Ita Collins has been accepted to study at Harvard University in the United States.
A South African matriculant who swept the board with admission offers from six of the world’s most prestigious universities has revealed the application strategy that secured her a place at Harvard University.
Ita Collins, the 2025 Head Girl of Roedean School, graduated with an astonishing nine distinctions, prompting an elite Ivy League bidding war for her academic talents. Alongside Harvard, the exceptional teenager received offers from Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, Brown, Carnegie Mellon, and Harvey Mudd College. Later this year, she will move to Massachusetts to major in Environmental Studies, combining science and policy with a public health focus.
Behind her flawless academic record was a deliberate, counter-intuitive strategy that favoured narrative depth over a checklist of achievements. Working alongside global mentorship firm Crimson Education, Collins focused entirely on refining her existing achievements rather than attempting to pad out her resume with extra-curricular activities.
Admissions experts note that top institutions seek a coherent through-line that reflects a student’s true identity rather than a superficial list of accolades. For Collins, this meant weaving her roles on the Student Representative Council, her multi-sport athleticism, her environmental activism, and a medical internship at the Wits Reproductive Health Institute into a single, compelling personal story.
