Seems that every time you turn around, someone -- usually an enterprising college student who needs the cash to pay that tuition bill -- is writing a book on how to pay for college. Add on the perfunctory, Without Going Broke, Without Mooching Off Your Parents, Without Going Into Debt, and you've got a best seller.

Saunter (a good SAT word) into your local Barnes & Nobles and you'll find at least a half dozen books dedicated to paying for colleges, the profits from any one of which likely to b...
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E.L. of Searingtown, NY writes:

HELP! I am about to take the SAT and the ACT for the second time this fall, and need guidance and advice to raise my score, significantly. Have gone the test-prep class route before, with limited success. Can you recommend an individual tutor to assist on both substance and technique?

The College Whisperer responds:

No question, you need a competitive edge when applying to colleges these days. The same holds true when preparing for the SAT, ACT and SAT Subject Tes...
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No. Not a typo. Get complete, customized, personal college planning -- from college matching, admission strategies and essay development to scholarship and financial aid sourcing -- all for the incredibly low, all-inclusive price of $999.

Yes, you read that correctly. Now through Friday, October 15, College Connection is offering the Good Old-Fashioned Advice at a Good Old-Fashioned Price package, a bargain at the regular everyday price of $2000, for only $999.

Move over, Ron Popeil. there has ...
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M.T. of Little Neck, NY writes:

I am about to enter my senior year of high school, and will soon be preparing my college applications (YIKES!). I'd like to visit a few colleges this fall, but want to know if such campus tours are really worthwhile. Any thoughts?

The College Whisperer responds:

Lots of thoughts, M.T. [Right about now, I'm thinking "lunch." ;~)].

Yes, campus tours, particularly at colleges that top your wish list, are worthwhile. Visits to campus will give you -- and your parents...
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Fresh off a three-continent, two-galaxy whirlwind tour of cyberspace, The College Whisperer re-enters the stratosphere, ready to make his only Long Island appearance (so far) on Monday, September 20, 2010, from 7 PM to 8:30 PM.

The College Whisperer brings his know-how and savvy (sorry, no entourage) to what some consider to be the center of the universe (or so local residents would have you believe ;-), West Hempstead, New York, offering a FREE College Planning Workshop for parents of college...
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For high school students looking for leadership training and college scholarship opportunities, the Posse Foundation offers those with "extraordinary academic and leadership potential" a means to become Posse Scholars.

No, the horse is not included, nor will there be any outlaws to round up and bring to justice. There will, however, be the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to join a diverse, enthusiastic, and engaged group of students (the Posse, in case you were wondering), who, through campu...
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The New York Higher Education Loan Program (NYHELPs) touts itself, on ads seen on buses and heard on radio, as "bridging the gap" in college financing.

After exhausting federal grants and loans, scholarships from colleges, and State programs, such as the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) [itself an extremely limited resource, particularly for the financially hard-squeezed middle class, being quietly phased out in NY (TAP, that is. Not the middle class. Then again, with property taxes what they ...
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Have the grades to get into colleges like Princeton, Yale, and the University of Pennsylvania, but don't come close to being able to afford the steep tuition and related costs?

If you are in the top 5% to 10% of your graduating high school class, and have financial "need" (typically translating into family income below $60,000, though circumstances may vary), you may qualify for a full scholarship, courtesy of the Questbridge National College Match Program.

QuestBridge is an initiative of the ...
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The Long Island Press, an innovative, cutting edge, regional weekly (with which neither The College Whisperer nor his "parent," College Connection, have any affinity, but for the occasional paid advertising), is accepting nominations (through August 31, for its Best of Long Island promo.

You know. Best Barber. Best Chinese food. Best Place to Cure a Hangover (having nothing to do with college life, to be sure ;-).

A beauty contest, indeed. And who could possibly be more beautiful -- in the blog...
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When "Best" May Not Be "Best" for You

The U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges for 2011 (but it's only 2010) has hit the street (and, no doubt, the desktops of America's college-bound students).

Harvard and Princeton duking it out for top honors. Poor Yale, always in the show position. Not to mention Duke.

List upon list of "Bests." Best National Universities. Best Regional Universities. Best Public Universities. Best for Engineering (of all sorts). Best Business Schools. And the lists go on a...
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S.L. of Williston Park, NY writes:

With the senior year of high school yet to begin (I'm counting the days), our daughter -- an otherwise well-rounded honors student -- is driving her Mom and Dad bonkers. We say "up," she says "down." We say "no," she sulks, broods, and exhibits defiance in every way. Is this normal? The stress is almost unbearable, and we have yet to begin applying to colleges. [I can only imagine!] What can we do to achieve detente?

The College Whisperer responds:

Define "nor...
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Tough times call for tough measures and often difficult decisions, both for students and university administrators alike.

All the more difficult, especially in these hard economic times, when the State cuts back on financial aid to students, often hitting the hardest those who are most in need.

The College Whisperer's good friends at the NY Student Aid Alliance report on cutbacks in New York's Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), and summon a call to action on the part of students and parents alik...
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Top College Newspapers

Princeton Review -- which magically conjures up its "Best" lists every summer -- adds to the Hit Parade the best college newspapers.

Among the recipients of this year's honors are schools you would expect to sit atop the literary scale. The Harvard Crimson. The Chronicle of Duke University. Northwestern's Daily Northwestern. The Cornell Daily Sun. Yale Daily News.

Then there are those of which many would have asked, "Who would have thunk?" Diamondback of the University ...
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Perhaps, but the second mouse usually gets the cheese!

Plan. Prepare. Prevail! That's the mantra of The College Whisperer, and his advice to the college-bound (and their parents) as they set out on the road to college admissions success.

So what's this we hear about the rush to file the Common Application, being among the first to submit initial paperwork needed for college admission?

READ Pulling an All-Nighter for the College Application, a feature of The Choice in The New York Times.

Whatever ...
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The college search goes iTech!

You knew this one was coming. Actually, it's here. An App for iPads, iPhones, and similar devices that allows the college-bound to match themselves with colleges. It's called CollegeApp®, the brainchild of The College Whisperer's college counseling colleague, Erin Avery of Avery Educational Resources.

I've (or is it, i'Ve?) yet to test this app, but it does seem rather interesting as a 21st Century approach for matching students with colleges, and vice versa.

As...
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It's not just The Choice at The New York Times and College Inc. at The Washington Post blogging about college. From admissions protocol to dining hall etiquette, what to pack for the dorms and what not to upload to YouTube, Long Island's Newsday is talking the talk for those who walk the college walk.

Check out Newsday's College Prep Talk for the scoop on everything from academics to campus social life.

Here's a recent piece of what to pack for college, and what is better left at home.

Yes, brin...
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The College Whisperer has gotten quite a few comments -- almost all along positive lines -- on his recent blogpost, Could a college planning counselor really give you a competitive edge.

Here's a sampling for your perusal:

I think a college planning counselor can give a student a competitive edge by helping them to choose the right schools and providing the college assistance that will allow them to make the best college decisions. This should...
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Some awesome insight on the outrageous cost of college from one of the foremost experts on everything college, Lynn O'Shaughnessy, along with some straight on advice on how to contain those seemingly runaway costs.

Lynn, The College Whisperer couldn't have said it better himself. So, my astute college counseling colleague, this blogpost's for you!

7 Ways to Cut College Costs

Does anybody else out there think it's obscene that dozens of schools no...

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L.T. of Garden City Park, NY writes:

My son, the great procrastinator, graduated high school last June, never bothered to apply to college, and had absolutely no idea what he wanted to do with his life. Suddenly, a light bulb went off over his head and he wants to go to college -- this fall! Can he still get in to a college starting in just a few weeks? Any colleges here on Long Island accepting students at this late date?

The College Whisperer responds:

So, The Great Procrastinator was p...
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Did the little piggy cry wee, wee, wee all the way home?



The expert guidance. The knowledgeable advice. The learned hand helping to successfully navigate the long and winding road to college admissions.

"Can I afford to retain the services of an independent college counselor?" Think of it this way. Can you afford not to? It's not the cost, really, as you prepare to make one of the greatest investments of your life. It's the value. It's the empowerment. It's the calm during the storm. It's, ...
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For those who may not have noticed, or are new to the game of college admissions (which probably accounts for 99.9% of those reading The College Whisperer's blog), the Common App has changed for the next class of applicants.

Some of the changes are obvious -- such as the reformatting of choices available in reporting SAT and/or ACT scores -- while others are more nuanced, making them all the more likely to lead to mistakes by the applicant, with often unintended, and, sometimes undesirable ...
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Shark Week and the Common Application going "live" at the very same time. Coincidence, or calculated by design to strike fear in the hearts and minds of swimmers and college-bound students alike? Hmmm. The College Whisperer reports. You decide. Is it me, or does anyone else hear the theme from Jaws playing in their heads? Oh well...

Anyway, speaking of sharks, has anyone looked at the cost of tuition these days, not to mention room and board? Cue the Great White...

D.G. of Sea Clff, NY writes: ...
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