High school freshman thinks ahead

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Dear Mr. Bradshaw — I am finishing the first semester of my freshman year in high school.

I have straight A’s, and I want to know what you suggest as the best way to get into a top college or university. My grandmother cuts out your columns and sends them to me. Based upon your experience, what classes and activities do top-tier colleges look for in an applicant? — Freshman

Dear Freshman — It is always best to start with your high school counselor when planning a four-year program appropriate for you, one that reflects your interests.

Inevitably, there will be difficult choices to make about what courses to take and how to balance your schoolwork and your extracurricular pursuits.

Should you take a fourth year of math or begin a second foreign language? You might like to write for the student newspaper, but that means you won’t have time for Advanced Placement chemistry.

Here is some advice to help guide you through such decisions.

I suggest taking an inventory of your academic interests. Try not to take classes only in the areas you find interesting now.

It is highly unlikely schools will downgrade an application simply because of the absence of a particular class. However, transcripts reflect the broad range of interests that have shaped a student’s intellectual curiosity and personality. In other words, let your transcripts tell your story.

Colleges review high school transcripts as a whole, plus recommendations, test scores and extracurriculars. They consider each application a comprehensive overview of that student.

Colleges primarily are concerned with what kind of student you will be. They look for consistency and intellectual rigor. The best way to show a commitment to academics is taking the most challenging classes and a full course load all four years of high school.

If you push yourself to excel through your senior year and beyond, it is a good sign you will do the same in college.

It might surprise students to know that many top colleges do not have specific entrance requirements, and it is best to research each school. For example, Yale does not require a foreign language in high school, but, as a general rule, admissions people there look for students who try to take courses each year in English, science, math, the social sciences and foreign languages.

Be honest with yourself when deciding among courses. Are you choosing a particular course because you truly are excited about it or are you motivated by a desire to avoid a more difficult subject?

Yale offers the following advice to high school students planning their class schedules.

† Am I taking a well-balanced academic program that will provide me with a good foundation for college?

† Am I prepared to take college-level math, writing and science?

† Do I feel challenged by the courses I am taking?

† Are my courses among the more rigorous ones available to me at my school?

† Am I seeking a challenge or avoiding it?

† Overall, is my four-year high school program among the most challenging available at my school?”

Keep these questions in mind when planning your high school schedules, and continue to strive for academic excellence.

A healthy balance between course work and extracurriculars will be looked upon favorably by all top colleges.

College Admissions Consulting Articles - High school freshman thinks ahead

College Admissions Consulting Articles - Scholarship or elite school?

Tuesday, December 6, 2011


BY GERALD M. BRADSHAW

gerald_bradshaw@post.harvard.edu

Bradshaw College Consulting

(219) 663-3041


Dear Mr. Bradshaw: I will apply to several top colleges next year, and I have a question that, so far, no one has answered to my satisfaction.

If I am offered a full scholarship to a state college, should I accept it? If I gain admittance to a top college like Harvard or MIT, is it worth the extra money and debt to attend one of them over a state college?

My parents are encouraging me to stay in state and apply for a full scholarship, which I probably will get. That sounds reasonable, but my concern is what I would give up if I turned down the chance to attend a top-tier college. --Student

Scholarship or elite school?



Dear Student

— Each year, some students turn down the chance to attend a top-tier college because they feel the academic pressure to perform or the financial burden would be too great. Others might prefer to attend a college closer to home.

Whatever your decision, there are tangible benefits if you attend Harvard or MIT. Keep in mind, these are my personal views and may not represent the majority of college advisers.

A recent article in The Harvard Crimson carried this headline: “Dropping out of Harvard: A standard to aspire to.”

Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg had returned to his alma mater for the first time since dropping out in 2005. He came back dressed in jeans and a sweat shirt to recruit students for his company. He also visited MIT on his trip in an effort to find more of the best and brightest students for his company — arguably the gold standard by which other companies measure their ability to attract the best candidates.

With Facebook starting salaries averaging $150,000 per year and a work environment built around brilliant and talented employees, Zuckerberg selects only the best. It doesn’t hurt that the popular movie “The Social Network” added to his celebrity.

Zuckerberg recruits at top colleges, he said, because he wants to have “the first crack at the stars before they graduate.” The Crimson added he was looking for “the next Bill Gates, who might be right in this room.” These comments often are not made about other universities.

In the tradition of other famous dropouts like Gates, Zuckerberg made no bones about being different. He encouraged students to take time off from their studies to explore what they really want to do. His talk was limited to only 200 students who were selected based on resume submissions.

Why did he stop at Harvard? Because Harvard is the most selective college in America. It accepted only 6.1 percent of all applicants last year. Harvard students ranked at the top of their classes in high school, and many turned down full scholarships at other schools to study there.

Gates and Zuckerberg charted a new course when they dropped out of college to become entrepreneurs. Their actions have influenced a generation of students to think differently about computer science.

Gates said computer programming lured him away from Harvard, but an early 1990s biography says he dropped out when Harvard objected to his use of university computers for private business.

I know my clients want to succeed and use what they learn in college to start businesses, and they write openly about their entrepreneurial goals in their applications. These are the students Zuckerberg wants for Facebook — before Google and Apple get there.

What would you give up if you turned down the chance to attend a top-tier school? Perhaps a chance to work at one of the greatest companies in the world, surrounded by the best and brightest students of your generation.

College Admissions Consulting Articles - Scholarship or elite school?

Business, economics degrees differ greatly

Friday, November 25, 2011


BY GERALD M. BRADSHAW

gerald_bradshaw@post.harvard.edu

Bradshaw College Consulting

(219) 663-3041


Dear Mr. Bradshaw: I am a college sophomore and I need to declare a major. I am thinking about majoring in business and finance or economics. I know that a few colleges like Harvard and Yale do not offer undergraduate degrees in business. Why?

Can you explain the difference between a major in business and one in economics? Is one better than the other in order to get a top-paying job or admission to grad school? I am considering law school at some point in the future. --Student


Business, economics degrees differ greatly


— As the deadline nears for declaring a major for sophomores, you are right to be concerned about job and grad school prospects and the impact a major has in the job market. The good news is that both business and economics degrees will help you find employment even in a down economy according to recent studies by The Wall Street Journal.

There is a great deal of difference between the study of business and economics as a concentration. This goes to the heart of why Harvard does not offer an undergraduate degree in business.

The law school at Harvard even warns applicants that chances of admission are inversely proportional to the number of business classes taken as an undergraduate. The university considers business courses to be vocational in nature and not fitting their broad definition of a liberal arts education.

Perhaps it is better to explain the difference between economics and business by saying that economics is a social science aimed primarily at understanding the social world.

Economists address a variety of social science questions. Will school vouchers improve the quality of education? Do politicians manipulate the business cycle? What sort of legal system best promotes economic development? Why do cities have impoverished areas? Why do people procrastinate in saving for retirement — or in doing their homework?

Economists say that business classes teach professional skills that are useful for starting and operating companies. They believe that economics and business are related, but that business is professional training aimed at making profits, while economics is a science that pursues an understanding our social world.

Because many top colleges do not offer a business major to undergraduates, some students treat economics as a substitute. This has been proven to be a bad choice. According to studies, there is no evidence to suggest that concentrating in economics helps students to get better jobs after graduation. For these reasons, most economics departments strongly discourage students from majoring in economics as a substitute for something else.

If you select a major with law school in mind I would recommend economics over business because the courses cover a broader subject area touching on many fields of study. I should add that I have several clients who majored in business and went to law school. They tell me they profited a great deal by their study of business as undergraduates.

College Admissions Consulting Articles - Business, economics degrees differ greatly

College Admissions - Compatibility glitch has student in a panic

Tuesday, November 8, 2011


BY GERALD M. BRADSHAW

gerald_bradshaw@post.harvard.edu

Bradshaw College Consulting

(219) 663-3041

Dear Mr. Bradshaw: I am filling out my Common Application and, when I upload my college essays, for some reason, they do not post in the display box.

When I click “view document” or “print preview,” all that appears is a blank page.

I am in a panic.

I thought it had posted because it did not show an error, until I discovered they were not visible in the display.

I missed my Early Action deadline because of it. What can I do to fix the problem?

Please help. -- Panicked Student

Compatibility glitch has student in a panic


— This will be a short answer because I want readers to understand what they have to do about this problem without digging through a lot of technical jargon.

Several of my clients who uploaded their essays to the Common Application with a Macintosh have experienced this compatibility issue.

If you view an application submitted on your Mac on a PC, you will be able to see your essays in the display. You have to use a PC to view them.

This glitch has given students fits because they missed the Nov. 1, Early Action filing deadline.

I have not seen references to this problem in the news and am unaware of any fix to date.

To be on the safe side, I recommend that my clients fill out their applications on a PC and not a Mac.

In the interest of fairness and full disclosure, I use an iPad and iPhone for fun, but, for my business, I use a PC, even though I am constantly under attack by viruses and malware.

College Admissions Consulting Articles - Compatibility glitch has student in a panic

Graduate in 4 years and save

Dear Mr. Bradshaw — How much will my college education cost? My parents have tried to plan for my education, but the financial part is hard to quantify. We hope you can tell us what expenses we should expect. — Student

Dear Student — One of the best ways to cut the cost of college is to graduate in four years. If that sounds obvious, it doesn’t seem to register with many students who take five to six years to graduate.

Nationally, only 58 percent of full-time students graduate in six years, and three out of four part-time students fail to earn a bachelor’s degree within eight years.

Many colleges are not motivated to advertise their graduation rates, but they are easy to find by visiting College Results Online (www.collegeresults.org). CRO is an interactive, user-friendly tool used to provide parents and students with information about college graduation rates for most four-year colleges or universities in the country.

One useful feature is the ability to compare graduation rates for colleges serving similar students. This information reveals that some colleges do a much better job of graduating students than others.

For example, Indiana University in Bloomington has a four-year graduation rate of 52.5 percent, and Purdue University in West Lafayette has a 37.5 percent four-year graduation rate. Compare that to the University of Chicago (85.7) and Notre Dame (90.1). These results show the best graduation rates are at private schools, and these numbers are representative of universities nationwide.

Clearly, a few colleges benefit by making a lot of money on the perpetual-student syndrome. But colleges alone are not entirely responsible for prolonging a student’s education.

Parents must take some responsibility because they allow their children to start college without a firm goal in mind. Many will say a student needs time to grow and experiment by taking classes in different areas before declaring a major.

However, if we compare graduation rates among most top public and private universities, we find that nearly 90 percent of students at private schools entered their freshmen year with a declared major. Fewer than 20 percent changed their majors before graduation.

Because most of the classes taken by these students apply to their degrees, it shortens graduation time.

Most of my clients have a very clear goal in mind when they apply. Even if they change their minds midway through their course work, it is generally from something like chemistry to biology to pre-med, where many classes fulfill both degree requirements.

Similar results apply if the student changes majors from applied math to economics or from history to political science. Radical changes to different majors add two to three years to what should be a four-year degree program.

With college costs soaring each year faster than the rate of inflation, graduating in four years is the surest way to save money on your education.

Simply put, plan ahead.

I suggest parents start talking about career goals when their children reach eighth grade. That way, they can start planning their high school curriculum with that goal in mind.

College Admissions Consulting Articles - Graduate in 4 years and save

Consultant an asset for top school

Dear Mr. Bradshaw: I am considering hiring a college consultant to help me with the admissions process. My parents and I agree that applying to top colleges is a real challenge, and we would like to know how a college consultant could help make things easier. --Student


Dear Student:

If you are applying to a top college, a consultant can be a real asset, and the benefits are wide-ranging.

Although little is published on the subject, student surveys indicate that at least 40 percent of the applicants who were admitted to Harvard and Yale last year used consultants.

Even if your parents graduated from a top college and are familiar with the application process through an alumni network, hiring a top college consultant can help level the playing field in the admissions area.

So where should you start? I recommend you Google “college consultants” and examine their websites. Pick a few consultants who focus on top schools and call them with a set of prepared questions. Ask how much they charge, what services they include, if assistance with scholarship essays is a part of the package, and so on.

I highly suggest hiring a consultant who is a graduate of a top college because without these credentials, it is unlikely the consultant will be current with the admissions practices of exclusive schools.

Keep in mind that consultants who were admitted to top colleges will have scores and grades similar to yours. Ask them why they think they got in. Obviously, they were able to separate themselves from other applicants, and you are looking to them to help guide you along the same path.

Assuming you are near the top of your class and have scored in the top 10 percent on the SAT or ACT and on at least two SAT II subject tests, your next hurdle will be the essays required for the common application and individual schools.

Typically, top students apply to 10 colleges, which means writing 40 to 60 essays during the admissions process. The essays are designed to tell colleges something special about you, and each is given a score. Do not be fooled into thinking that the shorter ones don’t count and that only the longer ones matter.

You will find some of the essays can be downright silly (from my point of view), but they still reveal something about how you handle off-the-wall questions like, “What does ‘blue’ mean to you?”

Answering these questions is always difficult, as I dislike quirky questions that don’t have a logical base in my thinking.

What I would like to say and what a responsible answer might be often are different animals. I advise students how to approach these questions and turn the answers to their advantage.

A consultant will help keep you on track in the admissions process and provide a sounding board for you and your family. Making sure you meet deadlines, coaching you as you approach your scholarship essays, and cutting through the admissions clutter are some of the services a consultant provides.

College Admissions Consulting Articles - Consultant an asset for top school

SAT Scandal Raises Questions About High School Pressure

Sam Eshaghoff, a 19-year-old sophomore at Emory University, was arrested for allegedly accepting cash payments to take the SAT for six students at his alma mater, Great Neck North High School – one of the top-rated high schools in the nation.

Great Neck North officials said they were appalled and reminded the public that all cheaters will face serious consequences while applauding the decision to hold the accused students legally accountable.

Having graduated from a top-rated, overly competitive, private high school only two years ago, I sympathize with the six accused Great Neck North students. While the media will undoubtedly portray these students as slackers who tried to cheat their way into top colleges, I will know the truth: These students just could not take the pressure any longer and cracked.

I have met a large number of students at the University of Southern California who were only one of fifteen students who somehow managed to graduate from an overcrowded public high school and attend a non-community college. I always hear about how few kids even consider going to college an option at these kinds of schools. It never gets any easier to hide my surprise when I hear about these stories.

Understand, in my graduating high school class of 140 students, 139 went to non-community colleges and universities, with about 40 of them ending up at ‘ranked’ top 20 schools. Sophomore year on, I had at least one daily conversation with teachers and advisors about what schools I wanted to attend. Not going to college was never an option.

In order to get into one of the colleges I talked about wanting to attend on a daily basis, though, I needed to do well on the dreaded SAT exam. Hours upon days upon weeks were devoted to SAT practice exams and classes. I never needed to truly understand the material on the test, but at least know it well enough to get the answers right on the standardized exam.

At the beginning of junior year, the U.S. News & World Report annual college rankings became my bible. I had the top-30 schools memorized back and forth. More importantly, I knew the scores I needed to get in.

Read More: SAT Scandal Raises Questions About High School Pressure | Neon Tommy