So you want to be a Jumbo, huh? Elephants are not normally credited with, you know, subtlety, and you might be tempted to take the “spraying water through your trunk” approach to demonstrated interest. Here’s the thing, though — demonstrated interest is not the secret weapon that you think it is, and it’s important that you know where to focus your energy as you knock out your applications.
Now, admittedly, Tufts has a slightly different policy than many of its peer institutions, who have come out to declare that they don’t consider demonstrated interest at all in their admissions process. Tufts does consider demonstrated interest, but they’re very careful to inform applicants about what that really means. We’ll break it down below, but just as a spoiler: no, you don’t need to DM Tufts Admissions on Instagram daily, so just go ahead and scrap that plan….
Tufts’ Policy
If you look into Tufts’ Common Data Set (and who isn’t, ya nerds??), you’ll see that Tufts lists “level of applicant’s interest” as “considered,” ranking it below “very important” categories such as GPA, application essay, and letter of recommendation. So, it doesn’t matter more than your grades, but it does matter *a bit.* However, don’t get crazy. This is not encouragement to go overboard and set the record for number of campus tours taken by one prospective applicant.
Conventional ideas of demonstrated interest can be unfair, because not all students have the same access to school visits or pre-college programs. Tufts has made sure to take this into account and acknowledge it on their blog: “While visiting the campus in person is a great option, we understand that coming in person for every student is not possible.” Nevertheless, they consider it because “demonstrated interest allows universities to gauge how interested you might be in a particular school and also why that school might pique your interest,” and “there are so many ways to engage with Tufts that count as demonstrated interest.”
What This Means for You
This shouldn’t actually change your plans that much. It means that you don’t have to engage in a lot of superficial behaviors that no one is actually tracking, but you should turn in an application that shows you’ve done your research and explains why you’re a uniquely good fit for Tufts.
Tufts suggests a few ways to show demonstrated interest: attend a virtual visit, “be specific in your writing,” and “apply.” Those last two are a little cheeky, but that’s the point! The best way to demonstrate interest is actually the most obvious. Send in your application on time, and make sure your supplemental essays have been tailored to Tufts, the opportunities it would offer you, and the ways you’d enrich the community if you attended. Nothing says disinterested like a general essay that could have been written for Boston College…
Not sure how to demonstrate interest where it really matters in your supplemental essays? Contact us today.