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Two breezy and informative books you’ll find valuable as your family moves through the college search.
*The Neurotic Parent’s Guide to College Admissions by Rothman (published by Prospect Park).
spoiler alert: Families do actually survive the college search hysteria, the young people find colleges and many graduate eventually.
hard to miss: Rothman is right; it does seem that each successive year is the “most competitive year ever” for getting into college. Colleges are awash in applications. Part of it is structural with the exploding use of common application, filing electronically and application fee waivers. Part of it is social, we no longer legally exclude segments of the student population from access to college. Part of it is economic, fewer jobs are open to applicants who have not completed college.
unspoken message: Much of the college search is a quest by families to find the “magic button”, the simple answer. AP vs. IB? SAT vs. ACT? Summer internship vs. hanging out? Should I hire an independent consultant?
never mentioned: Most college students today will live into their 80s, work into their 70s, and change jobs & even careers many times.
I knew it all along: Rothman points out with pride that her son got into a “top ten college.” Hmmm. So much for the book that purportedly offers an iconoclastic view that spoofs the college search name game.
*College Success Guaranteed: 5 rules to make it happen by Gauld (published by Rowan & Little).
take away:”College is a job, not high school without rules.”
never stated but hard to miss: Most college students do not complete their degree in four years. In fact, about 1/4 will drop out and more than 55% will take as much as six years to graduate.
Gauld’s simple solution? The 168-12-15-15=126 formula.
168=number of hours in a week.
12=take four classes each semester and each meets for about 3 hours a week. Go to class.
15=spend three hours a day for five days a week on class work. Do the work.
15=spend 2.5 hours a day for six days a week on something else; club? athletic team? Get involved.
126= the remaining hours in a week you can use as you wish. How hard can that be?
Next blog posting? The campus visit; before, during and after.
David W. Clark, Ed.M., is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. He is a graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
Independent college admission consultants; the educated consumer has spoken.
Did you know that 26% of high-achieving students hired an independent educational consultant to assist in the college search? (source: 2009 independent survey conducted by Lipman-Hearne, a marketing & communications firm).
Digging a bit deeper into the data reveals this interesting nugget: The 1264 students surveyed stated that the consultant was most often “NOT part of the final enrollment decision”, but played an important part in constructing a personalized working list of colleges for application. Mark Sklarow, executive director of the Independent Educational Consultants Association of Fairfax, Virginia puts it this way, “the consultant acts as a coach and advisor, not the decision-maker.”
What is an independent admission consultant? By definition, an independent consultant is not affiliated with a secondary school, public or independent and does not accept referral fees from a post-secondary school/college/university.
So how, exactly, does an independent consultant work? The typical independent consultant:
- provides about ten hours of one-on-on-one contact time per student throughout the college search process
- has a client load of as few as six students at a time
- charges an inclusive flat fee for a package that covers as much as three – four years of coaching and support all the way to enrollment in college. Fees vary but expect an average all-inclusive fee of about $3,000 in the northeast.
It is clear that working with an independent consultant offers individualized support throughout the entire search process. Some students may not need that level of contact. However, families who have tried independent consultants find that:
- the independent consultant is more comfortable suggesting non-traditional alternatives when appropriate. For example a survey done by Public Agenda found out-of-state colleges and non-traditional options such as a “PG” year or “Gap” year are more likely to be suggested by an independent consultant as compared to a traditional school-based counselor
- the college search process brings anxiety into an already stressful family time; developmentally the teenager is pushing away at the same time that the family is facing a significant financial commitment. A qualified professional resource is a huge help.
The field of independent college admission consulting is not without controversy and independent consulting is an unregulated field. The IECA has attempted to introduce a level of professionalism but 80% of independent consultants are not members. Awkward ethics questions persist. For example, when consultants who complete an online “certificate “(a piece of paper at completion) program advertise themselves as “certified” (a legal designation administered by each state’s Department of Education) in college admission consulting. My suggestion to an interested family is to approach your decision much like you would any other consumer choice. That is, interview more than one independent consultant and clarify fees and services before making a decision.
Clearly, the marketplace has spoken. Independent consultants offer a service that families can get for free in school, yet for many people hiring an independent consultant is now seen as a cost of the college search process; an investment in the future.
Next blog posting? Great readings to help your family with the college search.
Ask for details of this upcoming College Search Now workshop:
- April 19: “TAKE THE MYSTERY OUT OF HOW EVERY COLLEGE ADMISSION OFICE MAKES ITS DECISION”
David W. Clark, Ed.M., is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. He is a graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
International Baccalaureate, a new game in town.
The number of high schools in the United States, both independent schools and schools in the public sector, which offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (I.B.) has tripled in the past decade, and shows no sign of slowing down. More than 750 high schools offer the I.B. diploma; so what, exactly, is all the excitement about?
It is hard to argue with the attraction to students of a school program has high expectations for academic rigor, makes extensive use of interdisciplinary instruction and as does it all in a way that forces each student to refine both writing skill and research practice. The American education “consumer” sees the mediocre performance of our schools when compared to other countries across the globe and becomes intrigued by this program that describes its mission, in part, to “develop internationally minded people.”
The I.B. diploma program is in clear contrast to the “factory” model of education used in America in which the curriculum is rigid and little attention is given to higher order thinking skills. I.B. offers high school juniors and seniors six distinct content components to its curriculum united by a Theory of Knowledge seminar and a required research Extended Essay. Interestingly, a major proportion of student work and teacher practice in the six content components is assessed by regional examiners from outside the school and trained by I.B.
I.B. is an international program based in Switzerland and schools anywhere must go through a detailed and rigorous application process in order to be allowed to offer the program. Thankfully, the demands of that process creates a certain scarcity. For example, where I live in the Philadelphia area, there are less six schools offering I.B. in the entire five county metropolitan region.
The rigor of the program is supported by extensive research including one study done recently at Virginia Tech comparing college GPA over time of A.P. students, non-IB students and I.B. students. The study concluded that “I.B. students consistently showed higher performance.”
Worried about how a college admission committee will view an application from an applicant with an I.B. diploma rather than a traditional diploma? Don’t be. The I.B. diploma has a clear “brand” that is seen as “the gold standard of high school curriculum in college admissions circles” (EDUCATION W EEK, March 2006).
If the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (I.B.) is available in your community it makes sense for you to do a bit of research.
Next blog posting? Independent college admission consultants, the marketplace has spoken.
Ask for details of these upcoming College Search Now WORKSHOPS:
- March 20: “ALL YOUR COLLEGE PLANNING NEEDS”
- April 19: “TAKE THE MYSTERY OUT OF HOW EVERY COLLEGE ADMISSION OFICE MAKES ITS DECISION”
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
Advanced Placement courses, do they help?
Advanced Placement has become an important brand in the in the world of admission to America’s elite colleges. Initiated after WW II by Ford Foundation grant, working with a small group of prestigious eastern independent schools and private colleges, today more than one million high school students each year participate in a program directed by the College Board.
The idea behind the Advanced Placement program is that high school students complete college level work. Uniform content is prescribed by the College Board wherever Advanced Placement is taught and the classroom teacher must go through College Board screening.
High school students in public or independent school may make use of the Advanced Placement program in two ways. First; it is inevitably the most demanding academic level taught in American high schools. Interestingly enough, recent research shows that in low performing high schools the implementation of an Advanced Placement program has the effect of increasing rigor at all academic levels. Whatever the subject studied, the high school student who takes an Advanced Placement class will be assured high academic expectations.
Second, many colleges will grant academic credit if a student successfully completes the nationwide A.P. subject testing given each May. More than one million high school students take the Advanced Placement tests held in the spring in more than two dozen subject areas. For all families the lure of possibly reducing college costs is very attractive.
Recently the Advanced Placement program has become caught up our national obsession with the quality of public schools. Many media outlets now “rate” high schools, and school wide participation in Advanced Placement classes is the key measurement. As the annual rejection rate of America’s elite colleges consistently approaches 90%, the completion of as many Advanced Placement classes as possible has become part of the college admissions “arms race” for many candidates.
There is no question that taking an Advanced Placement class in a subject that interests you is a good idea. It is, after all, a brand that is recognizable to every college admission office.
Next blog posting? International Baccalaureate, a new game in town.
Ask for details about three upcoming workshops:
- February 21 & March 20: “ALL YOUR COLLEGE PLANNING NEEDS”
- April 19: “TAKE THE MYSTERY OUT OF HOW EVERY COLLEGE ADMISSION OFICE MAKES ITS DECISION”
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
SAT vs. ACT, which is better for you?
At one time the ACT did a better job of reflecting the ability of good writers, but since SAT added the writing component in 2005 that difference has been neutralized. The ACT sub-tests are longer but at the end of the day both are arduous and require a commitment of more than four hours. Regional differences that found students in the middle of the country taking the ACT, but most others taking the SATs, have become blurred and most colleges throughout the country will accept either.
| SAT |
|
ACT |
|
Once Scholastic Aptitude Test then Scholastic Assessment Test but now just SAT
|
Name? |
American College Testing
|
| More than 2 million annually |
How many take it? |
Approximately 1.5 million annually |
More than four hours
(3 hours, 20 minutes of actual test time) |
How long does it take? |
More than four hours
(2 hours 55 minutes of actual test time) |
| Math, Critical Reading, Writing |
What are the sub-sections? |
English, Math, Reading, Science |
| 800 |
Maximum score |
36 |
| 500 |
Average score |
22 |
| PSAT |
Practice test earlier in high school? |
PLAN |
| Spring of junior year |
Best time to first take it? |
Spring of junior year |
| Twice |
How many times should I take it? |
Twice |
In either case, practice, practice, practice. For starters, take the PLAN or the PSAT in the fall of your sophomore year. Take a hard look at the results that will come back to you before the holidays. In each case your scores will be a rough guide as to how you might do on the SAT or ACT when you take it in your junior year.
Disappointed with your scores? Buy a book (Barron’s? Princeton Review?) then use it; how about one chapter every two weeks? Consider hiring a test prep tutor for one-on-one work or taking a test prep course. There is plenty of time.
Next blog posting? Advanced Placement courses; do they help?
My next workshop? Ask for details about my upcoming workshop, “Take the mystery out of how every college admission office makes its decision.”
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
There are excellent books easily available, and very readable, that can be of great help to students and parents preparing for the college search process.
Looking for something that de-mystifies what can appear to be an “us versus them” process? Consider:
- THE PRICE OF ADMISSION (Crown) by Daniel Golden, a former columnist for the “Wall Street Journal.” Written in a direct journalistic style, THE PRICE OF ADMISSION asks, in a sense, “does the emperor have no clothes?” about topics many colleges probably would prefer he not make public.
- CRAZY ‘U’ (Simon & Schuster) by Andrew Ferguson, also a journalist. The humor and feeling Ferguson brings to this detailed account of going through the college search process with his son is a nice antidote to self-serving “how to “books from inside the college admission profession.
Prefer just the facts, presented in a straight-forward, chronological format? Be sure to look at:
- COLLEGE ADMISSION, STEP-BY-STEP (Three Rivers) by Mamlet and VandeVelde. Nothing more than readable FAQs by two college admission insiders but an excellent source of procedural detail that any college applicant may encounter.
- THE TRUTH ABOUT GETTING IN (Hyperion) by Katherine Cohen. Written by a prominent independent consultant, her results-oriented approach can make compelling reading.
Want to step back from the detail and take a more broad-based, long-term view of the college search? Run, don’t walk, to your local bookstore to pick up:
- YOU MAJORED IN WHAT? (Viking) by Katharine Brooks. It is hard to disagree with her thesis that what you get out of your college education is more important than where you go to college.
- COLLEGES THAT CHANGE LIVES (Penguin) by Loren Pope. This college admission “insider” suggests that the college that is the best match for you may be one of which you have never heard.
Next blog posting? ACT or SAT, which is better for you?
My next workshop? Ask for details about my upcoming workshop, “Take the mystery out of how every college admission office makes its decision.”
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
College planning for high school juniors, it is time to turn it up a notch.
A high school junior thinking of college has appropriately kept his/her focus narrow; taking the most challenging academic courses and finding a level of success. But the fall of the junior year is when the college search process needs to become more detailed and more comprehensive.
Your most highly scrutinized academic year will be from the beginning of the junior year to the middle of the senior year. Remember, the most important factor in a college admissions committee’s decision is the quality of your academic program. That does not mean take nothing but AP classes, but it does mean that you should be taking the most challenging academic program appropriate for you.
There is no need to take the SATs or the ACTs until the spring but there is plenty you can do to prepare so that you will do your best. Be sure to take the PSATs (the PLAN test for the ACT) in October. Either serves as excellent” practice” and the results (available in December) can be a benchmark for future planning. Disappointed in the results? You should consider working with a test prep tutor; many other students will consider that option, as well.
Whether it be a campus drive-through, an informal lunch at the Student Union or a scheduled campus tour, now is an excellent time to visit colleges that may interest you. How to decide which schools to visit? Try the “College Matchmaker” questions at Collegeboard.org to get you started.
The time between the end of the junior year and the beginning of the senior year is a powerful untapped resource that can strengthen an application. (see my recent blog # 14). Start researching and planning now and it could be of tremendous help to you in making your application stand out.
Does this all raise the level of stress for you and your family? Consider working with an independent college admission consultant. The families of more than 26% of college bound high school students do already.
Next blog posting? Helpful (I mean it) readings on the college search process.
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
Business major or liberal arts major? Which is best for you?
Fact: A college degree is becoming the minimum qualification in the job marketplace.
Fact: College majors which offer a short–term link to the job marketplace (example: Business) are more popular than liberal arts degrees (example: Political Science).
Fact: A recent management study indicated that liberal arts majors are more likely to be promoted than business majors.
So why is it that undergraduates with majors in the liberal arts majors may flourish in the job marketplace more than those Business majors who appear to have more marketable skills? Employers agree that essential workplace skills such as speaking well, writing clearly and using higher order thinking skills are actually more rare today, and thus, more valuable.
If Business is the default major is that degree less valuable? Regardless of the undergraduate major, prospective employers want to know if an applicant is accustomed to using critical thinking skills. Is a Political Science major who wrestled with Hobbes’ LEVIATHAN in an 8:30am sophomore year class better prepared to write, speak and think in a rapidly changing work environment?
Fact: Most college students today will live into their 80s, work into their 70s and change careers several times.
Fact: A recent survey of the CEOs of the Fortune 500 companies found that more had an undergraduate major in the liberal arts than in Business.
Next blog posting? College planning for juniors; time to step it up a notch.
Mark your calendar: For a student entering his/her senior year in high school.
What? College Application Camp
When? September 17 & 24, 9:00am-3:00pm each day.
Benefit? Personalized planning timeline, help with SAT prep & required application essays, comprehensive college application strategy.
Questions? Call me at 610-304-7119 or email me at david@collegesearchnow.net
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty-five years. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
Using the summer to make your application stand out.
You may want to take a different view of how to use the time in the summer between the end of one school year and the beginning of the next. Summer is an excellent time to follow an interest or passion and strengthen your resume, i.e. your college application. Church youth group mission trip? Tutoring underserved middle school children?
Vacation time, properly used, can be a time for fun, which will also be rewarding. Who knows, maybe you’ll find something which, later in your high school experience, will help your college application stand apart from the competition..
No opportunity really jumps out at you? Working at the Dairy Queen seem not that bad after all? Consider an on-campus program at a college/university. Some time ago colleges realized that rather than leave beautiful facilities vacant in the summer, revenue could be generated and now the variety of programs available is extensive. Foreign language immersion? Model UN with a renowned International relations professor? Soccer camp with the coach of a Division One program?
Another possibility could be the summer programs offered by elite New England independent boarding schools such as Northfield Mount Hermon and Phillips Andover. They each offer demanding college level work in six week on-campus programs. It may be possible to experience campus life and pursue an interest at a high level in a way that catches the attention of a college admissions committee.
Next blog posting? Business major or Liberal Arts major? Which is best for you?
Mark your calendar. For a student entering his/her senior year in high school who has done little to initiate the college search process:
What? College Application Camp
When? Two separate sessions; August 17 & 18 or September 17 & 24.
Want to learn more? Call me at College Search Now at 610-304-7119 or email me at david@collegesearchnow.net.
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty–five years. He and his wife recently successfully completed the college search process with their son. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
No acceptance letter yet? Don’t despair.
First, don’t forget that more colleges than not have spaces for the fall well into the summer months. The competition for a place at many excellent colleges/universities does not grab media attention but the reality is that openings can be found. How to find these schools? I would start at the National Association of College Admission Counselors (NACAC) “Space availability Survey.” Each May NACAC member colleges/universities report on the availability of openings for the fall semester. The survey is updated regularly.
Check out the survey (www.nacacnet.org), do your research then make contact with the admission office of a college/university that interests you. You may find that nothing is available for the fall but limited space can be found starting in the January semester. There is a good chance that you will learn of terrific opportunities you didn’t know existed.
Other options exist, as well. Why not defer admission for a year? Make sure that whatever you do strengthens your application but an internship at a local not-for-profit, a “gap” year experience (see my Blog posting #3) or even a “PG” year at an independent boarding school may have the added impact of helping you grow and mature as a person.
Next blog posting? Using the summer to make your application stand out.
Mark your calendar. For a student entering his/her senior year in high school who has done little to initiate the college search process:
What? College Application Camp
When? Two separate sessions; August 17 & 18 or September 17 & 24.
Want to learn more? Call me at College Search Now at 610-304-7119 or email me at david@collegesearchnow.net.
David W. Clark, Ed.M. is an independent college admission consultant who has been working with high school students for more than thirty–five years. He and his wife recently successfully completed the college search process with their son. His website www.collegesearchnow.net is worth visiting and he can be reached there.
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