Updated March 11, 2023 As of March 1, 2023, Columbia University admissions officers declared a permanent test-optional admissions policy for all first year applicants, starting with the Fall 2024 cycle. We have designed our application to afford the greatest possible opportunity and flexibility for students to represent themselves fully and showcase their academic talents, interests…
Students generally need to study two years of the same Language Other Than English (LOTE) in order to meet minimum college admissions eligibility standards. (The caveat is some colleges, like MIT, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, do not require LOTE courses for admissions eligibility.) So, families should check eligibility requirements for first year admissions at a…
Students often ask, “How many AP’s (Advanced Placement), IB’s (International Baccalaureate), Honors, and Dual Enrollment (taking community college courses while in high school) courses should I take?” with the “…so I can be accepted into a college of my choice” left unstated. In asking, families mistakenly prioritize competitiveness for college admissions over the interests and…
With self-reflection in conjunction with thorough research of each college, families can conscientiously select a campus where a student is most likely to discover even more about their aptitude as well as fits the budget of the family, reducing the risk of malinvestment. First, students should reflect on their ideal college experience, both socially and academically,…
In the seeming neverending quest for college admissions, Juniors (and parents) fret over taking or not taking the SAT or ACT, wondering if the test score (or absence of) will be a strategic blunder, as in the reason for being denied admissions. However, with guidance, students and their families can reason a choice without reducing…
Parents and students are often confused about how to choose a summer program, especially when a simple Google search merits hundreds of choices. Yet, with reflection, focused on the student’s needs, families can choose more effectively. First, students can develop their own projects, recruiting mentors to explore their interests, all from home, saving money, while…
Many parents believe the greatest hurdle to applying for college scholarships is finding scholarships. Nope. Not by a longshot. For many seniors, the motivation to write one more autobiographical essay for a scholarship application is the largest impediment. For one, many are depleted of energy after writing a dozen (or more) college essays over the…
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 admissions by the November 1, 2022 Early Action deadline, which was also the deadline for…
In the next few weeks, students who applied early admissions, both Early Action and Early Decision, will be: Admitted, Denied, or Deferred to the Regular Decision pool. Yet, in Teenager the three admissions responses (respectively) translate to: Validated (or Vindicated), Rejected and In-Between rejected but not a rejection. For students (and sometimes parents), the admissions…
To borrow the immortal words of Thomas Jefferson, “Prudence, indeed, will dictate…” any student’s choice to share their personal COVID-colored experiences. In an informal query of admissions officers around the United States from highly selective to not-so-selective universities, the consensus is be judicious, if choosing to share a COVID-related experience. Most admissions officers advise students…
Serving others, suppressing our innate self-centered human tendency, can be a valuable lesson in generosity, the equanimity of humanity, and even in reverse, a confidence in oneself as a valuable member of society. In the race for the most elite college admissions, often many students have added (or been compelled by assignment and the chase…
Teenagers are often inexperienced in self-reflection, thus lacking awareness about the meaning of their young lives, as well as confidence to assert what they do know about themselves. Thus, in college essays, many obscure awareness in metaphor, which not only exposes their lack of confidence, but also forces the admissions evaluator to infer (at best),…
Asking for any help requires confidence. And, when asking for letters of recommendation, students must trust that the teachers and counselor will add dimension to their carefully curated application, including a resume of activities developed over years and autobiographical essays drafted over many hours. Thus, when students are required to fill out multi-page packets detailing…
The annual Fall 2022 PSAT is scheduled for either Wednesday, October 12, 2022, or Saturday, October 15, 2022. Taking the PSAT is an opportunity for all high school students to practice for SAT’s or ACT’s (should they seek to take tests for their college applications given widespread test-optional policies), as well as a qualifying exam…
Applying to college is confusing enough, as a teenager pauses to reflect on their young life to date in order to enter adulthood with an understanding of themselves. Then, in determining when to apply, applicants can only add confusion. So, to dispel urban legend about Early Admissions, I’ll explain Early Action, Early Decision and differences…
