The winter holiday can be frenetic for seniors trying to meet final deadlines looming often on the 1st of January for many colleges and universities. This can be a stressful last sprint. And then an unsettling quiet takes hold – like the snowy winter landscape – and one may ask, what happens now? Welcome to […]
The rivers throughout the West are desperately low this summer due to extreme drought. Consequently, the wise and skittish fish are holding up in inconspicuous depressions, under logs, and along the bank’s edges where there are insects and shade. These areas do not hold a lot of fish; anglers have to tread stealthily and lay […]
Amidst the unpredictability and turbulence that Covid has created in the lives of students, particularly for high school seniors as they actively launch the college process this fall, I have been hearing the words of my late father-in-law Robert Bryan, a renowned bush pilot in Atlantic Canada’s Gulf of Saint Lawrence region for over 50 […]
In my experience, the 10th grade year can be fraught with distractions and what I refer to as “academic continental drift” as it pertains to one’s grades. Newly minted sixteen year olds often have their eye on getting a driver’s license (unless you live in Idaho where you get the early bird permit at fourteen […]
“The best interviewers are skilled at making two things happen: First, they’re good at creating a transforming moment in the interview where a student says, ‘Wow, that was a great conversation.’ Second, they’re good at making a student walk away feeling better than s/he did when s/he walked in. The reality is that almost all […]
It is true that THE college essay often invokes as much dread in seniors as taking standardized tests; its aura holds high psych-out value and can lead to serious writer’s block. But if one steps back from its psychology and dutifully reviews the wide range of Common Application and Coalition Application questions, including the slow […]
The anticipation and long wait on your application news is over. Congratulations, you have been accepted to college and should be very proud of your accomplishments, taking pride in the fact that you earned your spot(s) with hard work, attention to the details, determination, and persistence. You have also learned the steps in a lifelong […]
With spring approaching, it is the time when 11th graders start to explore their own aspirations and dreams beyond high school. Let the junior spring migration commence! This is the time-honored ritual when juniors (and parents) formally launch their college search by visiting colleges. Though it takes logistical planning and coordination, nothing provides you with […]
With over 3000 undergraduate programs in the United States alone, the most important point to remember as a high school student is that there is indeed a college for you. Falling into the psychological trap that there are only a few “really good” colleges – selective and recognizable names – is simply selling the diversity […]
With the advent of December, seniors (and parents) will start to hear from colleges if they applied early action (non-binding) or early decision (binding). Some parents have been through this process with older children; some have not. What I have learned as a parent of three college graduates is that it is important to emotionally […]