The Admissions Insider's guide, secrets, and tips for admissions and test prep for boarding school, colleges and graduate schools

How much should you be willing to go into student debt?

admin — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 03:01:53 +0000

A discussion about student debt and how majors can affect how much you’ll owe… (or won’t owe) after you graduate school. Ideally, a student would pay the expense of college tuition and living expenses with accumulated savings, scholarships, grants and/or earned income; however, these means are not always enough to last the duration of a [...]

How to prepare for the ACT exam / test day

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:55:28 +0000

It’s 8:00 AM. Saturday. The day you have been both waiting for and dreading over the past few months. ACT Test day. Although you will certainly be feeling the pressure, remember that today is the day you get to show what you know. It isn’t the time to cram the formula for volume of a [...]

Should you take the SAT or ACT exam? Which is better for you…

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:47:21 +0000

Article about whether you should take the SAT or ACT exam: College admissions tests can be overwhelming, but choosing the test (SAT vs. ACT) that best suits you puts you on the path to success early on. While the SAT is historically regarded as the typical admissions test, the ACT is quickly gaining ground and [...]

Things to Consider When Choosing a College: Compare Reputation with Cost and Majors

admin — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:39:41 +0000

The topic of today’s blog post is comparing a school’s reputation versus cost and majors – extremely important factors that go into making your college choices. With nearly 6000 higher education institutions in the United States, college-bound seniors have quite a few choices of colleges and universities to sift through to pare down their choices [...]

How to Form an SAT Study Group, and ways to prep for the SAT

admin — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 21:10:19 +0000

Studying for the SAT is no easy task: often, students feel like all their hard work is in vain, or they become frustrated with ambiguous study concepts. A common symptom of SAT studying is “burnout,” when students lose motivation to keep working hard. One of the best things to do in the face of burnout [...]

What ACT Score Do I Need? The Magic Number

admin — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:58:56 +0000

More and more, colleges are beginning to consider students holistically. Admissions committees acknowledge and reward a breadth of interests, like athletic achievement, artistic endeavors, or other activities. Your application includes a variety of information: personal statements, academic records, and recommendations all play important roles. In light of this, you may wonder how important are your [...]

Getting on With College: Arguments Against a Gap Year

admin — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 22:06:38 +0000

In recent years, it has become fashionable for families to consider a “gap year” for graduating high school seniors in which they take a year off prior to entering college to travel or participate in community service activities. A cottage industry of books, advisors, and even “gap year” scholarships have emerged to promote and support [...]

The Ten Best Values in Private Universities, Public Universities, and Liberal Arts Colleges

admin — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:00:57 +0000

Kiplingers magazine has released its annual list of the best values in American universities. The criteria used by Kiplingers include cost and financial aid (31.25%), competitiveness including admissions rates (25%), academic support including freshman retention rates (12.5%), graduation rates over four years (18.75%), and student indebtedness (12.5%). Institutions which excelled using these criteria follow. Top [...]

How Dropping Spring 2012 Classes Can Endanger the College Applications of High School Seniors

admin — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 12:58:07 +0000

High School seniors must be aware of the importance of not dropping any important spring semester courses. The senior classes students list on their college applicatons include course work for the spring 2012 semester. College admissions officers base their decision to accept students on their grade transcripts and course curriculum which includes spring semester classes. [...]

Do College Admissions Officers Value Community Service?

admin — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:17:24 +0000

We all know that standardized test scores and grades play a major role in college admissions. What about community service, however? What does it mean to be a “good citizen?” JP Morgan partnered with on-line educational service providers to conduct an annual survey of the top 50 colleges according to US News and World Report [...]

Five Tips for Your College Admissions Essays

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:04:19 +0000

Here are a few tips for those of you finishing up your college admissions essays. 1.Use care in responding to the short queries. Admissions staffs use them to gain insights into your character and suitability for their institution. 2.View each prompt as a chance to display another aspect of your personality. Give them something they [...]

Ten Steps to Take After You Submit Your College Application

admin — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 12:33:52 +0000

Once you push the “submit” button on your college application, the process is not complete. Ten steps that will help you keep it moving follow. 1. Check in with teachers who agreed to write recommendations to confirm they have been submitted. 2. Make sure that your standardized tests have been sent by the appropriate testing [...]

Six Recommendations for Future College Engineering Applicants

admin — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 19:28:05 +0000

Building a strong engineering application takes preparation and should begin no later than your junior year. Six tips for facilitating this process follow. 1.Research colleges with strong engineering programs. Examine their engineering department web-site to learn about them. Arrange visits to the schools that most appeal to you. When you do so, make sure that [...]

Top 5 Boarding School Admissions and Application Tips

admin — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:31:35 +0000

If you’re applying to boarding schools, there are a few quick admissions tips to help you navigate the private school admissions process and applications. (1) Narrow your list of boarding schools to 10 max. It’s very important to channel your energy into applying to fewer schools, than you would when you apply to colleges or graduate schools. Further, you’re younger [...]

How to Prepare for the SAT and ACT during Christmas Break

admin — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 19:34:35 +0000

If you’re studying for the SAT and ACT, you can easily use the Christmas break to prepare wisely. Here are three quick tips to help you prepare for both the SAT and ACT exams during your vacation. (1) Practice at least 1 hour a day during the week. Split your time between Math, Reading and [...]

Ten Quality Private Colleges That Do the Best Job In Keeping Average Student Debt Low

admin — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 14:11:42 +0000

Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine has published a list of private colleges that “provided enough financial aid to get their students across the finish line for $14,000 or less” in loans. Some of the ten schools have price tags exceeding $50,000. The list follows with the average debt and the percentage of students who borrowed. 1. [...]

Three Tips on How to Explore Colleges from Home

admin — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 18:59:13 +0000

You may not be able to get an in-person preview of colleges you are interested in. What do you do? 1. Get Online: The first resource you should consult for comprehensive information about a college is its official web-site. Gather information on size, location, and degree programs. Jot down a few contact names and e-mails. [...]

Six Tips For The College Interview

admin — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 21:45:33 +0000

College interviews can be an important part of the admissions process, particularly at selective institutions. Tips for prpearing for your interview follow. 1. If you know that you may be called for an interview, always be ready for the call. Check your e-mail and phone messages regularly. 2. Arrive at least ten minutes early. Dress [...]

What to Do If You Are Deferred for College Admission

admin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:45:02 +0000

If your early application for admission is deferred, you can increase your chances of admission by taking the following four steps. 1. Find Out Why You Were Deferred: Within a few days of receiving your deferral, contact the admissions office and ask to speak with the office responsible for your application file. In a respectful tone, [...]

Seven Tips For College Admissions Video Essays

admin — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:23:24 +0000

Some schools have recently added the option of creating a video essay for your admissions package. How can you take advantage of this opportunity and highlight your strengths? 1. Address the question and follow any directions which are offered such as length. If a short video is requested, a minute in length is best. 2.Brainstorm [...]