By Lee Shulman Bierer Carolina College Bound file photo It would be easy to assume that with the increase in the popularity of online applications – www.commonapp.org, www.coalitionforcollegeaccess.org and www.universalcollegeapp.com – a variety of decisions would be streamlined for college applicants. Unfortunately, that is just not the case. Colleges appreciate the benefits of...
By LEE SHULMAN BIERER A standard dorm room. Photo by Alec Sitton T-minus one month and counting. The countdown to your first day as a college freshman has officially begun. There are advice articles galore with lists of what to pack and what not to pack; it’s...
By LEE SHULMAN BIERER A standard dorm room. Photo by Alec Sitton T-minus one month and counting. The countdown to your first day as a college freshman has officially begun. There are advice articles galore with lists of what to pack and what not to pack; it’s...
By Lee Shulman Bierer Carolina College Bound file photo Families are often surprised when I tell them that brainstorming essay topics is typically more difficult than writing the actual essay. Writing the essay can be a breeze if students push themselves to think openly during the brainstorming...
By Lee Shulman Bierer Gaining admission to some of the most elite colleges is remarkably more competitive today than it was 20 or 30 years ago. Unfortunately, this increased competitiveness has spurred myths that need to be dispelled. Admission isn’t all about scores. Students should look for...
By LEE SHULMAN BIERER Parents and prospective students talk with Fayetteville State officials. Photo by Ezekiel Best, FSU Used to be that parents packed up the station wagon, drove their son or daughter to college, unloaded the boxes, made their bed, kissed them goodbye, shed a few...
Photo courtesy of UNC Chapel Hill If you’re a rising senior and you ask any of your soon-to-be-college-freshmen friends for one piece of advice about college applications, I know what it would be. They would tell you to NOT procrastinate and to do your best to get...
Freelance writer Kyle DeNuccio traveled and surfed during a gap year away from college. Photo by Joe Johnston Every year, more and more students and parents talk to me about the pros and cons of a gap year experience. Taking a year off between high school graduation...
Photo by UNC Greensboro People always seem to apologize when they’re making plans for summer campus visits: “I’m sorry, I know we should have done all this sooner, during spring break, but we couldn’t work it out.” Campus visits during the summer are fine. I just say...
By LEE SHULMAN BIERER Photo by Robert Kinlaw, collegetownnc.com Unfortunately, the lazy, hazy days of a summer full of splashing in the pool and hanging out with friends are but a pleasant memory for many high school students. Standardized tests and test prep were usually put on hold...
