Mr. K's College Knowledge

Two weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to visit Bocconi University in Milan, Italy. To ensure I stay on top of the world of college admissions, I often visit universities across the country, but this was my first ever international college trip. International college admissions has been increasing in the United States in recent years, and after this trip, I began to truly understand why this was happening. Bocconi University is a large urban university in the heart of Milan, which is a European business, financial and cultural hub, where history merges with modernity, and tradition with innovation. Bocconi reminds me of NYU, except the students are dressed better and the gelato is unbelievably tasty! Bocconi students have the luxury of a beautiful urban campus, located right next to an expansive park, and they are only 10 minutes from center city Milan. Walking around campus, I could easily tell that the students were serious about their academics, and had...

Hey Everyone, I cannot believe it, but we are actually close to the end of July, and it feels like this summer is flying by! I hope everyone has been utilizing their extra free time and traveling to a few colleges. There is still time, as most colleges will have information sessions and tours throughout August. Also, for you Xavier students, classes start late this year because of a late Labor Day, so you have even more time to visit colleges. Be on the lookout for open houses at schools across the country, as many of those occur in September and October, and most of them you will need to sign-up for in advance. Okay, with that announcement out of the way, I want to talk about my trip to Elon University earlier this month. As many of you know, I visited seven schools in Virginia and North Carolina, however, there was one that truly stood out to me, and that was Elon University. I honestly was shocked by their campus and what they have to offer to students. This is a school that is ...

Last week, I visited 10 colleges and universities in Connecticut and New York. Over the next two weeks, I will discuss my thoughts on these schools, share valuable information, and post a few pictures from each school. The first school I want to share with you is Marist College, located in Poughkeepsie, New York. Located only 2 hours north of New York City, it is situated on a beautiful 200 acre campus on the banks of the Hudson River. As soon as you pull off the main road onto their campus, you are struck by the beauty of their surroundings. Lately, Marist has put a lot of time and money into their campus and buildings, and it shows. Most of the buildings are a similar color of gray stone, all of the Division 1 sports fields are located throughout the campus, and their center of school is a gorgeous lawn on a small hill facing the Hudson River. General Information Marist College has just under 4,800 students, which is a really nice size, and boasts a 16:1 student to faculty rati...

The University of Richmond in Richmond, Virginia has started a new initiative that will certainly help students during their summer breaks. Richmond is now guaranteeing all students will be given $4,000 for a summer research or internship experience. This is called the Richmond Guarantee , which will help all students have the “opportunity to pursue the internship, research experience, creative project, or service learning opportunity that best complements their academic pursuits - in any field of endeavor, and in any part of the world.” Richmond is a terrific school with great academics, and is often in the top lists for most beautiful college campuses. Only 5 ½ hours away from New York City, it is a perfect distance for students who want to get away, but not be too far from home. With just under 3,000 students, the school offers an abundance of majors, with business related degrees being their most popular. Richmond has always been a school worth considering, but the Richmond Guara...

Hofstra University (Hempstead, NY) Total undergraduates: 6,900 students Middle 50% for acceptance SATs: 1640-1890, ACT: 23-27, Acceptance Rate: 59% This is a medium sized private school located on a suburban campus in Long Island, 25 miles outside of New York City. Campus is divided in two with the north side housing the residential halls (38 of them and 87% of students live on campus) and the south side housing all of the academic buildings. Hofstra has 143 different majors, with biology being their top major and business being one of their most popular. They have a state-of-the-art trading room, and internships are very big across all majors. They also offer a 5-year Journalism Master’s program. Class sizes are small with an average of only 21 students per class. 2014 will be the first year that Hofstra is going test optional in their admissions process. As long as the student has a good GPA, they are advised to not submit SAT scores below 1080 (Math and Critical Reading...

The fall is a busy time for everyone involved in college admissions, and for me, part of my job is to learn about new trends at colleges and help spread the word about interesting college programs and updates at schools across the country. As information comes across my desk and I listen to admission representatives speak to students during visits, I want to update families about the pieces of information I think everyone should know. These following “quick-hitters” should provide you with tips, trends, and general helpful advice about schools you may be interested in applying to. Hampshire College (Amherst, MA): Will now NOT accept test scores as part of the admissions process. While there are many test-optional schools out there, Hampshire is one of the first colleges to be test-blind, in that they consider all parts of the applicant, but will not look at SAT or ACT scores. St. Bonaventure (St. Bonaventure, NY): Fantastic business program, especially finance and accounting....