Years ago — probably around the time when children walked five miles uphill in the snow to get to school — applying for college was a lot harder.
Students, graduation coaches and researchers said the Internet has changed the way students approach the college application process.
“It has definitely made it easier,” said Jonathan Harding, a senior at Gordon Lee High School. “You can pay online. You just go to a Web site and all the applications are online.”
Online resources also allow students to apply to more schools, said Mike Moyer, president and co-founder of Cappex.com, a Chicago-based Web site that connects prospective students to colleges.
About 93 percent of teens use the Internet daily, Mr. Moyer said. Today, longhand and snail-mail have been replaced with keystrokes and e-mail.
Today’s teens can use their Web knowledge to tour virtually a dorm room or find information about colleges and scholarships.
A student can write one essay, then cut and paste information into many college or scholarship applications. Students can check their application status online, which is a big help, said Mr. Harding, who is waiting to hear if he got into the University of Georgia.
Students in rural areas such as North Georgia can use their computers to connect to bigger cities and extend their reach for help. Mr. Moyer said Cappex recently gave a travel scholarship to a Ringgold High School senior to visit potential colleges, he said.
As computer tools have evolved, perceptions also have changed, Mr. Moyer said.
With the increased number of applications, many say that colleges are more competitive than ever. But Mr. Moyer said the population hasn’t grown as fast as the number of applications. In 2007 the applicant population decreased, he said.
Although Mr. Moyer said competition has not changed drastically, students should aim to provide more than the minimum requirements to increase their chances of being accepted, officials said.
“Getting out of the ‘maybe’ pile means being different,” Mr. Moyer said. That might mean a student raises pigeons instead of playing football or tests his own science experiment instead of serving on student council, he said.
Mr. Harding said it isn’t like his generation to go so far out of the way for a college application.
Jeff Guffy, graduation coach at Gordon Lee High School, said most of his students stay in the South for college. But Mr. Moyer said students who are willing to venture away from their hometown are more appealing to some colleges.
Perhaps rural residents were unlikely to attend college in the old days, but now they can be attractive candidates, Mr. Moyer said.
“Being from rural Georgia is a very exciting place to be,” Mr. Moyer said. “They don’t need a bunch of wealthy kids from prep schools.”
ON THE WEB
For more information about Cappex, visit http://www.cappex.com.
