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 the thing, though demonstrated interest is not the secret weapon that you think it is, and it 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 Dz consider demonstrated interest at all in their admissions process. Tufts does consider demonstrated interest, but theyre very careful to inform applicants about what that really means. Well break it down below, but just as a spoiler: no, you Dz 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, ya nerds??), youll see that Tufts lists level of applicant interest as considered, ranking it below very important categories such as GPA, application essay, and letter of recommendation. So, it doesn matter more than your grades, but it does matter *a bit.* However, Dz 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 : 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 actually change your plans that much. It means that you Dz have to engage in a lot of superficial behaviors that no one is actually tracking, but you should turn in an application that shows youve done your research and explains why youre 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 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 youd 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.