The following chart shows wage growth (or lack of) 60 months into the most recent economic “recovery”, which is at the lowest point since World War II. Furthermore, the employment situation is no more rosy: “The bottom line is, we’re a million miles from full employment,” said [David] Blanchflower, a Bank of England policy maker…
Guest Post: So You’re Gonna Be A College Freshman
About the author: Allie is starting her senior year at University of Arizona, which she selected after an intensive search for colleges in the Western U.S. with speech therapy and audiology programs. She graciously agreed to allow Creative Marbles to repost the following from her blog. This summer I worked at the College of Admissions at…
College Tuition Up 1225% Since 1978
As has been previously discussed, college tuition is increasing annually, and shows few signs of abating; however, at some point college education will be subject to the law of supply and demand. As demand for college education continues growing – seen in each year’s record numbers of applicants, with total student debt growing beyond the record breaking $1.2 Trillion mark…
College Worth vs. College Worthy
A single ‘C’ grade in a high school class is not the security guard blocking the door of admissions to college, nor is an middle-of-the-road SAT or ACT score the reason to abandon all college plans.
Ahead of the Curve: August 9, 2014
Inspired by CMC Clients: OMG College ESSAYS! College essays are often feared. Topic selection can confound students, who’re under the impression that a traumatic-dramatic-life-altering experience makes a compelling college essay. However, choosing the “perfect” topic is not necessary to begin writing. Simply start putting words on the page. Then, students will have some thoughts to edit and…
The Bill Always Comes Due
An unprecedented $1.2 trillion in student debt has grown exponentially in the last several generations, showing few signs of abating. In less than one generation, college graduates have tripled their debt burden. According to the Wall Street Journal, over 70% of the Class of 2014 will graduate college with an average of $33,000 in student…
Top 10 Questions NOT to Ask a High School Senior
Where are you applying to college? You must be excited to graduate high school, aren’t you? Isn’t senior year the best time of your life? What is your GPA? What are your SAT scores? Why do you want to apply there? (referring to a particular college) My son/daughter/nephew/co-worker’s daughter’s boyfriend’s cousin went to _____ (fill-in-the-blank…
The Anti-Helicopter Parent?
Presented without comment… Courtesy: The New Yorker Magazine
Summer Is Not a Time For Slacking Off or Is It?
Parents often wonder how kids can use summers to stay competitive for college admissions, and at the very least, not lose all their academic knowledge from the previous school year. On the other hand, kids are planning how late into the afternoon they’ll be able to sleep, how many Call of Duty levels they’ll be…
The Chronicles of Procrastination
Bravado When first given an assignment, especially a project due beyond the end of the week, we’re often overly confident that we’ll complete the assignment in stages, so there won’t be a last-minute-panic-tear-streaked-temper-tantrum-tazmanian-devil-whirling-dervish kind of effort in the 24 hours before the deadline. We pridefully chalk up previous “all-nighters”, as “all in the past”, determined…
Ahead of the Curve: July 5, 2014
Inspired by CMC Clients Advanced Placement (AP) Test Scores: Students often believe that a score of less than 3 will hurt their college admissions competitiveness. The belief is a myth. A student’s willingness to challenge themselves academically by taking AP classes and the tests will be considered by college officials in the admissions process. The score,…
Gotta Read ‘Em All
Let the summer reading games begin! In this corner, Whatever Novel that your kid does NOT want to read, but is required to read for Class X! In this corner, Kid + Team Distraction—Instagram, YouTube, XBOX, Hulu, Sleeping In…you get the picture. Additionally, parents may wonder if summer reading is a cruel revenge fantasy of…
Sometimes You Gotta Go Slow to Go Fast
Parents are often afraid that summer vacation will render their children’s minds into mush. Plus, the indulgence in what can be considered mindless activities, like playing video games, for hours on end is a seeming threat to a kid’s long term college admissions competitiveness. Realistically, most students brains, nor their chances for college admissions, were…
Guest Post: Follow Your Instinct to Choose a College
A second blog post from Stephanie about how the “feel” of the campus helped her choose a Mills College in Oakland, CA. I graduated last year (2013) with a BS in Biopsychology and minor in Ethnic Studies. I was originally interested in medicine, but discovered that I enjoyed laboratory work after doing research under scholarship for a…
A $60 Trillion Inheritance…in Debt
Wishing a better life for our children is normal. Actually setting aside our personal wants in favor of our children is more complicated in practice. The next generation will inherit a record $60 Trillion in total U.S. debt—government debt, business debt, mortgage debt and consumer debt. (See chart below) Furthermore, the growth of student loan…