RECENT POSTS

The Spring Reality of Early Admissions: Juniors Beware

For high school juniors steadying themselves for The College Application Gauntlet, seeking any seeming advantage in the quest for an…
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The Spring Reality of Early Admissions: Juniors Beware

College Admissions Decisions & Enrollment FAQs

When do I need to respond to a university about my Fall 2023 admissions? May 1, 2023 is the general…
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College Admissions Decisions & Enrollment FAQs

Choose a College Wisely 

Often families mistake college affordability as “lowest price”, yet few consider the potential opportunity costs of an (un)realized genius. Thus,…
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Choose a College Wisely 

Waitlisted, Not Denied

Few applicants expect to be waitlisted—not admitted, not denied, but may be considered for admissions after May 1. The disappointment…
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Waitlisted, Not Denied

College Acceptances Are Conditional

In Spring, Seniors can experience “Senioritis”, needing more effort to complete everyday homework, while coping with anxiety of waiting for…
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College Acceptances Are Conditional

Columbia First Ivy League College to Permanently Implement Test Optional Admissions

Updated March 11, 2023 As of March 1, 2023, Columbia University admissions officers declared a permanent test-optional admissions policy for…
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Columbia First Ivy League College to  Permanently Implement Test Optional Admissions

How Many Years of Language Other Than English (LOTE) Should I Take?

Students generally need to study two years of the same Language Other Than English (LOTE) in order to meet minimum…
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How Many Years of Language Other Than English (LOTE) Should I Take?

Advice when Choosing AP’s, IB’s, Honors and Dual Enrollment Courses

Students often ask, “How many AP’s (Advanced Placement), IB’s (International Baccalaureate), Honors, and Dual Enrollment (taking community college courses while…
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Advice when Choosing AP’s, IB’s, Honors and Dual Enrollment Courses

Tips for Researching Colleges Whether Virtual or In Person

With self-reflection in conjunction with thorough research of each college, families can conscientiously select a campus where a student is most…
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Tips for Researching Colleges Whether Virtual or In Person

Should I Take the SAT or ACT for Fall 2024 Admissions?

In the seeming neverending quest for college admissions, Juniors (and parents) fret over taking or not taking the SAT or…
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Should I Take the SAT or ACT for Fall 2024 Admissions?

POPULAR POSTS

All Ivy League Colleges Are Test Optional for Fall 2022

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / February 14, 2021 / 0 Comments
Since every Ivy League college—Yale, Princeton, Harvard, Brown, Columbia, Barnard*, Dartmouth, University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell—extended their test-optional policies to include Fall 2022 admissions, current high school Class of 2022 juniors will not be obligated to submit SAT or ACT…
Comedy: Being On Time

College Application Deadlines & Time Zones

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / December 14, 2020 / 0 Comments
Although college applications are technically due at 11:59 pm on the deadline day, “11:59 pm” might be hours earlier or later than the time zone where the applicant lives, depending on the admissions policies of the college. Thus, applicants should…

University of Southern California’s First Early Action Results

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / January 24, 2023 / 0 Comments
On Friday, January 20, 2023, according to a newsletter sent to counselors, the University of Southern California (USC) admissions officers admitted its first ever class of approximately 2400 Early Action candidates, a 5.9% admit rate.  40,600 first year applicants requested…
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FAQ about Eligibility in the Local Context (ELC) for the University of California (UC)

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / June 12, 2022 / 0 Comments
Each spring, California high school juniors, who are likely within the top 20% academically in their class, are invited to submit their official high school transcripts to the University of California (UC) for their potential Eligibility in the Local Context…

Will the Entire Ivy League be Test Optional for Fall 2023 Admissions?

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / January 18, 2022 / 0 Comments
Updated: March 23, 2022 In September 2021, Cornell University, one of the eight Ivy League colleges, announced the continuation of their test-optional/test-free admissions policy for Fall 2023 and 2024 first year admissions, affecting current Class of 2023 high school Juniors….
Common App

Can I change my 650 word Common Application Essay After Submitting It Once? Take Two

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / December 20, 2021 / 0 Comments
Yes, students can edit/update/revise/rewrite the 650 word Common Application essay after submitting an application to one (or more) colleges, as was discussed last Fall 2020.  Yet, once a 650 word Common Application essay is submitted, the copy is final for…

AP Exam Scores Challenged

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / July 29, 2020 / 0 Comments
After students received their May 2020 Advanced Placement (AP) scores in mid-July 2020, many were distressed to earn scores less than expected, and now, with their parents’ support, are appealing their scores. Student’s disappointment about their scores simply compounds an…

All Ivy League Colleges Extend Test Optional Admissions for Fall 2023…and for a few, beyond 2023

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / February 17, 2022 / 0 Comments
For at least one more application cycle, all Ivy League applicants will once again consider if they can demonstrate their aptitude with a standardized test score. Yale and Princeton admissions officers recently announced maintaining test optional admissions policies through Fall…
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Can I Change My 650 Word Common Application Essay After Submitting It?

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / November 8, 2020 / 0 Comments
Updated: November 2020 from the original posted in July 2018 The short answer is yes…with an *.  [See Below] But, like any life-impacting decision, the short answer doesn’t account for the complexities of choosing a college.  And, the last three…

Common Application Prompts to Change for Fall 2022 Admissions

By Jill Yoshikawa, Ed M, Partner of Creative Marbles Consultancy / March 3, 2021 / 0 Comments
A new 650 word Common Application (bolded in the list below) essay prompt is being added for Fall 2022 admissions, as a replacement for one prompt being “retired”.  Regardless of any prompt chosen, I recommend to avoid approaching the college…

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Creative Marbles Consultancy is client centered. We listen before defining solutions to meet the clients’ individual needs. Clients count on our objectivity, decades of experience and timeliness in answering a variety of complex educational questions.

CMC'S HISTORY

The idea for CMC began percolating 25 years ago when Art first began his decade-long teaching career. His classroom experiences through the years taught him that academic success comes from an entire community’s collective efforts. 19 years go, Jill, a Harvard-trained educator with the theoretical understanding of Art’s veteran-earned knowledge, and Art met as teachers. A two-year brainstorming process began to manifest Art’s vision of an innovative, collaborative educational company that advised the entire family, as well as all community stakeholders. The culmination of their efforts was the establishment of CMC in 2003

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