A soon-to-be first year college student from the West Coast, reflects on her experience preparing to move to an East Coast college. Having attended high school in Reno, Nevada, I was influenced by peers who desired to attend college locally and many adults who graduated from the University of Reno, Nevada. I am one of…
College admissions officers are increasingly expecting students to use AI tools to help them write their college essays. However, students should use AI tools in addition to, not instead of, their own creativity and effort. Students can use AI tools to brainstorm ideas for essays. Students prompt AI responses with details about themselves and their…
Written by Padma Namgyal, a graduating high school senior musing about what’s yet to come. Waiting as I am in the trails of my eighteenth year. There is excitement shining like a gem but also a lot of fear… I tell myself to do my part. “You need to help out here!” But, when I…
Often, when asked, “Why do you want to attend college?” high schoolers reply, “To get a good paying job”, and implied in their statement, “to figure out who I am” (which typically emerges in subsequent interviews) while their parents nod and smile in agreement. So, I reflected on the change in view which also often…
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…
Gen Z and increasingly Millennials are disaffected. For many, the dystopian stories they consumed as kids, Percy Jackson & the Olympians, The Hunger Games, the Divergent series and the like, are now reality. Adherents of YOLO (You Only Live Once), Z’ers and Millennials often maintain a “winner take all and consequences be damned” attitude. Their…
For the first time in US history, the younger generation will not gain more wealth in their lifetime than their parents. As Scott Galloway points out, Millennials are the largest percentage of full time workers in the US, but economic growth has been slower than for their parents at the same age. Furthermore, Millennials hold…
There are three college admissions decisions: admit, deny, and the most confusing of all, Waitlist. Yet, students, choosing to remain on a waitlist by “opting-in” before the deadline posted in the admissions letter, should be sure they understand what the choice entails. First, understand there is no guarantee that any students will be considered for…
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…
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…
For at least one more application cycle, all Ivy League applicants will once again consider if they can demonstrate their aptitude with a standardized test score. Yale and Princeton admissions officers recently announced maintaining test optional admissions policies through Fall 2023, joining the rest of the Ivy League colleges, although with varying timeframes for the…
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…
Yes, students can edit/update/revise/rewrite the 650 word Common Application essay after submitting an application to one (or more) colleges, as was discussed last Fall 2020. Yet, once a 650 word Common Application essay is submitted, the copy is final for that college. A revised 650 word Common Application essay will only be reviewed by college…
As of December 16, 2021, Harvard is the latest college to join the chorus of admissions officers extending test optional/test-blind/test-free admissions policies for at least the next Fall 2023 application cycle and often beyond. (Longstanding Harvard Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons announced extending test-optional admissions policies for the next four years…
