August & New Beginnings

For most high school seniors, August gets here sooner than they would like. August is the beginning of the end of their chapter on high school. However, it is also the beginning of many new chapters that will unfold.

As seniors gear up for the month ahead it is important to:

-Set firm dates to getting everything done related to school work and college applications.

-Identify 2-3 individuals to ask for letters of recommendation

-Outline a long & short list of colleges to attend (this will help you when you attend college fairs this fall)

-Register & prepare, prepare, prepare for any upcoming ACT/SAT test

-Remember deadlines related to admission are VERY REAL! Never make the assumption that colleges will accept something that is a “little” late or incomplete.

Please visit back in the future weeks, as I will continue outlining where students should be in regards to the college admission process.

Until then!

The Cost of College

Anyone can tell you that going to college is an expensive venture. However, the cost of most 4-year institutions is so high that most students, from all income levels, are having to seek additional financial aid to help cover the cost. For students that require financial aid to cover the majority of the cost they will likely remain in debt for most of their professional life. This article by National Underwriter looks at the rising cost of college and how students will be required to make payments for many, many years to come.

Although I hate to see students go into debt, this has quickly become a necessary evil. As a result, I can only stress that students enter college when they are truly ready. A student should have a pretty good idea of what they want to accomplish as a student, and where they are trying to go professionally to make the experience be as cost-effective as it can be. I no longer agree that students should use college as the place to "find themselves", it is just to costly a venture.

For students who know they want to go to college, but are not exactly sure what they want to major in or do professionally, instead of going into unnecessary debt by attending a 4-year institution, you should truly investigate 2-year colleges. This allows you the opportunity to get college classes under your belt, expose you to a wide range of disciplines, as well as give you addition time to think about how to plan for your future. You are still in college, however at a fraction of the cost.

Scholarships are a Little Tricky

After a students starts applying to college, many also start searching for scholarships as well. It makes perfect sense to try to find ways to cut your out-of-pocket cost regardless of the school you decide to attend. This USA Today article provides excellent information about explaining particulars with financial aid packages and scholarships.

For students who successfully secure scholarships that are not related to the institution you need to understand how accepting the scholarship could affect your financial aid package. Colleges regard outside scholarship as additional 'resources' or money, so they often will not apply your outside scholarship to meet any additional need you may have. Rather than add your outside scholarship with the institutional money they are offering, they will take away institutional dollars. In other words if the school had offered you $5 in aid, and your scholarship is worth $5 the school will likely let you spend your $5 and take their money back, so in the end you are still paying the same price.

This is not to discourage you from finding outside scholarships, you just need to be very strategic on which funds you accept, as well as prepared to still have to come out of pocket even when it seems that everything should be paid for.

Visit Before You Decide

Its the time of year that seniors everywhere are making the final decision on where they want to attend. Although the brochures are nice to look at, and the phone calls from students help to answer some of your questions, the best way for students to students to make their final decision is to go visit their top choices. For some this can be an expensive or time consuming venture, however this is a major decision that requires complete attention. Other experts agree with the necessity to visit a school before you decide in the article recent Olympian Newspaper article.

Gearing Up For Next Year

College Strategies has changed its pricing structure for the 2007-08 academic season. Because we are now offering our services primarily through an online format it is allowing us greater flexibility to work with students so we are able to drastically reduce our fees. For students who are gearing up for next school year, please take a look at how we can help you successfully maneuver through the college admission process. College Strategies Educational Consulting

Decision Day- May 1st

Many of you may still be debating which school you were accepted to is right for you. You either fall in one of two categories: 1. You haven't paid your deposit to any school yet since you haven't decided; or 2. You have put down multi-deposits and you still haven't decided. Just remember that May 1st is the unofficial deadline for many (not all colleges) as to when you can get 100% of your deposit back.

College Rankings...Forget Them

Recently an article appeared in USA Today about how some colleges and universities are planning not to participate in college ranking surveys. The topic of college surveys has always fascinated so much my original doctoral dissertation was going to attempt to rank Sport Administration/Management programs. As I started to do the background research, I became convinced that many of the popular rankings that are sold to the American public use very questionable methodology. And after working in college admissions, I could see first hand how schools try to increase their appearance of being selective by playing with the numbers when it comes to admitting, deferring and denying students. All-in-all I learned not to put much stock in the popular rankings.

As a private admission counselor, I try to counsel students and his or her parents on how to not get caught up in the rankings game. Its hard, because everyone wants the opportunity to brag about where they are going to school and all it's wonderful attributes, but the reality is almost all schools have 'brag-worthy' qualities. So regardless of where you choose, you will likely find something unique to talk about when it comes to your school and/or experience.

Choose to attend a school because you truly want to go there. Yes, the name of an institution sometimes can open doors for you, but if you are not talented, successful, or with a good work ethic, it won't matter what school you went to because no one is going to want to work with you anyway. I believe you should spend your college years learning to become the person you want to be in the professional world, instead of trying to plan on how you can name drop your school to make things happen.

Don't Lie, You May Get Caught!

As college admissions becomes more competitive, more students are tempted to stretch the truth on their admission applications to appear as more attractive applicants. However, I know from first hand that more schools are taking measures to validate the information included on their applicants applications. The article The Admissions Police talks about this growing problem and the measures that some schools are going to perform background checks on their applicants.

The moral to the story, tell the truth on your college application, do not even try to stretch the truth. Your entire future could take a very different path as a result of your decision to include false information on an application, and you get caught. Remember there are ways to creatively write essays, and include information that will get the attention of admission reviewers that doesn't incorporate false information. If you need help, contact a professional admission consultant who can help you with this.

Parents & Students at Odds

For many students, where they want to go and where their parents want he or she to go are two very different stories. Recently, The Princeton Review published their survey results of the Top 10 Dream Colleges of Students Applicants & of Parents.

One of the reasons families include a private admissions consultant in their admission process is that they can have an objective third party contribute to the discussion about what school really would be best for the student. In addition, a private consultant can help both side consider aspects about their choices they may not have previously considered.

Making THE Decision

I recently was contacted by a student who had been accepted to a variety of wonderful schools, making her decision very difficult. For most students, deciding where to go to college is his or her first REAL adult decision and there is a lot of pressure on how to decide which school will be best for you.

Sometimes students forget the big picture and simply focus on a college's name or particular program. These are important to consider, but more importantly it is important to figure out where do you WANT to live and learn for the next 4-5 years of your life.

It won't matter how great a program is if you are absolutely miserable the entire time you are in college. All schools are not created equal for all students. That is why it is crucial to visit your top choices and try to truly 'feel your gut' as to where you should be.

When I was an admission counselor meeting with students it was clear when I talked to students that were trying to force themselves to like the campus, and it was clear when they were actually in love with the campus. In fact, if I could tell the student just really didn't want to go there, I would start giving them advice on what they need to do to figure out where they should be.

So in short, outline your goals, and research each school until you find the one that will help you accomplish what you want to achieve in college.

Dr. Porter
www.CollegeStrategiesOnline.com

I am a Legacy

Most know the college admission process only by looking from the outside in. If they hear about someone being accepted to a college but had the thought that that student should have been denied, they begin to speculate about what could have possibly been in play so that student could be admitted.

Many people believe that being a legacy, applicants who are related to alumni, have one step up in getting accepted. Most applications ask if and how the applicant is a legacy. If the question was not important, I always ask my clients: then why did they take up application space asking the question?

Although being a legacy does not guarantee that a student will be admitted, it does give the reviewer a reason to slow down and pay a little bit more attention to the application. They more than likely may then place a call over to the alumni office and find out more about the relative the applicant is claiming. If it turns out that the alumni is still active with the school in a big way, that reviewer is now really taking their time with that application.

Like most other things, it doesn't hurt to know the right people, even in the college admissions process.

The Chicago Maroon recently wrote about this topic in an article titled: Legacy Students Don't Have an Edge. Read closely, don't let the title of the article fool you.

Dr. Porter
www.CollegeStrategiesOnline.com

NPR's The College Admissions Game

NPR has included on their web site a 7-part series discussing college admissions called The College Admissions Game. The series discusses popular topics such as competitive admissions, however they also explore a variety of topics that real students are dealing with such as whether or not to attend an HBCU, go to community college first, and not to go at all. Their is also an option for audio.

Take Control Back

I recently was contacted by the creator and president of Zinch.com, a web site specifically designed to help college applicants get some control in the college admission process. I think it is a wonderful option that college students should really check out.

Colleges generally buy information about students from clearinghouses like the SAT and ACT who collect data about students. Most, if not all the information, you fill out on your standardize test can be purchased by any college in the world. Often we you receive information from a school you have never heard of, it is because they have purchased your name and information from someone and that college thinks that you would be fit because of something related to the information they have about you.

What I like about the idea with Zinch is the fact that you can still put all the standard information: grades, test scores, major choice etc., but you also have the opportunity to put information that showcases who you really are, such as essays, links to your artwork, movies you may have produced, etc. You can help colleges begin to see the person behind the name.

There are also several other features that I think would be attractive for college applicants including e-mail that you can use specifically to communicate with colleges and universities, and a link to your information that you can include on resumes. The site is not like other social networking sites because the only individuals who can access your profile are colleges, or individuals that you chose to provide them the link.

It may be some time before the majority of colleges catch on, but I really think that Zinch is onto something that will help students empower themselves during the college admission process.

College's Don't Always Get It Right

I came across this interesting take on the how chance plays into the college admission process. College Admissions and Chance summarizes the thoughts presented by the author Barry Schwartz. Although it does not help students who were denied or deferred admissions feel any better about the situation. It does prove the point that sometimes colleges can't always make 'perfect' admission decisions. That is why I continue to stress to students I work with that it is up to you to prove to admission boards that you should be there, instead of allowing them to try to decide for you.

What Should I Take?

If you ever read through the variety of college admission message boards you probably noticed that a great number of the questions have to deal with what courses they should take so they can impress college admission selection committees.

If You Don't Believe In Yourself Why Should I?

Lately I have been getting a lot of inquiries from high school and college students who are trying to get things together for the summer. They are taking the steps to secure employment, however many of them are settling on applying for jobs that are just that jobs that really are not related to their area of interest in any way, shape or form.

I can not begin to stress how important it is to utilize your student status while you have it. In general, organizations are more open to hiring students than they are recent graduates or anyone who is looking for full-time employment. I know its hard to pass up job opportunities that may pay well, but it is important to keep your big picture in mind and start building the foundation for your career.

Believe in yourself enough to find the opportunities that you know would benefit you. If you don't believe in yourself enough to find the opportunities don't expect for them to jump in your lap. Prove to people that you want what you want. Get your foot in the door first before you decide to play it safe!

Rankings and You

I guess this is the time of year when you start seeing the new rankings of colleges come out. Most popular magazines find a way to rank schools based on something, such as: Best School, Best Party School, Best College Buy...etc. Although the magazines try to justify their rankings through whatever methodology they choose to use, for the most part always remember that they are really trying to sell their magazine. Students who are in the process of choosing and deciding on where they should attend college are just another 'target market' that magazines are aiming to generate more sales of their magazine.

Unfortunately, to many students and parents trust the list as gospel and leave off their list some really good schools with really good programs. Personally, I obtained my bachelors and masters degree from a school that consistently ranked on the Best Party School list for years. Did they party? Yes. But so did the students at schools who didn't make the list. Thankfully I did not avoid applying to my college based on the party school ranking or I would have missed the great education that I received from Ohio University, who is also ranked as having some of the best programs in sport management, journalism, and medicine!

I think it is ok to read the rankings, but remember that only you can make the right decision for you. You have to go the school that is the right fit for you. If you can visit the school, talk to the students, and decide for yourself if it truly is or is not the place for you.

What Are Your Summer Plans?

I am often surprised by the number of high school and college students who do not make summer employment plans until summer is knocking at the door. One way to help yourself stand out as a undergraduate or graduate college applicant is to be able to boast that you have attempted to prepare yourself academically, and also professionally by using school breaks (summer, fall, winter, and spring) to gain experience. This is extremely important for students who have some blemishes on their academic record.

Gaining professional experience in your area of interest allows you to 'test-drive' your potential career. In addition, it demonstrates to college admission review boards that you aren't just about talking about what you want to do, you are beginning to do what you want to do. And finally, if your experiences are positive, it may provide you with the extra motivation you need to jump through the hoops and hurdles required of you to finish either high school and graduate school.

Everyone who knows me can testify that I am not a person who subscribes to having a lot of rhetoric. For myself, and for anyone asking my advice on preparing for school or their career, I believe one thing is true: don't say what you want to do, do what you want to do. So if you have not already done so, begin searching organizations or businesses in your area of interest and either apply for a formal internship program or offer to volunteer a few hours every week during the summer. Make your goals a reality by putting your foundation into place today.

How Does Your State Rate?

Find out how your state rates when it comes to higher education. This tool provides some insight on how conservative or liberal states are when it comes to financial aid.

Measuring UP

College Advice...Be Selective

For some time I weighed the decision as to whether or not College Strategies would host a public forum for students to ask and answer questions about the college admission process. There are currently some really popular forums that already exist so I have decided to contribute some advice on those forums instead. Although asking general questions about college admissions in this manner is ok, and you will receive some good advice, I am a little concerned about the students who may be making major decisions that could affect them for the rest of their lives based on the advice given by absolute strangers.

If you have a variety of specific questions about selecting a major, selecting a school, how to make your applications stronger, although it is may be an expense, you really should consider hiring an educational consultant. College Strategies offers this type of service, however you can also research others companies with the list provided by the Higher Educational Consultants Association to search other companies and independent consultants.

Free advice is nice at times, but sometimes it is worth working with a professional who has experience.

Should you tweek the essay?

On a message board I offer advice a student asked the question if it is ok to send a short story instead of an essay on the required topic? The answer unfortunately is no. Do your best to answer the question that is being asked. Don't make any assumptions when it comes to completing admission applications, just provide the information that is being required.

I have many years of admission experience, and have also helped design admission applications, every question asked has an intended purpose otherwise they wouldn't have asked. If you decide not to answer the question directly you may run the risk of sending the message that you don't know how to follow instructions, and that doesn't sit well with those who are trying to decide if they should admit you to their school.

Back on the scene!

I apologize to the readers of this blog for the long pauses in post. My accomplishment today will hopefully free up some time that I can devote to keeping this blog more current and full of information for its readers. Today I passed my dissertation defense and became Dr. Chrystal Denmark Porter!

Now back to work on getting you into college!

The One Constant in Education

College cost have a will continue to sore. That is a constant that we will all be guaranteed. The article Paying for Your Education...Forever, emphasizes how college cost continue to rise. College Strategies works on your behalf to find scholarships and help you prepare the scholarship applications as a means to improve your chances for receiving the scholarships. You should begin searching for scholarship even before you begin searching for your school.

Free College Consultant Service

If you are wondering whether or not you need a college consultant to help you during your college admission process College Strategies has a way for you to "test drive" our services.

If you are a high school senior, college transfer student, or graduate applicant we will allow you to submit one (1) application essay for us to critique.

If you are a high school freshmen, sophomore, or junior we will find you two (2) scholarships that you could likely apply.

For more information please visit our web site at: www.CollegeStrategiesOnline.com

Financial Aid 101

I thought this was a good article on Financial Aid 101. Eight Tips To Getting Financial Aid.

For students that are already accepted, remember most schools will need for you to file for financial aid before they will consider you for any institutional scholarships. Many consider only students who filed for financial aid before March 1.

Rising College Cost!

The title of the article says it all Average College Cost Break $30,000.

Now more than ever, students NEED to begin their college and scholarship search during their freshman year so they can maximize their opportunities to find money for college. If you are looking for help with performing a through scholarship search, regardless of your grade level, please contact me at: MyStrategyCoach@aol.com. College Strategies's 30-Day Scholarship Search Service can help you locate where the opportunities exist.

Financial Aid Season is Here

January 1st has come and gone, most students have heard or will be hearing back from schools on their acceptance status. Regardless, it is time for families to get their papers together to file for financial aid. Usually financing college is the biggest concern for most families, yet they wait to fill out the very paperwork that will not only determine if they can receive federal assistance, it is often used in the equations offered by individual schools when determining scholarships, grants, and loans.

Even if you don't plan to file your taxes any time soon, you can still complete the FAFSA with estimates on how you will file, and then revise the information later. You also do not have to wait until you have committed to a school, the form allows you the opportunity to send the information to a the schools you are or planning to apply.

To find out more about the FAFSA visit www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Why Hire a Private College Advisor?

People are always curious about my company, and wonder if students truly need a college admission advisor, in addition to their high school guidance counselor. There is no simple answer because every situation is unique, but hiring a college admission advisor may provide a student with a variety of advantages both personally and professionally.

Often private advisors have worked in college admission so they are able to offer you advice and give you insight on the college admission process, as well as steer you away from making common applicant mistakes. The closest similarity that I think most people can relate is a when someone talks with a person who currently works or previously worked at a place where they are applying for a job. That insider can tell the applicant not only the ins-and-outs of the job and the environment, but they can also give them pointers on what to emphasize during the interview, give information to the applicant about who they will be interviewing with, and possibly give the applicant suggestions on how to stick out from the rest of the applicant pool.

College admission is cyclical in nature. The "application season" comes around once a year, and college admission counselors approach it like the many other aspects of their jobs. They usually are responsible for reading a stack of applications. They usually spend a set amount of time with each application, and have little time to even consider the effort that may have been put into an application if they consider it to be less than stellar. But on the flip side, if there are any errors, many will have the thought that the student isn't taking the process seriously since they submitted an application with errors, even if that is not the case.

Personally, as a private college admission advisor, I will work with students to not only ensure the applications are flawless, but also make sure they communicate a real story about a real person. Although I can't make any guarantees, I can assure students that they will feel confident the person reading the file will truly become acquainted with them, even if it is only on paper.

If you still opt not to use a college admission advisor, my advice to you is to remember ERRORS ARE NOT FORGIVEN and DO NOT ASSUME ANYTHING!!! Allow yourself some breathing room and at least investigate hiring a private college admission advisor, or at the very least pick up a good book that explains how to approach the process.