Sush Krishnamoorthy, a student at Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, in New Delhi, is one of eight high school seniors around the world blogging about their college searches.
As part of the program, students were required to sign up for a sample class. Some classes I gave priority to were about genetics, water and the expansion of the universe. (I had recently read “The Emperor of All Maladies” by Siddhartha Mukherjee, which led to a sudden spike in my interest in biology.) I was assigned a class on patching damaged genes.
As excited as I was about this class on genetics, I had not taken biology at school after class 10. What I learned in the subject was limited to Mendel’s experiment and conclusions, and a brief idea of Darwin’s voyage and theories. I was certainly unequipped for that sample class. Read more…
Will Walker, a student at University School in Hunting Valley, Ohio, is one of eight high school seniors around the world blogging about their college searches.
As the excitement of the college admissions season starts to wear down, and the realities of the second semester of my senior year start setting in, I can’t help but feel a little lost.
After all, for the first time in my (quasi) adult life, I don’t know what happens next.
Four years ago, if you would have asked the doe-eyed (and rather doughy) freshman Will Walker what his life was going to be like, he would have had told you, with the utmost confidence, the story of the next 10 years: Get perfect grades, get perfect SAT scores, get into every college in the continental United States, but reject them all to go hitchhiking across Europe while writing the great American novel. Then, after that’s all done with, maybe come back to the States, get a Ph.D., and marry rich. Life successfully completed.
Unfortunately, that’s not quite the way things turned out. Read more…
Candice Childress, a high school senior in Las Vegas, has been named a National Merit Finalist and narrowed her college list. Her latest video is below.
Candice Childress, a student at Las Vegas Academy of International Studies, Performing and Visual Arts in Nevada, is one of eight high school seniors around the world blogging about their college searches.
Leobardo Espinoza Jr., a student at Topeka High School in Kansas, is one of eight high school seniors around the world blogging about their college searches.
I don’t necessarily have a dream school, but I do think that I want my college experience to be in an entirely new environment. Living in Lawrence, Kan., doesn’t necessarily satisfy that desire. My friends and I often travel to Lawrence over the weekends, so it’s safe to say that I’m fairly familiar with the college town. Then again, I’ve never lived there.
K.U.’s offer of an academic full ride forced me to reconsider what I really mean when I say I want a “new environment.”
When I chose to apply to the other colleges listed below, I did it with the idea of keeping a balanced approach. I applied to a variety of schools, with a wide range of acceptance rates.
Being presented with such a generous offer has forced me to reconsider how likely it is that I would go to that specific university. In some ways, this offer wrecked my plans. Read more…
Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review, via Associated Press
With at least some of our readers on a midwinter break from school, my colleagues and I are planning to take some time away from the blog.
We’ll be back in earnest on Monday, Feb. 25, and we’ll be sure to post breaking news in the meantime.
If you’re a senior who is awaiting (or weighing) your decisions, or a junior compiling your college list, we hope you’ll have an opportunity to relax and recharge.
When we return next week, we’ll continue to provide tips and expert advice to help you navigate your college admissions process.
Catharine Hill is the president of Vassar College, a private, liberal arts institution in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Greater transparency about higher education is needed for America’s families, as they make decisions about where students will go to college. That is why Vassar accepted the White House’s invitation last year to be among the first 10 colleges and universities to adopt the “Financial Aid Shopping Sheet,” a standardized summary with clear information on tuition and grant aid, as well as likely loan burdens and graduation rates.
Like the shopping sheet and the Student Right to Know Before You Go Act, proposed by Senator Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, and Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, the College Scorecard stems from good intentions.
We can all agree that college applicants and their families need to make informed college choices. Yet I am among many economists who would suggest that taking a short view of what college graduates earn early on in the job market is troubling for several reasons. Read more…
Our Counselor’s Calendar tells us that now is the time for juniors to begin their college search in earnest. So it was very timely to see that Eric Furda, the dean of admissions at the University of Pennsylvania, appeared on NBC’s “Today” show on Wednesday to share admissions tips with college-bound students and their families. Watch the full interview below.
For more admissions advice from Mr. Furda, we encourage you to visit his six-part Q. and A. with readers in the blog’s virtual Guidance Office, a forum for readers of The Choice to seek expert advice.
For more college checklists, visit our Counselor’s Calendar series for juniors and seniors. The monthly series is archived online and is also included every week in our newsletter.
Maimuna Abdi Yussuf, a Somali student at African Leadership Academy in Johannesburg, is one of eight high school seniors around the world who are blogging about their college searches.
On behalf of Mr. Julian Robertson and the entire selection team, I am delighted to confirm your selection as a Robertson Scholar. This invitation is conditional upon your acceptance to Duke University and/or the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Congratulations!
It was my first college-related acceptance and, truth be told, it may be the best deal, so long as I gain admission to either Duke University or the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The scholars program includes financial benefits (full tuition and fees, room and board), access to the faculty and resources of both Duke and U.N.C., three funded summer experiences, access to a wealth of personal resources for coaching and mentoring, and of course, the Robertson scholars and alumni network.
When I was reiterating these facts to my mother while reminding her of my college list, she really didn’t see the dilemma. Read more…
Amy Sancetta/Associated PressThe Ohio State football team sings the school’s alma mater after defeating Michigan in November 2010.
As future alumni of your prospective colleges, you might look forward to the day in which your alma mater, ingrained in your heart, makes you swell with pride.
But what if part of your academic career was spent completing massive open online courses, the virtual classrooms commonly called MOOCs?
Ted Fiske, a former education editor at The Times and the author of “The Fiske Guide to Colleges,” has some ideas.
Dr. Michele Hernandez is the former assistant director of admissions at Dartmouth College, co-founder of Application Boot Camp On-Demand, and the author of several books on college admissions.
Dr. Michele Hernandez
If you’re among those who are applying to college as a first-generation student (meaning your parents never attended college) and you’re hesitant to talk about your parents’ educational attainment, you’re not alone. Thirty percent of entering freshmen in the United States are first-generation college students.
I field college admissions questions from thousands of families, and notice that first-generation students are often reluctant to identify themselves as such. They may feel slightly ashamed of the situation or think it is irrelevant.
But instead of hiding this critical information, first-generation students should highlight it. Why? Many colleges track this nonacademic statistic. The class of 2015 at Dartmouth College has 108 first-generation students, and 14 percent of the University of Pennsylvania’s class of 2016 are first-generation college students.
Admissions officers seek a diverse student body and want to hear about the forces that have shaped a student’s life, including if you are the first in your family to attend college.
Here are a few additional tips for first-generation college applicants: Read more…
Making a college list, filing applications, and marshaling the resources to afford an education can be rather intimidating. But it need not be.
Join Tanya Abrams, a higher education reporter for The New York Times and former high school teacher, as she examines all facets of the college admissions process.
The Choice is now available in your in-box. To sign up, visit our subscription page and enter your e-mail address. Every week, you'll receive the latest college admissions news and advice from The New York Times.
Given an unprecedented opportunity to observe the admissions process at Wesleyan University, Mr. Steinberg accompanied an admissions officer for nearly a year as he recruited the nation's most promising students. “The Gatekeepers” follows a diverse group competing for places in elite colleges.
Eight high school seniors from around the world blog their college searches.
College President Raises Concerns About Obama’s College Scorecard
By CATHARINE HILLRelated
Scorecard for Colleges Needs Work, Experts Say | Feb. 13, 2013
College Scorecard Web Site »
Catharine Hill is the president of Vassar College, a private, liberal arts institution in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Greater transparency about higher education is needed for America’s families, as they make decisions about where students will go to college. That is why Vassar accepted the White House’s invitation last year to be among the first 10 colleges and universities to adopt the “Financial Aid Shopping Sheet,” a standardized summary with clear information on tuition and grant aid, as well as likely loan burdens and graduation rates.
However, the latest calls to provide additional information to families — like adding graduates’ salary data to the College Scorecard that President Obama mentioned in his State of the Union address — should be met with concern.
Like the shopping sheet and the Student Right to Know Before You Go Act, proposed by Senator Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, and Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, the College Scorecard stems from good intentions.
We can all agree that college applicants and their families need to make informed college choices. Yet I am among many economists who would suggest that taking a short view of what college graduates earn early on in the job market is troubling for several reasons.
Read more…