Category Archives: College Searching

Comparing Colleges: Asking The Hard Questions

There is plenty of information out there about comparing colleges based on data points, much of it useful. Obvious factoids include total cost of attendance, average amount of student need covered, retention and graduation rates, and so on. Colleges and … Continue reading

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Top Entrepreneurship Programs for Undergrads

Many students interested in collegiate business programs and careers in business these days have an interest in entrepreneurship, which is the creative pursuit of innovation and opportunity in the business world, and a bit different from the traditional business subjects … Continue reading

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Advantages of Single-Sex Colleges

At one time in the history of U.S. higher education, college was exclusively a male domain.  Women sometimes attended “female academies” for the purpose of elevating their knowledge and skill as the future wives of enterprising men and mothers of … Continue reading

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On Diversity and College Planning

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr Day, January 16, 2012! Many colleges in the U.S. mark this day with some kind of commemorative event. Metropolitan State College of Denver, where I teach, hosts a huge breakfast in honor of the holiday … Continue reading

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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Test Optional Colleges

An evolving trend in the world of higher education is a swing toward test-optional colleges, meaning schools where students are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores. According to the National Center For Fair and Open Testing, the current … Continue reading

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