File Reading, Part IV - UGA Undergraduate Admissions

File Reading, Part IV - UGA Undergraduate Admissions File Reading, Part IV Ara Parseghian: Whats your problem, OHare, whats your problem? Jamie OHara: Last practice of the season and this ***** thinks its the Super Bowl! Ara Parseghian: You just summed up your entire sorry career here in one sentence! If you had a tenth of the heart of Ruettiger, youd have made All-American by now! As it is, you just went from third team to the prep team! Get out of here! Rudy One area of admissions that is not always talked about, but which has a great impact over the entire file, is the idea of work ethic and maturity. When you watch the movie Rudy, you see a young man that, while not possessing the greatest football skills, is able to translate sheer will and determination to get onto the football field and play at least one play for Notre Dame (although his academic drive is at times less than desired!).When I am reading a file, I am trying to get a sense of who this applicant is, what they do with their time, and the effort they put into the things they participate in, from class work to sports to activities. Do they put in the time and sweat equity to get the work done well, or just get done with the job? Do they put forth the effort to make an A, or are they happy to settle for a C? I am looking for clues, be it in the recommendations, the essays, the commitment of time and/or the difference between potential and results, that will show me what a st udents work ethic is like. I often see phrases such as this student has a lot of untapped potential or this student is an overachiever. Personally, I prefer the overachiever, the one that has taken what they have been given and gone beyond everyones expectations. Tied in with this is the idea of personal maturity. When a student is faced with a dilemma, how do they handle themselves now, and how will they handle themselves at UGA? Do they take responsibility and handle issues in a mature fashion, or do they blame others? One telling item (though by no means the only one), is how a student deals with discipline/conduct issues. I have looked at the large majority of files where there is a conduct/criminal issue, and it is very telling as to how a student reacts. Some will take full responsibility, and focus on both making amends and getting back on track. On the other hand, I have seen students make the same mistakes over and over, relying on someone else to get them out of their situation. Maturity also shows up in a persons interaction with others, be it teachers, friends or classmates. Many of these applicants will be studying in UGAs classrooms, living in our residence halls, and being a part of our community. What will they be like when they are on our campus, and how will they interact with the rest of the UGA community? Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some dont turn up at all. Sam Ewing Which one are you? Go Dawgs!