Gaming College Admissions?

Nervous anticipation arising from predicting who’s going to get into which college doesn’t only affect Seniors, community college transfer students and their parents.  The sense of foreboding can extend to parents of middle school age students, who are thinking backwards to choose a high school that seems more advantageous to meriting the college acceptances they…

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Does My Kid Have Even the Slightest Chance to Get Accepted?

At this time of year, about one to two months from the first college application deadlines, parents’ and high school seniors’ concern about outcome of submitting college apps, is usually concluded by, “I’m never going to get in, ANYWHERE!”  The lack of a straightforward, formulaic standard about who will or will not be accepted at a college can send normally…

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Sigh of Relief for Parents: CA Passed an Online “Eraser” Law

The California Legislature and Governor Jerry Brown recently enacted the Online “Eraser” Law.  Good news for parents concerned about social media’s impact on their children’s possible college admissions and future employment.  Starting in 2015, teenagers will be able to request photos of embarrassing or otherwise youthful indiscretions be deleted by online providers.  (The caveat: anyone…

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College Admissions Can Seemingly Provoke More Questions Than Answers

Questions abound when parents and students are moving through the college admissions process, especially when everyone has a story to tell about who got in where and the media reports the falling admit rates at selective universities around the country, as well as annually rising college tuition and increasing average student loan amounts.   A…

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Salary: Only One Measure of A College’s Worth

“To get a good job,” is an oft heard reason why a student is headed to college, usually stated while their parents nod vigorously in the background.  A recent New York Times article–New Metric for Colleges: Graduates’ Salaries–discusses the merits of using a college graduate’s average earnings as a measure of a campus’ value, which…

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Common Application Essays Part 3: Defining Prompt 1

Generally, college admissions officers are seeking greater insight and knowledge of the student from the college essay. Our most recent podcast defining the first essay question of the new Common Application essays (which is listed below) can help Seniors begin uncovering the meaning or significance of their life experience in drafting their college essays. Some…

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More College Admissions 101

Additional insights to answer the complex questions Hewlett Packard employees asked during our second College Admissions and Financial Aid Brown Bag Lunch, since we were limited in our discussion time last week.  Each topic is bolded, with the details listed below: College Application Essays The autobiographical college application essays are a meaningful part of any…

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Private Universities May Not Cost More Than A Public University, In the Final Analysis

Dismissing a college based only on cost, as many families tend to do when considering private universities, may overlook a valuable choice for an individual student.  The following podcast discusses how to “value” a public university in relation to a private university, as well as offers tips for planning for future college expenses. For more…

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