prospective college student

Meaning

1. 1nouncountable

   a person who is considering applying to a college but has not yet been admitted or enrolled.

   Grammar: Countable: you can say a prospective college student or prospective college students. It refers to one person or a group of such people.

   Patterns

   • a prospective college student
   • prospective college students

   The university hosts an open day for prospective college students and their families.

   As a prospective college student, she is researching which schools offer the best financial aid.

   Many prospective college students worry about the cost of tuition.

Word forms

Common combinations

prospective college student

Each prospective college student received a campus tour.

advice for prospective college students

The website offers advice for prospective college students on writing essays.

prospective college students and parents

The information session was aimed at prospective college students and parents.

Synonyms and how they differ

applicant

An applicant has already applied, while a prospective college student may still be deciding whether to apply.

candidate

Candidate is often used in official contexts for someone being considered for a place, but it sounds more formal than prospective college student.

Word family

prospect noun

the possibility that something will happen, or a person who might become a customer or student.

prospective adjective

expected or possible in the future; used before a noun.

Commonly confused: prospective college student or current college student?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “prospective college student”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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