A Johannesburg matriculant will head to one of the world’s most prestigious universities after receiving offers from six top American institutions.
Ita Collins, the 2025 Head Girl of Roedean School, has accepted a place at Harvard University. This was after graduating with nine distinctions. She will begin her undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies later this year.
Collins was one of several South African students who received multiple offers from elite universities during this year’s admissions cycle. Alongside Harvard, she received acceptances from Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, Brown, Carnegie Mellon and Harvey Mudd College.
Crimson Education
The matriculant said she worked with Crimson Education, a global admissions consultancy, to refine her university applications. Rather than adding more achievements to her profile, the process focused on identifying which of her existing activities carried the most weight with admissions committees.
“I had a lot going on, and a lot of opinions coming at me about what I should do,” Collins said. “Having an outside view was incredibly valuable. Crimson helped me see what was current and what was realistic. Also, which of my interests had the most to offer when it came to building an application?”
Collins had served on the Student Representative Council and participated in environmental activism. She also competed in multiple sports and completed an internship at the Wits Reproductive Health Institute. But American universities do not prioritise lengthy lists of activities, according to Brad Latilla-Campbell, Country Manager at Crimson Education.
“Top US universities aren’t looking for a long list of achievements. They’re looking for a clear sense of who a student is and where they’re headed,” Latilla-Campbell said. “In Ita’s case, that meant drawing a through-line across everything she’d done and shaping it into a coherent story.”
Personal statements
The application process included drafting multiple versions of personal statements and supplementary essays with a Crimson mentor. Collins said the writing component was challenging but helped her develop greater self-awareness.
“Writing the essays was honestly one of the hardest parts of the process, but probably the most rewarding,” she said. “It forced me to reflect on things I hadn’t really stopped to think about before. I came out of it more self-aware than when I went in.”
She chose Harvard over other offers due to its policy programmes and international community. Collins plans to combine science and policy with a public health focus during her studies.
“You don’t need to have it all figured out,” Collins said. “Trust what you’re drawn to, give it your full attention, and let the rest take shape from there.”
Crimson Education provides admissions counseling. They also connect students with tutors and mentors for applications to Ivy League, Oxbridge, and other competitive universities worldwide.
