How To Apply

Two Parts of an Application

School Portion

Note: the school portion of the application still requires the student to complete certain tasks.

1. School Profile/Secondary School Report
2. Transcript
3. Teacher Recommendation Letters
4. Counselor Recommendation Letter

Student Portion

5. Online Application
6. Essay
7. Resume
8. Test Scores
9. Other Possible Sections: Writing Supplement, Portfolios, etc.

Breakdown of Every Application Component

1. School Profile/Secondary School Report

  • The “School Profile” is something that your counselor will upload and send through Naviance. It will be sent to all of your colleges through Naviance eDocs and will be included in all mailers as well. This document gives colleges an understanding of the policies and procedures of our school as well as the context of our academic offerings, which will be used to understand our school in comparison to other schools.
  • The “Secondary School Profile” is also something that is completed for all college applications and sent through Naviance. This document gives a college context about the student within the context of our school and their peers. This document asks questions about the rigor of your curriculum in comparison to your peers as well as your overall recommendation level.

2. Transcript

  • To request a transcript for College Applications, you must complete the College/Scholarship Materials Request Form on Google Forms.
  • Materials Request Form (Class of 2023)
  • The Google Form must be submitted at least 3 school days ahead of your deadline for electronic submissions and at least 3 school days ahead of your mailer pick-up request date for mailer submissions.
  • Make sure all of your service hours are in by October 10th, which is when your counselor will download the transcripts to be sent to colleges through Naviance eDocs or to be included in your mailers

3. Teacher Recommendation Letters

  • Most schools required 2-3 letters from teachers. Letters are sent in the order that teachers upload your letters, so you do not get to choose which letters go where. Make sure that you only request letters from teachers you know will write you a strong letter.
  • Only send a request to your teachers through Naviance AFTER they have confirmed via email that they will write your letter for you.
  • If a teacher says NO, you need to ask another teacher to ensure you have at least 2 letters ready to go.
  • It is recommended that you give an upload deadline of October 15 so that your letters are ready to be sent electronically as well as being printed for mailer submissions.
  • Teacher recommendations will be sent by your Counselor through Naviance or downloaded from Naviance to include in Mailers. However, this is ONLY for College Applications. **For scholarships, students must go directly to the teacher for these requests.

4. Counselor Recommendation Letter

  • Complete the Counselor Recommendation Form
  • Each response should be 3-4 sentences so that your counselor can write you a strong letter. The shorter your responses, the more incomplete your letter will be!

5. Online Application

  • There are a few steps to beginning your applications. First is to add your colleges to the “Colleges I’m Applying To” section of Naviance.
  • The next step is to determine each college’s delivery type: CommonApp, Electronic, Mailer, or Other. Please use the following chart to determine which delivery types your colleges use. The most important to know is whether your colleges require MAIL (the last symbol) – as this requires advance notice when applying.
  • If your college uses CommonApp, make sure to set up that account and match your CommonApp and Naviance accounts. You cannot match your Coalition or Common Black College Application accounts to Naviance.
  • IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT MATCHING ACCOUNTS: You must waive your right to view your documents when you sign your FERPA Waiver. If you choose not to do that, you cannot use Naviance and most teachers/counselors will not write letters for you at all!
  • Note: CommonApp accounts cannot be set up until after August 1st, which is when CommonApp rolls over from the previous school year.
  • If a college is not on CommonApp, check to see if they are on Coalition or Common Black College Application. Using these platforms saves you a lot of time! If a college is not on any of these platforms, you will need to apply directly on their website.
  • Students must SUBMIT their application before requesting materials from their counselor to be sent (letters of recommendation from counselor/teachers, transcripts, etc.). This is because colleges often delete materials that they receive before a student’s application!

6. Essay

  • There is so much to say about this topic, so please see the College Essays page.
  • Some general notes: Avoid Contractions. Show, don’t tell. Don’t spend too long on the “what on the essay” – spend more time on who you are and how you’ve grown. The cherry on top of any essay is “why this will make me a successful college student” as a conclusion.

7. Resume

  • Please see the Resume tab, here!
  • Some general notes: Balance your resume between text and white space on the page. Your name should be the biggest thing on your resume. You should include a professional email address (typically your first and last name) and contact phone number. Emphasize the outcomes of your work. You do not need an objective or to list references. If you couldn’t talk about something to an interviewer, you shouldn’t include it on your resume.

8. Test Scores

  • Your counselor cannot send your test scores to colleges. The student must send their SAT/ACT scores directly to their school. Allow for at least two weeks for official score reports to get to your colleges.
  • If you requested that scores be sent through the few free requests each time you test, you should check-in with colleges to verify that they received your scores. You may not need to pay to send an additional report, but if they don’t arrive, your application will be considered incomplete, so it’s up to you to make sure they were received!
  • Again, CMIT DOES NOT SEND TEST SCORES.
  • Note about Test Optional: If a school is test optional and you DO NOT feel your test scores are representative of your abilities, don’t send your scores! If your scores are above the college’s average, send them! Note: if you are applying test optional, make sure to confirm with admissions that this does NOT affect your financial aid considerations.

9. Other Possible Sections: Writing Supplement, Portfolios, etc

  • Some colleges will request additional items such as writing supplements, portfolios, etc. Students are responsible for getting all of the information about these items and sending them to ensure that their applications are complete.