When I heard from Diana last month, she had narrowed her college choices down to three, and she was working on the financial aid paperwork. That’s done, and it’s down to the big decision. Read her full interview below!
Waitlisted? Here's what to do.
As regular admission decisions begin to go out, it’s time to think about what to do if the answer you get isn’t Yes or No, but Maybe.
First, let me say I’m sorry. Getting waitlisted sucks. In some ways a Maybe is worse than a No, because it keeps the suspense going and also starts to make logistical problems for you. Take a little time to be frustrated or angry or completely freaked out, but no more than a day or two. You’ve got to figure out what to do next.
Two documents all students should understand
In fact, many students never see the two most important documents that their high school will send to colleges for their applications: their transcript and the high school profile. Understanding what these documents are and how they relate to you can help calm down some of your anxiety about college admissions, and they can help you concentrate your energy and worry onto things that really matter.
Three things seniors can do while they wait
For a lot of high school seniors, it’s currently Waiting Season. All of my senior coaching clients have heard back from some of the schools they’ve applied to, but not all of them. So no final decisions are made yet. What can seniors do while they wait to get responses to all their applications and make plans for the fall?
Three quick questions with Baylor University
The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.
This response is from Cassie Rodriguez, Admissions Counselor at Baylor University.
The Glossary: public universities
When it comes to college admissions, it seems like private, “elite” schools get all the attention. The Ivy League schools, Stanford, M.I.T., University of Chicago, places like that. But almost three fourths of U.S. college students are at public institutions, not private ones.
A while back I asked a question on my personal Facebook page:
Plenty of public education advocates—including myself—think nothing of sending their children to private universities. I’ve heard none of the arguments for keeping all children in public schools used for keeping all young adults in public colleges. I wonder why that is? Do you have any thoughts on our different attitude when it comes to higher education? Let me know!
One of the responses I got, which I wasn’t expecting, is that a lot of people probably don’t fully understand the difference between public and private universities. It’s not always easy to tell the difference (more on that below). Both are expensive and difficult, and neither guarantees you admission, much less success. So let’s talk about public colleges and universities.
Postcards and envelopes
It makes complete sense to prefer postcards over envelopes. They’re more fun, more immediate, more likely to be from friends than strangers. Envelopes require more effort, and they’re more likely to be junk mail. But still, it would be absolutely crazy to only look at postcards and refuse to open envelopes. You’d miss really important mail. You’d miss bills that need to be paid; you’d miss checks sent to you; you’d miss longer, more personal letters. Before online applications, you’d miss your college applications and you’d miss college acceptance letters. Just saying “I don’t open envelopes” and expecting any kind of success would be unthinkable.
And yet, in these more modern times with the internet and smart phones, too many high school students do the same thing. They’ll read texts, Twitter DMs, Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, WhatsApp…almost anything but email. I’ve heard way too many high school students casually say “I never check email.” And I want to make clear that never checking email and expecting any kind of success is equally unthinkable.
Want me to chance you?
I’ve been fascinated for a few years now by the popular exercise on College Confidential when a person says “Chance Me?” They give their test scores, GPA, classes they’ve taken, and extra-curricular activities, and then ask the other users to estimate their chances of getting into a particular school or list of schools.
Jenna is narrowing down her choices
Jenna has certainly reached the point where she’s narrowing down her list and getting a better sense of where she’s going to be at college next year. However, she’s still got incomplete information as she waits for some more financial aid offers. That could end up changing everything. Read the full interview below, and keep coming back to see what surprises are (or maybe aren’t) in store!
Diana is ready to GO
Katie's been auditioning. A lot.
Katie answered this month’s questions while on her way back from doing 10 auditions in two days. She’s applied and been accepted—and offered scholarships—to a number of schools, but she’s still working to get into their BFA programs for musical theater. It’s a reminder that for many applicants, getting accepted to college is only the first step. Katie’s looking to get accepted into a particular program within the college with its own admission requirements. In her case it’s for musical theater, but students across the country are aiming to get into special honors programs, arts, programs, science programs, and so many other programs that are above and beyond just getting that first acceptance. Read her full interview below.
Three Quick Questions with Bucknell University
The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.
This response is from Carrine Gadoury, Admissions Counselor at Bucknell University.
What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to Bucknell University?
Good news for eliminating "test optional"
This week, Northern Illinois University announced that they’re doing just that, going test-blind for undergraduate admissions and honors consideration. The school feels strongly that a student’s high school GPA is a much better indicator of potential, and that “once we know a high school student’s GPA, one standardized test score is irrelevant.”
So is this the end of admissions testing?
Jenna has a plan
Jenna made some las-minute changes to her college list by applying to a few that weren’t initially on her radar. She’s also dropped a few. But Jenna also has enough acceptances already that she’s building a plan. We’ll see how it changes over the next few months, but for now she has some school spirit to plan and a visit to her top-choice school. Read all about Jenna’s holidays and January below.
Seniors, send thank-you notes. Now!
If you’re a senior who’s sent out all your applications, it’s a weird time. After all that working, now you’re waiting. Waiting to hear back from everyone—both in terms of acceptance and financial aid—before you make a final decision. While you wait to hear from schools and think about how to choose from your acceptances, take some time to write thank-you notes. Write a thank-you note to everyone who has done something for you along the way: teachers who wrote recommendation letters, counselors who sent off transcripts, college admissions personnel who answered questions, people who took time to interview you. Everybody. They gave some of their time to help you, and you should thank them if you haven't already.
Three Quick Questions with Hawaii Pacific University
The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.
This response is from Alex Miller, Assistant Director of Admissions at Hawaii Pacific University.
What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to Hawaii Pacific University?
Three Quick Questions with Penn State University
The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.
This response is from Katie Immel, Admissions Counselor at Penn State University.
What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to Penn State University?
Three Quick Questions with the University of Washington
The three questions are meant to probe some of the things that make a school unique but that aren’t easily captured as a stat to go in a book or web search.
This response is from Joseph Franco, Admissions Counselor at the University of Washington.
What is a course, tradition, program or event that is unique to the University of Washington?
A good example of a family doing it right
Whether you’re a student or a parent, I’d really like you to take a few minutes to read an article by Melody Warnick, “I Killed my Teenager’s Fancy College Dreams. You Should, Too.” It was on Slate a few weeks ago.
Warnick explains that she and her husband decided to “scare the hell out of [their daughter] about taking on student debt.” Their scare tactics worked, and their daughter—a current high school senior—has only applied to a few colleges she’s confident they can afford without taking on any debt.
One of my Five Foundations is to talk to your family about money, soon. And this family gives a fantastic example of why it’s important and how to actually do it. Let me highlight the things I especially love about Warnick’s approach.
