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How to Approach the Common Application Personal Statement Essay Prompts
We have been informed that the Common Application 2015-16 will retain four of the five personal statement essay prompts introduced two years ago in CA4, with some revisions in wording, and an...
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Freshman Year of College: Out of the Frying Pan, into the Fire
Your teenager has graduated from high school, having been accepted to a dream college whose bumper sticker you are proud to wear on the rear window of your car, and… knock on wood, it looks like you...
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Parents, Teens…and the Dance of College Applications
Years ago, when I was studying group dynamics and family therapy at Columbia University Teachers College, I couldn’t get enough of the books by one of the institution’s most famous alums, Dr. Harriet...
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How Parents Can Help–Or Not–with College Essays
Years ago, I sat in a New Jersey auditorium listening to a Vanderbilt University roadshow information session. The young admissions representative and Vandy alum was also a graduate of Delbarton, a...
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Why Does a High School Student Need a Resume?
Why does an 11th or 12th Grader need to create a RESUME? After all, the high school guidance department already asks for a “brag sheet,” that usually includes a template for recording one’s activities...
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Accepting the Empty Nest
A few years back, I read a thought-provoking article in The New York Times by parenting expert Madeleine Levine, entitled “After the Children Have Grown.” Since it is that time of year again, when...
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College Family Weekends: Forever Jung
It was one of those crisp, breezy October Saturdays in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania, with the leaves just beginning to sport a bit of gold and copper under a cloudless cobalt sky. It was Family...
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College Consultants? Who Needs’em?
Why should families hire an independent college admissions consultant? 1. Focused one-on-one attention. In the middle of this decade, studies by the U.S. Dept. of Education and National Association...
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College Freshmen Home for Thanksgiving
It’s yet another rite of passage for college freshmen. For some, it is the first time they will be home since they left for college in August. For others, it is the first time they will see their core...
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December 15 College News: Deferral or Denial
This post offers suggestions for next steps after receiving a deferral or denial from an Early Action or Early Decision college, with advice from Admissions Matters: What Students and Parents Need to...
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How Parents Can Launch Their Young Adult Children by Being, Not Doing
“Trying to force something is the best way to stop it happening.” -Indries Shah. As a college consultant, I am frequently struck by the fact that many parents who clearly love and want the best for...
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Public vs. Private Universities or Liberal Arts Colleges
“A prudent question is one-half of wisdom.” – Francis Bacon. As a college consultant, I ask clients in our first meeting if they wish to consider public or private universities or liberal arts...
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College Transfers: Why or Why Not?
“There is nothing wrong with change, if it is in the right direction.” – Winston Churchill. Your college freshman is finally home for winter break. He or she seems happy to be home, but not so eager to...
View ArticleFirst “College List” Question: Private versus Public University
It’s no secret that the rise in the cost of an American college education has outpaced inflation for decades. A compelling summary by FinAid.Org reveals a 1.5 ratio of tuition inflation to general...
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How to Approach the Common Application Personal Statement Essay Prompts
“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” ― Maya Angelou. We have been informed that the Common Application essay prompts for 2016-17 will be the same as they were in...
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First Day of May
“First day of May, things are beginning…our side is winning…hip, hip, hooray!” James Taylor’s exuberant love song celebrates the universal rite of spring, the joy of new life and hope that accompanies...
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College Dorm Checklist: A Sneak Peek!
“There is no standing still because time is moving forward.” –Greg Lake. COLLEGE MOVE-IN is on the horizon. Where to start? As a college admissions consultant, I not only like to see my young clients...
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Why Does a High School Student Need a Resume?
“Am I My Resume?” -Edward Kleban, A Chorus Line. Why does an 11th or 12th Grader need to create a RESUME? After all, the high school guidance department already asks for a “brag sheet,” that usually...
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Freshman Year of College: Out of the Frying Pan, into the Fire
Your teenager has graduated from high school, having been accepted to a dream college whose bumper sticker you are proud to wear on the rear window of your car, and… knock on wood, it looks like you...
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“Senioritis” and What To Do About It
“Growing up is a process, not an event.” – Paul B. Jamison. The head of the Northern New Jersey high school my son attended years ago was a wise and witty woman. I well remember how she warned parents...
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