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Navigating the Road to College and Beyond

Our blog offers wisdom for parents as they raise their high school students, guiding their transitions to college, graduate school, and the workplace. You will find many of your college application questions answered here, so take some time to peruse our categories!

Posts by Kris Hintz with updates by Deborah Ernst.

What a Rising High School Senior Can Do This Summer to Get a Jump on College Applications

What a Rising High School Senior Can Do This Summer to Get a Jump on College Applications

“The beginning is the most important part of the work.” -Plato. As a college admissions consultant, I often hear parents and their students ask at the end of junior year of high school, “What can we be doing during the summer to prepare for the crazy senior year

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First “College List” Question: Private versus Public University

First “College List” Question: Private versus Public University

“A university is what a college becomes when the faculty loses interest in students.” – John Ciardi. It’s no secret that the rise in the cost of an American college education has outpaced inflation for decades. A compelling summary by finaid.org reveals a 1.5 ratio of tuition inflation

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Parents of 11th Graders: Get Set for “Junior College Night”

Parents of 11th Graders: Get Set for “Junior College Night”

“I go to seek a Great Perhaps.” -François Rabelais. You just got a notice from your 11th Grader’s guidance counselor that parents are strongly encouraged to attend upcoming “Junior College Night.” They want you to know it’s time to get serious about your student’s college future. What to

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The Coalition versus the Common Application

The Coalition versus the Common Application

“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” –Alan Watts. In 2016, the first phase of a new online college preparation and application platform was launched by the Coalition for Access, Affordability and Success,

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December 15 College News: Early Decision Acceptance

December 15 College News: Early Decision Acceptance

“The worst part of success is trying to find someone who is happy for you.”  -Bette Midler. This post offers suggestions for next steps after receiving notification of acceptance from the Early Decision I college, with valuable advice from the “how to” college admissions process classic, Admissions Matters: What Students and

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December 15 College News: Early Action Acceptance

December 15 College News: Early Action Acceptance

“What you seek is seeking you.” – Rumi. This post offers suggestions for next steps after receiving acceptance from an Early Action college, with advice from Admissions Matters: What Students and Parents Need to Know About Getting Into College by Sally S. Springer, Jon Reider & Marion R. Franck.

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The College Waiting Game

The College Waiting Game

“The stretching of your faith is immediate pain that results in ultimate gain. It is in the waiting that we become who we are meant to be.” -Mandy Hale. November and December of senior year, probably the most nerve-wracking time in the whole college application process. Your

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December 15 College News: Deferral or Denial

December 15 College News: Deferral or Denial

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill. This post offers suggestions for next steps after receiving a deferral or denial from an Early Action or Early Decision college, with advice from Admissions Matters: What Students and Parents Need to

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College Acceptances and Denials: The Best and Worst Things That Could Happen

College Acceptances and Denials: The Best and Worst Things That Could Happen

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect to your future.” -Steve Jobs. There seems to be so much at stake when college admissions decisions come out, whether it is

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College Transfers: Why or Why Not?

College Transfers: Why or Why Not?

“There is nothing wrong with change, if it is in the right direction.” – Winston Churchill. Your college freshman is home for Thanksgiving or winter break. He or she seems happy to be home, but not so eager to return to school for spring semester. Sometime between handing

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