The Insider: College Admissions Advice from the Experts

College Coach Expert, Elizabeth Heaton, gives students concrete steps they can take in her article  “You were deferred – now what?”  To find out how you might navigate an early application deferral, read her blog posted yesterday by USA Today.

College Coach Expert, Cynde Quinn, explores the “7 steps for scholarship success.” To find out how you can start earning money for college, read her blog post in today’s USA Today.

Applying for financial aid can be a bewildering process, and it’s all too easy for overwhelmed parents to make seemingly small mistakes that end up costing them thousands of dollars.  In a recent Wall Street Journal article, Rachel Louise Ensign, with assistance from the nation’s leading college finance experts including College Coach’s own Alex Bickford and Robert Weinerman, details some of the most common mistakes in college finance.  Examples include:

College Coach Expert, Elizabeth Heaton, explores “4 ways to guarantee you won't be accepted.”  To find out how you can avoid some of these application mistakes, read her blog post in today’s USA Today.

If you follow The Insider blog, you may have read about Alex Bickford and Marj Southworth’s latest trip to the Light House maternity home for young mothers in Kansas City or the work of Mary Sue Youn, Lisa Albro, and Sally Ganga with Big Brothers Big Sisters at American Express in New York City.  While College Coach has always maintained a commitment to community outreach, we have recently formalized that commitment with the formation of our Community Support Committee.

This past month, I drove down to White Plains, New York to give a presentation on “Beating the Admission Game” to the White Plains Football Association on behalf of College Coach.  The association was formed to help football players learn more about deadlines, standardized tests, financial aid, and other admission basics with respect to selective colleges and universities.  The association’s organizers determined that mentors who work with students and families are crucial in making sure everything gets done right in the application process.  I was brought in not only to inform families about the college admission process but to energize students, their families, and mentors, as to higher education possibilities.

College Coach Expert, Elizabeth Heaton, explores “5 horrible essay topics for your college application.”  To find out how you can avoid some of these application essay writing pitfalls, read her blog post in today’s USA Today.

Earlier this month, my College Coach consultant colleagues Mary Sue, Lisa Albro, and myself, had a wonderful experience presenting to four small groups of 10 to 20 middle and high school aged students and their American Express Big Brothers Big Sisters mentors.

College Coach Expert, Elizabeth Heaton, explores the DOs and DON’Ts of getting admitted off the college wait list.  To find out how you might navigate the wait list maze, read her blog post in today’s USA Today.

Recently, my colleague, Marj Southworth, and I met with 25 residents of the Light House, a maternity home in Kansas City providing comprehensive care for young women facing unplanned pregnancies.  Ranging in age from 14 to 30, the women we met were all in different stages of their educational careers.