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Applying to any college or university can be daunting. Leaving behind the security of familiar people and places, stepping into university life can feel like entering a whole new universe. Figuring out how to be yourself while showing the best version of yourself is not easy. Through these tips, your next academic application can be strengthened, stand out, and tell your story.

Lead With Your Strengths

The first tip, and likely the most common, is to put your best foot forward. What are your accomplishments? What have you learned? What have you done that many haven’t? What do you plan to study and why? What are you proud of? All of these questions can serve as a starting point to figure out the angle that best fits your collegiate goals. For example, a student interested in the medical field who has taken biology classes at a local college and volunteers at a nearby hospital should highlight all of these accomplishments. This student can weave a common thread of passion for medicine into every part of their application. Even if you feel you haven’t done “as much” as some of your peers, focus on the areas where you excel and feel strong. Everyone has their own strengths. Even if it takes time to find them, they deserve to be highlighted. Figure out where you are most confident and passionate, and lean in.

Tell Your Unique Story

Another aspect that can strengthen your college application is vulnerability. If you are uncomfortable sharing certain parts of your life, do not feel pressured to do so. However, many of us have had experiences that shaped who we are. In my own college essay, I wrote about the racial struggles of feeling different in my hometown. This is something I felt comfortable sharing, and it deeply shaped me at the time. Opening up can help reveal a more complete version of your story and allow admissions officers to truly see you. Acceptance decisions are made not only on academics, but also on how well you align with the university’s goals and community. Your story can help show who you are beyond grades and test scores.

Be Authentic

The most important piece of a college application, however, is to always be yourself. There is plenty of pressure to be at the top of your class or to reveal your deepest intimacies in an essay, but none of that will make an impact unless it is authentic to who you are. What are your values? What do you love? Who do you admire? What do you dislike? Why do you want to be part of this university? Being yourself shows the strength of your candidacy while also helping you determine if this is truly where you want to spend the next few years of your life. Your application is not just about their decision — it’s also about yours.

The key to a strong application is making it unique to you in as many ways as possible. Everyone has a different story, and your application should reflect yours. We all have strengths and weaknesses; the key is to showcase your strengths and show how you’ve grown through challenges. Colleges and universities want to understand the full person while also seeing your potential, and the best way to do that is by being wholly, unapologetically yourself.