“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” ― Maya Angelou. We have recently learned that the Common Application’s personal statement essay prompts for 2019-20 will be the same as they were last year. As stated on the Common Application website, “Based on extensive counselor feedback,
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“Always plan at least two steps ahead.” – A.J. Darkholme. As middle school is ending and guidance counselors help students plan 9th Grade courses, it will be valuable to take the long view, considering the entire high school curriculum. At first this seems like a nerve-wracking prospect: how can parents have any
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“The beginning is the most important part of the work.” -Plato. As a college admissions consultant, I often hear parents and their students ask at the end of junior year of high school, “What can we be doing during the summer to prepare for the crazy senior year
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“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect to your future.” -Steve Jobs. There seems to be so much at stake when college admissions decisions come out, whether it is
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“After a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one’s own relations.”– Oscar Wilde. It’s yet another rite of passage for college freshmen. For some, it is the first time they will be home since they left for college in August. For others, it is the first time
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“Timing is everything.” -Tommy Shaw You read my post, Why Juniors Should Visit Colleges on Winter and Spring Break, knowing the importance of February and March break during junior year for campus tours. But despite parents’ best intentions, life being what it is, the campus visits did not happen.
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“We read to know that we are not alone.” – C.S. Lewis. I love quotations! (Doesn’t everybody?) Today I’m sharing my favorite quotes on the lost arts of reading and writing, the two most essential (but surprisingly overlooked) ingredients for getting into one’s dream college. I invite
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“Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction.” – John Crosby. It is spring of your high school student’s junior year. He or she is busy preparing for standardized tests and trying to maximize cumulative GPA, while participating
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“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” -William James. SATs as an extracurricular activity? Traveling soccer clubs beginning in kindergarten? Making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the homeless? President of the tiddly-wink club? Curing cancer with My First Chemistry Kit? What should
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“I like the cold weather. It means you get work done.” -Noam Chomsky. Weather? You might be surprised how often this topic comes up with my clients when discussing all the dimensions of college choice. Somewhere between the dimensions of institutional prestige, availability of programs of interest,
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