The College Whisperer™ | Navigating The Road To College

You've battled your way through the application and admissions process -- and won! You've bitten every last nail and given new meaning to the term, "high anxiety." You've met deadlines set in stone and waited for what seems like eons. You've gotten that letter -- or email -- that moment of truth you have been waiting for. You've been accepted to the college of your choice (or mom's choice... Whatever :-). You're in!

Now what?

Take a couple of seconds to relax (there will be plenty of time to sleep after college), and then, get oriented!

Yes, college orientation. The next step -- and one that is both informative and fun -- in the process, Like the free ride you could have been in the running for had you only taken our advice and applied for that scholarship, college orientation should not be missed.

At the risk of being redundant, we now reprise our previous post on college orientation, and encourage -- no, implore -- all those who have yet to sign up for their schools' orientation, to do so at once.

Your foot is already in the door. Orientation gives you the opportunity to put your best foot forward, and to have an absolutely wonderful -- and stress-free -- college experience!
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Disorientation U?

As critical as the hows of the college application and admissions process are -- how to write a compelling essay; how to prepare, complete and submit a winning application; how to get your hands on money to pay for college -- high school students and their parents should not lose sight of the equally important whens -- as in, when to take the ACTs and SATs; when to visit prospective colleges, both virtually and in person; when to decide which colleges to apply to; when to complete and submit your college applications, and so on.

Indeed, you'll never even get to the how if you don't know the when!

So, let's start by saying the first when is now, and the first how is to click HERE for College Connection's College Planning Calendar. All the important dates -- from Freshman year until high school Graduation Day -- at a glance, in one convenient place.

Of course, when crucial information counts -- as it most certainly does in the college application and admissions process -- the where may be just as meaningful as the how and the when.

That's why we're going to provide you with even more of the when right here in this post, so you'll always be in the know and up to the minute.

Are we sure? And how!

As you begin to plan for college (and plan you should), take a look at one or more of these college planning calendars (why, for the price -- FREE -- you could look at them all) and start charting your course to college admissions success. [As the respective calendars demonstrate, it's never too early to start planning for college.]

www.offtocollege.com/content-home-calendars.html

www1.salliemae.com/before_college/students_plan/prepare_school/calendar.htm

www.education.com/magazine/article/year-college-planning-calendar/

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/make-a-plan

And keep in mind, knowing the whens of applying for college scholarships (as in, "you should have started your search yesterday!") is as critical as pinning down the timing for those college apps.

Have a fav college planning calendar of your own? Share it with us, and we'll post it on The College Whisperer blog.

Remember, there's no time like the present, so when you're ready to hit the ground running, we'll be there right with you to show you the hows, not to mention the wherefores, hithertos and henceforths.
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The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of The College Whisperer.
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Comments? Questions for The College Whisperer?
Write us at info@TheCollegeWhisperer.com

The road to college begins at www.CollegeConnect.info. Call us today at 516-345-8766 for a FREE telephone consultation, and to lock in this year's prices for next year's college admission success!

Rebecca of Lawrence, NY writes:

I'm the parent of a high school junior and want to know when we can get started on college applications.

The College Whisperer responds:

That would be the editorial "we," right? LOL

The Common Application, which is the starting point for the admission process at most colleges and universities, does not go "live" for those hoping to enter the ivy-covered gates in the fall of 2013 until August 1.

That said, high school juniors and their parents (as well as counselors and advisors) can get a sneak preview of the complete Common App (sans Supplements), including the essay questions, at https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/Docs/DownloadForms/2012/2012-13FY-FinalHighlightedPreview.pdf.

This should be a good starting point, particularly in getting those creative juices flowing in connection with creating a vibrant, nuanced, and highly critical personal essay.

Here are the essays, with instructions, that will be on the application:

Personal Essay. Please write an essay of 250 – 500 words on a topic of your choice or on one of the options listed below, and attach it to your application before submission. Please indicate your topic by checking the appropriate box. This personal essay helps us become acquainted with you as a person student, apart from courses, grades, test scores, and other objective data. It will also demonstrate your ability to organize your thoughts and express yourself. NOTE: Your Common Application essay should be the same for all colleges. Do not customize it in any way for individual colleges. Colleges that want will ask for them on a supplement form.

*Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.

*Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.

*Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.

*Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.

*A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.

*Topic of your choice.

Students will also be asked to "briefly elaborate" (as in, make a long story short) on one extracurricular activity or work experience.

Thinking caps on. Pencils down. We're in the exploratory stage at this point. A figurative glimpse into the future, as you or your child finishes up the junior year, decides what to do on summer vacation, and gears up for the great college application frenzy that follows in the fall.

By the way, with the "first look" at the Common App comes this advance notice: There's no better time to begin planning for college, and staking your claim on admission to the college of your choice, than now!

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of The College Whisperer.
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Comments? Questions for The College Whisperer?
Write us at info@TheCollegeWhisperer.com

The road to college begins at www.CollegeConnect.info. Call us today at 516-345-8766 for a FREE telephone consultation, and to lock in this year's prices for next year's college admission success!

As the deadline for accepting college admissions approaches (May 1 for most schools), now would be a good time to revisit our previous post, You're In! Now What?

Take a good look, a deep breath, and then, it's first star to the right and straight on 'til morning! [Or was that the second star? Hmmm...]
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You're In! Now What?

 

Not only do summer internships make great experiences for high school students, they also make for fantastic resume builders. And some summer internships (though few and far between) actually pay!

Add to the mix summer internships that can whisk high school students away to enticing locales such as London, Chicago, Boston and LA (not to mention the most exciting city in the universe -- NYC) and you've got a recipe for a summer that will truly top them all.

Check out summer internships for high school students at Discovery Internships, a joint adventure of Musiker Summer Discovery and Dream Careers. It could just be your ticket to the summer experience of a lifetime. [Aside from the places you may go, think of the fabulous college essay topics waiting to be explored!]

For those of you already in college, check out the college internship offerings.
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Plan. Prepare. Prevail!

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of The College Whisperer, the authors of referenced articles and websites, and such guest bloggers as may appear. The College Whisperer is not affiliated with Discovery Internships, Musiker Summer Discovery or Dream Careers.
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Comments? Questions for The College Whisperer?
Write us at info@TheCollegeWhisperer.com

The road to college begins at College Connection. Call us for a FREE telephone consultation. 516-345-8766.

As if there wasn't too much information out there already, prospective college students now have a new place to turn on the Internet for information on college prereqs, the application and admission process and paying for that degree -- BigFuture, direct to you from the folks who brought you the SAT and subject tests, your friends and ours, College Board.

At first glance, BigFuture looks like the be all to end all of college planning sites, until you delve deeper. Click here, click there, and you will find that there has been little more than a fresh coat of paint on the old College Board staples, and although the interface is more attractive, offering better placement and easier access, there really is nothing that this bigfuture gives us that similarly situated college planning websites -- and there surely are quite a few out there -- haven't shown us before.

Our friend and colleague, Lynn O'Shaughnessy of The College Solution penned an excellent piece on the present state of the bigfuture entitled, My Take on  the College Board's BigFuture. It's a good read, and highlights the shortcomings of this be all to end all college planning resource.

Why, even The College Whisperer chimed in (you would expect otherwise), offering his two cents (where College Board would no doubt charge a dollar):

"College Board’s BigFuture appears to be little more than a mishmosh crazy quilt of information that can be had, in better form and substance, elsewhere. Not user-friendly? Since when has College Board been user-friendly? Surprised there is no fee for the privilege of gaining entrance to the BigFuture, or, for that matter, the requisite response to a query with (a) all of the above, (b) none of the above, or (c) both (a) and (b) are correct.

I suppose College Board is simply trying to fill a niche — that which is occupied by college-bound students who rely on the college entrance equivalent of the Borg to gain knowledge on the methods and madness of the application, admissions and college financing process.

As with much else College Board rolls out (and rolls in), the logic is flawed, the reasoning vacuous, and the result a dismal failure."

Okay. Okay. We rarely miss an opportunity to rank on College Board, one of the last bastions of browbeating students while picking every last penny out of their parents' pockets.

In this instance, however, we feel justified in our potshots. Need to calculate college costs? You'll find a Net Cost Calculator on the website of virtually every college. Need to get facts and stats on colleges? Try CollegeData.com. Looking to take a tour of a college campus, or twenty? Check out YouniversityTV.com. Want to watch YouTube videos on college admissions? Go to YouTube, for goodness sake.

If The College Whisperer were a betting man, he'd venture a gamble that College Board's bigfuture will be among the most visited college resource websites. After all, they've got a captive audience -- for now.

Watch for the folks at ACT to launch a spanking new college resource site of their own. Perhaps they can call it, Back to the BigFuture!
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The road to college -- and finding the means to pay the tolls along the way -- begins at College Connection. Visit College Connection on the web at www.CollegeConnect.info. Speak with a College Connection counselor at 516-345-8766.

Or, Why You Should Always Question What The Government Tells You!

Recently, the feds at FAFSA sent out emails to students who submitted the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) reminding them to submit a corrected FAFSA once their tax returns have been filed.

Here's the email:

When you completed your 2012-2013 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), you indicated that you were going to file your taxes and were providing estimated 2011 tax information.  Now that the federal tax filing deadline has passed and you have probably filed your 2011 tax returns, it is time for you to update your FAFSA.

You can update your FAFSA at www.fafsa.gov.  You should change your answer on the FAFSA (question 32) to reflect that you have "already completed" your tax return.  Once you've made this change, you will need to update the information you initially reported on the FAFSA to reflect the actual information from the 2011 tax return you filed.  If you filed a federal tax return with the IRS, when you access your FAFSA online, you may be eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, which is the best and easiest way to provide accurate tax information.  With just a few simple steps, you can view information from your IRS tax return and transfer that information directly into your FAFSA.

If you are unable to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, you are still required to update the income information on your FAFSA so that it reflects the information on the 2011 tax return you filed.  The tax-related questions you should review on your FAFSA include adjusted gross income, income tax paid, number of exemptions, and income earned from work.  You should also ensure that your FAFSA correctly identifies the type of tax return that was filed (IRS 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ, foreign tax return, etc.) and that you have entered the correct amounts for Additional Financial Information (questions 43a-f) and Other Untaxed Income (questions 44a-j).

It is important that you make the necessary changes to the tax information so that your FAFSA includes the same information that was included on your tax return.  However, when making corrections based on your completed federal tax returns, do not update other information that was correct at the time you filed your FAFSA.  For example, do not change your answer for household size (question 93) or for number in college (question 94); unless your answer was incorrect as of the date your FAFSA was originally signed.

Your ability to receive federal student aid can be impacted if you do not make the necessary updates or corrections.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.  If you have additional questions regarding the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, online help is available.  Visit www.fafsa.gov and click the "Browse Help" feature on the FAFSA home page for information on the tool and the FAFSA process.

U.S. Department of Education
Federal Student Aid

Great, as far as the feds reminding students to submit a corrected FAFSA upon filing tax returns goes. Not so good as to timing!

While the folks at Fed Ed tell us that, "the federal tax filing deadline has passed and you have probably filed your 2011 tax returns...", in fact, the federal tax filing deadline is not until April 17th! As Maxwell Smart would have said, "Missed it by that much!"

Anyway, having given the masses near heart failure, the feds offered up a mea culpa (of sorts) to the confused and confounded, by way of follow-up email entitled, Correction to "Updates Needed to Your FAFSA" Message:

We recently sent an e-mail advising you to update your tax data on the FAFSA once you have filed your tax return.  Please note that the e-mail stated in error that the federal tax filing deadline has passed.  You should disregard that sentence.  The federal tax deadline this year is April 17.  We apologize for any confusion this may have caused.  You should still update the tax information on your FAFSA after you file your federal taxes, and we strongly encourage you to do that by importing your 2011 income tax information from the IRS into your FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.

U.S. Department of Education
Federal Student Aid

Well, the feds finally got it right -- and it only took two attempts. Good thing they didn't send a similar email to millions of taxpayers advising that their tax returns -- as of March 13 -- were late! [Hopefully, they didn't cc the IRS on that initial email! LOL]

Which just goes to prove that old adage, we suppose: "To err is human. To really screw up takes the power of government!" :-)

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The road to college -- and finding the means to pay the tolls along the way -- begins at College Connection. Visit College Connection on the web at www.CollegeConnect.info. Speak with a College Connection counselor at 516-345-8766. 

The brackets are set in stone for college basketball's 64, but how about the money you need to foot that tuition bill?

Now that the college acceptance letters are beginning to roll in, The College Whisperer is amazed by just how many college-bound students abandon the search for money to pay for college.

Sure, you've filed your FAFSA (hopefully), and registered at Fastweb and other scholarship search engines, but has your quest for college cash ended there?

Visit and revisit those college scholarship search engines. Tweak your profile. Keep an eye out for emails containing links to scholarship opportunities. And, for goodness sake, don't just look at the search sites, actually apply for the scholarships for which you qualify!

Too many students quit the search for college money once they've been accepted. Shame, because while others choose to sit back and coast into college with little in the bank to show for it, the astute (that would be you, wouldn't it?) are continuing to look for grants, scholarships, and free (or at least, inexpensive) money to help pay the ever-rising costs associated with going to college.

Okay. We know the routine. The searches get tedious. Keep searching. The good scholarships are few and far between. Keep applying. I haven't gotten any money yet. Keep digging!

Utilize all available resources -

Your Guidance Counselor. Okay, the application process may be over (though many colleges offer rolling admission, so if you haven't applied yet, there may still be time), but new scholarships flow into the Guidance Office daily. Ask your counselor about available scholarship opportunities. Seize the moment. Apply!

Your Community. Canvass community groups, local businesses, and civic-minded organizations. From Kiwanis to Lions, civic associations to PTA, there are scholarship opportunities right in your own backyard. Seek them out. Apply!

Your Computer. It doesn't get any easier. You don't even have to change out of your pajamas to search for scholarships (just make sure the webcam is off ;-). Use Google, or your fav search engine, to seek out college scholarships. Register. Complete the profiles, and do so accurately and completely. Apply!

Your College Websites. Already decided upon a college? Narrowed down your choices to a select few? Great! Now check the college websites. Scholarship opportunities, as well as Work Study, and other sources of funding, can often be found under "Financial Aid," or simply, "Paying For College." To qualify for institutional aid, sometimes all you have to do is submit your FAFSA. Other aid options, including certain scholarships and grants, require separate application, typically available on the college website. Apply!

As with any search for money (and the fundraising professionals know this quite well), if you don't ask, you won't get! Ask you Guidance Counselor. Ask a college financial aid officer. Ask your independent college counselor. If all else fails, Ask Jeeves.

Not satisfied with the financial aid award offered by the college you plan to attend? Ask for a review. [Most colleges have an appeal process.] Negotiate. You can often -- but not always -- get a better package. Again, it never hurts to ask.

The college experience presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Don't let the price tag get in the way of going to the college of your choice!
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Plan. Prepare. Prevail!

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of The College Whisperer, the authors of referenced articles and websites, and such guest bloggers as may appear.
* * *
Comments? Questions for The College Whisperer?
Write us at info@TheCollegeWhisperer.com [Upon request, we will even email you a list of college scholarship search engines. FREE!]

The road to college begins at College Connection. Call us for a FREE telephone consultation. 516-345-8766.

Monday, April 23 - Spring College EXPO - sponsored by Nassau Counselors' Association. Mack Sports Complex, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY: 5:00 PM - 8:30 PM.

Now is the time for high school juniors (as well as sophomores) and their parents to get a jump start on college planning.

Hofstra University in Uniondale (Long Island) will play host to the 2012 Spring College Expo, sponsored by the Nassau Counselors' Association.

Beat the crowds. Meet with representatives from more than 300 colleges and universities. Don't wait until the Long Island National College Fair arrives at the Nassau Coliseum in October. Be prepared to hit the ground running when the college application season arrives!

For more information, visit  http://www.nassaucounselors.org/events/springExpo.php

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The road to college -- and finding the means to pay the tolls along the way -- begins at College Connection. Visit College Connection on the web at www.CollegeConnect.info. Speak with a College Connection counselor at 516-345-8766. 

 

Every year, Fortune Magazine compiles a list of The 100 Best Companies to Work For. Considered in the mix, among other attributes, are best benefits, perks, health care, job security and management-employee relations. [And it should come as no surprise -- as it is no coincidence -- that the best companies to work for are, more often than not, the most profitable companies, given that a happy, satisfied employee is typically a productive and loyal employee!]

So it naturally flows, if there are great companies to work for, there must be -- among the laundry lists compiled by the folks whose lives are consumed by the process of classifying, categorizing and quantifying -- great colleges to enroll in and attend; colleges with a breadth and scope of programs and courses, an in touch and in tune administration, a caring, accessible, dare we suggest English-speaking faculty, a state-of-the-art campus, dorm rooms to die for (or better still, to live in) and dining hall food to satiate a gourmet's palate.

Well, of course. Don't think, for even a nanosecond, that the Lilliputians of minutia haven't tweaked the numbers and skewed the stats, giving us even more suet to chew on by way of lists of colleges that students absolutely love.

Take, for instance, the ranking by MyPlan.com of Overall Satisfaction & Happiness with Choice. Now, there's a lot to swallow, let alone digest, what with criteria ranging from Campus Setting to Greek Scene, Personal Safety to Competitiveness, but just try to soak it all in and take this "survey" for what it is -- and may not be -- worth.

The colleges you've heard about and are considering not on the list of top 600? Not to worry. There are nearly 3000 other accredited colleges and universities where you may well find academic, social, political and/or fraternal bliss -- as well as a decent food fight and keg party.

As YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary) as to what your ideal college experience should be (after all, the subjective is difficult enough to quantify, let alone to measure on the "happiness" scale), by beginning your search for the perfect fit early and in earnest -- with the help, of course, of those who know -- you are more than likely to find that college you could fall in love with (If not necessarily at first sight, then surely over the course of the next four years).

While assessing student satisfaction may be an arduous -- if not nearly impossible -- task, the folks who undertake such esoteric (and quite creative) endeavors (so-called Higher Education Consultants), have elevated the process to a near-science. [Take the Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction Inventory (please), which is said to "Strengthen the quality of the student experience through precise, comprehensive satisfaction assessment."] Talk about the old Razzle-Dazzle 'em! Where's P.T. Barnum when we need him?

Anyway, the index of the Love-Like-Hate relationship between student and campus is as complicated and complex as the intricacies of the cosmos. Still, we manage to parley such infinite and oft times convoluted data into studies, reports and, ultimately, lists (no doubt available for purchase in the college bookstore) designed to tell us which colleges we'd simply love to attend, and to sell us a tuition bill-of-goods based on what may well be good for the goose but not necessarily a match made in college heaven for this college-bound gander.

Sure, take that extra large grain of salt and peruse those surveys. Sit down with a pint of Ben & Jerry's and absorb the trends. Take two aspirin and read the studies and reports. Check your crystal ball and phone your favorite psychic. Then gather round the kitchen table as a family, convene with your local neighborhood independent college counselor, and begin to explore the possibilities of that much more defined (and certainly smaller) list of colleges and universities that you will love -- and which will show some of that love right back at ya!

Rankings, studies, surveys and lists are fun, even mildly informative. But when it comes to choosing a college -- along with the many and varied factors that must go into that all-important decision -- cast aside those lists and, within the constraints of wallet and the confines of a continent (or three) -- follow your hearts and your dreams.

You can get satisfaction on campus (The Rolling Stones notwithstanding). You just won't find it on a list!
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For karma in college admissions and peace of mind in planning for college, call COLLEGE CONNECTION today. 516-345-8766. Get satisfaction!