Do you have GRIT?

Do you have GRIT?

    Perfect academic scores…. what more proof does a university need? In today’s competitive admissions, many American schools aim to see beyond the numbers. Grades and SAT scores only reveal the surface of a student’s ability to succeed in a college setting, where a variety of appealing distractions and complex challenges test even the most academically-talented young people. Skills that help students truly succeed at university and beyond include curiosity, creativity, integrity, leadership, the ability to work with others, and — the new favourite — grit.
    Likening it to initiative and perseverance, growing research heralds grit as a key component to a student’s success in college. Grittier students face obstacles with determination and focus, and are not discouraged by setbacks. Kids with grit are in it for the long haul, and will put in sustained effort to reach their goals. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania assert that grit enabled the tortoise to beat the hare. According to Angela Lee Duckworth, psychology professor at University of Pennsylvania, gritty people succeed through deliberate practice to acquire skills. Duckworth has developed a self-reporting method called the Short Grit Scale to help measure a person’s long-term stamina and focus.
    While Duckworth’s test is designed to support research at the university, universities across the United States are exploring a variety of similar methods to measure grit in potential students. Based on decades of research by the University of Maryland’s William Sedlacek, Professor Emeritus of Education, Oregon State University, developed a brief questionnaire called the Insight Résumé to assess an applicant’s non-cognitive skills. These include a gritty “preference for long-range goals to immediate needs,” as well as self-confidence balanced with a realistic self-appraisal.