College Financial Aid Office – Friend or Foe?

August 15, 2011

Dear Reader – Many parents think that their friendly college financial aid officer will help them qualify for grants, scholarships and other financial aid. I don’t blame them. A quick survey of a few websites of popular, competitive colleges turns up language like this: “We are committed to meeting the diverse needs of the student [...]

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How to Pick Colleges for the Dough

August 9, 2011

Around Long Island, most high achieving kids shoot for the tops – the Ivies and their ilk. Is this a mistake? That depends. Not long ago, I was thumbing through “Who’s Who.”  I was a little surprised at the amount of famous, successful people in there who attended “no-name” colleges. I’m not saying that your [...]

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6 Surprising Facts About Private Scholarships

August 4, 2011

Dear Reader – Today’s post is about private scholarships, i.e scholarships from private, non-college endowment sources. I’m referring to scholarships given out by the Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis, Rotary, that type of thing. 1.  About 7% of college students receive private scholarships. 2. The average private scholarship amount is roughly $2,500. 3. Private scholarships are [...]

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Important Facts About Jobs for College Grads

August 3, 2011

Newsday (the main paper here on Long Island) ran an opinion piece about how hard it is for a college grad to get a job without first having gotten a paid internship. 90% of the classes of 2006 and 2007 found work within a year of graduation, according to a Rutgers University study. In 2010 [...]

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“Snooki’s” NOT Helping You Pay for College

July 28, 2011

Today’s USA Today ran a story about “hidden” college fees – stuff you need to know BEFORE you apply to college.  Otherwise, you could be blindsided. Colleges have charged ‘hidden’ fees for years, but this practice became a hot topic this year.  Why? In a word:  “Snooki.” Yes, THAT Snookie – from “Jersey Shore.” A [...]

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“Why Should We Admit YOU?”

July 22, 2011

“Why should we admit YOU compared to the other 2,500 applicants with the same grades and scores?” Ah, yes, the FUNDAMENTAL question that you – via your application -  must answer. Blow it and you’re dead meat – tossed into the ‘Reject’ pile. You know college admissions is not only about grades and scores.  If [...]

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What it REALLY Takes to Get Into College

July 18, 2011

What it Takes Dear Coaching Member – I’m not big on rah-rah motivational stuff, but I admit to “sneakily” reading a lot of things that fall into that category. One of my favorites is: Winning is not a sometime thing, it’s an all the time thing.  You don’t win once in a while;  you don’t [...]

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The “Secret” Reasons Colleges Want You to Show Them the Love

June 29, 2011

In my last post, I “teased” you with a question – why is “Expressed Interest” so important to a college? The answer is two-fold. (By way of reminder, “Expressed Interest” is the equivalent to “sucking up” to a college – making the admissions officers feel like they have a good shot at landing you.) The [...]

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Know What Colleges REALLY Want From You?

June 23, 2011

Are you interested? Loaded question, I know. But let me explain why it’s important – and why you need to understand this to get into your top choice colleges. An increasingly important factor in your admissions application goes way beyond your high school record, standardized test scores and extra-curricular activities. I’m talking about “Expressed Interest.” [...]

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The Surprising Truth About Merit Scholarships

June 9, 2011

I surprise a lot of families when I talk about merit scholarship money for college-bound teens.  It’s one of the most misunderstood items in college finance. The first surprise is that merit money is far and away the a FRACTION of all of the scholarship money out there.  Most studies estimate that merit aid represents [...]

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