USA Today College: 5 Pieces of Summer Advice for Rising HS Seniors

Planning to spend your summer before senior year searching for colleges? USA Today's College vertical has some key pieces of advice for getting started. The article is excerpted below, but you can see the full version here: http://usat.ly/1F5tFNH 

1. Keep your options open: Though you may have your heart set on attending one particular college or university, try to create a list of several schools that interest you. This will likely increase your chances of gaining admission to a college that you truly want to attend.

2. Visit your prospective schools: This summer, use part of your downtime to visit potential colleges. Doing so can help you narrow your short list of schools. Consider shadowing a current university student if this option is available, as it allows you to gain an authentic sense of college life.

JDK editor's note: If you can't make it to all the schools you'd like to tour, try YouVisit's virtual campus tours.

3. Be productive: Rising high school seniors can benefit from working a part-time job, completing an internship, holding a volunteer position or pursuing a hobby this summer. Engaging in such activities demonstrates that you are productive and take initiative, two qualities that are highly sought after by college admissions officers.

4. Write the first draft of your admissions essay: The admissions essay is a fantastic opportunity to set yourself apart from other applicants. It should be creative and descriptive, yet well written and concise. 

JDK editor's note: JDK College Consulting offers one-on-one guidance and editing to help focus and perfect your college essays.

5. Start your applications: Colleges generally offer applicants one of three ways to apply: an institution-specific application, The Common Application and the Universal College Application. Familiarize yourself with the release dates for these applications, and begin working on them this summer, if possible. You’ll be glad you did when you have less work to do during the school year.

Happy searching!

Upcoming Selective College Information Sessions

 I wanted to alert everyone of two upcoming information sessions from a few selective colleges. 

1) Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Rice University, and the University of Chicago will be hosting a joint info session in Manhattan and White Plains on Sunday, May 31st and in Long Island on Monday, June 1st. To register, please go to the following link: http://www.exploringeducationalexcellence.org/

2) Dartmouth College, Northwestern University, Princeton University, University of California-Berkeley, and Vanderbilt University will be hosting a joint info session at the Melville Marriot Long Island on Tuesday, June 2nd from 7-9 pm. To register for this event, please go to the following link: http://www.coasttocoasttour.org/

As always, happy searching!

Joseph D. Korfmacher

NYT Article on Surviving College Admissions

I wanted to share with you this very powerful and well-written New York Times article on college admissions at the most selective colleges and how this can be a damaging process to students across the world, but it doesn't need to be. It explains how ridiculously competitive it is to gain admission to the top colleges in the country, but how students should not feel as if they have to attend the top 25 colleges in order to be successful. It shares personal stories about young men and women who were denied admission to the most selective colleges, went on to "second tier" schools, and were extremely successful at school and in their careers. These students turned the rejections into a learning experience and propelled them into taking full advantage of all of the opportunities that the school that did accept them offered.

I personally am a strong believer in finding the right fit of a college for each student, and the name of a college really does not mean much to me. Students should strive to find a place where they will feel comfortable and that will give them the chance to be happy and successful. Students don't necessarily need to go to the Harvards and Stanfords of the world to be happy or successful. I urge you to read through the entire article, and the end offers a great story of what two parents did for their son during the application process. The article can be found here, on the New York Times website. Enjoy!

-Joseph D. Korfmacher

Senior Testimonial and Advice for the College Application Process, Part 3

I asked a number of Class of 2015 seniors to write about their experiences with the college process. This next one is by Sean Drennan of NYC. 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 is to get the common application essay done as early as possible. This allows your senior year English teacher to read them before you send them to colleges.

The most difficult part of the college process for me was perfecting my Common Application essay. I was submitting this essay to 4 colleges so I wanted it to be good enough to get me into these colleges. Luckily, it worked and I was able to perfect it and be accepted to those colleges.

One of the most surprising things during the entire application process was how short it actually took to apply to colleges. To colleges with no essay it took only about 25 minutes in order to complete the application and send in my ACT scores. I thought that filling out applications would be a rigorous process and take up a lot of time.

Another tip I have for the college application process is to believe in yourself and apply to schools that you love and would be happy to go to. Grades are not the only thing that get you into a college. If you fall in love with a reach school, still apply and just show your high interest in the school. They will take that into consideration and it may help your decision. Also, I recommend creating a resume to submit to every college that you apply to.

Good luck to everyone with the college application process and I hope that you all get into the colleges that you want!

Senior Testimonial and Advice for the College Application Process, Part 2

I asked a number of Class of 2015 seniors to write about their experiences with the college process. This next one is by Gianluca Milea of NYC. Enjoy!

The college process can be very intimidating at times.  While it is very important to have numerous options, I found it difficult to apply to a limited number of schools.  Although Xavier does not put a maximum on how many schools to which you are allowed to apply, application fees are very expensive and at the end of the day you will only be attending one college. 

To begin the process, I visited a myriad of schools, some of which were unrealistic options for me.  After visiting four schools in two days, I decided to create guidelines for my potential college.  While academic rigor is essential, there are many other factors that go into a final college decision: food, campus life, off-campus life, greek life, religious affiliation, athletic programs, housing, location and possibly two of the most important things, tuition cost, and how comfortable you feel on the campus tour.  Ultimately, this will be your home for the next four years, and while it may seem like high school flew by, you want to make sure that you enjoy your time in college as much as you were fortunate enough to enjoy your time at Xavier.  These parameters allowed for me to narrow down my search and my college list to a comfortable number.

Something that I was unaware of before beginning my college process is that many universities give automatic scholarships for activities outside of academics.  For instance, Catholic University has a scholarship if you know someone that attended their university and also a Parish Scholarship for weekly churchgoers.  Many schools have similar scholarships and they can be a great way to estimate a tuition (as you will definitely receive some type of financial assistance) and make sure it is affordable before spending money on an application fee.

I would also highly recommend keeping the number of schools that you apply to without visiting to a minimum.  Getting a feel for a campus is essential in the process and should not be overestimated.  Personally, I visited all of my schools except for a couple of reach schools, and will eventually visit them pending my admissions decision.  After visiting I would suggest using Naviance; it is a great website to keep order during a hectic time.  Naviance allows you to make a list of “Colleges I’m Thinking About” and rank them in your order of interest.  Another helpful feature of the website is that it gives scattergrams, which give you the opportunity to compare yourself to past Xavier students.  Overall, Naviance is a great tool that Xavier offers its students and you should really take full advantage of it.

Finally, while the college process can be overwhelming, it is completely worth it.  Make sure that you do not miss out on the opportunity to apply to a school because you were too lazy to write a supplement.  It is a great feeling when you hit ‘send’ and all of your applications have been submitted.  All in all: do your research, visit schools, make a comprehensive list, do not wait until the night before to apply, and then relax and wait for the decisions to roll in.  Good Luck!

Colleges Becoming More and More Competitive

January is a great time in college admissions. Most of the Early Decision and Early Action decisions have come in, and seniors’ college landscapes are starting to be filled in. The majority of students have finally finished their applications, and will be patiently waiting for those regular decisions to come in, most likely in March or April. Many students are receiving acceptances, academic scholarships, and are finally starting to see themselves at one or two specific colleges…the reality of leaving for college is beginning to set in! .

Invevitably, many students also received unpleasant decisions from colleges in the early round with either denials or deferrals. From my desk, I have seen a trend lately of schools becoming more and more difficult to get into, even for the most competitive students. Not only are more students applying to more colleges in general, but the business of college admissions has become increasingly focused on creating ways to bring in applications. Different marketing approaches have made popular colleges even more popular, and have put lesser known schools on the radar for many students. I have seen students this year who were deferred or denied from colleges that I know would easily have been accepted just two or three years ago. My hope is that students and parents understand this to not get too disappointed if they do not hear positive news from every school! Many schools that would have been a target for a particular student may very well be a reach school now. The need to find schools that students are very likely (safety) to get into, and are happy with, is more important than ever in today’s world of college admissions.

To get a true understand of the increase of applications and the selectiveness of colleges, I have three schools and their admissions numbers that I want to show everyone:

Northeastern University: NU received over 21,600 applications for Early Action, which was an increase of 7% from the previous year. Also, like many schools, NU has a desire to balance their admission opportunities for Regular Decision applicants, so they had to offer a small percentage of acceptances to Early Action applicants. Because of this, many capable and strong applicants were deferred to regular decision. Also, for Early Decision, NU received 775 applications and accepted 240 students (31%).

Dartmouth College: Dartmouth only has an Early Decision or Regular Decision option for their applicants. This year’s early decision pool was the largest in their college’s history. Their admissions received 1,859 ED applications, which was a 10.7% increase from the previous year. Of the ED applicants, only 483 were admitted (25%).

Boston College: Boston College had a tremendous increase in Early Action applicants this year from the previous year. This year, BC had nearly 9,800 applications, as opposed to 5,500 the previous year, a 56% increase. BC almost always tries to limit their Early Action incoming class to 30% of the total amount of students matriculating in the fall. Because of this and their increase in applications, they obviously became even more selective this year. BC went from a 40% acceptance rate for Early Action candidates last year to 27% this year…quite the difference!

Hopefully this gives some perspective to students and parents out there who were disappointed with early decisions. It is definitely competitive out there, but keep your head up…as long as you put effort into this process, you will end up at the right school; and as always, happy searching!

Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

Best Colleges for Your Money

What many people want from college isn't too complicated. They desire a good education, a safe and comfortable environment, to be prepared for the workforce, and to not break the bank to attend the school. With soaring college costs and a competitive job landscape, it is more important than ever to find that perfect fit, where students will be challenged, graduate with marketable skills, and will not have loans to pay for the next 20 years. The website 'Money' recently came out with a list for colleges that are the best bang-for-your-buck. As you will see, many of them are some of the most selective schools in the country, but it is certainly worth a look. You can view the list here on their site. As always, happy searching!

-Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

Tips for Early Decision & Early Action Results

As seniors are waiting for and receiving decisions for their Early Action (EA) and Early Decision (ED) applications for colleges, I wanted to share some tips on next steps once you've heard from your schools.

• If you have been accepted to a school through Early Decision, congrats! After celebrating, the first thing you should do is withdraw your applications from the other schools you have applied to or were planning on applying to. Remember, with Early Decision, you, your parent, and school counselor all signed an agreement that, if accepted, this would be the school you would attend.
• If you have been deferred from Early Decision or Early Action to regular decision, don't worry - there is still a chance you will be accepted in the spring. For ED, you are no longer committed to attending the school, even if you are accepted through regular decision, so more options have just opened up! To be deferred means the college liked what they saw in your application, but they need a little more information and time before making a final decision. As such, you should be proactive in updating the school with additional information about yourself and your commitment to attending if accepted. You may send updated senior grades, new standardized test scores, a revised résumé and continue to demonstrate your interest with the school - perhaps take a visit and introduce yourself at the Admissions office. Most schools will note that you applied ED/EA when they review you again for regular decision, but it will also help your cause to continue to show how much you want to attend their school.
• If you have been accepted to any schools through Early Action, congrats! Lucky for you, you're not obligated to tell them whether or not you're planning to attend until May 1st. 
• If you were denied through Early Action or Early Decision, unfortunately you cannot apply again for regular decision. But take heart - there are over 3,000 colleges in the United States alone and there are likely many options where you can be happy and thrive! If your heart is set on the school you were denied by, you can wait until the following school year to apply again. 
• Make plans to visit the schools you have been accepted to, especially the ones you have yet to see in person!
• Keep track of the scholarships offered by each school you have been accepted to. It may be helpful to create an Excel document to compare the cost of each school after scholarships and eventually financial aid are factored in.
• If your college requires the CSS Profile, make sure you are getting that done as soon as possible. Also, remember the FAFSA is available on January 1, and complete that within the first few weeks of January if possible.
• Most of all, keep calm while decisions are coming out. You most likely will not be accepted to every school, and that's OK! You will end up where you belong and at the school that is a great match for you.

Have a fabulous and relaxing break, and Happy Holidays!

Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

College Quick-Hitters

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).

University of New Haven (West Haven, CT)

Total undergraduates: 4,700

Middle 50% for acceptance SATs: 1445-1715, ACT: 20-25, Acceptance Rate: 74%

New Haven is an up-and-coming university about 90 minutes outside of New York City. It is a residential campus, near the water, with about 25% of students participating in Greek life. They have Division 2 in sports and have over 170 clubs and organizations on campus. They have a focus on connecting students to careers, and all business students are required to do at least one internship. A recent survey of 2013 graduates showed 91% of them had a job or were in graduate school. Forensic science is their top major and most competitive one to get into. They are also very popular for their music industry major. Other top majors include engineering, music & sound recording, and marine biology. Finally, about 35% of their students reside in living-learning communities on campus.

Johnson and Wales University (Providence, RI)

Total undergraduates: 9,500

Acceptance Rate: 72%

This is a unique institution in the heart of Providence, RI. Once you are accepted, you are accepted to all four campuses across the county including Providence, Miami, Denver, and Charlotte. Students are encouraged to study at one of the alternate campuses at least once during their time at school, but it is not mandatory. Their top majors are culinary education, hospitality and management, and business. They offer a 5-year MBA/accounting program, which allows the students to quickly sit for the CPA exam. They also offer a sports and entertainment business major on all four campuses, which is very popular. They are very much a hands-on-learning institution, and résumé building is extremely important to the school. On day one of freshmen year, they start students with career advising, and work with them through graduation. Students that have a GPA of 84 and above and/or SATs of 1200 and above will receive a substantial scholarship. There are no classes on Friday for anyone, which helps students who have internships or need to travel, which is a great idea on their part.

Adelphi University (Garden City, NY)

Total undergraduates: 5,050

Middle 50% for acceptance SATs: 1520-1840, Acceptance Rate: 68%

Adelphi is a school with a ton of promise. Right now, only 60% of students live on campus, so there are a lot of commuters, but the school is working on improving their residential life. They are offering a new nursing program, and it is not a direct-admit program, meaning if you are accepted to Adelphi, then you can become a nursing major if desired. They offer a joint law program with the University of Albany, where they are given early assurance to the program. They also offer a highly ranked (#5 in the country) social work major, with an optional 5-year Master’s program. Finally, they offer a 4-2 program with Columbia, where the student would graduate with a BS in environmental studies from Adelphi, and a Masters in Science in a specific engineering degree from Columbia.

Feel free to email me with any questions, and as always, happy searching!

-Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

College Quick-Hitters: Le Moyne College

Le Moyne College is a small, liberal-arts Jesuit school of about 2,800 undergraduate students located in Syracuse, NY. Only 4 hours from New York City, Le Moyne is situated on a beautiful campus only minutes from the action of downtown Syracuse. They have many different majors ranging from business to psychology to engineering, and have some excellent partnerships with Syracuse University. They have a 3-2 Bachelors and Masters engineering program with Syracuse, a 4-1 Bachelors and Masters Forensic Science program with Syracuse, and a 3-3 Law School Program with Syracuse and Fordham. Students in this law program with a 3.65 of higher GPA after junior year can bypass the LSAT exam and go right into law school at Syracuse of Fordham. Specifically, at Syracuse, students will also receive a 50% discount on tuition for years 5 and 6 (students do not receive this discount at Fordham). Le Moyne also has a brand new business building and a 20 million dollar science complex was completed three years ago, as well. If students apply early action, they will be notified by December 15^th, and all online applications will have no fee. The average class size at Le Moyne is 20, with a 13:1 student to faculty ration, and there are 21 different D2 sports, not to mention countless club and intramural sports. Housing is guaranteed all four years, and 85% of the student population lives on campus. Demonstrated interest is very important in their admissions process, so make sure you get up there for a visit, and make contact with the admissions counselors!

-Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA