Applying to college: a survival guide: if you're all stressed out about getting into college, here are some tips from the experts on how to maximize your chances without overdoing it.

• Author: Stainburn, Samantha

This may be you, or someone you know: the student who's on two varsity teams, plays the ceno, runs a school club, volunteers regularly, has taken eight A.E courses, five SAT subject tests, and has even prepped for the PSAT.

With all the competition over getting into college, it's not surprising applicants want to make sure they've done enough. But how much is too much (or too little)? Experts say it's possible to maximize your chances without overdoing it. Whether you're applying to a state school close to home, or to a private university across the country, here are their suggestions.

1 TAKE TWO OR THREE PRACTICE TEST

Standardized test scores are one of the top factors influencing admissions decisions. Familiarity with the test (SAT of ACT)--the question types and what they're looking for--will help you do better.

"Don't walk in cold," says Brian O'Reilly of the College Board, which administers the SAT. "Every minute you spend reading the test directions is a minute you're not ... answering questions."

If you choose the SAT, take the PSAT and a few .other practice tests on your own right before taking the exam, he says. (Most students take the PSAT in the fall of their junior year and the SAT in the spring.)

How helpful is it to prep beyond that? Test-prep companies contend that they can raise scores by hundreds of points, but some studies show less-impressive results.

One time waster: PSAT prep. Don't prepare for what is designed to be a practice test: Colleges don't even see PSAT scores.

2 TAKE THREE SAT SUBJECT TEST

Most colleges don't require these subject-specific exams. But many of the more competitive schools require scores from two, and several schools ask for three. None want more than that. So keep your options open and take three. And while many colleges waive subject test requirements for those who take the ACT instead of the SAT, not all do.

Start early and take one test at a time over the course of your high school career, says Ellen Fisher, a college adviser at the Bronx High School of Science in New York.

Even if they're not required, the tests come in handy. Submitting excellent results "can help a student who's in that gray area," says Robert K. Andrea of the State University of New York at Albany.

3 TAKE AS MAYNY A.P.'S AS YOU CAN HANDLE

The surest way to pique colleges' interest is to "take the hardest courses you can get into in high school," says the dean of admissions at Bates College in Maine. A.P. and I.B. courses...