Top Five Mistakes Egg Donors Make On Their Application By Guest Blogger Gail Sexton Anderson, Ed. M.

1) Not knowing the difference between race and ethnicity e.g. Caucasian is a race not an ethnicity. If you say that your ethnicity is Caucasian/White as your answer to you ethnicity that tells the intended parents nothing. Just as if you say that you are Asian for both your race and your ethnicity or European that is still very vague. Your chances of being matched quickly depends on how complete your profile is.

* Race is a broad category such as Asian, Caucasian, African America, Latino/Hispanic, Middle Eastern, Black and White may also be listed for race etc.

* Ethnicity is fine tuning to indicate where your family came from originally, you may be Irish, English, Swedish, German, Greek, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Persian, Lebanese or a combination, intended parents want to know what ethnicity or combination of ethnicities you are to see if you shares their ethnicity as well as their race.

2) Not knowing SAT or ACT score raises a question, these test are monumental in most peoples lives and they remember there scores for the rest of their lives. Saying that you don’t remember is highly unlikely. If you didn’t take it say so, if you did check with your college or high school, don’t make something up. Many couples will ask for verification of your scores which could be embarrassing if you have remembered your score incorrectly.

3) Not choosing your pictures carefully. Make sure the agency has a really good head-shot of you. If you don’t have one you can usually have one taken for about $20 in your local mall. Intended parents don’t know you and will not be able to see past a bad hair day picture to your inner beauty. Cell phone pictures are also not acceptable. Please avoid sexy poses, these are sometimes a turn off for intended mothers they want to see the sweet girl next store. And finally, party girl shots with a drink in hand can also be misleading. Remember these couples are about to make the hardest decision they never thought they would have to make. They are getting to know you through the information you are sharing with them. They are looking for wholesome not sexy think daughter material not date material.

4) Not knowing your blood type. For some intended parents blood type may be important. To find out your blood type you can probably contact your family physician or donate blood. Not filling in this information will again slow down the process. A blood test can usually be obtained for about $15.

5) Leaving blanks on your application. If you don’t know something find it out. Blanks on your application may leave the impression that you are not taking egg donation seriously. The last thing you want is to look like you are being cavalier and uncaring. Couples want to feel comfortable moving forward with you the more you can express your self in complete sentences the more they will be able to relate to who you are as an individual. They want to like you, help them by saying more not less. Put yourself in their shoes would you take the girl that has answered the questions as briefly as possible or the girl who has offered a window into who she is as a person.

Gail Sexton Anderson has dedicated her career to helping intended parents from all walks of life to build families. She founded Donor Concierge as a compassionate approach to helping intended parents sort through the gauntlet of egg donor and surrogacy options. Gail has developed working relationships with many excellent egg donor and surrogacy programs, reproductive endocrinologists, fertility attorneys, and mental health professionals specializing in third party fertility counseling she has known and trusted for years.