Northwestern University includes one essay question as part of their Common Application Supplement. The question is designed to gain insight to the student’s interests and their potential match with Northwestern, which reads: What are the unique qualities of Northwestern – and of the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying – that make you…
Tag: College admissions
The (*$%^&@!) YOWCH of College Admissions
To the Senior and possibly their parents, who’ve been anxiously awaiting December 15th early admissions notification deadlines, checking their email every 30 seconds from midnight, a college admissions denial email can sound like: “We received a record number of blah, blah, blah–oh, my goodness, JUST TELL ME IF I’M IN OR NOT ALREADY–and while you’re,…
The Six Figure Cost of College: In Dollars & Sense
The words, “financial aid,” can send chills down any parent’s spine, as they wonder, “How in the (insert expletive) are they going to pay for college, without going bankrupt?” Many American families approach college, like other purchases in their lives–dream big and figure out how to pay later. Parents often believe, “If my kid…
Guest Post: The Savings for College Challenge, Part Three – How Much to Save in a 529
About the authors: For over 25 years, Cynthia S. Meyers, CFP®, MBA, has assisted people with their Lifetime Financial Planning–helping to build and preserve wealth in every area of life. Jenny Hood, CFP® has been a paraplanner with Cynthia S. Meyers for five years and enjoys being a part of the financial planning process. _____________…
“College Admissions Speculation”: Let the Comparisons Begin
Every Senior and his/her parents want to know, “Which college is going to accept me and which college is going to deny me?”—for although, the Senior and their parents, say out loud that college is about getting a good job, moving away from home etc, a college acceptance or denial also can feel—internally—like a validation…
Transfer Admissions from a California Community College: Bargain or Cost?
Several changes to California Community College policies in the current 2012-13 school year may affect the typical transfer student who chooses community college, by extending the total number of semesters before transfer to a 4 year university. The typical transfer student is usually qualified for 4 year college admissions, yet “doesn’t know what s/he wants…
‘Twas the Night Before Choosing A High School…When No Parent Could Sleep
“High School, already?!?” For middle school parents, who may be simultaneously lamenting their Tween no longer being a child, while anxious about sensing the beginning of “all things teenager”, they’re faced with seemingly complex decisions regarding high school. In my experience, many parents believe an acceptance into the “right” college and being prepared for said…
College Application Deadlines Making You Want to Scream?
Surviving the college application can test the patience and self-interests and emotional stamina and gumption and understanding and willingness of parents, as much as the Senior. Sometimes, of everyone in the family all at once. As a result, parents may find themselves thinking up choice names for Senior teachers over the past month and into December, as…
The Climb to the Summit is Always the Most Beautiful, Yet Dangerous
The University of California deadline comes to pass at Midnight (U.S) West Coast time, November 30. Plus, a number of highly selective private and flagship public colleges—notable names include the University of Southern California (USC)—have a deadline for Midnight Dec 1. Students and their families scurrying to complete applications within this backdrop are confronted with…
Things NOT to Say to (Or Do And Expect From) A High School Senior During the Holiday Break
Many seniors are in the midst of applying to college. What that may mean to an outsider is an opportunity to enter into a conversation, small talk or a polite (i.e. socially acceptable) inquiry; however, “So where are you applying to college?” may unwittingly trigger a frustrated response or terse answer. (Seniors often tell us that they…
“Test Optional” Doesn’t Mean “Less Than”
Some colleges across the United States do not require SAT or ACT scores to be submitted as part of their applications; in college admissions speak, this is known as a “Test Optional” policy. The thinking behind the option goes: an applicant is more than a test score gained from one 3 hour and 45 minute…
Editing College Essays Can Test Your Last Nerve
To the Senior (i.e. novice college essay author), the college essay editing process–especially when the editor is a third party–can be expletive provoking, feeling like a nit-picking critique of a final product spawned from a laborious drafting process, which can cause tension (or exacerbate it), and get on Senior’s last nerve. Seemingly “together” seniors…
The Deceptive (And Dreaded) Word Count
“I’m 225 words over the count”, “I can’t get all my ideas into the essay, because of the word count” and “You keep asking me to expand my thoughts! What about the word count?!?” are typical concerns we hear from students. Parents’ are equally attentive to the word count; often, their first question about…
Beware of the Pitfalls Inherent in Online College Applications
Online applications appear simple. Just create an account. Login. Sit down and fill in all the needed information at one time. Click submit. Done. Nope. Each online application has its own technical quirks, and of course 8 point font sized directions, that only the rare teenager will take the time to read. So, if you…
College Selection and Financial Aid in the Age of Rising College Tuition: Part Two
We continue our series on college selection and financial aid, by discussing the clash between the demand–and even right to attend college–and the dawning reality that rising tuitions (at a rate greater than inflation), alongside average student debt increasing at an unsustainable rate, are beginning to price some deserving candidates out of the college marketplace.…