 Be a friend to parents you know by sharing this newsletter and sending them to collegeforpennies.com From: Your nameYour company Name Your phone number Your email address HIGHLIGHTS: Date: November 2010 Dear College Parent Are So-Called "Lesser Schools" Worth It?-- Considering Colleges Without the Brand Name But I've never heard of that school! There are roughly 4,100 colleges and universities in the United States. Some of these schools are harder to get into than others. To know which schools those are, post secondary institutions are categorized as "most selective," "more selective," "selective," "less selective," and "non-competitive." Naturally, not all students are going to qualify for the Harvard, Duke, UCLA, and Notre Dame's of the world. But for the majority of students there is a home for them-- somewhere they will receive an excellent education from educators at the top of their fields. The trick is to sift through all these schools to find this "home." By doing a little homework, you can find faculty that have earned advanced degrees from top tier colleges-- including Harvard, the University of Chicago, and Dartmouth-- and are currently teaching at "lesser known" schools. When researching colleges for students some would call "average," meaning students with SAT scores in the neighborhood of 1485 to 1770 (new SAT score scale) or 21 to 26 on the ACT, look for faculties with a majority of teachers who have their PhD or who are pursuing it. Also look for those colleges where students can help these teachers with their research, if they wish. Students taking advantage of this opportunity sometimes find themselves invited to dinner parties or gatherings at their professor's home. This kind of involvement can make a huge impact on a student's academic experience and will help them find work upon graduation. An education of this sort can be found at many smaller state schools. In-state tuition can cost less than $5,000 per year, and even out-of-state tuition can be only three times that cost. Imagine, a near Ivy-league education for less than $31,000 per year: Tuition and Fees ($15,000) + Room & Board = $10,000 + Indirect Costs (books, personal expenses and transportation) ($6,000). Factor in a couple of thousand dollars in financial aid and you can't be that with a stick. Although test scores are not everything, "average" scores do impact admission at the more competitive schools where the cost of attendance can be, and often is, over $50,000 per year. Considering how long it will take to recoup that kind of investment in today's uncertain economy, doesn't it make sense to at least look at the reality of the colleges where your student has an excellent chance of being admitted? To be fair, many of the colleges I'm describing do not have impressive graduation rates, and you won't find tons of financial aid offered either, but that doesn't mean that they are inferior. There are many factors that contribute to low numbers. One is that required courses are sometimes hard to come by, which can force students into a fifth or even sixth year. Switching majors can cause problems, too. Using a student's academic advisor to full advantage can help avert this. In addition, average students who are ill prepared to deal with the rigors of academic study often contribute to lower graduation rates. Whatever the reasons, an explanation by admissions can help you and your student in the decision to attend a given school, as well as prepare your student for the seriousness of the college experience.
Now is the time of year your student begin submitting college applications. State school application deadline dates often fall around December 1st. The most competitive college deadlines begin January 1st and the majority of college application deadlines fall between February 1st and 15th. Essays and letters of recommendation will need to be written and, if test scores are a little dicey, perhaps the December 4th SAT test or December 11th ACT test should be scheduled. Speaking of those letters, colleges often want recommendations from an academic teacher (sometimes in a specific subject), the school counselor, or both. If the college requests a letter from an academic teacher, and the subject is not specified, English or math teachers usually make good candidates. Also helpful is to get a recommendation from one of your student's 11th grade who has known them long enough to form an opinion of their character. Keep an eye on the progress being made and who knows? You just might survive this after all. Some colleges-- though fewer now than in years past-- require an interview either on campus or with an alum in your area. You can help your student before he or she sits down on the hot seat by setting up a practice interview. It is probably best not to take on this job yourself, but an interested friend might fit the bill quite nicely, and your student can become accustomed to the process with no pressure. Here are a few suggested questions to get you started:
November is the time for high school juniors to begin the admissions process. One thing that often proves useful is sitting for the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. The MBTI will give you and your student a wonderful insight into how their personality type can help identify careers that will play to their strengths. Another benefit of the MBTI is that students can begin to focus on majors that will help prepare them for their career. This exercise can prove invaluable in finding the right college fit, too. Colleges have a personality, of sorts, just like people. By finding a compatible match the student can learn in an environment where they will get the most out of their education, not just go through the motions. Other activities include preparing for standardized tests. Even though you won't know the results of the PSAT until December, it can take as long as a year to build up a needed vocabulary. One small thing your student can do is to take the initiative and sign up for The Official SAT Question of the Day™ and have math and verbal questions sent to their email. You can be cc'd as well and you know what? It's kind of fun. This can be a way to stay connected with your student through the process. Of course, it won't help unless your student checks their email, which too many don't these days. It's too bad the questions can't be sent by text! Just so you are aware, the SAT, which is more of a reasoning test that many students haven't been adequately prepared to take, isn't the be all and end all of standardized tests. There is the ACT, which is more of an achievement test and results are accepted at all colleges and universities. Until next month, Your NameP.S. If you find this newsletter helpful to you please share it with other parents like yourself! Q: We will need financial aid but can pay for the first year from our savings. We worry that if we apply for aid in our son's first year of college, his chances of acceptance will go down. Our question is, will we be able to go back and apply for aid for his second, third and fourth years... or even the first year? A: You are asking two questions. To address the first, generally, the answer is no: applying for financial aid does not have an impact of whether or not your student will be admitted. However, at some of the more selective private colleges if there are two equally qualified students and one needs aid and the other does not, chances are that the one needing less aid (or none at all) will be admitted. As to the second question, parents who wait to apply for aid after the student has been admitted will find that they will be denied institutional financial aid (i.e., the college's own funds) though they can apply for federal funds. Further, they will be denied in the second year, too. Many of these colleges will insist that the student have earned up to 64 credits or two complete years before they're allowed to apply for institutional financial aid.
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