Is Going to an Elite College Worth the Cost? - NYTimes.com

This article in the New York Times is the latest in a series about whether college is worth the price. In monitoring the latest news, I have seen hundreds of these articles, and they seem to proliferate based on how negatively the economy is perceived. The bottom line is that yes, college in general is worth it, but whether or not to attend a specific college over another one may be dependent on the amount of debt you have to accrue. Because money and finances are such individual and personal topics, I am not going to address whether college is important for your child in particular... maybe your child is another Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg, and doesn't need that particular piece of sheepskin. But in general, on a macro level, college is very important. It is trains our teens to contribute to society, even if they are studying a traditional liberal arts education. College opens doors to jobs and ideas that are closed to most high school only graduates. But the most important thing that college does is it teaches you how to think, and opens students up to the possibility of careers that didn't exist 10 minutes ago. Take Zuckerberg for example. As a computer programmer, he expanded on an idea that has spawned an industry, and has created new jobs and possibilities for many college graduates. Maybe Mark didn't need the degree, but I am willing to bet that most of his employees have one. Have you every watched the credits after a Pixar movie? The array of jobs listed that require training and special skills is incredible. 20 years ago, many of those jobs didn't exist. Students who break the mold can stay on the cutting edge by constantly learning new skills, and applying them to new technologies. Another point about college, especially going away to college, that is undervalued is that when students leave home, they usually make a huge leap forward in maturity and the ability to navigate the world without help from their parents. You can't put a price on independence, and much of it is learned through trial and error on college campuses. Yes, college is expensive. Yes, it is 4 years of your life, that can be incredible or stultifying. But the learning that happens on a personal, intellectual and professional level cannot be measures. To paraphrase Mastercard: Exploring to find out who you are, having to take responsibility for yourself, and learning how to learn: Priceless. Is Going to an Elite College Worth the Cost? - NYTimes.com - http://nyti.ms/fb9UxB

College Admissions and Match.com

The college admissions process is very much like dating. Don't believe me? Think about cycle of your typical Hollywood romantic comedy: They meet, they fall in love, they break up and then get together again.

College admissions is not so different, except that the cycles are defined and repeat annually. In the spring on Junior year, the colleges do their best to woo as many students as they can. They send out beautiful "gifts"— flyers full of glossy pictures and promises of the perfect college experience. They catch your interest, and convince you to fall in love with them. "My world will be over if I can't go to ________ college!" you think. And so it goes. Every year, more and more students fall in love, or at least serious "like" with one or more schools. But because students know that colleges are dating around, and not ready to commit, they keep a few or more waiting in the wings, hoping for a relationship.

The next step in this mating dance is the application process, and the response cycle. This is just like plucking petals off the daisy: They love me, they love me not, maybe they love me? It is a time of great insecurity on both sides, although students feel it more keenly as the suitors, rather than the one who is being wooed.

And finally, the commitment phase, when the colleges again try to to woo the accepted students and beg them to come. The shoe is on the other foot, and colleges want to make sure that their yield (the number of students who actually attend) is as high as possible. Accepted student weekends are full of fun event designed to get prospective freshman to say "YES!"

So as your mailbox fills with those glossy brochures, an your email is clogged with info from schools, look at it with a cynical eye... this is a dance, and not all who are wooed are won, and the one you think is your one and only, may end up not being your final choice.

Click Three Times for the Common App

I was thinking about mentioning this in a blog post when it happened: One of my students thought he had submitted his application after paying the fee, and didn't take the final step of sending off the main portion of the application.

It happens. It happens so often that the Common App sent an email to college counselors last week with this reminder:

• Submit App, Supp, & Payment Separately
  The application, supplement, and payment submissions are three distinct processes.  Despite instructions and reminders, some students mistakenly believe that the application automatically follows a supplement and/or payment.  Please remind your students to confirm the status of their submissions within My Colleges.

College counselors and admissions officers have a lot of complaints about the CommonApp, and this is one of them. It can simplify applying to many colleges,  but it is complicated and students can make mistakes if they are not careful. That is one of the reasons that some schools are thinking about also accepting the Universal App, which Harvard announced this week.

If you or someone you know forgot the head to the signature page for that final step, remember that all is not lost. Submit it as soon as you can, and write a note to the admissions department at the university.  You may be shut out of some schools, or accepted for the January term, but others may be willing to cut you some slack. My student applied early enough that he is still eligible for ED2 at his first choice school. A call from your high school college counselor can't hurt either.

Good luck with the applications!

America's Happiest Campuses

The following list is courtesy of Dodge Johnson, president of IECA and seasoned consultant. He bases the listing on retention rates from rates from the freshman to the sophomore year.  As Dodge notes: "These lists aren't perfect. Not all colleges report the data. Some kids may be mortally unhappy but stick with their colleges anyway — most people who would kill to get into Harvard would rather die than leave.

And of course I make mistakes - more than I care to admit. But as the sign in a Dodge City bar used to say, 'Don't shoot the piano player, he's doing the best he can.'"

I say that the piano player is doing very well indeed, and without further ado, here are the 2010 results:

SUMMA CUM GAUDIA
Colleges with a 96%+ Freshman Retention Rate

Berkeley,
Bowdoin College
Brown University
California Institute Of Technology
Carleton College
Chicago, University of
Columbia University
Cornell University
Dartmouth College
Davidson College
Duke University
Emory University
Hamilton College
Harvard University
Holy Cross, College of the
Johns Hopkins University, The
Los Angeles, UC at
Massachusetts Institute Of Technology
Michigan, University of
Middlebury College
North Carolina, University of
Northwestern University
Olin College of Engineering
Pennsylvania, University of
Pomona College
Princeton University
Rice University
Rochester, University of
Southern California, University of
Stanford University
Swarthmore College
Tufts University
Vanderbilt University
Vassar College
Virginia, University of
Washington University
William And Mary, College of
Williams College
Yale University

MAGNA CUM GUADIA
Colleges with a 92-95% Freshman Retention Rate

Amherst College
Barnard College
Bates College
Bentley University
Boston College
Brandeis University
Bryn Mawr College
Bucknell University
Carnegie-Mellon University
Claremont McKenna College
Colby College
Colgate University
Colorado College
Cooper Union
Georgetown University
Georgia Institute Of Technology
Georgia, University of
Grinnell College
Grove City College
Haverford College
Illinois Wesleyan University
Illinois, University of
Irvine, UC at
Lafayette College
Lehigh University
Macalester College
Maryland, University of
McGill University
New Jersey, College of
Notre Dame, University of
Oberlin College
Ohio State University
Penn State
Pittsburgh, Universityof
Rhode Island School Of Design
San Diego, UC at
Skidmore College
Texas, University of
Villanova University
Wake Forest University
Washington And Lee University
Washington, University of
Wellesley College
Wesleyan University
Whitman College
Wisconsin, University of
Worcester Polytechnic Institute


CUM GUADIA
Colleges admitting 50+% with freshman retention rates in the 90's

Art Center College of Design
Beloit College
Bennington College
Boston University
British Columbia, University of
Butler University
Case Western Reserve
Centre College
Clemson University
Colorado School Of Mines
Connecticut, University of
Florida State University
Fordham University
Furman University
Georgia, University of
Grove City College
Gustavus Adolphus College
Illinois, University of
James Madison University
John Carroll University
Knox College
Lawrence University
McGill University
Michigan State University
Mt. Holyoke College
North Carolina State University
Ohio State University
Penn State
Providence College
Rutgers University
Santa Clara University
Sewanee
St. Mary's College
St. Olaf College
Stevens Institute Of Technology
Syracuse University
Washington, University of
Wisconsin, University of
Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Software to check for plagiarized essays....

The WP Answer sheet: The new risk of plagiarizing college essays
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/college-admissions/the-dangers-of-plagiarizing-co.html

I have to laugh, because several of my students have either finished or are in the throes of finishing up their essays. It is a difficult process because the essay supposed to be personal, and is very different from one that you would write for school. I tell my students to write the story only they could tell, and that when I am done, I want to be able to close my eyes and picture them in front of me. How that could happen if the essay is plagiarized is beyond me! Writing the essay should be a process of discovery, and not something that gets copied off the internet!

SAT and ACT questions of the day

I know this sounds goofy, but for juniors and sophomores, this is a good time to sign up for the SAT and ACT question of the day. It will be sent via email, and if they check daily, their proficiency will slowly build. I also like the Word of the Day, which gets texted directly to their cell phones. It requires them to text back to agree, but after that, they can set the time of day it arrives and the frequency. It's a great way to build a vocabulary.

Here are the links:
SAT Question of the day
http://sat.collegeboard.com/practice/sat-question-of-the-day?ep_ch=CO

ACT Question of the day
http://www.testprepreview.com/act_practice.htm

Word of the day (these two sites are not affiliated with the ACT or SAT, but they are great for building the vocabulary!

http://www.4info.com/browse/word-of-the-day/
http://www.merriam-webster.com/word/askmenow.htm

Is College Important?

Did you read this article in the Post today? (Some say bypassing a higher education is smarter than paying for a degree) It is certainly provocative and attention-getting. While it is true that some people, notably Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, do quite well without college, it is hard to make a blanket statement that is true for all. What about those students who don't want to start their own businesses? The ones who want to study science, or law or (heaven forbid!) get a liberal arts education? I agree that some students definitely benefit from a gap year or two before they begin to focus on what they want out of college... Overall, though, studies have shown that college graduates earn more in the long run, and are more marketable in a down economy than those with only a high school degree.

The other point that the article makes has to do with financial aid and the debt loads that students are carrying. This is a much more serious concern. A young man of my acquaintance is starting his Master's degree at Cambridge University. He already has a heavy debt load from his undergraduate education, and will be incurring more debt over the next year. But after much thought and discussion, he decided to take the leap and attend the university of his dreams. He feels that it will be worth the price, because of the cachet of the Cambridge name, and the chances that if he does well, he will have his choice of PhD programs when he returns. As a history professor, the Cambridge name will only enhance his resume.

Another student, one who does not have the grades or the drive might make a different decision based on economics and not reputation. There is nothing wrong with this, and in fact, makes an awful lot of sense. The point is: Where to go to college, and how much to pay for it is a very individual decision.

I would never recommend a student attend a college that is out of range financially for his or her family's finances. Parents shouldn't bankrupt themselves or mortgage the house or their retirement to pay for a $200,000 education. However, the ultimate value of an education is a personal matter, and because of that, some families may be willing to devote a larger percentage of their savings toward it.

Don't discount financial aid, either. I always tell my families that there is a lot of financial aid out there that they may not know about. I know many students who are attending private colleges for the same price tag as a public university. And the fees at out-of-state universities can be lower than you think. Have you heard of the Academic Common Market? Do you know that some universities offer grants to out of state students with good grades and scores, to increase diversity?

Remember the unofficial IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association) motto: It is all about the "fit." And fit includes how much it will cost you in the end, as well as what you learn while you are there.

There is no dispute that a master plumber does not need a BA, and will probably make more in a lifetime than someone who works in the not-for-profit world.  But that doesn't mean that the college degree is worthless. Not everything comes down to a matter of dollars and cents.