High school counselors are no longer primarily focused on getting students into college, according to a new survey. Are they failing students—or finally seeing them?
Andrew McDonough wears a neon-yellow jacket and a sturdy pair of dusty brown boots, a hard hat by his side on the ground. The 18-year-old and his classmates lean back in padded metal dining room chairs, listening to their instructor as a cool wind rustles the trees around them on a summer afternoon.
Their classroom is a little unusual. In fact, it’s not a room at all. The students are out on a forested logging site in the Kennebec Valley, a rural area of Maine. Neat piles of logs sit in the distance. A whiteboard hangs off of a truck. Heavy machines, which from afar look like large metal creatures, are waiting to be used. Read on…
MIT Center for Excellence in Education (CEE)
CEE, a 501(c)(3) organization, sponsors the RSI program in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). RSI is a free summer research internship program for rising high school seniors who are brilliant in science and mathematics. Students apply for admission to RSI during the fall of the junior year in high school.
Last year we had students from 38 states and 18 countries.
To schedule your Senior Interview, bring your completed Red Folder paperwork to the Counseling Office and schedule your appointment. Your Senior Interview should be completed by the due date. Please plan ahead!
The CSS Profile, administered and maintained by the College Board, the same group that develops the SAT, opens the door to nonfederal scholarships and other kinds of institutional aid that can make a big difference when it’s time to pay for college. Here’s a step-by-step guide to filling out the CSS Profile for college financial aid. Read on
"FREE" IS NOT ALWAYS A GOOD DEAL
It's expensive to apply to college. Most colleges charge an application fee and these fees can run as high as $90 per college.
Colleges who don't want their application fee to deter potential applicants may offer your student a fee waiver. The fee waiver benefits the college; the more applications a college receives, the more students it can reject and the lower the acceptance rate. (Many colleges boast about their low acceptance rates, and they play tricks like offering fee waivers to ensure these rates stay low.)
While a free application may seem positive at first, in reality, there are pros and cons to fee waivers.
PROS 1. Avoiding the application fee 2. Discovering a college that wasn't previously on your radar
CONS 1. Applying to colleges that are not a good fit simply because the application is free. 2. Wasting your time by writing another supplemental essay, sending the application, creating an application portal, filling out financial aid forms, and monitoring acceptances – all for a college that is not of interest AND is not a good fit
The key to avoiding the "cons" of free applications is to thoroughly research all colleges on your list. Make sure each college you apply to is a good fit for you, regardless of the cost of the application.
GREAT ADVICE, BUT I STILL WANT TO KNOW WHICH COLLEGES HAVE FREE APPLICATIONS!
We understand! Follow The College Spy on Instagram. We post which colleges offer free applications. Remember to make sure the college is a good fit for your student before applying.
FREE WEBINAR
3 TIPS FOR NAVIGATING COLLEGE MAJORS WITH YOUR TEEN October 17th at 8 pm ET
The College Spy is kicking off the fall season with a free webinar on helping your child think about college majors while they are in high school. There are many benefits to knowing your major before you enter college. Making the decision early can save you time and money. Additionally, teens who know what they want to study in college have an easier time finding a college that suits them well, are less likely to drop out, and feel more confident with the entire college process. How to build confidence in making the right choice
PAYSCALE: The Best Universities For a Bachelor’s Degree
Families want to know their true cost of college, but unfortunately, this visibility often comes at the end of the college admissions process. Too often, students work hard to get into their dream school only to find out it’s beyond their family’s finances or requires life-altering student loans.
Responsible shoppers do not test drive a Porsche when they’re looking at a Volkswagen, Toyota or Ford. Families deserve the same transparency when searching for colleges that are the best fit for them financially as well as academically. Read on…
TIPS FOR PROMPT 3 ON THE COMMON APP
The Common Application prompts give you a chance to answer an interesting question, tell an important or revealing anecdote, and reflect on the ways in which the anecdote reveals something about your character, your beliefs, your values, or your personal priorities. Prompt #3, especially, focuses on the beliefs that are fundamental to who you are. But sometimes beliefs come into conflict with the beliefs or ideas of others. And sometimes those conflicts are what reveal our character. Read on…
