Um, yesterday.

There is no better time than the present! Given that seniors SHOULD be writing now, it’s our advice that they get knee deep into the essay process before school starts.

Why?

Well, because writing college essays is hard and should not be taken lightly. A good essay that represents a candidate's character and ability cannot be slapped together overnight. Not if you want it to be effective, anyway.

Several colleges have released their 2018-19 supplemental essay questions. It would behoove you or your child to see if the schools to which they intend to apply are available.

If essays are completed by the end of the summer, the beginning of senior year is much easier in terms of family ...

I love it when I get feedback on our blog posts. Having people comment or email me directly shows that there is engagement, curiosity and maybe some clarity.

It’s that time in a high school parents’ life when they start to look at their son or daughter and think about college. What are they going to do? Where are they going to go? Given that these questions are swirling in the heads of many, I figured I would offer a few quick tips for parents who are eager to find the right college match for their kid.

1 - The size of the student body

Size affects so much of the social and academic experiences at college. Too often students are not honest with themselves and think that one of the two are more imp...

With college admissions getting more competitive every year, it can feel like every test, grade, and extracurricular activity can be a determining factor in your child’s future.

Check out these statistics…

• With more students applying and shrinking acceptance rates, admission rates are at all-time low — in the single digits for top colleges.
• 70% of today’s college students are graduating with an average of $39,400 in student loan debt... And many of them are taking longer to graduate or struggling to find a job after graduation
• Nearly 40% of 18-34 year-olds are moving back home to live with parents or other family members (YIKES!!)

The rules of getting into college have changed. If you and your...

I love my children dearly. As a father of four, there are only a few things I would not do for them to ensure their happiness. Would I choose their friends? No. Would I choose their their political affiliations? No. Would I choose their college? Absolutely not. Now remember, “choose” and “influence” are very different and I hope my model of how I live my life helps them to make wise decisions, but I would never outright choose any of the above for them.

I would, however, help them with their college application process. As a company we are knee deep with seniors and their applications and having parent involvement is critical and welcomed. Within reason. While all of us, as parents, want to help our k...

Preparing for college demands steady effort throughout high school. However, even the most prepared of students can sometimes hurt their college chances by making simple mistakes that do not need to happen.

The college search and admissions processes should start early, and without this long-term, aerial view, many students and families students exhausted during the senior year. This can be avoided! Too often students “sabotage” their college process without even realizing it.

Below are three pitfalls that you want to avoid.

Being Dismissive of Freshman Year.

Some students think, and are even told, that freshman year is unimportant. Not true. Each year, when a college evaluates tens of thousands of...

Writing a college essay is hard. Very few students go into the writing process “pumped” to sit in front of a computer to tell a story. It's part laborious, often times frustrating and occasionally embarrassing. The most common thing I hear is “I don't know what to write!” and then it becomes my job to help the student to brainstorm and believe in the idea that we have thought of together.

Know what's far easier? Documenting life. Instead of trying to devise some cleverly creative epiphany that they think will change the landscape of college admissions and help them get into the college of their dreams, students should simply share what has happened in their lives or what is happening. And to start, it...

If they have not heard already, within the next three weeks, seniors across the country will all know where they have been accepted. Colleges use April 1 as a target date to notify all their applicants and most schools will actually release before then. Why? So they can capture the enthusiasm of their prospective student and hopefully yield them. In other words, market their school, make an offer, and hope that the student (and parents) “buys”. Every school wants to win and be the student's number one. And although students can only accept one offer - and hopefully, it's their true number one - senior spring can be a hard time to stay focused and finish strong.

But it doesn't have to be. I encourage al...

Writing a college essay is hard. Very few students go into the writing process “pumped” to sit in front of a computer to tell a story. It’s part laborious, often times frustrating and occasionally embarrassing. The most common thing I hear is “I don’t know what to write!” and then it becomes my job to help the student to brainstorm and believe in the idea that we have thought of together.

Know what’s far easier? Documenting life. Instead of trying to devise some cleverly creative epiphany that they think will change the landscape of college admissions and help them get into the college of their dreams, students should simply share what has happened in their lives or what is happening. And to start, ...

It’s graduation season for all students in the class of 2018 and I love celebrating the accomplishments of our students. Whether it’s college, high school or even middle school, “stepping up”’ to bigger and better things is super exciting.

In my house, my 13-year-old son just graduated from the 8th grade last week. My little boy is going to high school! If you know me well, you know that family reigns supreme as my priority. I may be an educator, an admissions expert and an entrepreneur, but before anything else, I’m Keri’s husband and Kerry, Sai, Samara and Sydney’s dad.

Watch this video and laugh as my one and only son celebrates his accomplishment with his mom and sisters. There’s singing a...

Can we all agree that few things in life are better than summer? With the sun shining, most of us smile more, laugh more and simply enjoy our families.  With this light, pressure-free and optimistic spirit, this is the time for many rising sophomores and juniors to visit colleges and most seniors to interview.

“Will any students be on campus?”

This is the most common — and fair — question I get about summertime visits and interviews and their value. The answer is probably not, and while that may be a turnoff for some, it can be enlightening for others. College admissions offices give great tours in the summer without the pressure of marketing. They’re genuine and revealing about their greatest achie...