The question is: Does America have the brainpower today to meet such challenges?

Now that I have your attention, let’s consider the problem. The immediate problem we have has to do with the lowering of academic standards in our schools (and colleges) over the last 40 years. What kind of preparation do high school students get for college or for life in general, for that matter?

More and more American colleges have incoming freshman that are flat out not prepared for college level work. Even professor’s at the most competitive Ivy League schools see the diminishing writing, reading and critical thinking skills their students have. Why is that?

For an in-depth answer to that question, you can read the insightful, exhaustive and extensive research by Charlotte Iserbyt. Her tome, The Deliberate Dumbing Down of America is where to start.

There are a myriad of good solutions to the problem. But like most things, it will need a consensus that there is a problem and an interest in the solutions. A teacher’s ability to teach is obviously important. But teaching a classroom of diverse personalities is not easy.  It takes a special person who has the passion and ability to teach and inspire effectively. As I talk with high school students I learn that their interest in various subjects often depends upon the teacher’s ability to engage and motivate them.  It may not even be a subject they had an interest in before taking the class. Are you a student? Is that true?    

Another challenge that principals and superintendents have is that school systems are required to meet the state and federal rules and regulations of the Departments of Education. Ms Iserbyt does an excellent job of pointing out the problems there.  Do you think that government may have overreached and put both the teachers and students at an extreme disadvantage?

Parents should learn if the curriculum being taught is what the student needs to learn. It is time to abolish the Federal Department of Education and return education planning to the states, and more importantly the school districts. Bring accountability home where it belongs.

Nevertheless, in the final analysis, isn’t learning a life long activity? As Saint Augustine once wrote, “The world is a book, and those who do not travel, read only one page.” Think about how you can leave the world better than you found it when you arrived.

The relationship between the financial aid and admissions offices has changed over the years. Only a few colleges are still NOT “need sensitive” and are genuinely need blind when making their admissions decisions.

Unfortunately for the vast majority of college bound high school students, those are private schools that are extremely competitive such as Harvard, Yale and Princeton. There are about 50 colleges that still have enough cash in their budgets to fill a student’s need 100%.

Of course, the definition of “need” is the individual school’s (not your) interpretation of “need”. That is why we recommend every family complete a money-saving “Dry Run” years before a student even applies to a college. It is not necessary to have a final, or even preliminary list to do this exercise.

One of the first questions families used to ask when looking at a college was, “What are our chances for acceptance?” (That was always an interesting way to ask it because one would think that the parent was also applying.) With the ever increasing cost of colleges that use government loans and grants to fill their aid packages, more parents are concerned about the cost and the first questions include “Can I afford it?”

While admissions officers are well versed in SAT-score and GPA requirements for their institutions, it is now crucial that they know how to answer questions about eligibility for financial aid and merit scholarships. Although many admissions deans say they have always worked in close collaboration with their financial-aid offices, such efforts are becoming more critical as colleges tweak their aid policies and packaging to attract accepted students.

Various surveys and my conversations with admissions officers reveal that monetary issues weigh heavily on their minds. That concern is not shared with prospective students during the college tour. When asked which activities were most time-consuming, admissions officers ranked “communicating with other campus offices,” particularly the financial-aid office, the highest, with 70 percent reporting that they spend a “high” or “very high” amount of time on that activity. More than a dozen admissions deans interviewed by The Chronicle of Higher Education affirmed that statistic, saying they were in daily contact with their financial-aid colleagues.

To ensure that both admissions staffers and financial-aid professionals have the same understanding of their college’s enrollment goals, many institutions have enlisted enrollment managers to oversee both offices and act as a liaison between the two. At smaller colleges, where adding more staff members might not be feasible, it has become more common for the role of admissions dean and financial-aid director

As we enter the second half of the school year and high school sophomores, juniors and some seniors schedule April visits, find out a prospective colleges financial aid methodologies. In fact, ask us for the “7 Questions to ask Financial Aid Administrators”. This will smooth the way to that conversation. Having a congenial Q & A with the FAO now, could “pay off” in the end. Remember, most financial aid officers have your best interests in mind, but they are also subject to the school’s policies. We can help you learn what they are beforehand. Call us today.

   Being placed on the college wait-list is not uncommon these days. If that happens, the college should provide a history that describes the number of students on the wait-list and how many have been selected from it in the past, as well as the availability of financial aid and housing. Because of the enormous increase in applications (the Class of 2012 has the most applicants in history), more colleges are putting well qualified students on the wait-list.

     But there are other reasons. It is sometimes because those strong students have not shown enough evidence that demonstrates to the admissions folks that he or she is seriously interested in their college. One giveaway is when a student applies to a cluster of schools that are not related to one another, or maybe in the same athletic league but culturally quite separate. Brown and Dartmouth are both very competitive Ivy League colleges but quite different in educational philosophy and culture.

     In guiding our students through this process, we go over the strategies to avoid this perception…and outcome. In fact, I probably become quite tiresome in my continual emphasis on the AAA method of due diligence. But it works. The students who take the few minutes to collect this information have no regrets. 

    Finally, if you are placed on a wait-list and genuinely want to go to that college, let them know in writing. Provide them with another recommendation and your latest spring grades. Follow their policies, however. But if you have had some good communication with the regional admissions representative at that college, now is the time to reconnect. Talk to him or her for suggestions.     

      Colleges will often say they do not have a priority pecking order from the wait-list, but play it safe and you will be in a better position by making it clear that you will attend if accepted.

 

Just when spring fever sets in college applications are piled high in admissions offices across the country the pressure mounts. It is not just in those offices either. All college bound seniors are watching their snail mail and email daily. Some have heard already. You can tell who they are by their body language in the hallways. If you are a student you know what I mean.    

    Some of the most selective colleges no longer adhere strictly to the common notification of April 1. In the last few years they are trying to get a jump on their competition by unofficially admitting a percentage of the stronger candidates around March 15. Dartmouth College, for instance, may send out selected early ‘notification of future admission letters’ to some strong applicants in February.

     With a head start, these colleges can put psychological pressure on a young scholar to accept their offers of admission, as tentative as they may be. If this happens to you, be cautious and don’t rush to send in your deposit. You have until May 1 to do that. Now is the time to evaluate ALL the colleges to which you gain acceptance one final time to see if they are qualified to serve you. You have already proved that you are qualified to be a future student there.

     Independent colleges that lack a national name or must-have majors are hardest hit. Many have found themselves deep in debt in an effort to remain competitive. They are    becoming more conscious of a student’s “ability to pay” during the admissions process. (Despite what a representative may say at a college fair or when you visit a campus.)   Now, as endowments tumble and bills mount, they’re struggling to attract cash-strapped families who are challenged with their own financial situations.

“The spending binge by colleges and universities was part of the same trend that created the bubble in the rest of the economy,” says Ronald Ehrenberg, an economics professor at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and author of “Tuition Rising: Why College Costs So Much” (Harvard University Press, 2000). “Now we’re seeing it burst.”

     Professor Ehrenberg does not place enough focus, however, on the ever expanding reliance on federal loans and grants that are made available from federal tax payers to fill financial need packages. This includes the expanding use of debt crippling Plus Loans. Instead, he writes more about the escalation in costs because of increased spending (borrowing) to enhance student amenities and other unnecessary expansion of the infrastructure. That is true, but one only needs to look at an academically strong liberal arts college in Pennsylvania to see how much money can be saved when a college does not depend on government subsidies. (Less than five accredited colleges are truly independent.) 

     Grove City College does not participate in the federal loan or grant program. That is a big reason why the full cost of    attendance there in 2011/12 is less than $25,000! It is not because they pay their professors less, have students sleeping on cots in bunk houses or do not offer financial aid; it is because they do NOT use federal financial aid. As I hope you know, there is an enormous mismanagement of money in most government programs. That is a characteristic of a multi-layered bureaucracy; it is often replete with redundancies and waste. For instance, in order to meet the eligibility requirements to use Stafford, Perkins, Plus loans and Pell and SEOG grants, colleges have huge administrative expenses that have nothing to do with educating your son or daughter.    

     All the more reason to approach the college planning process realistically. If you are just beginning the process you should know that smart college planning begins with a free consultation. During that time you will learn what steps you can take on your own to avoid the pitfalls of picking the college that is in financial trouble and cutting back on programs and professors. Clearly, these will have a negative effect on the time and money spent pursuing a degree in the appropriate major.     

     Standard & Poor’s predicts bankruptcies will rise from the typical one or two schools that fold each year. “Small colleges with no reputation could go out of business,” says Sandy Baum, a senior policy analyst at the College Board, “They’re very tuition-driven, so if they can’t get tuition revenues, they’ll be in really bad shape.” In addition, Richard Kneedler, a former president of Franklin & Marshall College, a Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based college founded in 1787 with financial support from Benjamin Franklin, says many small schools face this predicament. Therefore, buyers beware.

     Bowdoin was the first ‘very competitive’ college to announce that they would not require the SAT or ACT scores. It was a brilliant marketing move because applications increased along with rejections resulting in a lower percentage of admitted students. Not to mention that applicants who did score well, submitted their scores, thus creating a higher average score overall. That was when college ranking systems were becoming ubiquitous. The US News & World Report spawned a new and very profitable niche in magazine publishing.  

     Since then, over 800 colleges have instituted a “test optional” policy. Keep in mind, however, that all colleges place more importance on the rigor of the high school transcript and that means that more scrutiny will be placed there. That has ALWAYS been the case at the more competitive colleges.

     Having said that, however, many of those test optional colleges still buy the names of high test scorers from the “non-profit” gold mine called the College Board. How do you spell “hypocritical”? On the other hand, test optional Bard College in the beautiful Hudson River Valley of New York, does not buy names from the College Board. That means they look at the potential for success in an applicant in depth.

     Now what about the success thing? How do you measure success? Is success measured in material possessions, personal relationships, career satisfaction, happiness, financial security or optimal health physically and spiritually? Look around you. I would bet that if you were to know the SAT or ACT scores of adults you would not see an appreciable difference in successful outcomes between the high and average scorers. I have known a few scientists and engineers and even some members of Mensa who had perfect scores in high school and college but because they live completely in their heads, particularly the self-limiting left brain; they are sometimes challenged when in comes to personal relationships, critical thinking and common sense.

     Nonetheless, I do believe that preparing for the SAT is very helpful for a student regardless if he or she has college aspirations. The best test prep we have found over the last 20 years of reviewing such programs is right here. The reason is that when you come right down to it, the SAT is a reasoning test. And we all have to learn to reason and sharpen our skills there, do we not? If you are parent or a student, walk through the 30 sample questions and you too, will have a light bulb go on over your head.

The majority of college bound students do it the wrong way…is your student in the majority?  Fall is college application time for seniors. The Class of 2012 is the largest most competitive high school class in American history. High school seniors around the country are applying to their “Dream Schools”.

Every year the following scenarios are played out by countless ambitious students everywhere.

 SCENARIO ONE: The first is when a student falls in love with a single college but his   academic profile is in the lower 50% of the applicant pool. It could be a college that historically has less than a 10% acceptance rate or as “high” as 40%. He applies in one of the early application programs (ED or EA) thinking he will have a better chance of admittance. It is his “dream school” and, while he may grudgingly add a few more colleges to a list to satisfy a nervous parent, he never really looks beyond that “dream school”. Until, of course, the rejection letter arrives in December. Because his focus and enthusiasm was wrapped up in his dream school, he did not pay much attention to the requirements of his other colleges. Some of which had January regular application (RA) deadlines, none of which he is prepared to meet.

 SCENARIO TWO: This is more common. As above, the student may have what I call “brand name paralysis” and builds a list solely of “BNP schools.” These are schools like Harvard, Yale, Stanford, UC Berkeley and Pomona where the acceptance rate is so ridiculously low that no matter how good your grades and test scores are, getting in is never a sure bet. Unfortunately, like the “dream school” students, they too are often disappointed. Likely they have been told by parents, teachers, or a guidance counselor that they are excellent prospects for these schools because they are so unique and special. So, they never really look seriously beyond those “lottery schools”…until, of course, the rejection letters start coming in the mail in the spring.

 Because of the huge increase in student applications, some of the top students are even being rejected by their “safety” schools .”  (Colleges do not want to be thought of as “safeties”, so they are sending a message basically saying we want you only if you want us.) Talk about humble pie!

 These two scenarios illustrate why I believe that college planning should start with an honest; realistic self-assessment. This means taking a critical look at the student’s academic statistics, interests, learning style and personality.

Obviously financial issues are important too. You can learn how to minimize student (and parent) debt here.

 In other words, begin the college search by identifying several schools where the student has a good bet of acceptance and – more importantly – where he/she would be happy to spend a few years. These are the schools where the student’s academic profile places him or her in the top 25% of the accepted student pool. Once students genuinely appreciate (if not love) at least one safety school, they can safely move on to more selective schools and, yes, even some of the aforementioned “most competitive” colleges.

Rhodes College

     But if you are looking at very competitive colleges and not taking the most challenging courses offered at your high school, it may be much harder.  A few aberrant C’s will not automatically exclude you from consideration, but you may have to explain the reasons behind the lower grades. Many college application supplements, in fact, ask students to explain any performance that is inconsistent with the larger academic record. It is not uncommon for a strong student to experience a downturn in grades due to an illness, injury, family or school relocation and so on. (“I did not like the teacher” is not a good reason.)

     In any case, print out and put on your fridge the steps you need to take over the course of your junior year. If you have any questions or want to know more about our services, do not hesitate to email or call…anytime.

     We are celebrating our 20^th year of guiding students (and parents) through this milestone step teenagers take in life’s journey. We appreciate the opportunity to be part of it.  

     Yes, on the surface it does not bode well for the current undergrad. However, there are steps that both the student and the college can take to brighten that outcome. I was very encouraged recently when I saw the attention given to sophomores at some colleges during the annual ritual of newly minted college freshman saying “good bye” to parents.     

     It is encouraging to see more and more colleges taking their role as advisors more proactively. For instance look at Lafayette College’s website.They are not hesitating to open their books to prospective students with information as to what past graduates have been able to accomplish.

     If you are a college student, how much research into the advising and internship options have you done? If little, start to familiarize yourself with the career services office, even if you are a freshman. By the way, one student who took the matter of interning VERY seriously has turned her experience into a business. Meet Lauren Berger, the InternQueen.

     Once the freshman year has been successfully navigated and you know what is expected academically, it is now time to really get serious and think about why you are in college.                                                                                      

     The passing of Steve Jobs reminded me of his 2005 graduation talk to Stanford graduates. It is without a doubt, one of the finest commencement speeches ever delivered in history! Here is the transcript and video of his life changing message. Think about what he said. For me, it was one of the most insightful and spiritually aware statements of purpose I have ever heard. Let me know what you think? 

     Speaking of “insightful” if you have done the self-assessment called “Do What You Are” with us, do not forget that is a rich resource of career descriptions and academic concentrations that are matched up to your individual natural strengths and innate characteristics that will comprise your personality for your lifetime on this planet we call Earth!

     It is literally at your finger tips for years to come. Take advantage of that. If you have not “book marked” the link, I will send you the link. In addition, if you have any questions regarding your choice of major, send me an email ~ help@SmartCollegePlanning.org

     Finally, all undergrads (or grads) that complete this survey by October 20, (in celebration of our 20^th Anniversary) my gift to you will be the book Getting From College to Career. Now is the time to think beyond the “now”.

Because college admissions counselors want to see the side of you in class that does not always come out in your application elsewhere, it is important to help the teacher focus on something that you did in class. Writing a “thank you” letter like this immediately following the teacher’s positive response to your request is a sure-fire way to get a stellar recommendation.  

Of course, not all recommendations will be as powerful as this one sent in for William Smith, but send that thank you letter and you will come close. By the way, if you are a full service client, read the expanded recommendation tips in your handbook and pay attention to paragraph four of the model thank you letter.      

Finally, here are five steps toward getting that stellar teacher recommendation. They support the points made above. Keep them in mind if you are a current undergrad looking for professor recommendations for a job and/or graduate school. Learn now to be professional in your approach, it will serve you well.