The Essay Adviser

http://www.essayadviser.com/blog/2014/11/11/6-Tips-for-Parents-of-the-College-Bound-Student.aspx

6 Tips for Parents of the College Bound Student The Essay Adviser. The Essay Adviser is dedicated to providing personalized application and essay advisory services for admittance to secondary schools, colleges and graduate programs by helping each student convey in his or her unique voice the distinctive attributes, character, experiences and acc...

Still looking for something to do this summer? TeenLife has put together a list of options that are still available. Check it out. http://go.teenlife.com/ne_summer_042116

Summer Programs (Northeast) Bonus! Tell us which categories of summer programs you'd like to hear from and you'll be entered to win a $500 Summer Program Scholarship!

Interesting perspective from one who has worked in college admissions.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/19/opinion/invitation-to-a-dialogue-college-admissions-frenzy.html?_r=0

Invitation to a Dialogue: College Admissions Frenzy Smith’s dean of admission counsels parents and students to focus on the best fit, not just prestige. Readers are invited to respond.

Tip of the day.Timeline it! Create a timeline for the college application process. First, include: name of college, when app is due, testing required, and essay prompts. Next, add if and when you will visit/attend info session/tour/interview. Finally, include when YOU are going to send in the testing, start the essays, finish the application and hit send. Mark it down and make it happen!

Thoughtful article on different ways to reduce the stress associated with navigating the college process.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/willarddix/2016/02/09/on-your-marks-get-set/

10 Ways To Make The College Application Process Less Painful, More Successful As the college process begins for high school juniors, I offer ten tips for approaching it.

Juniors, this is the time to get organized. Look at your calendar. Block off the dates you're already busy with sports tournaments, tests, theater performances and recitals. See what's left. Then make a plan. Sign up for testing. Sign up for tours and info sessions. Create a working college list. Plan now and relieve a lot of stress later.

To high school seniors, a great scholarship opportunity. Check it out. The deadline is March, 5th!

http://www.gottahavesole.org/ghs/scholarship/

Scholarships | Gotta Have Sole Foundation

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2016/02/12/act-essay-scores-are-inexplicably-low-causing-uproar-among-college-bound-students/

ACT essay scores are inexplicably low, causing uproar among college-bound students Some students earn great marks overall -- at or near the top score of 36 -- but are graded in the low 20s for writing.

Common App essay prompts for 2016-17 are here!

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

2. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?

4. Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

http://www.commonapp.org/whats-appening/application-updates/common-application-announces-2016-2017-essay-prompts

The Common Application Announces 2016-2017 Essay Prompts The Common Application has announced that the 2016-2017 personal statement essay prompts will be the same as the 2015-2016 prompts.

As seniors wrap up the college application process, and juniors get ready to begin tackling the process, there remains much debate about the admissions process as a whole. http://www.forbes.com/sites/christeare/2015/12/26/the-debate-over-the-college-admissions-process/

The Debate Over The College Admissions Process Very little can be accomplished unless a broadly representative and generally accepted group of professionals work together on a solution. In doing so, we must be mindful of the young lives we are impacting and sensitive to the needs of all students seeking to further their education.

I just want to take a moment to congratulate all those who have received their much-deserved YES. And, to reassure those who remain waiting, that their yes is coming.

Thoughts on reducing the pressure around the college admissions process.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/massachusetts/2015/12/03/newton-forum-tries-put-brakes-college-application-pressure/b4LLrIquofSJJ8woe455OK/story.html

Newton forum tries to put the brakes on college application pressure - The Boston Globe More than 250 parents heeded the superintendent’s call to read “Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be.”

Tip of the Day. Don't post. The moment has come and you have a YES from your top school. You blast your favorite song and do the much-deserved victory dance. You've shared with your family, and now you want to share with your Twitter, Facebook, Vines, Pinterest worlds. I encourage you to hold off. Not everyone has heard. And, perhaps more to the point, not everyone has heard good news (YET). Enjoy every deservedly happy yes-moment, but be respectful that others are still waiting for their happy moment.

Thoughtful article on ways to show a school that it's your top choice.

http://time.com/money/4110437/demonstrated-interest-college-admissions/

4 Ways to Show a College It's Your Top Choice Colleges want students that want them, so don't play hard to get while applying.

Tip of the Day. Be grateful. As you sit around the Thanksgiving table eating turkey and pie, be grateful for all that high school has to offer. Remember that high school is not just a springboard for the next thing. It is an experience all to itself. So as you take the next bite of strawberry-banana-crème pie, be grateful for your amazing teacher who came in early to help you decode Shakespeare, and for the coach who stayed late to show you how to make a left-handed lay-up. Simply, be grateful.

Tip of the Day. Stay true to yourself. On Sunday, I had the privilege of working with teens at a leadership workshop through Cradles to Crayons, Boston. One high school senior asked me, "What's the one piece of advice you'd offer someone like me if I was just starting out the process?" My response - stay true to yourself. The process can feel stressful/competitive/overwhelming. It can at times boost, and then deflate, your confidence. Stay true to who you are, what you want, and why you want it. Authenticity never wavers. It is one thing you can always count on.

Yesterday, I had the absolute privilege of working with these amazing students on a teen leadership workshop. Thank you Cradles to Crayons for inviting me to participate in this wonderful opportunity.

A thoughtful article about ED and financial aid. http://onforb.es/1M9qk3K

Does Applying Early Decision For College Admission Damage Your Financial Aid? The idea that students would be admitted under the early decision application process by professional admissions committees who spend a tremendous amount of time, money and energy on reviewing candidates for admission to an elite college, where applying early is most common and advantageous, only to…

Tip of the Day. Check your junk folder. Just heard of a student whose acceptance was sitting in his spam file. Be sure to check your junk mail and the school's portal to see if your decision is waiting for you!

Tip of the Day. Keep going. You hit send on your EA/ED college applications, but still have blank applications staring at you. This is not the time to delay. I promise, you can get it all done. You may be tired, but there’s a nap in your future. For today, be thorough, be thoughtful and write those other essays. Then revise, read them over, and revise some more. No short-cuts. Once you've finished your revisions, read the essays out loud, share with a trusted person in your life, and only then hit send. You are so close. You can do this!

Tips of the day. Since Sunday is the deadline for many ED and EA schools, there's more than 1 tip to share today. Proofread your application before you hit send. Hit send as soon as possible before the deadline. You’re less likely to run into server crowding/crashing issues early in the morning. Once you’ve hit send, check the school's portal to be sure it has received all the info it needs to process your file (test scores, teacher recs, school transcript). If your file is not complete, follow-up. Then, be sure to congratulate yourself on a job well done!

Is early action or early decision right for you? https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/regionals/2015/10/15/early-birds-catch-college-acceptance/nFCwZN0ChBvjGX37TR2RbP/story.html

Do early birds catch the college acceptance? - The Boston Globe Some high school seniors are better off finishing the fall grading period before they apply.

Tip of the Day. With early action and early decision apps due soon, read your first paragraph out loud. If the admissions officer stopped reading after the first paragraph, would you have made your point? What would they know about you?

Tip of the Day. Early deadline coming, don't rush.There are no shortcuts to a well-written story. Take your time and revise. As an author, I can assure you that NO writing is complete with draft one. Even two or three. The ideas form during the first draft, but it’s the revision that makes the writing crisp, unique, and tight. This is where you add the details that make the story uniquely you. This is where your voice will find its way in. Don’t rush. Take your time. Be thoughtful. Revise.

Can't decide if you should be studying for the SAT/ACT or the new SAT? Reach out to Prime Numbers for their new diagnostic test.

Prime Numbers Prime Numbers offers math enrichment and support for middle and high school families in Issaquah, WA. math tutor Issaquah

New application process for some schools starting in 2017. Includes on line profiles staring in ninth grade. The goal is to increase access to all students. Read on. Will the plan increase access? Will the plan impact the cost of attending college? Is starting the college process in 9th grade a good idea? Weigh in.
http://bit.ly/1OTEg3J

Cautious optimism about new college application process Clemson University and 80 other schools will soon offer high schoolers to the chance to get an early start on college planning.

Tip of the day. Date your drafts! While writing your essay, be sure to date each draft so you always know which draft you should be working from. Then, once your essay is complete, rename it X University – Final. This way, when it’s time to upload your essay into your application, you know that you are inputting the correct version.

Tip of the day. If you are applying EA or ED, be sure to check with the school to which you are applying to make certain it accepts October and November scores for early consideration. https://sat.collegeboard.org/scores/send-sat-scores

Send SAT Scores - Send SAT Results to Colleges, Universities or Scholarship Programs Send your SAT scores online to colleges, universities or scholarship programs during SAT registration or after you register. Take control with Score Choice!

A new way to share your story. Check it out. https://www.zeemee.com/

ZeeMee: Helping Students Get Seen ZeeMee helps students get seen by colleges. Bring your application to life with ZeeMee!

Check out these new sites. Essay management. Micro-scholarships and more!

4 Free Sites That Have Changed College Applications Forever Fzzzztt! Sparks are flying out of my computer like its the Fourth of July and after a few seconds the plastic around the keyboard begins to transform