Tag Archive for: college applications

student at a fork of holistic and test required admissions

Understanding Holistic Admissions: Beyond GPA and Test Scores

In today’s competitive college landscape, many parents are surprised to learn that top grades and high test scores alone no longer guarantee admission. Colleges and universities are increasingly turning to a holistic college admissions process…
Mother and daughter reviewing college material

Stretch, Target, Safety Schools: How to Build a Smart College List

When your child starts the college search, you'll quickly hear terms like stretch, target, and safety schools. These categories are more than just buzzwords—they're essential tools for creating a balanced college list that leads to real options…
Student working on applications

“Why Us” Essays: The Do’s and Don’ts of “Why Us” Essays

Whether you are applying to UT Austin, Rice, Michigan, USC, UChicago, NYU—or any other selective school—this guide will help you avoid common mistakes and craft a response that feels specific, personal, and compelling.
Mother supporting son as he works on applications
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Addressing Application Stress: Strategies for Students and Families

When College Dreams Meet Overwhelming Pressure As spring rolls in, so does an invisible weight for many high school juniors: college application season is around the corner. This should be a time of excitement and opportunity. But for many…
Student asking for letter of recommendation

The Ultimate Junior Year Checklist: How to Get Your College Applications Ready

The end of the Junior year will be here before you know it, and if you want to start Senior year stress-free, now is the time to get your college applications in order.
Breakdown of the numbers at Selective U
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What they’re not saying about college admissions

Back in 2018, Stanford made a big announcement that they would stop releasing acceptance rates. Lots of publications picked up on it. They wanted students to focus on finding the right fit not trying to get into a selective school. Some people…
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8 steps to completing your college applications

When you have a list of things you have to do, tackle the least pleasant one first. If you have a plate full of delicious food and this one thing you don't want to eat, eat it first. You'll get to enjoy the rest of the food so much more than if you save the unpleasant part for last.
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“Test Optional” wasn’t intended to help students

One of the many impacts of COVID19 has meant a drastic change admissions policies related to the SAT and ACT. Colleges and universities have sold it to applicants as "test optional", and students and parents have taken that to mean that they…

5 Steps for Getting Letters of Recommendation from Your Teachers

It's the time of year when high school juniors are starting to look at the long slog between Spring Break and the end of the school year with something between sighing resignation and outright panic. AP and IB exams will take up May with Final…
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4 ways to prepare for your freshman year of college

As the first day of college draws nearer, here are a few tips to prepare. Orientation This tip is probably the easiest to embrace because for most colleges orientation is mandatory. However, this can be a pivotal couple of days. You get to…