Debate, questioning, argument are central to education. From Aristotle to John Dewey, educational theorists and teachers have long touted the benefits resulting from the meaningful dialogue, including a spectrum of viewpoints. Yet, given today’s increasingly polarized society, educators, like Dr. John Etchemendy former provost of Stanford University, are making public declarations warning, beseeching students, faculty and…
Tag: Private colleges
University of California Admissions Decisions Timetable 2017
In the post-college application response period, high school seniors are eagerly (sometimes anxiously) anticipating admissions decisions from colleges. The University of California campuses will be returning Freshman admissions decisions along the following schedule: Limited Release Mid-February & Late March UC Irvine UC Berkeley Early March UC Merced UC Riverside Mid-March UC Davis UC San…
Changes to Common Application Essay Prompts for 2017-18
The Common Application members have changed the prompts for current juniors in the Class of 2018, who will become college applicants in Fall 2017. The word count remains unchanged at a maximum of 650 words. Applicants will still be required to only choose one of the seven prompts listed below. The Common Application administrators have…
Grammar Shmammer
The rules of grammar can be annoying, especially when an English paper is “bleeding” with red ink marks, noting every single punctuation and grammar error. However, the purpose for grammar, which is to articulate the author’s ideas clearly to the reader, can get lost in trying to follow the rules of grammar. To help all the college…
Selfish Caring
Not a day goes by, when I don’t hear from a concerned parent that their kid isn’t doing enough community service. The unsaid part of the concern is “not enough for a competitive college admissions resume.” Although community service IS recalled in college applications and can matter in demonstrating the interest and commitment of an…
FAFSA Changes Release Date
The FAFSA or Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the government form required to apply for financial aid at any U.S. college or university, will be released on October 1, 2016. The October date is a full three months earlier than previous years, when the FAFSA was released on January 1. What the earlier release…
Guest Post: A First Year Reflection
About the author: Born and raised in Northern California, now studying at New York University, Daniel is majoring in Business with a concentration in Accounting and Information Systems with a Minor in Computer Science and Mathematics. After gaining three job opportunities and extensively volunteering in Brooklyn over the past year, here is Daniel’s reflection of his…
“I Have Student Debt?”
[Sung to the tune of Heigh Ho from Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs] “I owe, I owe, so off to work I go…” Even though I remember singing this refrain in jest, Millennials, the current generation between age 18 – 35 , may not be so light-hearted. According to Bloomberg News in April 2016: A…
And, You Thought College Tuition Was Expensive…
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute shows that in multiple states, childcare expenses are greater than college tuition…
Mind the Gap
Malia Obama recently became a famous representative of a Millennial trend, The Gap Year. Defined as a “year-off” between high school and starting college, most “Gap Year-ians” aren’t just loafing around, playing video games and drinking Bobo teas all day. For a generation raised on scheduled play-dates, year-round athletics, and regimented community service activities, the…
“I Forgot My Calculator for the ACT!”
About the author: I’m Karli Ching and I graduated with C.K. McClatchy High School’s Class of 2015. I attend University of California, Davis as a biological sciences major pre-med student. ____________________________________________________ When I was taking the ACT for the second time during my senior year in October, I was taking it to improve my math score…
The Middle Class Squeeze
In the last several years, our middle class clients are being confronted by flattening incomes and college costs that have risen over 1000%. More and more families are finding themselves not only planning to pay for college when their children are quite young, but asking for more financial assistance when their children are ready to…
University of California Flagship Cuts Staff
The stress from the continuous reduction in state funding over the last decade has finally come to the University of California’s flagship campus, Cal Berkeley. The Washington Post reported on April 13: a workforce reduction of about 6 percent that comes as the prestigious public flagship is moving to erase a large budget deficit. In…
Depth Over Breadth?
“Well-lopsided” is the new catchphrase in college admissions. In CMC’s recent conversation with an Ivy League admissions officer, she mentioned that the trend for applicants are either well-rounded, with depth in each activity or well-lopsided—which means if applicants are going to focus on one activity, like a sport, Olympic training should be in view for such a candidate. In…
The University of California Unveiled Brand New Application Essay Prompts
In Fall 2016, both freshman and transfer applicants to the University of California (UC) will choose from brand new writing prompts when composing the required personal application statements. After ten years, the UC has retired their previous two essay prompts. With annually record-breaking numbers of applicants—which increases the selectivity in admissions—admissions officers are seeking a fuller understanding…