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5-MYTHS

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Is Your College Essay Good Enough to Get You In?

The college essay is more important than ever and often makes the difference between getting into college or not, as well as a major factor in the size of the student’s financial aid. So how can you write an essay that will stand out? Everyone talks about voice when it comes to the essay. Yet…

24 Common Mistakes in Choosing a College

Based on my experience these are the mistakes students often make in searching for colleges the right college to attend. 1. Only look at colleges your best friend is looking at Your goal should be to find the right college for you, not your best friend. Even the closest friends have different goals and ambitions.…

Rising College Debt Means More Adult Children Live at Home

More and more adult children are moving in with their parents than ever before primarily because of the college debt they incurred. In addition, 60% of young adults receive financial support from their parents. This, at the same time parents are trying to save for their own retirement which by itself is no easy task.…

Tips on Researching Colleges

You will be generating a list of colleges based on characteristics such as size, majors, and location. These are important characteristics but you should not end your search at that point. When it comes to narrowing the list, many students are not sure how to proceed. There’s no magic formula for deciding between schools. Ultimately,…

7 Things To Look For In A Good College

This is an article by Michelle Kretzschmar of DIY College Rankings. There are over 3,000 four-year colleges in the United States. How do you begin to find the good colleges to which a student should apply? To a certain extent, the definition of “good” will vary from student to student. However, there are seven things…

11 Ways to Research a College

Researching colleges is not an easy task. A helpful article written by Lynn O’Shaughnessy has some additional tips on how to research a college: Review the finances. Check student opinions. Ask students questions. Know the Difference Between a College and a University. Check a school’s graduation rates. Research how happy are the freshman. Check RateMyProfessors…

Conquering Essay Block

You boot up your computer, determined to write your college application essay or work on the supplemental questions asked by so many of the Common App colleges. Instead, you find yourself just staring at the blank screen, searching for inspiration and feeling stuck. When writer’s block hits, try these tips for getting unstuck and you’ll…

Getting the Best Recommendation

Many colleges ask students for letters of recommendation during the application process. The two types of recommendations colleges may request are: Teacher recommendations. Letters of recommendation from your teachers help colleges learn about you as a student. Teacher recommendations should be written by a teacher who has taught you in 11th or 12th grade in…

Study Conclusion: Student Debt Severely Impacts Future Student Success

A recent study (link to obtain the report) by Purdue University and The Gallup poll concluded that the level of student debt limits future success of college graduates. The study also concluded that it’s not where a student goes to college that matters in future success but how and what the student did in college no matter…

Here is a Good Reason to Have a Solid “Plan B”

I always impress on students that they may not get into their first choice so it’s important to have a solid “plan B.” That does not mean that you have to settle for a school that is not academically challenging or is not a good fit in other ways. It just means that sometimes our…