Karen A. Hott Hott off the Press Working with high school students, I champion their well-being and confidence daily. Right now, though, I’m acutely aware of the stress and strain that parents are feeling, helpless to make happen things beyond their control, namely, college admissions. If you’re a parent of a senior who has received or is awaiting college decisions,

Using the Common Data Set to answer that question Notes on presentation by Dewey Wilmot & Francine Block at HECA conference, 6/13/2023 Most of us know that Section C gives us information about admissions, but it’s good to look at other sections of the Common Data Set, too. CDS Section B Graduation rates are in Section B. Look at the

Saint Mary’s College of Maryland Don’t be fooled by the “saint.” St. Mary’s is not private or parochial. Located in the historic town of St. Mary’s City, St. Mary’s College of Maryland is “The National Public Honors College.” What does it mean to be a “national public honors college”? It doesn’t mean that it’s harder to get in; in fact,

Why this matters: Kids tend to ignore their emails. (Perhaps you’ve noticed.) When you ignore college emails, you miss important information about portals, missing documents, scholarship deadlines, and even acceptance notifications. The hundreds of unsolicited emails from colleges can be overwhelming, but creating folders gives you POWER over your mailbox. Students, do this: Extra credit: You don’t have to use

January 2024 The Seminoles of Florida State University in Tallahassee have loyal fans who execute the Tomahawk Chop with pride. They have good reason to be proud. Florida State holds up three pillars: Vires, Artes, and Mores. These stand for strength, skill, and character. It’s how they operate and also how they evaluate applicants to the very selective (25% admit

StudentAid.gov, part of the U.S. Dept. of Education, created a playlist of videos to explain the FAFSA. The 2024-25 version is significantly different from previous years, but it’s still the basis for all federal aid to college students: student loans, grants, and work-study. Make sure you know all the pros and cons before deciding that you (or your child) won’t

Florida Polytechnic and Florida Southern Two small colleges in one Florida town–Lakeland–are as dissimilar as the U.S. Naval Academy and St. John’s College in Annapolis: Florida Polytechnic University and Florida Southern College. Florida Polytechnic opened in 2012, becoming the twelfth institution in the Florida public university system; Florida Southern is a private, loosely Methodist-affiliated, liberal arts college established in 1883,

Check out Brennan Barnard’s great article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brennanbarnard/2023/01/15/2023-top-college-admission-resources/?sh=163c9e34543a He has some of the same resources that I recommend. A few books: The Fiske Guide to Colleges Ethan Sawyer’s College Essay Essentials: https://www.collegeessayguy.com/book Ron Lieber’s The Price You Pay for College https://ronlieber.com/books/the-price-you-pay-for-college/ Brennan Barnard and Rick Clark’s The Truth About College Admissions. https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/12249/truth-about-college-admission Frank Bruni’s Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll

You know you’re in West Virginia when the posted speed limit is higher than what you can get up to before the next curve. Though Shepherdstown, WV, lies along the Potomac River with Maryland on the other shore, the college town is quintessential West-by-God-Virginia, popping out from the fields after yet another hairpin curve. Almost heaven. (Disclaimer: My father’s family

Elon University has made some changes in the five years since my daughter graduated from this beautiful, student-centered campus. Elon means “oak tree” in Hebrew, and important ceremonies take place under mature oak trees. At matriculation, each new Elon student is given an acorn; at commencement, each graduate leaves with an oak sapling. I love the symbolism! Set on over