Blog

With the closing of college admissions decisions last week, the families we work with (along with our whole organization!) were anxiously awaiting those envelopes. With the wait over, we’re happy to announce the colleges that have accepted our Class of 2017 students! Congratulations to all of our students!

Last week, I had the pleasure of spending some time in the Twin Cities area to visit a few institutions and meet with a handful of admissions counselors. I am grateful they were able to take some time to meet with me, especially during the last full week of “yield season.”* Some schools, Carleton and Macalester, I had seen before. Others, Hamline, St. Thomas, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, and St. Olaf, were new to me. Each school had a unique perspective on the types of students it serves and relatively unique ways of serving those students. I do not want to lump them all together, so, below, I have given just a very short synopsis of my impressions at each institution. Hamline University Hamline is a small school in St. Paul. Of course, when I visited, it began snowing ...

Some students come to me with a very specific career or major in mind. Others come with questions such as: How can I decide what to major in? How can I explore different career options? In order to really grapple with these questions–since there is no perfect science–lets play out two different scenarios. The first scenario is with Julie. Julie is a high school junior who is still trying to figure out her interests. She enjoys her AP Literature course and other writing-focused assignments. Besides being active in National Honors Society at her school and in athletics, her family is actively involved in politics so she has developed an interest in politics on a local and national level. All things considered, she is still undecided on what she would like to major in on the collegiate level. Now, let’s switch to John. John is a high ...

Last week, many colleges and universities finalized their admissions decisions. And, with the closing of the admissions season (excluding those who have been waitlisted), the 2013 College Acceptance Rates have finally been released. While these statistics may seem irrelevant for those who have been accepted into their choice school, the data is still very telling. Here are some important trends to consider: 1. Colleges are becoming more and more selective. In fact, seven out of eight Ivy League schools have reported lower admission rates than past years. While the Ivy League admissions offices seem to be rejecting more students than ever, this trend doesn't only occur in these top-tier schools. In fact, other esteemed institutions like UW-Madison and Northwestern are also turning away applicants at high rates, with UW only accepting about 51% of applicants (about a 4% decline from ...

Shrouded in mystery, the college admissions process is one that seems unexplainable to many. What many students do not realize, though, is that colleges are actually fairly predictable in how they determine their admissions decisions. In fact, most colleges apply a holistic admissions process that looks at several key components and factors when evaluating a student’s application–not just their grades and test scores. What makes the admissions process seem so random results from colleges weighing certain factors differently. That being said, there are general factors that colleges consider to be routine in evaluating a college application: Intangible qualities: This is everything outside of a student’s grades: extracurricular work, volunteering, and other relevant experiences. These factors are arguably equally as important–if not more important–than grades and test scores. Rigor of coursework: If a student’s high school offers AP classes, take advantage of them! If a college sees that the student was offered AP ...