Essay Portion: When it comes to the mandatory essay that you have to write to every college that you'll be applying to, you want to make sure that your personality is understood. If you plan on writing about a tragedy that you went through, be sure to show the colleges that you overcame that situation and how you can get through any obstacles in your life. You want to also find a way to add in the essay why you want to go to that college and why you would be the perfect applicant. Additionally you want to glorify yourself, make sure to include any awards or accomplishments worth mentioning, it'll make you a good applicant.

Organizations You're involved in: On your application you want to be sure to add in any clubs or organizations you were involved in, when doing this, it shows character and what kind of applicant they're considering accepting. It also shows that you care about others and that you really know how to get involved with your community. When it comes to Internships, be sure to add those too because it'll show them that you're serious about a particular field and shows that you already have experience.

Community Service: Be sure that you have a good amount of community service hours. Colleges love to see that you're involved in your community and trying to make a difference. But be sure that you're doing things because you want to, not because it'll look good on college applications. Colleges need to get a feel for your real personality.

Don't Lie: The worst thing you can do when filling out your application is lie. You don't want to over exaggerate yourself because colleges are known for fact checking applicants about things they've been involved in or achieved. So if you're accepted into a college and they fact check you and see that you lied on things, there's a good chance they'll revoke your admission.

High school Transcript: First colleges must look at whether you're an A student or a C student. This will also help them understand your GPA. Next they'll look at the courses you're taking. If they see that a student is in Pre-Ap or AP classes, they'll see that you're working as hard as you can. But if they see that a student is in all regular classes, that changes their view on things.

Ten Things Colleges look for in a High School students

1. Community Service
2. Have a Job
3. Well Written Essay
4. Positive letters of recommendation
5. Additional recommendations
6. Other special Attributes or Awards.
7. Challenging Curriculum
8. Strong Grades
9. Involved in activities
10. Solid scores on standardized tests

The above links are two websites that go into detail about tips that can help you create the perfect application. The second website may be more helpful because it goes into greater detail.