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Category Archives: College Admissions
Extracurricular Activities and College Admissions
What is the value of extracurricular activities in the college admissions process? Reviewers view these positively, and they WILL boost your chances — provided they generally fit these guidelines: Activities demonstrate that you are well rounded and capable of … Continue reading
Is College For Everyone?
My answer: NO, with some qualifications and caveats… Without realizing it, I had an opinion on the topic of college for everyone years before it became a renewed public debate. My view is grounded in my experience as a 28-year … Continue reading
What Number of College Applications is Best?
Predictably, there is no one best answer to the question of what is the best number of college applications, although the trend has been increasing in recent years largely thanks to the Common Application. Given its uniformity and techno-ease, the … Continue reading
Making the Most of Your College Essays
Now is that anxious time of year when college-bound high school seniors are making final decisions about where to apply, struggling with those dreaded application essays, and balancing all of that with making the most of senior year. It’s an … Continue reading
Retention and Graduation Rates: What Do They Reveal?
Increasingly savvy parents and the occasional savvy student may have caught on to the wisdom of digging beneath the sea of happy faces, success stories and attractive photos featured in admissions brochures and college websites in search of valid measures … Continue reading
Recently Visited: Swarthmore College
There are so many great colleges in the eastern U.S. A beautiful, highly respected and historic one is Swarthmore, near Philadelphia. Swat, as insiders affectionately know it (students are “Swatties”), dates from 1864, and was founded by the Society of … Continue reading
College Preparation, Year By Month
Dr. Lisa Ransdell is an independent educational consultant and college counselor who helps students and their families stay on top of college planning. Lisa’s practice is grounded in 28 years of college teaching and 20 years in higher education administration. … Continue reading
Recently Visited: Dartmouth College
In early June I spent a very enjoyable day at Dartmouth, smallest of the Ivies with an undergraduate enrollment of 4196. Hanover, NH, where Dartmouth is located is green, leafy, small and seemingly quiet (at least when I was there, … Continue reading
Early Fall College Planning
What should high school students and their families be doing in the late summer/early fall to be ahead of the college planning game? Here is what I would suggest: Seniors: Do as much as you can before senior year starts. … Continue reading