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It’s a good time to be interested in Williams College

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The dean of admission and financial aid at Williams College, a small (approximately 2,000 undergraduates) and selective (approximately 12.4% overall acceptance rate for fall 2019 first-year entry) private liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, wants to make sure students know about important opportunities and updates for students interested in applying for 2020.

Liz Creighton, Williams’ Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, has informed high school counselors that interested students should apply for the 2019 Windows on Williams (WOW) program by either the July 1 or August 1 deadline. The amazing WOW program gives more than 200 stellar rising high school seniors the opportunity to spend three all-expenses-paid days on the Williams campus. While diverse rising seniors are encouraged to applying, Creighton notes that, “preference will be given to students who couldn’t otherwise afford to visit.”

Those rising seniors who want to hear from Williams about their WOW decision by July 20 should apply by the July 1 deadline, and those who want to hear about their WOW decision by August 20 should apply by August 1. Rising seniors with questions should contact Williams with any questions.

Creighton also underscored Williams’ longstanding commitment to meeting 100 percent of demonstrated need and providing free textbooks and course materials to all financial aid recipients; yet, she also shared that moving forward there are additional opportunities to support students with financial need. Of particular note are the following four initiatives:

  • Williams’ new “Free Summer” initiative gives students the opportunity to select up to two summers during their Williams career when their summer earnings contribution will be replaced by additional grant funding from the college. The powers that be at Williams hope this new policy will allow students to consider educationally valuable but unpaid or low-paid summer opportunities that they otherwise couldn’t.
  • The Williams Health Insurance Grant now covers the full cost of health insurance for all aid recipients who don’t have insurance that meets the college’s requirements. Students also have access to an Emergency Medical Fund to cover the cost of unanticipated medical expenses like new eyeglasses and emergency dental care.
  • All financial aid recipients now get free storage for their personal belongings during summers and study abroad.
  • Through the First Yard Fund, incoming first-year students with the greatest financial need will receive a $300 startup grant in mid-July to help them buy personal items they need for college, like a winter coat and boots, dorm room supplies, etc.

MyinTuition gives prospects more of an idea of how affordable Williams can be for those accepted.

Williams also offers travel stipends to high schools and community-based organizations who serve low-income students. Counselors interested in learning about how they and their students can connect with Williams in their local areas, are invited by Creighton to contact their regional admission officer.

How to Solve the College Debt Crisis Overnight

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It’s really simple: the current system many American students use to fund their journey through American colleges and universities is a scheme to concentrate more and more of the nation’s wealth and power in the hands of fewer and fewer people. Under this system greater numbers of Americans who were earnestly trying to best position themselves to be contributing members of society are everyday being subjected to a years-long, decades-long, or lifetime sentence of debt slavery.

Yet, none of this has to be happening, and, in fact, it could all change overnight if politicians in Washington, D.C. took the following three steps to free all Americans from the stranglehold that higher education-government complex currently has on our nation.

 

 

University of California: Restrictions for Out-of-State Students Seeking Resident Tuition

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UC Berkeley

The nine University of California campuses, featuring top programs in sunny locales, attract many out-of-state students. UCLA, for example, processed 113,761 applications last fall — the highest in the nation – with 22,822 from out-of-state.

Those numbers make admission very competitive, but out-of-state students can take heart: they are admitted at a higher rate (22% of out-of state applicants to UCLA were admitted in 2018, versus 12% of in-state), because fewer will ultimately enroll (24% of admitted out-of-state students to UCLA enrolled, versus 50% of in-state). The nonresident tuition, however, can sting – it’s an additional $28,992 per year.

Hoping to offset this, nonresidents frequently explore possible routes to resident tuition. In truth, there are many restrictions for out-of-state students seeking to qualify.

UC says:

“Obtaining California residency for the purposes of tuition and fees is extremely difficult for undergraduates with nonresident parents (this includes transfer students from community colleges and other postsecondary institutions within California).     

Virtually all nonresident undergraduates with nonresident parents remain nonresidents for the duration of their undergraduate career at UC.”

Still, many out-of-state students will continue their quest to qualify. The following provides some guidance for their typical questions.

Can I qualify for residency if I get a California driver’s license and register to vote, and/or my parents buy property in California?

No.

UC says:

“Residence can be established only by the union of physical presence and intent. Physical presence alone is insufficient; intent alone is insufficient.”

This means that to establish residency, the student and family must relocate to California (physical presence), and establish legal ties in California while severing ties to their former place of residence (intent).

Furthermore, you must be continuously physically present in California for more than one year (366 days) immediately prior to the term start date. Also note that any reclassification of residency is not retroactive.

Aren’t there any exceptions?

Yes.

The list of exceptions, however, is very specific, such as:

  • a nonresident student who is the dependent of a California resident parent
  • a student member of the U.S. Armed Forces on active duty in California
  • an amateur student athlete training at a U.S. Olympic Training Center in California

What if I am financially independent and I move to California and work there for 366 days before starting school — will I qualify?

Maybe. 

In addition to establishing residency in California for 366 days prior to the start of the term, a self-supporting student must also “be able to verify financial independence for the two full years immediately preceding the term” they plan to enroll.

UC says:

“This requirement makes it extremely difficult for most undergraduates who are not financially dependent on a California-resident parent to qualify for classification as a California resident.”

My neighbor’s son attends a California State University and he doesn’t pay out-of-state tuition. How can I do that at a UC?

The circumstances may be different, so you will need more information.

UC says:

“Residency for purposes of UC tuition is specific to the University of California and separate from the California Community Colleges and California State University systems and may be different from residency for purposes of UC admission and other state rules or regulations governing residency for other purposes.”

My aunt lives in California. Can I just use her address to show that I am a resident?

No.

If a student conceals facts or makes untruthful statements regarding their residency, they are subject to penalty of perjury.

UC says:

“A student must sign the Statement of Legal Residence even if the Student has yet to reach the age of majority; pursuant to State of California law, a Minor may be prosecuted for perjury.”

What about the Nonresident Supplemental Tuition (NRST) exempt classification — how can I qualify?

You may qualify if you meet specific criteria, such as:

Who is the right person to contact for accurate information?

UC says:

“Inquiries regarding UC residency for purposes of tuition should be directed to a campus Residence Deputy in the campus Registrar’s Office or to a Residency Analyst in the Office of the General Counsel of The Regents of the University of California, Office of the President.”

The information provided above is applicable only to nonresident U.S. citizens; and is not comprehensive or all-inclusive. Find out more about residency requirements on the UC website at the Board of Regents Policy 3105 on Residency and Payment or Waiver of Tuition, Non-Resident Supplemental Tuition and Mandatory Systemwide Fees; the UC Residence Policy and Guidelines 2019/2020; and Understanding Residency.

Don’t call me a Director of College Counseling ever again

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There is no doubt that something is very broken in American secondary and tertiary education. Over each of the last fourteen admissions cycles, I have helped students from around the corner and around the world navigate the college admissions process and tackle the full time of job of applying to American colleges and universities.

During this time, I have witnessed a dramatic increase in the number of students who are unaware of what makes them unique, what their goals are beyond getting into a ‘good college,’ and what actual options even exist for students graduating high school. What feels like an outbreak of complete lack of self-reflection and time dedicated to research and analysis is occurring at the same time as students are more programmed, stressed, miserable, and incapable of demonstrating what was once considered ‘college level’ verbal and written communication skills than I’ve ever witnessed before.

I can’t be a part of this madness anymore without speaking out. As I see it, three major changes need to be made in the way we educate children in this country, only one of which I have true control over as a person tasked with helping students transition from secondary education to what comes next.

  1. Starting in elementary school and continuing right through college, most students are not being taught the basics of writing, reading, and speaking English – whether these students attend public, private, or parochial schools. Students are taught to ape the style or priorities of their English teachers in order to earn an A instead of being taught how to think or communicate in an articulate, agile, and dynamic manner. I am not an English educator, but I can say after seeing thousands of essays produced by high school juniors and seniors and speaking to thousands of high school juniors and seniors that writing, reading, and speaking instruction is not being properly carried out in this country if we are to have any hope of sustaining – let alone building upon – the knowledge and attainment of previous generations.
  2. Students have little to no sense of who they are in relation to the generations of people who came before them and thus they have an increasing inability to put themselves in proper context; the result is that their college essays, whether well-written or not, read like narcissistic one-man plays, and from the admissions results I’ve seen up-close, colleges like it this way! We are doing a generation of our fellow citizens a great disservice when they can’t see beyond their own feelings and experiences, when they don’t know anything about their state’s history, and when they know appallingly little about their country’s history or the history of Western Civilization. Again, very few people in either secondary education or tertiary education seem too concerned about this, which brings me to what I can control…
  3. College is not the end all be all. In fact, for many students a four-year college experience can only lead to a lifetime sentence of debt and ignorance. Who appointed four-year colleges and universities to lord over us as non-negotiables of our human experience? All those who benefit from the higher education-government complex, that’s who. I’m done promoting this perverted ideology. Today, one can learn more valuable and applicable information on YouTube than one can learn by completing many four-year curricula on offer at America’s top-ranked colleges. Career, technical, and experiential education in all of their many forms – trade schools, apprenticeships, gap years, a paying job doing just about anything –  are the best fit for many individuals who’ve just graduated high school. We are doing a disserve to students if we provide only college counseling. We are doing a disservice to students if we only provide college and career counseling. We must educate our students to pursue their own individuality and we must expose our students to the diverse options that exist after high school graduation – from the armed forces and community colleges to gap years and apprenticeship programs. I no longer have any desire to work in a school that trumpets its college admissions statistics, name drops the elite colleges and universities its students have matriculated into, or even slaps the name “College and Career” before the words “Counseling Office” or “Guidance Office.” In all of these scenarios, schools are giving colleges, universities, and employers far too much control of our youth. Students need to be empowered to think big and dream big. That requires not anchoring high school counseling, guidance, or advising to college or career at all.

At a time when long-standing traditions and institutions are actively attacked in our country on a daily basis – mainly from those who’ve been indoctrinated by or are employed by higher education institutions – I’m going to join all those in favor of tearing asunder the part of the past that I don’t like; don’t call me a “Director of College Counseling” or “College Counselor” anymore. It’s giving four-year colleges and universities, corporations, and governments – all of which are in business and are big business – way too much power over all of us. For as long as I continue to help students and families transition from high school to what comes next, from this point forward, if you are going to refer to me as a “Director” of anything, please refer to me as “Director of What Comes Next.” “What Comes Next Counselor” also has a nice ring to it. In return, I promise to provide you a “What Comes Next” guidance experience that exposes you to the full diversity of post-secondary options. Even if 100% of my students continue to enroll in four-year colleges and universities, if my recalibrated approach to post-secondary guidance gives even one student or family pause to consider the benefits of attending a community college while working a full-time job, or pursuing an apprenticeship, or taking a gap-year, or joining the military, or getting a job as a waiter, or earning a degree abroad, or starting a business I will have earned my title as “Director of What Comes Next” and I will feel so much better about myself knowing that I am no longer a cog in the wheel of the American higher education-government complex that has for far too long entranced far too many Americans.

Yet, most of all, I will feel great for the young men and women I work with every day because once they see a four-year college or university is not the be all end all, maybe some of them will calm down, drop out of a few of their extracurricular activities, and use their spare time to pick up and read a book like Great Expectations or Candide or go on YouTube and watch for free the full thirteen installments of Civilisation: A Personal View by Kenneth Clark. There is no doubt that after doing so students will be closer to gaining a healthy perspective on life than they ever could playing America’s obscene college admissions game.

I may still be the CollegeMeister, but I will remind all with whom I work that where one goes to college (if they do at all) or where one works 40+ hours each week (if they do at all) does not define a person. If anything, the sobriquet CollegeMeister is more apt than ever because I have not just mastered the Byzantine art of getting into the world’s “top colleges;” I have freed my clients, my colleagues, and myself from colleges’ former power over all of us, and I look forward to helping others see the light. No longer will colleges be the masters and the rest of us their slaves.

Parents: Don’t Become Aunt Becky During Your Child’s College Admissions Process

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At the root of so many parents’ anxieties about their children going through the college admissions process is not dread over the eventual act of sending their children off to live on their own. Instead, what inspires some parents to cheat on behalf of their children is some parents’ frightful realization that their the children will actually earn what’s coming to them. This is another way of saying that maybe, just maybe, the children won’t get into a colleges the parents want them to get into unless the parents insert themselves into the process in order to “augment” the college applications of their children in some way, shape, or form.

With that in mind, parents, as we head into summer, and your rising seniors enter into the climatic months of the college application process, please watch the video below. I hope it saves you from the perils of not embracing whatever outcome may await your child in the college admissions process based on what your child – the student – is willing and able to put into the process without breaking any rules, cutting corners, and/or taking advantage of any unethical “application supplementation.”

 

To receive additional sage, and quite humorous, advice from the perspective of educator Gerry Brooks, click here.

Thoughts and Prayers Aren’t Enough in College Admissions Either

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Earlier this month, I was trying to figure out what day it was.  Rather than look at the calendar, I simply looked at the College Admissions Facebook page on my computer screen.  There was one story about the record low admit rates at Ivy League colleges, four stories about how most colleges admit a vast majority of their applicants, and two or three reminders that it’s all about what you do in college, not where you do it.

“So” I said to myself, “it must be April 10th.” And I was right.

There is something equally comforting and disturbing about the college admissions grieving cycle. It begins in late March, when we all bemoan it’s easier to get struck by lightning than to get admitted to a selective school.  Even the recent admissions scandal, replete with movie stars and lots of cash, played right into the timing of the “ain’t it awful” phase.

Early April gives way to requests for help with aid packages and muffled cries for some kind of reform from the madness of the application process.  Mid-April begins the search for schools willing to accept great kids who somehow ended up with “nowhere” to go, and late April finds us back in the trenches, asking about colleges for really bright juniors who want to study Hungarian and elephants.

This is our version of thoughts and prayers.  Like legislators tackling school safety, we look at the misshapen blob college admissions has become long enough to be horrified, only to get swept away by the need to make the broken system work just one more time, if only for the benefit of next year’s hardworking seniors. Major changes are just too far out of reach, and minor changes make no palpable difference, so we sigh and carry on, hoping a thoughtful social media post or two will somehow turn the tide. Real change, it seems, is beyond our grasp.

It isn’t.  Like anything else that’s out of shape, moving in a new direction requires a little bit of time, and a ton of vision.  No one in this profession is short on vision; they’re stymied by how to bring that vision to life. Here are some starter ideas.

College Admission Personnel who want to open up college access have all kinds of small projects that, when regularly tended to, can take on lives of their own.

  • Buy lunch for someone on your student success team, and get an overview of their work.  What students are doing well once they’re on campus, and which ones aren’t? Is there anything your institution can learn from the success of Georgia State, understanding that student success is far more than a cut and copy endeavor? What does any of this mean about who you’re recruiting—and, more important, if they have no idea who’s succeeding and why, why not?
  • If you have two counselor fly-in programs, cut it to one.  Use the new-found money to hold a three-day College Counselor Workshop for any school counselor in your area with less than five years’ experience.  As a rule, counselor graduate programs teach nothing meaningful about college counseling.  You know the counselors who know their stuff, and you have a NACAC affiliate at your disposal.  Bring them in, and let them train your local rookies.
  • As long as you’re at it, have coffee with the director of your graduate counseling program, and ask them if you can have a three-hour class period to talk about college admission.  Most counselor educators will have the humility to admit they’ve been out of the college admissions game too long, so they’ll give you the time.  Bring along two of your favorite counselors, and the grad students will be begging for more.  If you don’t know what you’d do with those three hours, I have a program that’s in the box and ready to present, and you can have it.
  • Call a test-optional college that looks like yours and ask how it’s going. The argument that test optional is a ruse to raise average test scores means nothing to the bright kid heading to University of Chicago this fall who can’t even spell SAT.  If colleges that look like yours have figured out test scores mean nothing in the application of a straight A student– and they have– maybe your school could open things up, too.

High School Counselors  have eight bajillion kids on their caseloads and duties that have nothing to do with counseling.  That said, find a way to get to work twenty minutes early once a week, and pick one of these projects to work on:

  • Shoot an email to the professional development chair of your NACAC affiliate and volunteer to be a mentor.  Less than thirty graduate programs in the country devote a course to college counseling, and it’s showing.  What you know about this profession will be an oasis to a new counselor, and most of the mentoring can occur through email and phone calls.
  • Look at your messaging about college options.  Do you tell students and parents about test optional colleges, community colleges, or state colleges with amazing residential programs?  Use this time to bring yourself up to speed on the paths your students aren’t taking, then put together a plan for spreading the word to parents and students.
  • When’s the last time you talked college with your middle school and elementary mental health partners?  Opening up postsecondary options is as much a matter of changing the mindset of parents as it is presenting options to students—and if that’s starting in ninth grade, forget it.  Ask your NACAC affiliate for grant opportunities to strengthen your K-8 postsecondary curriculum, and build the partnerships needed to make it work.

No one in this business was surprised last month to discover the wealthy have an advantage applying to college. What may come as a surprise is how much we can change that dynamic by throwing our hearts behind that change with twenty minutes a week, giving tangible shape to our thoughts, prayers, and deepest hopes for this profession.

UVA now offers an alternative route to Charlottesville

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While not exactly a “side door,” a new gate has opened to some Virginia students deferred from University of Virginia’s Class of 2023 – as long as they are willing to spend a year in rural Wise, Virginia.

Joining the ranks of colleges offering “alternative” routes to admission, the University of Virginia is proposing that a select group of students postpone starting in Charlottesville and spend a year at UVa-Wise, a small liberal arts college located not far from the Kentucky border.

“We are offering Virginians who were placed on the wait list for the College of Arts and Sciences the opportunity to enroll at the UVA College at Wise located in Southwest Virginia for one year before automatically enrolling at UVA in Charlottesville. Students in this program must complete 30 hours of transferrable credit post high school graduation at UVA-Wise with a 3.0 cumulative GPA or better to transfer into the College of Arts and Sciences at UVA.”

UVa has always had a great relationship with Virginia’s community college system and annually admits students earning two-year associates degrees through a guaranteed admission program. The UVa-Wise transfer offer is something new and wasn’t announced until notices went out to students wait listed for fall 2019 admission to UVa.

But not everyone was excited by the prospect of spending a year in rural Virginia, even if it meant an automatic transfer to the University of Virginia. Students posting on College Confidential had mixed reactions. One noted that UVa-Wise is “very much in the middle of nowhere,” while another pointed out that “it also seems to be a very small school, but maybe that would just mean more a more personalized education for the first year?”

One Fairfax County Public School student didn’t know much about UVa-Wise, but thought his offers at William and Mary and Virginia Tech made better sense for him. While he’s opting to stay on the UVa wait list, he has no intention of beginning his college career in Wise, Virginia. He added, “I don’t know anyone considering the offer.”

A member of the UVa-Wise Class of ’90 was quick to respond, “Is it small? Yes. Is the Town of Wise small? Yes. However, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing for a freshman. The classes are much less overcrowded, but the professors have very high standards and the academic rigor is there. The education is top notch.”

And the underlying message was clear, “If a year in Wise got you a ticket into Charlottesville and that’s your dream school, why not take it?”

Founded in 1954 as the Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia, UVa-Wise first offered four-year degrees in 1966 and officially changed its name to the University of Virginia’s College at Wise, in 1999.

Since reaching a peak enrollment of 2,420 in 2012, UVa-Wise has steadily decreased in size to the point that the website reports a current enrollment of 2,021.

But having made a significant investment in new facilities, the Commonwealth is not about to let the university fail. Last week, UVa-Wise announced a rollback of the three-percent tuition increased planned for 2019-20, to $11,154—a bit less than the $14,094 in-state tuition (not including UVa’s substantial fees) planned for Charlottesville next year. In return for eliminating the tuition increase, UVa-Wise will receive an addit­­ional $235,000 from the Virginia General Assembly.

In addition, the General Assembly recently approved legislation allowing the college to offer reduced tuition to students who live within the Appalachian Regional Commission territory, which stretches from rural New York to Mississippi.

According to a press release, “The law is seen as one way for the liberal arts college, a division of the University of Virginia, to counter the same enrollment drop that is affecting most higher education institutions across the nation.”

But aside from some possible enrollment benefits for UVa-Wise, the University of Virginia is experimenting with a growing trend in higher education, which has created an underground network of alternative admissions offers. And these unexpected options contribute significantly to the confusion and stress faced by college applicants at this time of year.

For example, without apparent regard for harm done to freshman retention rates at other institutions, Cornell University admits students as sophomores, as long as they spend freshman year at another college or university and meet certain academic requirements. Northeastern University admits some freshman provided they study abroad for the first semester, while the University of Maryland admits students for the spring semester and encourages those students to take part in a fall program on campus where they could only take classes late in the afternoon or evening.

At Hamilton College, second semester admits may participate in a “gap” semester or enroll in courses at Arcadia University, at their London campus. The University of Southern California offers the “Trojan Transfer Plan,” through which students are provided with “a clear and predictable path to enrolling at USC for sophomore year” by attending a community college or one of four colleges in Europe. The University of Vermont, Middlebury College, Brandeis University, Rochester University, Michigan State, as well as the University of Tampa all offer second semester admission. And the list goes on.

On the plus side, these alternative admission plans offer students the possibility of attending their dream schools, even though they may not have been admissible as freshmen for the fall semester. On the other hand, these plans provide ways for colleges to dodge reporting lower scores or GPAs for the incoming class and to fill vacancies left by students traveling abroad or transferring out.

But the UVa-Wise offer seems to have a broader objective and could potentially benefit both schools. According to Kathy Still, UVa-Wise communications director, “Accepting students from the deferred list would further strengthen the relationship between Campus and Grounds,” which administratively share UVa President Jim Ryan and the UVa Board of Visitors.

While the College at Wise is unsure how many prospective UVa students will opt to take advantage of the new program, Ms. Still advises that “…interest is high and calls to our admissions office are brisk.” She goes on to add, “The students who enter the program would find an engaging faculty, rigorous academic classes, and they would leave after one year with 30 credit hours under their belts. It’s a win-win situation.”

Washington D.C. Internships Distinguish American University’s Gap Program

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American University Gap Program, also known as AU Gap

Not all college-bound students begin their journey into higher education a few months after high school graduation. Some may be eager for a new, non-classroom experience, or want to explore the working world before settling in for years of study. Others may not have planned to take time off, but were admitted to their top-choice college not for the upcoming fall, but for the following spring; and want to spend their break, or gap semester, productively.

One distinctive possibility for any student interested in a productive gap experience is American University’s School of Professional and Extended Studies Gap Program in Washington, D.C., also known as AU Gap. Leveraging the resources and relationships of its unique location, AU Gap Program offers high school graduates an internship experience in the capital city for one or two semesters, as desired, with up to seven credits per semester.

“One semester can be a great option for students spending part of the year overseas,” says Terrell Austin, AU’s GAP Program Advisor. “It can also be ideal for students admitted to college for spring term.”

Alternatively, students who want to spend the full academic year with AU’s Program can either intern at two distinct sites, or continue with their first semester site. “Most students who choose to stay a second semester — about 20 percent of participants — choose a different internship experience,” says Austin, “just to try another field and gain some different experience and insight.”

AU’s deep and growing database of more than 3000 potential internship sites, actively managed by Amy Morrill Bijeau, Director of Experiential Education, offers job experiences in a student’s career field interest — including business, communications, international affairs, journalism, justice, politics, psychology, and the arts and sciences.

It is important to note that students are not placed into an internship; instead, just like in the real world, they must secure their position themselves, with guidance and support from the AU Gap team, who work closely with the student to get them prepared. “We focus,” says Austin, “on giving students professional development right from the start.”

The process requires some introspection and self-knowledge. “Students first need to articulate who they are and what type of job experience they are looking for,” says Austin. They also get help with their resumes and cover letters, as well as interview preparation and assistance with navigating the internship database.

Once students have selected 10-15 potential sites from the database, they begin the job-hunting process — sending out their resumes, making contacts, scheduling interviews. “In almost all cases,” says Austin, “students find their internship position within two weeks.”

Students work at their job site three days a week, mentored by their site coordinator, and earn up to four college credits. In a few cases, they may also be paid. “It happens occasionally,” says Austin, “as an unexpected bonus.”

Gap Program students also participate in an interactive weekly seminar led by an AU professor, with graded assignments and class presentations; prominent guest speakers; and field visits that could only be possible in D.C. — to embassies, congressional hearings, the Supreme Court, government agencies, non-profit organizations, conferences on a topic they have been studying, and more.

Besides enhancing the internship experience by helping students build communication skills, develop their network, and gain insight on world issues, the three-credit seminar keeps study skills fresh. It is also an exclusive offering that participants share only with their fellow interns (approximately 10-20 students).

“We think it’s important to foster a cohort experience for the AU Gap Program students,” says Austin, “where they are getting encouragement from each other and can also talk out any challenges they may be facing.”

To further facilitate the cohort relationship, AU Gap students live in the same residential hall (among full-time AU students), making it easier to build social relationships. As with all AU students, they have a meal plan, metro pass, and access to all campus facilities. Expenses are estimated at $18,000 per semester.

Who is a good candidate for AU Gap? “High-achievers looking for a real-world work experience before college,” says Austin. Students also need to be enthusiastic about the program, because although there is a lot of support, it requires a lot of initiative, too.

The application is rolling, so students may apply any time during their senior year of high school. A 3.0 GPA is required (exceptions may be made in unusual circumstances), as well as two letters of recommendation, two essays, and a phone interview Austin conducts with both the student and parents.

One further point for any student considering a gap experience with college credit: if you will be applying to college later, you may be regarded as a transfer student at some colleges (rather than as an incoming freshman), depending upon the number of credits you have earned, so it would be wise to inquire about this ahead of time at the specific institutions you are targeting. If you have already been admitted and either plan to ask for a deferral or are starting in the spring, make sure to receive permission for your specific gap program to avoid jeopardizing the original admission decision.

Desperate Parents: Celebrities, Others Amorally Acquire Admission to U.S. Colleges

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Felicity Huffman allegedly went from a Desperate Housewife to a desperate parent in search of USC admission for her daughter.

At least one Desperate Housewife, Felicity Huffman, allegedly became a Desperate Parent in search of selective college admission for her offspring. Letters of admission usually come at a price ($70,000 per year tuition at many private American universities these days), but for those who don’t want to play by the rules of the current college admissions game at America’s status symbol colleges, the price was reportedly even steeper!

According to the Associated Press, “fifty people, including Hollywood stars Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin, were charged Tuesday in a scheme in which wealthy parents allegedly bribed college coaches and other insiders to get their children into some of the nation’s most elite schools.”

The sordid details, none of which are particularly surprising nor likely to change the perverse state of the college admissions process at America’s most selective colleges, are detailed from various angles by clicking on links below. Below these news links, the full affidavit, with all of the ugly details, is reproduced for our readers.

While colleges themselves are not implicated in this particular scheme, the smoke and mirrors admissions system that selective American colleges and universities have created and perpetuate daily certainly allowed this alleged scheme to go on as long as they did.

The Latest: UCLA soccer coach RESIGNS for ‘taking a $100,000 bribe to put a real-estate developer’s daughter on the roster so she would get accepted – even though she had never played competitively’ (DailyMail.com)

The Full List of those Charged (The New York Times)

College Admissions Scandal Uncovered (AP)

Feds find large-scale cheating plot (NBC News)

Mastermind Photoshopped students’ faces onto athletes (New York Post)

Actresses, Business Leaders, Wealthy Parents, Coaches Caught (Inside Higher Ed)

Celebrities charged (Hollywood Reporter)

Lori Loughlin paid $500,000 to get her YouTube ‘star’ daughter into USC – who then boasted she was going to college to party, cashed in with sponsored posts and is now being trolled mercilessly online (DailyMail.com)

The Wynn executive, vineyard owner and youth branding expert: The non-Hollywood parents busted in college bribery scheme (DailyMail.com)

Sasha and Malia Obama’s tennis instructor and the former Yale women’s soccer coach are among those indicted in sprawling college bribery scheme (DailyMail.com)

CHARITY THAT ALLEGEDLY TOOK BRIBES TO GET MILLIONAIRES INTO COLLEGE CLAIMED TO BE ABOUT HELPING THE UNDERPRIVILEGED (DailyCaller.com)

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Best Summer Programs in Europe for High School Students

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For many high school students, summer is a time to disconnect from school year stress. For many parents of high school students, summer is a time fraught with anxiety over whether their teens are “making the most” of their time away from school. How sad! Whether your are a student or a parent, please don’t sweat summer.

Even if you are a student or parent who has no money to your name, there are plenty of ways high school students can stay active and engaged over the summer while developing their interests and building important life skills.

Yet, if you do have some dollars to spare, there are some wonderfully enriching summer programs for high school students out there – and I mean way out there – in Europe. My three current favorites are detailed below.

These programs will give curious, adventurous, intellectual, and inquisitive high school students the chance to burst out of the often-banal high school classroom and into the “old world” in order to engage in an amazing experiential learning opportunity that will be both perspective-expanding and a chance to take a deep dive into preexisting interests. This is so important because no matter what a student does over the summer, it should present value added to both the student and to colleges the student may want to apply to later.

Before we start the countdown, an important disclaimer: exploring pre-existing interests deeply over the summer in Europe seems like a win-win to me; however, the following list won’t be for everyone, and it shouldn’t be. The most important thing for students and parents to remember is that students should pursue their passions deeply over the summer. If they can’t afford to take part in the programs below, that’s fine! They still should develop skills and knowledge over the summer that can only come through some sort of immersive summer experience. Again, I detail some closer to home and dirt-cheap options here.

But, without further ado, for the purposes of why we are here today, let’s hop on the plane to Europe!

#3. TASIS: The American School in Switzerland Summer Programs

Student taking part in TASIS summer program in Lugano, Switzerland

In 1956, M. Crist Fleming founded The American School in Switzerland, the first American boarding school in Europe, in order to apply the American independent school tradition to Europe. All these years later, the school has grown leaps and bounds, and other TASIS schools operate in England and Puerto Rico. TASIS’ summer course options in Switzerland really wow me.

Students pick one class from a diversity of options, which means that a diversity of students will be intermingling on this lovely southern Swiss campus for the duration of your stay. Class options offered recently include Intensive Italian, Fine Art Portfolio, Lean Startup Masterclass, Architecture & Design, and Fashion & Textile Design . My favorite option, however, is La Cucina Italiana: Italian Cooking, in which students learn to cook authentic Italian food after choosing ingredients at local Italian markets, touring Italian cheese and meat factories, practicing knife skills, and learning how to perfectly balance spices.

Why I love this program: As a former “undecided” student as I began my college career, TASIS’ diverse offerings speak to the undecided teen in all of us, and the overall program certainlys attract a diverse mix of summer students from all over the world. Students need more opportunities to simply try something new and meet peers with diverse interests, and TASIS’ Switzerland summer program certainly allows for that in a location that can’t be beat. If you can’t get inspired to learn more about yourself and the world around you while on TASIS’ Lugano campus, you can’t get inspired anywhere. Another upshot of this program is that all high school students, no matter their grade level, are able to take part.

Who it’s perfect for: Students taking part in this program should have the desire to immerse themselves in one course and maybe one sport (sports cost extra but include Milan Academy Scuola Calcio, Olimpia Milano Basketball, and Crossfit) in the unsurpassed setting that is Lugano, Switzerland, which is also a wonderful jumping off point for educational European excursions near and far. Students who are undecided on their path in college and beyond will find something to try at TASIS over the summer and have the chance to do so in an environment that seems almost too perfect and made for life-long memories. Students whose interests align with one of the course offerings are in the unique position to build upon this preexisting interest in the company of peers who may have very different academic and personal interests but who share an interest in spending time in the pre-Alps over the summer.

Learn More: Click here.

Alternative worth considering: TASIS also has intriguing summer options for high school students in England, France (see more below), and Puerto Rico.

#2. University of Notre Dame: Pre-College Program in Ireland

High school students taking part in Notre Dame’s pre-college program

It shouldn’t be so surprising that the Fighting Irish run a summer travel tour seminar worth one college credit for rising high school seniors in Ireland. Notre Dame’s Pre-College Program in Ireland allows rising high school seniors to explore “bustling Dublin,” “bucolic Connemara,” edgy Belfast, and so much more during a twelve-day jaunt through the Emerald Isle.

“Guided by Notre Dame faculty and local scholars, students will embark on an exploration of Irish culture, history, and landscape through what Notre Dame’s O’Connell House calls ‘learning through the soles of your feet.'”

Why I love this program: It’s pretty immersive in terms of ground covered and it’s pretty cool that students live and learn at the Kylemore Abbey Global Center, which is right next to a castle, during the last leg of the program.

Who it’s perfect for: Students taking part in this program should have demonstrated academic achievement in high school and some sort of preexisting interest in Ireland, Irish Heritage, Irish History, Catholicism, Protestantism, place-based learning, European culture and/or History, 20th Century History, European History, the British Isles, castles, and/or the Northern Ireland Peace Process in order to get the most out of this experience and in order to have it align with other activities they’ve pursued in the past.

Learn More: Overview and More Details

Alternative worth considering: Notre Dame also has a summer program for rising high school seniors in Rome.

#1. The New School: Parsons Paris Pre-College Studies

Sunset in Paris, France

If you are an artist, there are few better places to visit for inspiration than Paris, France. Did you know that Parsons School of Design, part of The New School in New York City, has a campus in Paris where rising high school juniors and seniors – they must be sixteen by the time the program begins – have a variety of summer art course options from which to choose? The immersive courses of study at Parsons Paris last just over three weeks in July and cover topics ranging from “Explorations in Drawing,” “Fashion Design Process,” and “Fashion Photography: History and Process” to “Graphic Design Workshop,” “Introduction to Design and Management,” and “Fashion Illustration.”

Why I love this program: This program is for serious artists; each class meets daily from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., so it’s for those who are energized by developing their craft. All Parsons Paris Summer Intensive Studies courses are not only educational in their own right; each course counts for three college credits and may also be used by students to develop a portfolio for their upcoming college admissions process. Students also have the chance to take part in excursions, including crepe tastings.

Who it’s perfect for: Students taking part in this program should have demonstrated artistic achievement in high school and some sort of preexisting interest in Art generally or specifically fashion, fashion merchandising, drawing, graphic design, photography, and/or art history in order to get the most out of this experience and in order to have it align with other activities they’ve pursued in the past.

Learn More: Overview

Alternatives worth considering: If you don’t need to be in France, but want a lot of what Parsons Paris’ summer courses offer, Parsons also has a pre-college/intensive summer programs for high school students at its main campus in New York City. Meanwhile, if you would love to spend several weeks intensely pursuing your passion for art in France but don’t need to be in cosmopolitan Paris, TASIS (mentioned more above) has an intimate one-of-a-kind at program in the south of France called Les Taipes, which accepts an extremely limited number of students each summer.