Rick Clark

Believe it or not, you have more agency in this experience than you think. Read this blog post from Rick Clark, the assistant vice provost and executive director of undergraduate admission at Georgia Tech. You will discover that you have control over 75% of the process. You decide, for example, why, where, when, and how you apply. You tell the story in your application that best represents you, your strengths, interests, and hopes. You choose who you listen to, take guidance from, and consult with about your search and application.

“I feel like ‘resignation’ sort of short-sells people’s engagement with what they want. I feel like this was more of a great contemplation for all of us,” Rick Clark. “The pandemic was a blessing of pause. Slowing down, pulling back and evaluating, ‘What do we really want?’”

“I think most parents — if they will really talk to their friends and think about their network — will realize pretty quickly that success is nonlinear, and there are a lot of paths to it,” said Rick Clark, director of undergraduate admissions at Georgia Tech. “Very few rely solely on where you go to college.” You have to truly believe that if you have any hope of your child believing it.

Rick Clark, director of undergraduate admission at Georgia Tech, emphasizes the importance of moving from “parent to partner” as our children apply to college. He says, “Prior to admission decisions coming out, my hope is parents will take their focus off the names of colleges, their own personal hopes, and the recent build-up of emotion or anticipation, and instead consider the time, effort, and shared experiences that have led to this point.” Clark adds, “by doing this, whether a student is admitted, deferred, or denied, they will be ready to genuinely celebrate, empathize, or simply love and support.