Mr. K's College Knowledge

During the last week of summer, I was lucky enough to be invited to Lafayette College along with four other NYC college counselors. I hopped into a minivan with the four counselors, and the Lafayette College admissions representative behind the wheel, and an hour and twenty minutes later I arrived in Easton, PA to Lafayette’s beautiful suburban campus.  I spent the day there, learning more about the school’s academics, admissions, and overall community. Here’s everything you need to know about Lafayette College, plus my personal perspective below. Key Stats: ·          Location : Easton, Pennsylvania (the first exit leaving New Jersey) ·          Type : Medium-sized, private liberal arts college with a very strong engineering program ·          Size : 2,500 students in a residential campus/suburban setting ·       ...

Hey Everyone, I hope you are all enjoying the last month of your summer! I wanted to share with you a past Xavier student's recount of his college process, to hopefully help you as rising juniors and seniors. Below is the college process of Sal LaRussa '15 and his advice for all students going through it now. Enjoy! When many students begin the process of applying to college they are nervous, confused, and do not know what they want to do with the rest of their lives which is completely acceptable. This was true for me as well, and I hope to explain my college process and advice that I have for students. My college process first began when I received letters sophomore year from many colleges and I was completely confused. I had just gotten comfortable at Xavier and now I felt I was being kicked out. I had no clue what I wanted to do with my life so I continued to keep up my grades and study. Junior year came by and I began studying for the SAT. Many of my friends were ...

The next senior testimonial is from William Hatheway. Enjoy! The college process is a very exciting and important part of high school.  It is necessary to spend the time on it because it does decide the next, very pivotal, four years of your life.  It is a time consuming process, but it is well worth it in the end.             For students just starting the process, it is never too early to start the process.  I would also say to just research colleges based on what you’re interested in studying.  Colleges that you’ve never heard of might make it to your final list as they did on mine.  You’ll be surprised how many schools are out there that have what you’re interested in, so just research all of the schools and add them to your list.  Do not dismiss a school because it may not be ranked high, or not hard to get into.   It is not so much about the name of the school, but rather abou...

The next student reflection on the college application process is written by senior, Sean Drennan. Enjoy! The college search and application process seems like a daunting task to many rising seniors. To myself it seemed like I had to get over a 10 foot fence. First researching and finding colleges that you would like to visit is a tough task. Getting down the location, size, and type of college you want to attend seems like an easy task but there's so many options that you don't even know where to start. After finding the list of colleges that you want to apply to, the application process comes into play. This was actually the easy part of the process for me. In order to make this part easier many schools that I applied to had rolling admissions or the deadlines were spread out from the months of November through January. This made the essays I had to write easier to spread out thus making them better for the admissions representatives. Another tip for college essays i...

As we near the end of the year, many of the students who applied early decision or early action are hearing back the decisions from colleges. This is a very exciting, yet anxious time for students and families. Students in the same high schools are applying to the same colleges, but will all hear different decisions. It’s essential for students (and parents) to be mindful that friends and classmates may not be hearing the great news of being accepted. Being accepted into your top choice colleges is an incredible feeling, in which students and families should celebrate. However, it is not appropriate to brag about the acceptances, especially in areas (such as schools) that are populated with individuals who may have just heard they were deferred or denied from that very same school. So, use your private space in your home to jump around and shout with your parents, but when it comes to the school halls or cafeteria, keep the information to your close friends and the teachers and couns...

As of now, the majority of students have applied to at least one college, and many will hear decisions in the next couple of weeks. The waiting game can be extremely nerve-wracking and happens during senior year, which is already stressful all around. At the beginning, students scramble to complete their applications while balancing busy extracurricular and academic schedules. They worry about their choice of college essay topic, their list of schools, and whether or not their applications have arrived safely in the admissions offices. As second semester begins, though, most of the applications are out, midterm grades are finalized, and a period of waiting ensues. Many schools will not send out decisions until April, and so students wait, in a state of uncertainty about the vast next step of their lives. There is so much activity and so many stressors during senior year that we sometimes forget that it is a crucial period of transition, not only for students, but for parents and ...