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"First the SATs, then those godawful essay topics (\"Who is your personal beacon?\"), now this: YouTube videos have become a part of the college admissions process \u2014 a prospect that could be simultaneously exciting and terrifying.According to The New York Times, Tufts University has begun accepting YouTube videos as an application supplement, an idea that arose last spring when Lee Coffin, dean of undergraduate admissions, saw a particularly impressive teen-made video.\nIn addition to voluntary essays and the option to \"create something\" out of paper, applicants can now show who they are via Final Cut Pro, iMovie and the like. \u201CAt heart, this is all about a conversation between a kid and an admissions officer,\u201D Mr. Coffin told the Times. \u201CYou see their floppy hair and their messy bedrooms and you get a sense of who they are. We have a lot of information about applicants, but the videos let them share their voice.\u201D\nAccording to Coffin, 1,000 of the 15,000 applicants submitted a video, and some have become viral sensations. Sixty percent of these videographers were female, and two thirds were financial-aid applicants.\nKids today are finding more and more ways to express themselves. Remember that awesome lip dub-off back in December? So the addition of video to the college application suggests that educational institutions are willing to expand the way that they gauge intelligence and talent.\nStill, Coffin went on to assert that the essay-writing section of the application will remain in place: \u201CWe will never abandon writing,\u201D he told the Times. \u201CNo matter what, it\u2019s important to be able to express yourself elegantly in writing.\u201D\nThe question at this juncture becomes: Does this new option mean that competition will only get more intense? In addition to being able to write, score good grades and fill in the correct bubbles on a standardized test, will kids also have to master the mechanics of a truly rad jump cut? \nThere's the rub. Although Coffin is showing ample foresight in embracing this new medium, why cling to the essay of old? Let's be honest here, not everyone is able to write, just as not everyone has the chops to move a story along visually. Why not actually widen the options for college applicants, rather than adding one more \"optional\" element to the pot?\nCheck out a few of the applicants' videos below, and let us know in the comments what you think of this notion.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2010/02/22/tufts-youtube/>