Gaining admission to your college of choice can be a challenging endeavor. There are many factors that top institutions consider when deciding which applicants to grant admissions to. Sadly, many students receive a college rejection letter not because of their lack of merit, but because of Facebook posts. Yes, Facebook posts. Many colleges will check out your digital footprint to gain insight into the real you. This means if they do a minimal amount of digging, admissions officers can easily find those embarrassing Facebook posts that you never got around to deleting.

We decided to create a list of the Facebook posts that you should delete before applying to college. Without further adieu, let’s dive into our list.

1. I Got a Fake ID!

Admission officers are continually going extra to learn more about an applicant from the web. This means the images you upload online can decide your admission status. The illustrations used in this article are photos that must not appear among your online photos when sending in a college application.

I’ll start with the most famous examples of unsuitable images uploaded on Facebook and other social media sites.

Most college communities in the country battle with the issue of underage drinking. So you must delete that photo of you drinking beer on your 18th birthday. Why would a college that is already doing so much to handle the drinking problems on its campus choose to admit any student with photos that portray underage drinking?

Also, have you posted your date of birth on Facebook? Apparently, many students that are underage drink, but it would be unwise of you to share such illegal conducts concretely.

2. Pass the Joint, Please

Photos that prove the illegal use of drugs are worse than underage drinking. So the photo of you with a bong, hookah, or joint should be deleted immediately. You should not be connected to any photo where it seems a person is dropping acid, lighting a doobie, or tripping on shrimps.

You may not be doing drugs but the admission folks will feel concerned if the friends in your pictures are. Similarly, if the hookah or rolled cigarette simply contains tobacco, or if you are snorting powdered sugar, viewers will be misguided into a wrongful conclusion.

Colleges will not offer admission to an applicant who appears to be a drug dealer. They neither want to incur liabilities nor promote the illegal use of drugs in their communities.

3. Here’s What I Think…

Nothing wrong with giving someone the bird, or making obscene signs with your fingers and tongue, but is that the impression you would like the college to have of you? You and your friends may consider it to be crazy, but it could turn out utterly offensive to the admission folks looking at your online photos.

If you do not think it’s so bad, imagine what great aunt Chastity would think of it. Would she approve of it?

4. I Got Away With It!

You probably had the thrill of your life strolling into private property, fishing in a restricted area, driving 100mph, or going up a high-tension powerlines tower. However, posting photos you took during the act is not a smart decision. Some admission folks will feel disappointed by your non-compliance to rules. Some others will be disappointed by your poor decision to document a prohibited action.

5. Drink, Drink, Drink

Drinking games like Beer Pong are very common on college campuses, yet the admission folks are not trying to admit applicants who depict in pictures that their main idea of fun involves alcohol. And don’t be deceived – those red party cups may not be labeled “beer,” but anyone working in a college knows what the content would most likely be.

6. Look, No Tan Lines!

Facebook might take down any photo that depicts nudity, but you must be cautious about uploading photos that expose so much skin. If you pulled some crazy stunts at Mardi Gras or during the spring break, or if you had posted photos of when you went sporting wearing the glued on Speedo briefs or the trending micro-bikini, you must understand that having photos that show all that skin is not ideal if you are applying to a college. Moreover, not everyone cares about what tattoo you have on your left buttock. You’re not sure how comfortable the admission folk analyzing your application would feel.

7. I Hate You

One can easily tell a lot about applicants’ prejudices by going through their Facebook accounts. If you are a member of a group where the name sends a negative message like hatred for a group of people or race, consider leaving the group. Most campuses are trying to build a diverse and tolerant community. Professing your hatred for others as a result of their age, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or weight will most likely cause your application to be rejected. Of course, you must remove any discriminatory photos.

On the other hand, you can freely proclaim your hatred for cancer, pollution, poverty, and torture.

8. My Stupid Family

The admission folks may not pay attention to the ironic tone or understand your inside jokes, neither will they know what the context of your photos was. If your photo albums have nasty titles, like ones saying that you hate babies, that your school is full of losers, or that your brother is a moron, you can send a negative message to a stranger seeing them. Colleges are more willing to admit a student who displays generosity rather than a dismissive personality.

9. I Shot Bambi

This headline is more unsettling than an illegal action. However, if your favorite hubby involves using bats to kill baby seals in Northern Canada, hunting down whales on a Japanese ship for research purposes, marketing fur coats, or fronting a certain faction in a political battle, you should be more sensible when posting pictures of your involvement. Not that you can’t post such pictures, but they come with consequences.

Typically, the admissions folks are open-minded and will respect your passion even if it is different from theirs. However, don’t forget that they are human too, and might feel sentimental when they come across something that contradicts their opinions or is provoking to them.

Ensure that when you upload a seemingly controversial picture, you are intentional and cautious about it.

10. Get a Room!

A picture of a peck on the cheek is nothing serious, but some admissions officers may not feel comfortable seeing pictures of you groaning and grinding with your better half. If the photo depicts actions you cannot share with your parents or minister, then don’t let your college admissions team see them.

11. The Blue House on the Right

In recent times, identity theft is common, and the media carries a lot of news about people that have fallen victim to online stalkers. With this, you only exhibit poor judgment (and put yourself at risk) when you upload personal information about yourself on Facebook. You can privately share your phone number and address with friends, but you can’t say everyone on the internet is your friend. Colleges would feel disappointed by your level of naivete when they come across such information openly displayed.

12. Look, I’m Wasted!

Anyone working in the Student Affairs unit of a college can attest to the fact that making late-night trips to the emergency room with a student who passed out from drinking is the worst aspect of their jobs. From the viewpoint of the college staff, it’s not a funny situation. Your friends may think a picture of you hugging a porcelain throne is hilarious, but a college official would worry about the students who had died of alcohol poisoning, those who got raped when they passed out, or those who choked to death while throwing up.

You could be easily declined admission if the officers in the college you applied to discover photos of you or your friends puking, passed out, or intensely gazing at space in teary-eyed amazement.

What did we miss?