Admissions Blog
Are the SAT and ACT Too Distanced From High School Work?
If, as the College Board claims, the SAT and ACT are designed to test general knowledge, then the purpose of these tests does not need to closely resemble what schools teach students. If test-makers want to use these exams to tell college admissions officers something about “natural intelligence,” then the tests should not be expected to closely resemble what students learn in school at all.
AP Test Picture
The number of high school students taking Advanced Placement Exams has been consistently increasing over the past 10 years.
Advancing Advanced Placement
According to a recent report released by the College Board on February 11, 2014, the number of high school students taking Advanced Placement Exams has been consistently increasing over the past 10 years.
Life as a High School Counselor
They are our mentors, who guide us through the marathon of college applications. They are our friends, who do so much for us, from meeting with us again and again to sitting down together to edit essays. High school counselors play an integral role in every high school student's senior year. But what is it really like to be a high school college counselor?
Is Harvard Losing Its Grip?
Brown, Columbia, Dartmouth, Princeton, Yale, Cornell, and the University of Pennsylvania all saw a rise in their early application pools; Harvard was the only Ivy League school to face a decrease in the number of its early decision applications, by 3 percent.
Weekly News Round-up: SAT Cheat Sheets, Lone Wolves vs. Leaders, and Which College You Should Take to Prom
Here's the past month of juicy college admissions news: free money (advice) from the FLOTUS, how to finally decide which school you're going to next year, and more. Starting next Monday, check back weekly for our latest serving!
Common App Does Some Soul-Searching
After running aground on technological glitches and dissent this fall, the new flagship Common App hopes to repair damage, reclaim its former glory, and rule the seas of college applications once again.
Weekly News Round-up: Lies, Scandals, Wars, and Batman
We're back! The College Admissions News Weekly News Round-up returns for 2014, and boy, has the news poured in. This week, we've got an excoriating take on the myth of "holistic" college admissions, signs of duplicity in college brochure diversity, and the demise of fuddy-duddy words ("excoriating" and "duplicity," perhaps?) from the SAT vocab section.
Deferred? What Now?
If you are deferred, the college has essentially thrown your application back into the fire. A deferred application will be reevaluated with the regular decision applications and receive a yes or no decision sometime later in the year. The only good news is that there’s still hope. It is by no means an entirely negative thing and you shouldn’t think that it is.
Weekly New Round-up: Gay Applicants, Debt Discrepancies, and Twitter Makeovers
Apologies for the brief hiatus, but your trusty college admissions Weekly News Round-up team is back for two more weeks of juicy news. This week, we tackle SAT scandals and staying out of debt.
Weekly News Round-Up: Twitter a la 1984, Affirmative Action in Court, and Quirky Questions
This has been a dramatic week for college admissions with articles detailing the slightly shady internet stalking of admissions officers to discussions concerning race-based applications at Texas University to some thought-provoking questions raised by the supposedly thought-provoking questions on college supplements.
The College Campaign of 2010: Decisions Time
As I waited to hear back from schools, I developed elaborate college preference rankings in my mind. “Brown’s okay,” I said to myself, “but is it really, truly my first choice? Maybe I’d be better off at Yale.” So it went, my mind spinning elaborate illusions in which I had to choose between all six of my reach schools. How would I ever pick?
Letters of Intent and Likely Letters
Some high school athletes are celebrating commitments to various colleges, secured through National Letters of Intent. But if an athlete is committing to an Ivy League school, they will have received a "likely letter" instead. Unlike other Division I NCAA schools, the eight institutions that comprise the Ivy League do not offer athletic scholarships and therefore cannot have committed recruits sign NLIs.
Weekly News Round-Up: Scandals and Glitches and (Affirmative) Action, Oh My!
This week in college admissions news, affirmative action is back in action, the Common App is (still) struggling, and scandals abound!
Crafting the Perfect College List
Many private college admission counselors will craft a hand-tailored college list for their student clients—it’s one of the many perks of hiring an expert. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford their fees, and for this reason, the Crimson Admission Blog has compiled a guide to creating your very own college list.
Weekly News Round-Up: Common App Crisis! (And Why Money Matters in Admission)
Today might as well be Halloween, because we've got some scary facts coming your way about the Common App, family income's role in admission, and more. The treat to those tricks? College is cheaper than you think!
The College Campaign of 2010: Interviews
Almost immediately after I submitted my early decision application to Brown, I got my interview notification. I’d be meeting up with a recent graduate, now a PhD student in ethnomusicology, at a local coffee shop. “How Brown!” I thought to myself as I prepared my go-to interview outfit: black slacks, leather boots, and a patterned cardigan over a white t-shirt. For good luck, I’d wear a necklace my friend got me in China. Though I knew it was only a tiny component of my application package, I tried to have a successful interview, though I was pretty nervous. Was I supposed to order coffee? I wasn’t a big fan of coffee! But if I didn’t order coffee, what would I do with my hands? Getting a muffin would be childish. In the end I settled on getting black coffee—ultra-sophisticated!—and drinking it with feigned enthusiasm.
How many people are accepted off the waitlist each year?
This number varies from school to school and from year to year—sometimes hundreds will be admitted, but sometimes none will. Harvard's dean of admissions, William Fitzsimmons, told The Crimson earlier this year that in recent years, Harvard has accepted between zero and 228 waitlisted students.
If I am planning on visiting a school, do I need to make reservations ahead of time?
Whether or not reservations are required varies by school—below is a breakdown of universities and their various policies regarding this topic. In general, it is important to look at the websites of universities you’d like to visit before you set foot on campus. Make sure that tours and information sessions are indeed being offered on the day that you are planning to be there—some colleges do not offer them every day of the week, and holidays might mean tours and information sessions are suspended.