Parents of juniors, this is where good grades can create a false sense of security. Your child may be earning A’s and B’s, taking challenging classes, participating in activities, and generally doing what they are supposed to do. From the outside, the college process can seem comfortably on track. Then I ask a very simple question: What kind of college are you actually looking for? Too often, the answer is still, “I don’t know. A good one.”

That answer is understandable, but it is not enough. A strong transcript creates options, yet it does not tell a student which options make sense. Junior year is when families need to move from vague ideas and familiar school names to an actual college list with ...

 Every October, I hear the same question from parents: Does my child really need to take the PSAT? It sounds simple, but the answer depends almost entirely on the grade. A freshman, sophomore, and junior are not taking the PSAT for the same reason, and one of the biggest mistakes families make is treating the test as though it carries the same weight for everyone.

As a parent, I understand why this gets confusing. High school already comes with enough noise. There are grades, activities, course selection, testing, college visits, and an endless stream of messages from schools, other parents, and social media telling you what your child “should” be doing next. The PSAT can easily become one more thing f...

College admissions is not a senior year event. It is a four-year process, and the families who build a real college admissions timeline early have a lasting advantage over those who scramble in the fall of senior year. Here is what that timeline looks like, grade by grade.

9th Grade: Build the Foundation

The single most important thing a 9th grader can do is start paying attention to what genuinely interests them. Not what looks good. What they would pursue if no one was watching.

This is the year to go deep on one activity rather than joining everything. The year to start building real relationships with teachers who will eventually write recommendation letters. The year to make intentional course c...

Parents of seniors, ask your child one very direct question tonight: Is your personal statement actually done? Not "Have you thought about it?" Not "Do you have a topic?" I mean done, as in there is a complete draft that can now be revised and strengthened.

At this point in the fall, an unfinished personal statement quickly becomes an application problem, then a deadline problem, and before long, a family problem. I see it every year. Students have multiple Google Docs titled "College Essay Final," "College Essay FINAL FINAL," and "College Essay Final Mom Comments," but somehow there is still no finished essay.

That is when panic starts.

Parents begin offering sentences. Students begin avoiding the c...

Our seniors are submitting college applications, and I am proud of them. They are not talking about submitting, circling the same essay for the sixth time, or insisting they are "almost done" while the Common App remains open on a laptop at midnight. They are actually pressing submit. That matters, not because these students are somehow more organized, more mature, or more disciplined than every other teenager, but because they had a plan before the pressure became overwhelming.

That is the difference parents need to understand. Senior fall does not become chaotic because teenagers suddenly stop caring. It becomes chaotic because too many important decisions are still unresolved at the exact moment dea...

Every year, I watch the same thing happen. September feels surprisingly manageable. Students are learning new schedules, teachers are still introducing expectations, sports and activities are getting underway, and the first major wave of tests and assignments has not arrived yet. Parents look around and think, “Okay, we’ve got this.”

Then October shows up.

The workload increases, practices run later, assignments begin overlapping, and the first significant grades start appearing. Suddenly, a student who could have earned an A is trying to climb out of a B-minus hole for the rest of the semester. That is why I tell families that grades are a lot like trust: they are much easier to keep than to rebuild....

If you're like most parents, you've probably wondered:

"Am I doing enough to help my child prepare for college?"

It's one of the most common questions we hear.

Unfortunately, it's also one of the hardest to answer because the college admissions process doesn't happen during senior year.

It unfolds over four years.

Every course your student takes, every extracurricular activity they join, every leadership opportunity they pursue, every summer experience they have, and every relationship they build with teachers contributes to the story they will eventually present to colleges.

After more than 25 years in college admissions, including reviewing applications for Georgetown University and helping thou...

Today, we're going to discuss the importance of location in the college search process and how it factors into building a college list for your child.

When considering colleges, there are four key pillars to keep in mind: 

• Cost,
• Location
• Possible major
• Possible career 

While all of these pillars are important, today we'll focus on location and its impact on your teen’s college experience.

Click below to watch my video discussing location when it's time to build your teen's college list.

Before you start searching for colleges, it's important to think about three key things. 

#1: Physical Environment:
Investigate the campus environment as well as its surrounding area. You'll want to consider...

There's a lot to consider when building your teen's college list. As a company, we help our clients think about the four pillars:

• Cost

• Location

• Possible Major

• Possible Career

Today we'll talk about cost because it's America, where money matters, and college is expensive.

Click below to watch my video discussing cost when it's time to build your teen's college list.  

So I want to ask you a few questions.

Do you know which colleges you should start researching? 

Do you know how much that college costs?

Do you understand financial aid terms such as "scholarships," "grants," "loans," "merit aid," and "FAFSA forms"?"

Have you visited each college's website and looked at the...