By Lee Shulman Bierer Letters of recommendation carry varying weight, depending on the perspective of the college or university and who writes them. The more selective colleges may ask for two or three recommendation letters. Questions abound: Who should you ask? What are they used for?...
By Lee Shulman Bierer Many students have either just made or will be making the big decision whether or not to apply Early Decision (ED) within the next few days. November 1 at 11:59 pm is the official deadline for most colleges and universities with an...
By Lee Shulman Bierer If I could only give every family one piece of advice about college admissions and the college application process it would be this: Dare to be different. Be different from the beginning – don’t wait like so many other people until...
By LEE SHULMAN BIERER Photo courtesy of Lees-McRae Right about now is when the first stage of mild panic seems to start brewing for many seniors. They wish they had done more thinking, and writing, on their essays over the summer, but, well, it just didn’t happen. Now,...
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 Many students unwittingly treat letters of recommendation as an afterthought. They ask teachers and recommenders late in the process and often fail to provide them with sufficient tools to get the job done right. Big mistake. Letters of recommendation can often play a critical...
LEE SHULMAN BIERER Photo by Robert Kinlaw, collegetownnc.com A letter of recommendation will never outweigh a student’s performance in the classroom, but it can be a tipping factor in the college admissions process. Recommendations carry varying weight, depending on who writes them and the perspective of the college...
LEE SHULMAN BIERER Just ask any family that is struggling with making their final college choice how envious they are of the families where it was a slam-dunk easy decision. It’s that time. A final college decision needs to be made, and a deposit check needs to...
LEE SHULMAN BIERER Photo by UNC Asheville If you determine that the wait might be worthwhile and you want to stay on a school’s wait-list, here’s what you should do and what you should avoid doing. Do’s Follow instructions carefully and quickly. One way to show them you...
By: LEE SHULMAN BIERER Photo by Mark Olencki/Wofford College The dreaded wait-list. You weren’t rejected, but you weren’t accepted either. The wait-list means the colleges like you well-enough – they just don’t love you enough to accept you. They want to keep you hanging on until they find...
