Mr. K's College Knowledge

Greetings everyone! Let me first apologize for my absence from my own blog for the last couple of weeks. As all of you in the middle of the college application process know, it is extremely busy right now! However, I hope to be a bit more active going forward.  As we race to the end of this year, I know most seniors and families are stressing a little bit as we get ever-so-close to ED and EA decisions. Some have already been sent out, but most will be delivered a few days before Christmas. Unfortunately, with nation wide Common Application issues, some schools have pushed back their notification dates to the New Year. Whether you have heard already, will be hearing soon, or haven't applied yet, there is still a ton of time to work on applications and choosing colleges. The research for colleges, programs, and scholarships should never stop, and I wanted to share a helpful website to you all. It is called  College Week Live , and is good for counselors, students, and parents. Ther

I wanted to share an article from the New York Times on college admissions and social media. By no means does every college search all of their applicants online, but studies are showing that more and more admissions counselors are spending sometime searching applicants on social media outlets. As the article states, of close to 400 admissions counselors surveyed, 31% visited an applicant’s Facebook page or some sort of social media page. This percentage increased by 5% from the previous year. Please click on the link for the entire article: NYT Article My advice would be to take as much precaution as possible when posting things online. If posting inappropriate remarks or pictures doesn’t negatively affect you during the college process, it may during the job search process (only 4 years away for many seniors!) Make sure you review everything that goes online, take a moment to think before posting something in the heat of the moment, and make sure you have all of the up-to-date p

As you are all aware, this is both a stressful and exciting time in your lives as seniors and parents of seniors. Many of you have applied to colleges, and others are working on submitting their applications in the next couple of months. Now there is quite a bit of time between waiting for an admission decision, discovering the financial aid package, and selecting the college you will attend. In many cases, a big part of selecting a college will depend on the ability to actually pay for that school. Although most private colleges and universities will average anywhere from $40,000-$60,000 per year in total cost of attendance, the financial aid they offer will vary greatly from next to nothing, to a whole lot of dough. In order for families to be considered for any type of financial aid, families must complete the FAFSA (more information on this below) after January 1 st . Many schools also require families to complete the CSS Profile, which can be completed now. Both of these syst

The Common Application is new and there have been problems. This is no surprise. Hopefully, these following trips can help over the course of the next few weeks when many students are submitting their applications.  Early Decision agreements and outside recommenders: If you are applying to a school via early decision, you, a parent, and your counselor must approve this through signing an electronic document. This is done through the ‘assign recommenders’ section of the member school part of the CA. You will indicate that you are applying ED to one school, and then you will invite a parent. Make sure you accurately input their name and their email address. Then when you are done, you must assign the parent. Both of these steps must be done in order for the ED agreement to be sent. As long as you do your part on the CA and indicate on Naviance that you applying ED, your counselor will be able to submit his portion of the agreement. For additional outside recommenders, the same

This information should be helpful for all students, especially seniors in the middle of the application process. Almost all colleges will require at least one teacher recommendation, as a crucial part of the application process. When deciding on which teacher to ask, remember these important tips: Stick to a junior or senior year teacher …possibly a sophomore year teacher. Students have changed from freshmen year and admissions counselors want to see the type of person and student they will be receiving and the more recent the evaluation the better! Ask a teacher who really know you. Don’t just ask the teacher that you received an ‘A’ in, but the teacher that you were able to connect to. It’s OK if this class  wasn't  the highest grade you received, but if the teacher can talk about your learning style, participation, work ethic, ability to work with others, leadership, and other important qualities in a way that really brings you to life, will lead to the most effective

Testing season is back…for seniors you are taking final shots at the SAT or ACT in hopes to raise your scores, and juniors you most likely are just beginning to plan your attack on which tests to take and when. Although there are many schools that are   test-optional   (meaning they   do not   require SAT or ACT scores for students to apply), the majority of colleges do need to see a score report from one of these tests. I think it is helpful to give a few more helpful tips about each test, so you can decide which will be the best representation of you when it is time to apply to college! For seniors, you have a few more opportunities to improve your scores. Test dates still available are: SAT October 5th (Late registration-9/20) November 2nd (Register by 10/3) December 7th (Register by 11/8) ACT October 26th ( Register by 9/27) December 14th (Register by 11/8) If any of your colleges require subject tests, please make sure you register for them and get that taken care

Because Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia is a popular school around here, I thought it would be helpful to alert everyone that they are now a test-optional school, starting for students applying for fall 2014 admission. This means you are not required to send in SAT/ACT scores as part of the admissions process. This is helpful for students who do well in the classroom, but struggle on standardized testing. If you go this route, college admissions counselors will only consider your GPA, strength of schedule, extracurriculars, and the rest of your general application and essay. However, if you have solid scores, then you should go ahead and submit the scores. It is a great idea to consult with your high school counselor before deciding on going test-optional or not. Also, please visit The Test-OptionalWebsite , for all of the current colleges and universities that do not require testing scores for admissions. Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

As we all know, student debt in college, graduate school, and post-grad programs is a bit outrageous, intimidating, and all-around scary. Unless you have a rocket for an arm or can jump through the roof, receiving that full scholarship is not easy. Although the cost of a school should not be the only determining factor in college admissions, it should definitely be a big consideration. The cold hard truth is that most college students will graduate in debt. However, the range of debt can vary thousands and thousands of dollars, so it’s important to be smart with your decisions before and during college. From a paid internship to closely monitoring your expenses to choosing the right loans, your decisions will have a direct impact on your wallet. Take a moment to visit:   http://www.debt.org/students/ This is a very comprehensive website with a ton of information and tips on ways to reduce or eliminate student debt. Also check out these pages from the website:  debt.org/student

With the start of senior year only a few weeks away, take a moment to review the following list to put yourself in a good position to begin the college application process! Continue to visit schools: If you are able to get to college campuses during the school year, that is great, but it is not always possible. Although high school does not begin until September, many colleges start during the last week or two of August. It is best to see the school in session, and get the feel of the student body and what the school has to offer. Make sure to contact the undergraduate admissions office prior to the visit, to see if they offer an information session or guided tour while you are there. Work on narrowing down your college list: With application deadlines right around the corner, it is now time to eliminate some colleges from your list. You should end up with about 8-10 colleges on your list. Make sure to have at least 2-3 colleges that you are certain you will be accepted in

For students who are interested in pursuing a college degree in the performing arts such as acting, directing, playing an instrument, etc., there is now a comprehensive database out there that can provide a ton of information and direction for these types of schools. This website will be run by Playbill and can be used by students and parents to help search for these types of programs and colleges. Check the following site out and enjoy: PlaybillEdu Mr. Joseph Korfmacher, MA

   As many seniors may still be waiting to hear from their schools where they have been placed on the waitlist, and other underclassmen are researching the competitiveness of various colleges, please take a look at the latest yield and waitlist information presented on THECHOICE BLOG . For those who do not know, the yield is the amount of accepted students who have decided to make that college their home. Yield is a very important figure for college admissions, as it shows the competitiveness and the true desire for students to attend the college. The amount of students who apply is great, but the number of students who actually attend once accepted is a true indicator of the popularity and selectiveness of the college. So basically, the higher percentage of yield the better! There is also information on the waitlist numbers for colleges, which schools will be taking students off of the waitlist, and how many students they plan on taking off. Enjoy the article and continued good luc

As mentioned in a much earlier post, there are many schools that are test-optional. What does this mean, you may be asking? The answer is certain colleges do not require that a student submits their testing scores (either SAT or SAT). If the student chooses not to send in their scores, then admissions will review the applicant and make a decision based on their transcript, extra-curriculars, essay, and support files (recommendations). Test-optional schools is a hot topic these days with discussions on the validity of testing in general in predicting college success, and the chances of students being accepted who do not submit scores. The first issue will takes years and years to truly understand, however, admissions consistently say that students will be reviewed equally who do or do not submit scores. So who is the test-optional route really for? Unfortunately, if you are a student with low testing scores and a low GPA, this may not be the best way to apply. Admission counselors

Kenyon College 1,700 students-SAT: 1865-2135-Total COA $53,000 -Nationally renowned English and writing program -Top-notch science program, and a variety of languages offered, including Arabic -Open-curriculum (no core curriculum requirements) -Ideal school for self-directed learners -Big draw of students from both New York and California -One of the best D-3 swimming programs in the country with beautiful facilities -37% acceptance rate -Need aware for about 10% of applicants during admission process -Close to 100% acceptance rate for law school -Students with GPA of 3.5 or higher, have a 93% acceptance rate to medical school Counselor thoughts: Situated in Gambier, OH, the surrounding environment of Kenyon College is a quiet and quaint village that has accepted Kenyon with open arms. The campus is picturesque, with traditional academic buildings, and modern athletic facilities, the school is set on what seems to be endless lawns. It’s a good

Macaulay Honors programs are available for out-of-state residents, who go to high school in New York state. That means Xavier students who live out of state can apply to the Macaulay Honors program. For those who do not know about this program, it is a very selective program that allows students to attend any of the City Universities of New York (CUNY) free of charge. In addition to this, accepted students can apply for a $7,500 opportunities fund that can be used in a variety of programs in NYC and around the globe. Macaulay Honors is obviously very competitive, with most of the students accepted, being near the top of their graduating class. For more information please contact your college counselor and visit  Macaulay Website Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

I recently visited Bentley University and was thoroughly impressed. Bentley University is a private, medium sized (4,000 undergrads) business school, situated just 10 miles outside of Boston, in the suburb of Waltham, MA. The school is set on a beautiful, spacious campus, with tons of outdoor space and top-notch facilities. Although Bentley is a business college, up to 50% of students’ classes are in the liberal arts and sciences, giving students a very well-rounded education as they enter the working world. I was extremely impressed with the curriculum, technology, and culture of Bentley University. The faculty and student body seemed very ambitious and hardworking, and it was clear that everyone there was getting the most of a quality education.  Below are some facts and pictures of Bentley University. As always, feel free to contact your college counselor with any questions! -           15 minutes from downtown Boston -           4 most popular majors: Marketing, finan

A few weeks ago, the Xavier college counseling department traveled to the Cleveland area and visited 11 colleges and universities. It was a great trip, which allowed us to get a good feel for schools I have never been to before. I thought it would be great to put down some notes and observations from each of these schools. Take a look, and if any seem interesting, I urge you to investigate them further! Over the next few days, I will write about a few of the schools and I will put the location of each school, the size of each school, the middle 50% for the SAT’s (average scores for acceptance), and a few facts. Enjoy! John Carroll University: University Heights, OH 3,000 students-SAT: 1460-1790-Total COA $44,520: -40% of graduates come out with more than one major -Maximum class size is 29 -D3 Sports, 13% of students involved in Greek Life, and 20% of students commute from home -Most families only pay between $10,000-$15,000 out of pocket -Last year, out of 37

Please take a look at the most recent acceptance rates for some of the most popular schools. With many under 10%, you can see how truly difficult and competitive it is to be accepted into top schools these days. The chart is from the NYT's blog "The Choice" Enjoy! http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/04/15/education/thechoice-2013-acceptance-rates.html?_r=0 -Joe Korfmacher, MA

I wanted to share this article from the Higher Education Chronicle, that talks about the value of a Liberal Arts Education, especially for future employers. The right school will vary from student to student, but liberal arts school should definitely be considered for students thinking about any possible career. Enjoy! http://chronicle.com/article/Employers-Want-Broadly/138453/?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en

Waiting on the waitlist is never a fun time during the college application season. Students have worked so hard, and have already waited so long for a decision, just to hear that…they have to wait a little longer. However, if you have been put on the waitlist at your dream school, it is not the worse news in the world, as it is better than being straight-up denied. There are a few important things you should know about the waitlist, also known as the purgatory of college admissions… 1) Put a deposit elsewhere! You will not hear back from the waitlist until after May 1 st , as this is national deposit day. Schools will see what percentage of the students they have accepted will be attending their school. If the number reaches their goal freshmen enrollment, schools will not go to their waitlist. However, if they are low, they will move to their waitlist and start notifying students they have now been accepted. Unfortunately, since this is after May 1 st , the student must put a de

College visit season should be kicking off now for most juniors. Colleges are in session for only 2 more months, and it is best to visit while students are still on campus. As I have mentioned before, college visits (if possible) are one of the most important parts on the entire search process. Student cannot duplicate the experience of walking the campus, sitting in classrooms, eating the cafeteria food, and much more other than actually making the trip to potential colleges and universities. Most people would never think about buying a car without seeing it, taking it for a test drive, and asking the dealership questions. So if you  wouldn't  do this with a car, why would you even think about doing it with a college? So it is obviously very important to see the schools first-hand, but make sure you have questions ready to go for admissions counselors, professors, and students…yes even current students! One of the best things you can do while visiting a school is to walk up