College admissions officers look to make sure you're on topic for your admission essay; if you've submitted something that doesn't quite answer their question or seems like it was written for another college, this is a red flag. Admissions officer Jenny Rickard from Bryn Mawr says finding another college's name in an essay is a major red flag. And of course, an essay that hasn't been copy-edited and has spelling or grammatical errors is an indicator to admissions that you haven't put in the proper effort.
Seth Allen, Dean of Admissions at Grinnell College, says he always notices when a student puts down more hours than there are in a week for all their myriad extracurricular activities. Overexaggerating your efforts in high school is a red flag that you're not an honest applicant. It's worth noting that if you lie on your application and your college finds out after you've been admitted, they may actually rescind your admission. Harvard has been known to rescind awarded degrees if they find out an applicant lied on his application.
It's important to project confidence on your application. Janet Rapelye, Dean of Admissions at Princeton University, dislikes seeing a student wish her SAT scores were higher or complain about her school and teachers in a personal essay. "This is not the time to complain," she says in a video on Unigo. "Find the things you're grateful for." Admissions officers want to know what you can do well and what you can bring to the school.
Though it may not seem fair, mental health issues have become a red flag for some colleges during the admission process. Especially after the Virginia Tech massacre, the issue of campus safety has become a big one. If you had to take time off school for a mental health issue, you should explain in a personal essay the extent of the illness and your recovery.
Of course, suspensions and/or expulsions are a red flag to admissions officers. If you have one of these, you must explain as best you can in a personal essay.
Richard Nesbitt from Williams College says admissions officers definitely pay attention to sudden changes in grades on your transcript. Especially in 11th grade, when workload should be hardest, a backslide in grades shows admissions you might not be ready for college level work. Also keep in mind that you must keep your grades up even after admission, as a severe drop could result in a rescinded admission.