Passionate curiosity may be the key
What struck me most in these conversations, though, was the passionate curiosity, as Einstein described it, that these young people—by any measure some of the highest achievers in…
To SAT? Or, to ACT? How do you pick?
The stress around standardized testing has not gone away despite the shifts that many schools have made toward test optional admissions. In fact, for some students, the stress…
It Always Works Out…..
Unfortunately, the reality of college admissions is that often these visions (this is the “dream school”; this is the “most perfect major”) do not play themselves out in the…
Recommendation Letters and the College Application
As stressful as it is to write college application essays, at least the effort gives students a sense of control, of making a case for themselves by discussing what matters to…
AI and the Essay
It is now rare to open a newspaper or listen to a news program without some mention of AI. These discussions often have a slightly apocalyptic tone - the Terminators’ SkyNet…
A tale of three college visits – which one fits you now?
...soon, spring will arrive, and high school students and their families will start thinking about embarking on some college visits and campus tours. Your interest may have been…
Choosing Your Courses for the Next Year
Soon, many sophomore and junior students must make choices about their courses for next year. We know the admission process at very selective colleges is based, above all, on your…
The 2022 admission season: what juniors might learn from it
With colleges having announced their 2022 admission decisions, I yet again feel like a recording stuck in a loop as I reiterate to my students that admission at the more selective…
A career in software computing? Consider a major other than CS
No wonder many prospective first years are fearful about their chances of admission to a top CS program! But it’s not all bad news. As someone who’s done this myself and knows…
No, it’s not fair!
Every year commentators call on new superlatives to describe the plummeting admit rates at selective colleges. Beset by a growing sense of anxiety about their chances of admission…