More Than A Transcript: College Admissions Insights and Strategies

Episode Summary The college deposit has been made and high school graduation celebrations have begun and now it’s time to think about your first year in college! This final episode in our series on the essentials of the college search and application process is devoted to making a successful transition from high school to college - for both students and parents. We begin with a check list of summe...

Why is high impact and experiential learning such an important part of your college education? We talk about how these experiences, which often include risk-taking and exploration, contribute to deeper student engagement.  The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), which has roots in studies that focus on the impact of student involvement in their own educational pathway, is a longitudinal...

Broaching the topic of a gap year with families is one of the most polarizing conversations that we have as college advisors. Why? Because many parents and students are afraid of it - they are afraid that a gap year will stop an educational path forever, that it will cost too much money, and for students, that they will be doing something that is too different from their peers (even though many of...

While wait lists in the college admission process have been around for a long time, the number of students finding themselves with a wait list offer has increased fairly dramatically over the last 5 years. We discuss the reasons behind these trends, the vague nature of wait list offers, and the difficulty in determining any likely movement on a college wait list based on prior years history. In ou...

After you have completed your “me” evaluation and figured out your college “why” it’s time to build your list. Are you a student with a focus that makes your list building more specialized or are your search criteria a bit more general? Most students start by defining their preference for size, setting and geography (or location).  Then you can layer on majors, budget, and other preferences around...

A good college search begins with the student! Self-assessment and reflection about your academic, social and financial needs is our recommended first step. Then, go out and test the waters with a few very different college visits to determine how your needs will be met by the variety of options available to you. In our tips section we provide tips for resources and approaches to help you figure o...

During the winter months high school seniors move from the stress of college application deadlines to the stress of waiting for answers from the colleges that they have applied to. In this episode we want to encourage those of you who are waiting for a regular decision or early action admission decisions to use some of this wait time to further inform the decisions that you will soon be making. We...

Receiving a college acceptance is always an exciting moment, but we encourage you to read beyond the first “Congratulations!” to fully understand your offer. You may be surprised to learn that you have been offered an alternative admission start and you will want to understand the details of these types of offers. We begin with a little history of these types of alternative admission offers and th...

Summer academic programs are great experiences for exploring major and career interests, college residential life and what it’s like to be away from home, as well as the rigor of college courses. Whitney and Katelyn discuss the three primary buckets of summer academic options on college campuses for high school students. For one of the most affordable options, students can directly enroll in a col...

Admit, deny, deferral, waitlist. These are all possible outcomes from your early admission applications. November through mid-December is the typical window for students to hear back from colleges if they have applied through Early Action or Early Decision application plans, though some EA decisions may not be released until January. Be prepared for the fact that you may not have a full financial...

This week, we are talking about merit aid and how to build a college list with affordability in mind. If you missed it, we encourage you to listen to episode 11 first, where we talk about the cost of college and provide a foundation for this discussion of merit aid. And if you want to learn more about need-based financial aid, take a listen to episode 13.  Whitney and Katelyn talk about the reason...

How do I start the college search process if I don’t know what I want to study?  Don’t let this question stall out your college search. An increasing number of colleges are capping enrollment in popular majors which feels to many families that choice of major is more important than it used to be and perhaps vital to securing a job.  With increasing costs, universities are focused on improving rete...

This is the second in our three-part series on paying for college. In this episode we give you an introduction to need-based financial aid: what is need-based aid, how do you apply for it, and what can you expect from a college that you are admitted to? How does a family determine if they have “need” for college aid? It’s not a question of what you want to pay, but based on a needs analysis that c...

Fall has become the default college admissions season for many high school seniors, which is a significant shift from when their parents went to college.  We dive into the difference between early action, early decision and rolling admission (which also carries the benefit of an earlier timeline if applicants want).  The big hot-button early decision issue? As they try to manage their yield number...

Welcome to our 3-part series on paying for college. In this episode we are talking about the cost of college. In future segments we will review the financial aid (need-based) process and then we will look at what affordability planning means and how to find scholarships and merit aid as you build your college list.  Do you know what college costs include and what the industry-wide assumptions are...

The college essay! The last in our series on the “big five” elements in college applications is a discussion of how to approach what is often the most stressful piece of college applications. This series of five episodes is focused on the primary elements of a college application and geared towards students who are applying to college in the fall. While not every college will use all five elements...

Episode Summary What do your activities say about your interests, priorities and contributions to your community? Number four in our series on the “big five” elements in college applications is a discussion of high school activities.  This series of five episodes is focused on the primary elements of a college application and geared towards students who are applying to college in the fall. While n...

Next up in our series on the “big five” elements in college applications is a discussion of recommendations. This series of five episodes is focused on the primary elements of a college application and geared towards students who are applying to college in the fall. While not every college will use all five elements, it’s important to understand your options for recommendations if you are asked to...

Standardized testing is the second stop on our college application safari. This series of five episodes is focused on the primary elements of a college application and geared towards students who are applying to college in the fall. These “Big 5” application components are what colleges use to assess a student's application as they make admissions decisions. Not every college will use all 5 e...

Join us for the first in our series on the “big five” elements in college applications - a college application safari of sorts. These are the application components that colleges use to assess a student's application as they make admissions decisions. Not every college will use all 5 elements, and, ironically, while we firmly believe that every student is more than a transcript, the transcrip...

June marks the beginning of summer vacation, which is often the only time during the year that students and families can visit college campuses. Generally, colleges begin their summer tour schedules early in the month, so it's a good time to talk about making the most of college visits. It may be important to planning your schedule to note that most colleges do not offer Saturday tours in the...

In our episode on Summer Dreaming we share thoughts and tips on how high school students can get the most out of summer. In this student-focused episode we discuss options for summer jobs, volunteering and academic focus. Most importantly, we want students listening to think about making these choices for their life, versus making choices for a college application. Exploring genuine interests is a...

In this episode we are looking at the latest trends in higher education and the evolution of what going to college in the U.S. means to families. We discuss a range of topics including  shifts in learning environments, the costs of college and what parents and students expect in terms of college outcomes.  In the second half of our episode we discuss the impacts of federal funding cuts and the dow...

We are talking to parents in this episode about your interactions with your teenager around the sometimes exciting, sometimes treacherous topic of applying to college.  We start out with a discussion about where kids and parents are, metaphorically, during these pre-college years. What's going on in your heads? What are some of the issues and challenges for both teenagers and their parents? I...

We begin this podcast journey telling you a bit about ourselves and the  experiences we have had as college admissions advisors, coming from both the college side and our work with families. In the first half of each episode we will provide an overview of a topic related to high school, the college search, admissions or higher education. As lifelong learners, we'll also start each episode off...