N.J. student got into 23 colleges with $1.5M+ in scholarships. Here’s how he did it.

When Sebastian Andaluz, a senior at Kearny High School, received his first college acceptance in the fall — from Central Michigan University — he was thrilled to see it came with a hefty scholarship.

Since then, the acceptance letters and scholarship offers have not stopped rolling in.

Andaluz, 18, has been accepted to 23 colleges — and counting. Those acceptances came with a total of more than $1.5 million in scholarship offers since September, according to his parents.

He said he got a head start on applying for college during his junior year by making a list of schools where he wanted to apply. He also perfected his application essays.

“Thinking about my future, just the bigger picture of everything, is what motivated me,” Andaluz said.

Andaluz’s parents, who both work in information technology, were major motivators in his education journey, he said. His mother Mariela is from Argentina, and his father Danny is from the Bronx.

Because he’s been exposed to both diverse cultures and technology his entire life, he plans to study both cybersecurity and international relations in college, he said.

His travels to his mother’s native Argentina opened his eyes to the world and “the love of being on an airplane and visiting new cultures,” Andaluz said.

Since November 2023, Andaluz and his family have visited 40 colleges across ten different states. He applied to those he felt were the right fit, hoping to secure a full ride, his parents said.

It was also Andaluz’s idea to start a spreadsheet to keep track of all his acceptances and scholarships, his father said.

“It wasn’t until around December that we decided to add up the scholarship column and noticed how high the number was getting,” his father said. “It was a validation of all his hard work, and we’re super proud of him.”

Just a few of the schools he’s been accepted to include Rutgers University, American University, University of Vermont and Rowan University. Two of the highest multi-year scholarship offers he has received are from Syracuse University, which offered him $180,000, and Connecticut College with $152,000, his family said.

For all the schools, he chose not to submit any SAT or other standardized test scores, which aren’t required under some “test-optional” college admissions policies.

While taking Advanced Placement classes, studying abroad in Italy, and maintaining a 4.0 GPA, Andaluz also perfected his Spanish throughout high school, earning a spot in Kearny’s Spanish Honor Society.

To many in the Hudson County school district, Andaluz is known as a standout ice hockey goalie for Kearny. He began as a skater for the Kardinals. But during his sophomore year, one of the team’s goalies got injured, so he stepped in to try the position. He stuck with it, helping the team win a division championship in his junior year.

When he’s not in school, Andaluz takes his hockey skills to the community. He shows children in his town how to play hockey and volunteers for The Monarchs, a nonprofit group that teaches kids with disabilities hockey and skating.

Despite having so many college options, Andaluz said he hopes to stay somewhere in the New Jersey or New York area.

Ramapo College, the public liberal arts college in Mahwah awarded Andaluz a $60,000 scholarship and is one of his top choices, he said. He’s been in contact with the school’s club ice hockey coach and hopes to play for the team if he decides to attend.

Applying to nearly 30 colleges turned out to be a rewarding but time-consuming process, Andaluz said. His advice to any student approaching college admission season is to start as early as possible.

“Keep your head down and keep pushing forward,” he said. “And start early, just don’t procrastinate.”