Satisfaction

As the legendary Mick Jagger belted, “I ain’t got no…sa-tis-fac-tion.”  Mick’s words of wisdom can apply to many high school seniors and their families as the college decision making season descends.   Robert Barkley via Rick Clark, seasoned Director of Admissions at Georgia Tech, is confronting the possibility for dissatisfaction regarding outcomes in the expectation laden…

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Emotions + Expectations + Misguided Direction (can) = Malinvestment in College

Spring of senior year is a critical time in the college admissions process, in some sense, more pivotal than the application period, for a strategic blunder can be costly: misallocating 17 years of preparation for higher education, malinvestment of tens of thousands of dollars in tuition, and economic malaise that could last a lifetime.  Seniors…

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UC Berkeley Fall 2022 Admissions Preserved

On Monday, March 14, California State legislators along with Governor Gavin Newsom, ratified legislation amending the California Environmental Quality Act, so UC Berkeley (Cal) admissions officials will not need to reduce Fall 2022 enrollment for first year, transfer, or graduate students, as previously predicted.  As a result, UC Berkeley officials will no longer encourage 1000…

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The High School Course Selection Dilemma

Choosing classes for the upcoming high school year is often fraught with questions, typically prioritizing how to meet and exceed the college admissions eligibility requirements:  What’s the “right” number of Advanced Placement (AP), Honors and/or dual enrollment community college courses during one year to be competitive for college admissions? How do I balance managing the…

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Fall 2022 Admissions Reductions for UC Berkeley Applicants

On Friday, March 4, 2022, University of California, Berkeley admissions officers revised earlier estimates about reductions in enrollment from over 3000 students to 400 for Fall 2022, forecasting that most of the drop will impact graduate applicants. On March 3, 2022, the California Supreme Court did not grant a stay in the lower Superior Court’s…

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Advice about Test Optional/Test Free/Test Blind Admissions Policies

With test optional/test free/test blind admissions policies, applicants (and their families) are empowered with choice how to present a student’s unique qualifications for admissions. Yet, like with any choice, being informed to choose responsibly is essential.  First, as previously posted in What’s the difference between Test-Optional, Test-Blind, and Test-Free College Admissions Policies?, students must understand…

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The Extra Bonus of the Student Loan Repayment Pause through May 1, 2022

Since March 2020 and extending through May 1, 2022, payments and interest on all Federal education loans, both student loans and Parent PLUS loans have been suspended as parts of various COVID-related economic relief policies. Borrowers have not been obligated to send payments, and for anyone already behind in their payments, no additional penalties have…

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Panic in California

Many Fall 2022 applicants to the University of California Berkeley (Cal) received an unexpected Valentine’s Day greeting—an email announcement that by court order, up to 5100 less acceptance letters may be issued for Fall 2022.  Olufemi Ogundele, associate vice chancellor of enrollment management and dean of undergraduate admissions at UC Berkeley writes:  On Thursday, Feb.…

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More About College Admissions Decisions

Welcome to The Big Wait, the post-application period, with nothing to do but check applicant portals and wait for admissions officers to respond. High school students (some transfer admissions candidates too), anxious to “get done” with applications in the fall, expect to relax during the winter months, as “there’s no more college essays to stress…

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Reason #45,693 Why College Applicant Portals Are Important

The applicant portal is an online dashboard assigned to students by each college’s admissions officers to track their application, be notified of any missing information, possibly alerted to scholarships as well as likely most important to students: receive admissions decisions.  Typically, admissions decisions are sent through the applicant portals or email, fewer admissions officers send…

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What comes after the COVID Pandemic

Often, through these past 24 months living a thoroughly disrupted modern life, retreating from large gatherings, trying to avoid the infection of a floating piece of RNA, we have glimpsed imperfect awareness in quiet moments, comparing life: pre-COVID and now during COVID, while impatiently anticipating post-COVID life, like wishing the microwave was faster.  And, those…

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What’s an Applicant Portal for college applicants?

Many college applicants think they’re done with applications once they click, “Submit”, but they’re not. Nearly every university’s admissions officers send an online applicant portal, which is multifunctional, where students can:  Admissions officers email the applicant portal website and temporary login information, typically within 7-10 business days after submitting applications. Some college admissions officers may…

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Failure (in college admissions) is not supposed to be an option

Students applying to college worry about being denied admissions, a seeming failure at the end of a twelve year long competition in the modern academic meritocracy. They’re frustrated that no guarantees exist, despite being taught that everyone has equal opportunity to compete in the modern academic meritocracy.  As Michael J. Sandel, Harvard professor, argues in…

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

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. Will the remainder of the Ivy League follow Cornell’s lead, extending test-optional policies for another…

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