Now is the time for high school juniors to begin developing a well-balanced list of target, reach, and likely schools to apply to this fall, and one of the most significant, and often times limiting, factors that families and students consider when deciding where to apply is cost....

It's very clear that the college admissions process is always changing. It's full of surprises and there are many theories and expectations about what needs to be accomplished before students submit their applications, especially for the early round. What's murkier, however, is what to do after your early acceptance decision...

Last month, the 2012-13 edition of the Common Application was released. Simultaneously and/or soon after, many schools released updated supplements, several of which request at least one additional essay (in addition to the personal statement and activity essay required on the Common App).

As college admissions becomes...

Now that the class of 2012 has graduated, rising high school seniors may be thinking more seriously about their college plans. However, students and their families are often unsure of what role everyone should play during this exciting (and sometimes confusing) time. I'm willing to bet that in the past...

When it comes to the college admissions process, it is imperative to show how you have developed your interests throughout your time in high school. College admissions committees want to see that you have made an impact in clubs and activities during the school year, but also during your time...

As a college admissions counselor, one of the most popular questions I get asked is "What activities do colleges want to see on a resume?" The good news (or bad, depending on your perspective) is that there is no correct answer. There isn't a specific ratio of community service, athletics,...

Admissions decisions for the college class of 2016 were recently released and what many anticipated turned out to be the case -- acceptance rates dropped even more at many selective schools, including five of the eight Ivy League schools (where more than 240,000 applications were submitted for 23,000 spots). The...

While most of New York University was left untouched during a recent student protest, the Kimmel Center, the heart of the university's student life, has only recently become accessible once again to all NYU students. Well, not all exactly. Of the 20,604 students enrolled at NYU, there remain 18 that...

US News and World Report released their first-ever issue of the World's Best Colleges and Universities, based on the Times Higher Education-QS World University Rankings. These new rankings are problematic, like the 25 year-old America's Best Colleges issue, because they create greater confusion for college hopefuls the world over.

Let...

Regardless of your preferred presidential candidate, if you're like me, then you've been examining the Electoral College map these past few weeks for a little post-election analysis. Not only was I interested to see when Missouri will finally turn definitively red or blue, but I also can't help but draw...

Did you know Governor Palin attended five colleges in six years (one of them twice)? Did you know that Senator Obama started his college career at Occidental College in Los Angeles before transferring to Columbia University? It might surprise you that they are both transfer students. Yet, their experience is...

Is it true that "cheaters never prosper" or "cheaters never win"? The L.A Times's recent piece, aptly titled "Cheating on ACT, SAT college entrance exams has few consequences," made me question this adage. The July 14th article exposed one of the standardized testing world's often undisclosed realities and, although...

Although I admit I'm not a financial aid expert, I am an expert in college admissions, which essentially means that I'm adept at guiding students and parents through the increasingly complex (and costly) college admissions process. Before you can even begin to consider the "will my child get in to...

So, what will college ultimately cost? You must make yourself aware of even the smallest expenditures (which, when combined, make for one very large expenditure) in order to begin budgeting. Hopefully, this blog will leave you well informed, well prepared to budget in advance, and equipped with some solutions to...

I'm in a state of shock, dumbfounded actually. Is CNN really encouraging students to lifeguard for the summer? Become an amusement park attendant? Babysit? Obviously, their recent article detailing this year's "Top 10 Summer Jobs" is directed at the onslaught of full-time students soon to be hitting the increasingly hot...

In early April, some of the most intelligent, well-accomplished and confident high school seniors were placed in college admissions purgatory: they had received a cryptic waitlist letter from the Ivy League school of their choice. For the next several weeks, they lived in college admissions limbo -- would they get...