Beckemeyer quoted in Forbes article

Cornell’s Vice President for Enrollment Management Wendy Beckemeyer was featured in a Forbes article, “College Admissions: New year, same you,” published Jan. 4, 2022.

The article focuses on how high school students are often told to be “authentic” as they fill out applications and seek to enroll at the colleges of their choice. Enrollment officials from across the country were asked to unpack what that means. 

Beckemeyer told Forbes: “Being authentic means revealing the best version of yourself in your college application materials, not the best version of someone else. Colleges appreciate honest self-reflection in your writing samples or essays. It is a difficult request. Honest self-reflection is a lifelong process. However, colleges do not expect you to know the end of your story … they are interested in hearing more about where you are right now, as a high school student. Tell us what you care about, your successes, your challenges, why you are interested in a certain major, or why you don’t know yet which major is of interest to you. Tell us something that only a few close relatives or friends know about you.”