Here is a dirty little secret: some of the 2024-2025 Common App essay prompts will bring you down like quicksand while others give you the exact structure and framing that you need to show and tell a story that colleges will … [Read More...]
How to get into the Ivy League – Ethically
So much of what you read, watch, or hear in the media is there to make you feel like it's impossible to get into Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, Princeton, and Yale without cheating your way in or using some … [Read More...]
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Common App Confirms Essay Prompts for 2024-2025
The Common App, which is used by over 1,000 colleges and universities, has confirmed that when the next first-year application cycle formally begins on August 1, 2024, its main essay prompts will remain the same as those on this year's Common … [Read More...]
2024-2025 Common App Essay Prompts Ranked
Here is a dirty little secret: some of the 2024-2025 Common App essay prompts will bring you down like quicksand while others give you the exact structure and framing that you need to show and tell a story that colleges will love. In the below … [Read More...]
Common App Essay: Size Does Matter
Every year students ask me the same question: "How long should my Common Application essay be?" I am never shy about providing them with the response that best summarizes how they need to approach both the Common Application essay and the … [Read More...]
Early Decision applicants to make up nearly 60% of Boston University’s Class of 2028
Those students who are being reviewed Regular Decision for Boston University's Class of 2028 will receive their admissions decisions on Saturday, March 23, 2024. Such first-year applicants will receive emails when their decisions are available within … [Read More...]
Make the most of a college visit this spring
Unfortunately, too often, high school students visit colleges "cold," meaning they do little or no research about the college before they set foot on the campus and rarely prepare for their time on a college campus. This attitude inhibits high school … [Read More...]
Gary Canter’s February College Guy Rant
Hey Seniors - greetings from the College Guy! Man oh man time flies, doesn’t it? Winter’s grip has loosened here in Maine (well to be honest - it never really tightened) and those of you who applied Early Decision and Early Action have heard … [Read More...]
FAFSA failure leaving families in the lurch
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which so many college applicants, students, their families depend on in order to acquire much-needed aid for the cost of a college education, has completely failed this admissions cycle after … [Read More...]
Elon University Provides Financial Aid Update Amid FAFSA Turmoil
While Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) delays have slowed the financial aid awarding process at colleges and universities across the United States, and though FAFSA results are delayed until mid-March, Elon University has begun … [Read More...]
UMass to Release Regular Decision Notifications on March 5
UMass Amherst will release Regular Decision (RD) admissions decisions on the evening on Tuesday, March 5, 2024. In the past, UMass Amherst released RD decisions in waves. This year, all RD applicants will receive their decisions on the same date. … [Read More...]
Boston College Accepts 28% of Early Decision II Applicants
Early Decision II applicants to Boston College will be notified of whether or not they've been admitted this evening, Tuesday, February 6, 2024. The news will be delivered through applicants' Applicant Status Portals, and admitted students living in … [Read More...]
8 Ways to Reduce the Cost of College
Education is an expensive ordeal, and it is only getting worse. The average cost of college for a single student in the United States is $35,436 per year, including tuition and other expenses. It’s also just a baseline, as the costs grow … [Read More...]
Dartmouth to Request SAT or ACT for First-Year Applicants Again
Dartmouth College has announced that it will yet again require high school students in the United States to share either an SAT or ACT score as part of their application for admission. The change takes effect for students applying for Fall 2025 … [Read More...]
Dream School spotlights the nightmare the college admissions process has become for too many
WGCU Public Media in Florida followed six high school students who worked hard to earn a seat at America’s top colleges - and now you can too in the short documentary Dream School. Reported by Sandra Viktorova, the short documentary below also … [Read More...]
Now is the time to build an “Extraordinary Extracurricular Résumé”
It's the spring semester, you are a high school junior about to embark on the process of applying to America's most selective colleges, and you haven't completed an up-to-date and properly formatted extracurricular résumé? If you want to give … [Read More...]
Tulane reduces number of students accepted Early Decision II
Tulane will release Early Decision II (EDII) notifications to first-year applicants on Monday, February 5, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, and just as during Tulane's Early Decision I (EDI) round, Tulane has reduced the number of EDII acceptances … [Read More...]
Syracuse’s Summer College Gives High School Students Many Learning Opportunities
For sixty-four years, Syracuse University has given rising high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors the opportunity to explore potential majors and careers through renowned summer pre-college programs. This summer, high school students are … [Read More...]
4 Free Resources to Prep Students for the New Digital SAT Debuting March 9
On Saturday, March 9, 2024, the SAT is going digital for American test-takers the first time in almost 100 years! Two million students take the SAT every year, and the transition from a paper-based to digital format marks a huge change to the college … [Read More...]
Boston University offers 3 summer journalism programs to high school students
High school students interested in pursuing a career in journalism, writing, communications, or photography, may want to research and apply to the Boston University Summer Journalism Academy, hosted by Boston University College of … [Read More...]
ACT Mastery Begins with a Schedule: The Importance of Structured Studying
Having served on the admissions committee at Columbia University, I've had the honor of witnessing students begin their journeys into higher education. One essential aspect of college admissions is the role of standardized tests like the ACT. These … [Read More...]
High School Students Interested in Entrepreneurship Should Consider Babson Summer Study
Babson College, which is located just thirty minutes from downtown Boston, Massachusetts, is an increasingly popular choice for high school students seeking to study entrepreneurship during their undergraduate careers. And what better way to get a … [Read More...]
Elon’s On-Campus Summer Pre-College Journalism Program is Completely Free
Not all summer pre-college programs for high school students cost a pretty penny. In fact, one such program for aspiring journalists is completely free and takes place on one of America's most beautiful college campuses! While year three of the … [Read More...]
55,000 applied to Purdue Early Action; 97% of those admitted submitted test scores
Purdue University will release its Early Action (EA) decisions to first-year applicants through each EA applicant's Purdue Application Portal starting at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday, January 12. This includes decisions for its long-standing … [Read More...]
Colorado College’s unique pre-college program for high school students now accepting applications
Will you be a rising eleventh or twelfth grade student in Summer 2024 and are you interested in the Block Plan at Colorado College? If so, then through a unique pre-college program, this upcoming summer is the ideal time for you to try Colorado … [Read More...]
More Applying, Fewer Getting Accepted to Tulane Early Decision
Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana will release its Early Decision I (EDI) decisions tomorrow, December 5, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time. Those about to receive decisions - and those who follow this type of thing - should know that … [Read More...]
UMass Amherst receives record 30,000+ Early Action applications
University of Massachusetts Amherst is gearing up to release all of its Early Action (EA) admission decisions on the evening of Wednesday, January 24 during an admissions cycle in which the public university had over 30,000 students apply through … [Read More...]
6 Lesser-Known Healthcare Careers to Consider
The healthcare field is a vast and ever-evolving landscape, offering a multitude of career paths to suit diverse interests and skill sets. Many favor prominent nursing, medicine, and pharmacy roles, but numerous lesser-known healthcare careers … [Read More...]
University of Maryland’s 650-character leap into lawlessness or a legal loophole?
For years, University of Maryland College Park emphasized grades and scores in its undergraduate admissions review process for first-year applicants. Then, a few years back, the university that Testudo the diamondback terrapin calls home added … [Read More...]
Fundamentals of Financial Aid for 2024
If one sentence could sum up the state of financing an American college education in 2024 it would be, "The more things change the more things stay the same." While change is afoot, much remains the same. Changes are particularly pronounced with … [Read More...]
Healthcare Careers You Can Pursue Without an MD
A career in healthcare is coveted by many due to comfortable paychecks, and more importantly, high job satisfaction. Knowing that at the end of the day, the job you did helped save or improve lives cannot be quantified, but makes a big difference … [Read More...]
The top 23 songs to listen to while completing your college applications in 2023 are…
Picture it. You are all alone in your bedroom at 11:47 p.m. on a Tuesday night. By day you are an overloaded high school senior year who feels dominated by IB or AP course assignments, juggling the responsibilities that come with leading four … [Read More...]