A better strategy

February 25, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

I've been told that through SEO (search engine optimization), I can pick titles for my blog posts, include particular links, and even choose phrasing for the body that will make each post appear higher in the results when someone searches on Google. The problem with that strategy is that as soon as I start writing […]

How are you spending your time?

February 24, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

Mark Cuban wrote a great post in which he argues that time is your most valuable asset. How and where you choose to allocate your time is going to determine where your future takes you. This reminded me of how colleges evaluate students. It’s easy to say that you’re passionate about something. But how much […]

Keep setting good examples

February 23, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

Parents, as your seniors begin to hear their news from colleges, it’s important for you to remember your most important job—to set good examples for your college applicant. This is especially true when the admissions decision is a “no.” Parents, if you fall apart in the face of a college rejection, your student is just […]

Better than rankings?

February 22, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

One of the best ways to judge a business is by the satisfaction of its customers. So instead of making decisions based on how to improve their US News rankings, what if colleges did the following: 1. Send an email to your students with just two requests: On a scale of 1-10, how likely are […]

Perfection is fake…and boring

February 21, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

If you believe that you have to be perfect to get into college, your ride to get there will be unnecessarily stressful. Admissions officers don't expect kids to be perfect. According to one dean of admission, he tends to be skeptical of kids who present themselves without flaws. And another admissions officer admits that sometimes […]

Find your best idea

February 20, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

David Heinemeier Hansson has accomplished a lot in his 34 years. He’s the creator Ruby on Rails (the programming language that runs Twitter), a partner at 37signals, a best-selling author, a public speaker, and a race-car driver. An interviewer asked him what one action hopeful entrepreneurs could take this week to move them towards their […]

You’re already on stage

February 19, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

If we receive an email or voicemail from a potential new Collegewise family, we’re already on stage. They’ll notice how long it takes for us to respond, how well we answer their questions, and how easy it is to get an introductory appointment scheduled. The evaluation starts before we even meet each other. If we […]

Five community service thoughts

February 18, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

If you want to do community service—any kind for any amount of time—do it. There’s no right or wrong way to offer help to people who need it. But I often get questions about the value of community service in the college admissions process. So here are five community service thoughts for high school kids […]

Focus on what slides can’t do

February 16, 2013 by Kevin McMullin

I don’t like PowerPoint. At least, I don’t like the way it’s almost always used for presentations. Too many bullet points. Too much text. Too many speakers focused on their slides and not on what they have to say. This makes some people—especially those who never present without PowerPoint—really uncomfortable. They think the slides are […]

College admissions advice for students, parents, and counselors