Okay, let me begin by saying that as I write this, I’m coming off of a tough weekend with my very own high school senior. And I recognize that “tough” is relative. It wasn’t tough because we were arguing about curfews or who he is hanging out with. It was tough because senioritis has sort…
I’ve heard students refer to their sophomore year of high school as being “the invisible year.” In some ways, they are correct. There is less excitement about this school year, as compared to their freshman year, when they were new to high school. And for the most part, during the sophomore year, they are also…
Hopefully, no matter how reluctant you feel about this upcoming milestone, you have begun taking a few steps. I’m an advocate of starting the process early to help alleviate as much of the stress as possible. Everyone hears the horror stories about the junior year of high school and certainly it is likely to…
The acceptance letters arriving in the mail or inbox are cause for celebration! But often, those acceptances bring some stress for students. Sometimes, students have sent in their applications six months (or more!) before receiving that acceptance. It may have been a year or more since they set foot on that campus. And in that…
There is no question about the importance of extracurricular activities when it is time to fill out college applications. But, there ARE lots of questions about how to handle extracurriculars on the college applications. Every student wants to appear accomplished and engaged. Some colleges would have students believe that most of their applicants have cured…
If you have been reading about college admissions for a while, you may already know some of the financial aid basics like what an EFC is. And if you’ve been following me for a while, you likely know what an NPC is too. However, the list below also includes financial aid questions you may not…
As a college consultant, I am frequently asked for my best advice for families undertaking the college search and admissions process. I find it nearly impossible to narrow it down to just one piece of advice. And generally, my advice is tailored to my specific audience. But, if I had to only give one piece…
So, you’ve accepted that as unbelievable as it seems, it is time for your high schooler to begin visiting some colleges. You’ve navigated the college websites and gotten a couple of visits scheduled. But what do you do while you’re there? And you’ve got lots of questions – how do you know what kind of…
An academic scholarship. If you have a good student, you may have always assumed that this will be their free ticket to college. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy. The good news is that there IS merit aid available to academically-talented students. The bad news is that the most highly selective schools in the country…
College honors programs have existed at some universities for seventy years. But, more have popped up in the past twenty years and now it would be hard to find a state flagship school or any large public university without its own honors college or honors program. They are not created equally and they are not…