The College Solutions Blog

March 15, 2011

Gosh. Where did the school year go? Summer is approaching which means teenagers must figure out how they are going to fill their summer months. If you’re looking for summer programs for your teenagers, I’d suggest heading over the Enrichment Alley.  This is a great website that contains a directory of summer enrichment experiences around the world. Low-Cost Summer Enrichment...

February 8, 2011

I’m resurrecting a college blog post that I wrote last spring because it’s going to be timely again when high school seniors begin getting their acceptance letters. We are approaching the time of year when parents agonize about sending their children off to expensive colleges and universities even if they can’t afford the price tag. When acceptances arrive, common sense...

January 27, 2011

Earlier this week I shared some thoughtful comments from Alice Kleeman, a high school counselor in the San Francisco Bay Area, and Kris Hintz, an independent college counselor in New Jersey, who were responding to a post that I wrote on the higher-ed documentary Race to Nowhere. Here is the post that contains Kris and Alice’s comments: Phooey: Race to...

January 25, 2011

Last month I wrote a blog post about the movie Race to Nowhere that’s being shown at high schools across the country. I pretty much trashed the movie – here is the post: Race to Nowhere Skeptic If you want to get an idea of why I’d like to hurl some overripe tomatoes at a screening of this movie, check...

January 10, 2011

When you look at the race of undergraduates attending the premiere state schools out here in California – UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UCSD — Asian students dominate. At UCSD, for instance, 50% of undergrads are Asian. At UCLA and UC Berkeley the percentage of Asian undergrads are respectively 40% and 42%.  In contrast, whites represent 23% of the student body...

January 4, 2011

It’s the time of year when families of high school seniors start worrying about their home equity and financial aid. That’s why I decided to share an email that I got yesterday from a father who was interested in using the services of a CPA who says he could hide his home equity from financial aid formulas. Here is the...

January 3, 2011

Of all the myths swirling around the college admissions process, the ones involving financial aid myths are probably the biggest whoppers. Financial aid misconceptions can easily hurt families, which is why parents with a working knowledge of financial aid will often have a greater chance of capturing price breaks. With the latest financial aid season just beginning, here are four...

December 29, 2010

Today I want to share a piece, which originally ran in the Washington Post, that was written by Dean P. Skarlis, who  is president of The College Advisor of New York in Albany. I liked what Skarlis had to say so much about today’s college admission climate that I asked if I could share it with you. According to the...

December 29, 2010

It’s going to be a hectic week for me because our family is having our annual holiday party and I’ll be making all the food for 80 people.  All I’ve gotten done so far is a mousse pate, puff pastry pinwheels and spicy pecans so I’ve got a lot to do. I will quickly share with you a post that...

December 24, 2010

I’m giving everyone permission to stop thinking/stressing about college for the rest of the week. The holidays can be hectic enough without worrying about: Paying for college Financial aid Scholarships SAT/ACT So let’s all take a break. Today I’m making more Christmas cookies. Including one of my all-time favorite sweets –  Grasshopper Squares. If you love dark chocolate and mint,...