What is the single most effective way to improve the scores that you or a student will earn on the PSAT, SAT and ACT tests that are coming up in the new year?
There are many answers to that question, and most involve spending money on costly tutoring programs. But there is another way to dramatically improve the chances of earning a higher score on those tests – and it will cost you very little . . . Read more
With early decision and early action letters from colleges arriving in applicants’ mailboxes or on the way, this is a good time to review the basics of what early decision and early action programs mean. Read more
Are you applying to college in the coming year? Are you a parent of a student who will be applying, or are you counseling students who will be?
If so, it is important to remember that 2019 saw some of the biggest changes ever in college admissions – changes that will exert a major impact on the way colleges are evaluating applicants this year.
Here are some changes that we believe we can all agree will happen. Read more
As the 2019 holidays start, it is worth asking what the high school juniors you know can and should be doing now to get ready to apply to colleges.
If you think it is too early to get started – or if you think you shouldn’t expect your kids or students to do more than have another helping of turkey or hang with their friends – perhaps you should think again. You certainly don’t want to overburden juniors with too many stressful tasks. But the fact remains that the right activities now can make the rest of their junior years less stressful – and help them get into the right colleges next year. Read more
A growing number of parents have now been convicted and sentenced in the U.S. college cheating scandal. But does that mean that all the cheaters have been caught, all the scams have been uncovered, and the problem is on its way to being solved?
It would be both illogical and incorrect to think so. So many varieties of small-level cheating take place every day, everywhere, in situations like these: Read more
There are many definitions of success, and that is a good thing. And today, more people are defining success in their own ways.
But for the purposes of this post, let’s define success in a once-common way, even though a growing number of people might no longer see it as valid . . . Read more
As educators, we place a lot of emphasis on helping high school students gain admission to their top-choice colleges. But once that work is done and our students head off to college, do we know how happy they are? Read more
“The Truth about the SAT and ACT,” an article that Nathan Kuncel and Paul Sackett published in The Wall Street Journal on March 8, 2018, provides a wealth of new insights into standardized tests.
We all thought we understood those tests, correct? Most of us conceptualized them in this way: Read more
If you’re a high school college guidance counselor, chances are you are thinking that a certain number of your counselees should apply to non-traditional, alternative colleges. You might already be an expert on those colleges and what they offer. If you are not, you are probably thinking that when you have the time, you will investigate non-traditional colleges and make some recommendations about where your students should apply. Read more
If your son or daughter is getting ready for freshman year of college, we have two book recommendations for you. One is for your kid, the other is for you – because both first-year college students and their parents have a lot of adjusting to do. Read more