Describing Yourself as a Student: Qualities Colleges Seek

Colleges seek students with strong academic records and personal qualities that indicate success in higher education. Selective colleges look beyond grades and test scores, evaluating personality and character traits. According to the National Association for College Admissions Counselors (NACAC), 70% of college admission officers consider character traits "considerably" or "moderately" important. These qualities are crucial for merit scholarships, honors programs, and admission to less competitive schools. Increasingly, colleges value personal qualities that foster cooperation, community, and compassion.

Key Qualities Colleges Seek

Colleges often look for specific qualities in their ideal candidates. These include a passion for learning, persistence, willingness to take risks, compassion, open-mindedness, a desire to improve the world, creativity, collaborative spirit, and appreciation for cultural diversity.

Passionate About Learning

Colleges want to see that you are passionate about learning - not just about a single academic area, but about the world around you. Show colleges how much you love to and want to learn and what excites you intellectually.

Persistent

Some colleges want students who not only challenge themselves, but who also persevere through those challenges, set goals, and achieve them. You might have demonstrated persistence by sticking with challenging classes or activities even though you didn’t excel in them at first, or any time you worked hard to accomplish a goal, despite obstacles or setbacks.

Risk-Taking

Here, risk-taking doesn’t necessarily mean engaging in high-risk activities like bungee jumping or mountain climbing - it means venturing out of your comfort zone, be it in the classroom or other areas of life. Taking a risk can be joining the debate club even though you have a fear of public speaking, trying a new activity, or taking a challenging class.

Read also: Exploring Academic Credentials

Compassionate

Some colleges also look for students with compassion. According to the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley, “Compassion literally means ‘to suffer together.’ [It’s] …the feeling that arises when you are confronted with another’s suffering and feel motivated to relieve that suffering.” Research shows that college students who show a higher level of concern for their peers and classmates have higher levels of self-esteem and self-efficacy. Georgia Tech lists “compassion for others” as one of eight character traits it values. Showing compassion is not just about expressing empathy for others, it’s also taking action to help them.

Open-Minded

College can be a great opportunity to engage with people from different backgrounds and cultures and to consider ideas, perspectives, and opinions that might be new or different from your own. Colleges want to see that you can respectfully consider different points of view and that you welcome the chance to consider these perspectives.

Desire to Improve the World

Many colleges say they are looking for students who hope to apply their academic and career interests to improve the world around them. “Our ideal candidates are inspired to emulate our founder Benjamin Franklin by applying their knowledge in service to society, to our community, the city of Philadelphia, and the wider world,” states the University of Pennsylvania on its admissions page. Does your academic area of interest intersect with a cause that you truly care about? For example, you might want to major in engineering and use the skills you acquire to combat global warming.

Creative

Based on a recent Adobe study, 95 percent of admissions decision-makers believe in the value of creative skills. Creativity is listed among the top qualities considered by Duke, MIT, and UCLA and it doesn’t necessarily have to be expressed through activities in the arts. Colleges often look for creative thinkers, problem solvers, innovators and entrepreneurs.

Collaborative

Colleges want to know that you can collaborate well with students and faculty, and that you are able to put the needs of your team over your own. If you had a leadership role on a team, it’s important to demonstrate that you were an effective leader of a cohesive group - even if your team ultimately fails. “You might think colleges look for leadership skills,” explained Morgenstern. “They do.

Appreciation for Cultural Diversity

Colleges want students who appreciate cultural diversity and are eager to engage with and learn from people from a wide range of cultural backgrounds. In describing successful applicants, USC has said “They are interested in the world, in other peoples and cultures, and enjoy examining important issues from a global perspective.” To express this trait, you don’t need to have traveled extensively or lived in a foreign country.

Describing Yourself Effectively

When describing yourself, honesty is key. Your application should authentically represent who you are. Consider using a personality traits worksheet to identify experiences and situations where you've demonstrated these qualities. When describing yourself in an interview or writing your resume profile, finding good words to describe yourself can be tricky. You want to be honest but not brutally so.

Describing yourself in a few words to someone who doesn’t know you is tough. It’s worth figuring out how to make a great first impression, because, once formed, first impressions are hard to shake. Regardless of the situation, staying upbeat and positive is the key to describing yourself. Now is not the time for humility.

Tips for Describing Yourself

Be Honest: Authenticity is crucial.
Stay Positive: Maintain an upbeat tone.
Highlight Relevant Traits: Focus on qualities relevant to the job or college.
Provide Examples: Back up your adjectives with specific achievements.
Tailor Your Response: Adapt your description to the specific situation.

Pro Tip: Not sure which words you should pick? Ask a few people who know you well for their opinion. One common interview question goes something like this: “Please describe yourself in 5 words”. The stakes are higher, but the same rules from above apply (stay positive and be honest). When the hiring manager asks this question, they try to assess whether you have the personality and the skills needed to excel on the job. If the adjectives you use to describe yourself are irrelevant to the job, chances are the HR manager won’t be impressed. Likewise, anyone can say they are creative and hardworking.

Examples of Effective Self-Descriptions

Reliable: "I was so consistent in updating patient’s charts that I was promoted to a position responsible for training new hires."
Cheerful: "Studies show that positivity can have a huge effect on patient recovery times, so I smile often and crack jokes whenever the time is right."
Energetic: "In my last position at a long-term care facility, I was single-handedly caring for up to 15 patients per shift."

If you have an interview scheduled, consider the question: what are the best words that describe me? beforehand.

Read also: Mastering Education Terms

Resume and Cover Letter

A well-written resume is your golden ticket to getting the call. There are no two ways about it. No matter what type of resume you’re writing, a short resume profile at the top can be a great way to make an elevator pitch that you’re the right candidate for the job. After all, recruiters are pressed for time. The secret to describing yourself in a resume introduction is to use adjectives relevant to the job and mention achievements that will wow the recruiter. You also want to tailor your resume introduction to the job posting, as sending generic resumes is one of the worst mistakes you can make when looking for a job. Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates.

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