlooking a direction or neglecting any of the submission requirements鈥攊.e. not answering the required number of essay prompts, not submitting a work sample, not completing a parent or recommender statement鈥攃an disqualify an otherwise eligible applicant from consideration. Read the directions carefully, and don鈥檛 hesitate to reach out to a member of the CDB Scholarship team either by phone or e-mail if you have any questions.

5. The seventh聽grader is the applicant- not your parent.

I鈥檓 going to let you in on an insider secret: no one on the CDB team wants to get a phone call from a prospective applicant鈥檚 parent that begins, 鈥淚鈥檓 filling out the application for my son/daughter鈥︹�澛� unless their question specifically refers to the Parent Statement聽 or general directions-related queries. The application is the responsibility of the student to complete. Yes鈥攁 parent or responsible adult can assist with making sure all elements of the application are in order, but it鈥檚 up to the actual applicant to be proactive when it comes to requesting the recommendations, school transcript and all of the essay writing and submission of activities, work sample, etc.

6. Stay organized.

Keep track of various deadlines and test days with your planner or a calendar app. It鈥檚 also a good idea to keep an online or paper folder with all of the components of the scholarship application as 鈥渟aved鈥� documents prior to submission, as well as the specific people and dates you鈥檝e gone to for your recommendations and school transcripts. Stay on top of the application components that others are responsible for in a respectful manner which does not mean asking them every week if they鈥檝e completed and submitted your materials. With the CDB application, you can check online under your name to see if and when outside pieces of your application have been submitted.

7. Make sure you know the scholarship.

It鈥檚 irritating to a reader when an applicant misspells the name of the scholarship or mistakenly lists the incorrect name if they鈥檙e applying for multiple scholarships.

8. Proof your work and have someone else review your application for errors.

It鈥檚 perfectly acceptable to ask another person鈥攑arent, teacher, older sibling鈥攖o read your work and ask for their input or to check your grammar and spelling. A second pair of eyes can often spot errors that you might have missed in the umpteenth reading of your work. But to be clear– this application should be the work, ideas and creative submission of the applicant who is a 7^th grader, not that of an adult. Our readers are well versed in reviewing applications, and the 鈥渧oice鈥� we expect to be presented with is that of the student applicant, not an over-arching parent.

9. Pay attention to presentation.

If you鈥檝e written great essays and have followed all of the scholarship directives and guidelines but submit an application that is sloppy or not what should be considered as a final draft, you could jeopardize your chances of being a stand-out applicant. All things being equal, the student who submits a neat and professional looking application is going to have an advantage over what appears to be a rushed and not well-proofed submission.

10. Be original.

Many of our readers say that a great essay opening line or a slice-of-life story captures their attention and makes that applicant memorable. Write about specific aspects, experiences, memories or moments of your life in your responses to the various prompts that are unique to you.

11. Share your passions.

As important as your scholastic performance may be, we want to see what you do outside the classroom that has your interest and focus, which is why the CDB application asks for the time commitment and length of time that you鈥檝e put into a particular commitment, as well as any leadership roles you have assumed in your extracurricular life. It鈥檚 fine to dabble in a lot of different pursuits, but the limited number of response slots on the CDB application are meant to reveal your passions鈥� the areas that you have seriously devoted your out-of-school time, effort and outreach towards.

The Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship and the annual cohort of selected CDB Scholars takes into account more than an applicant鈥檚 numerics鈥攇rade point average and test scores.聽 Our team looks at each application as an amalgam of the multiple aspects of what contributes to present you as an accomplished, multi-faceted, high-potential individual, which we hope is indicative of the CDB application in all of its component parts.聽 We want you to be as engaged in the application process as we will be in its reading and getting to know you.

Interested in becoming a CDB Scholar? The is now available. Apply by April 10, 2018.

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