A lot of students want to use part of their college application to explain or justify something they're not proud of, like earning a low grade, quitting an activity or choosing not to enroll in a difficult class. Some scenarios call for explanation, but most don't. Four of the following five explanations would likely be […]
Read More >This wouldn’t have been the same without (your name here)
One of the easiest ways to identify a person who really makes a difference is to ask, "Who would this not have been the same without?" Which players on your baseball team had so much talent that the season just would not have been the same without them? Which performers in the school play were […]
Read More >Don’t say “we” when you mean “me”
It's surprising how many private counselors' websites use terms like "we," "us" and "our counselors" but never actually reveal who those "people" are. I'm sure a lot of them are actually one-person shops that want to appear bigger than they are. I wish they didn't put that pressure on themsleves. Being small is nothing to […]
Read More >Parents’ pledge to high school kids
It’s become unclear for many parents just exactly how to best help their students navigate the college admissions process. But you can start by making a parents’ pledge to your students. I have a suggested five-point version below. Parents’ pledge to high school students 1. Your college education is very important to us and we’re […]
Read More >Do graduates of prestigious colleges earn more money?
Here's a pop college quiz. What do the following ten colleges have in common? 1. Carnegie Mellon 2. Babson College 3. Lehigh University4. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo5. Lafayette College 6. Case Western Reserve University7. Manhattan College8. Milwaukee School of Engineering9. Michigan Technological University10. Bucknell University Graduates from all ten earn higher median starting salaries […]
Read More >What to do–and not to do–in college
It's not where you go to college; it's what you do while you're there. And Seth Godin offers some good insight about exactly what to do (and what not to do). As I drove through the amazingly beautiful (Yale) campus, I passed the center for Asian Studies. It reminded me of my days as an […]
Read More >“Becoming a High School Superstar” airs tonight
Tonight at 8 p.m. EST, tune in to see Cal Newport, author of "How to Be a High School Superstar: A Revolutionary Plan to Get into College by Standing Out (Without Burning Out)" as he discuss his book. I think his take is a refreshing one and I've mentioned him a lot here on this […]
Read More >How one kid from a not-so-prestigious college became a heart surgeon
During our four years at UC Irvine, I don’t think my college buddy Shane ever once missed a party. And whenever our fraternity would head to the annual spring break trip to Mexico with the Tri-Delts, Shane was the first one there with a bottle of Coppertone and a hideous bathing suit. Shane was also […]
Read More >What’s the worst thing that could happen?
If you’re skydiving, going in for open heart surgery, or running into a burning building to save someone, the worst thing that could happen is that you could die. That’s a pretty bad worst-case scenario. But to my knowledge, nobody has ever died as a direct result of applying to college. If people made more […]
Read More >Land the plane
An admissions officer at a conference last week shared a great phrase in a session about letters of recommendation–“Land the plane.” “Land the plane” is what he thinks to himself when a letter of rec drones on, adding far more words than real information. “Land the plane” is like “Wrap it up.” It’s important for […]
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