Recently I had a funny ironic moment with a student. We were reviewing his Common Application essay. He had chosen to respond to Prompt # 4 – Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a...
Parents: If you had it to do all over again, where would you choose to go to college? Imagine yourself in your child’s position and think about what you loved about college and what you wish you could have changed. But now think about their...
If you want the most up-to-date information on what’s going on with the FAFSA form, new dates, new restrictions and new regulations and most importantly new ways to pay as little as is legally possible for college, then my best recommendation for a sound financial...
You want your essay to be the one that is passed around the admissions office…. or not. It’s a little bit like the difference between being famous and infamous. We all know that a sincere, well-written essay that provides insights about how the student has...
My favorite college admissions adage is “A good essay can heal the sick, but can’t raise the dead.” That sums it up pretty succinctly – a strong, well-written essay has the power to move a teetering applicant into the “yes” pile but it’s not a...
They’re gone. All summer long you worried about their dorm room, what classes they’d take, how they’d adjust socially, if they will run out of money, if they will be homesick, etc. Guess what? They’re fine! The one thing that most parents forget to talk to...
Applying early, does it make sense? Ready or not, the college application season has begun. And early or not is the question. I know I’m not the only one who feels the college application process seems to be creeping earlier each year. There used to be a...
If they made a movie about nailing the perfect admissions essay, the title might be: "The Good, The Bad and The Risky." The Risky Let's start with "The Risky." One of the favorite stories being passed around by admissions officers these days is a young man's response...
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 the summer after junior...
The first “letting go” is usually that tearful pre-school or kindergarten goodbye. Fast-forward 12+ years and now you’re saying goodbye to a college freshman. Karen Levin Coburn, author of “Letting Go” describes the transition to college as a “mixture of anticipation and anxiety, a sense of...
