Rankings: A College Love/Hate Relationship

Everyone who has gone through the college admissions process has looked up a school on one or another rankings list. Love them or hate them, rankings have a place in the admissions process but just how useful are they? A little exploration reveals the good, the bad and the ugly of the college rankings business.

If you have been reading this blog, you know the games colleges can play with yield and acceptance rates and can actually impact their numbers by not admitting students they know are unlikely to attend. Others try to influence rankings by making marketing a priority to boost application numbers and could fund 500 full rides with the money they spend mailing out glossy brochures to everyone who got over a certain number on the PSATs. This "information" is gathered from the schools by the rankings companies and used to move schools around the lists. Some schools have recently admitted to manipulating or outright lying about their accepted average test scores to boost rankings, (Claremont McKenna, Iona and Baylor come to mind) and still others (High Point, Wash U in St Louis and Tufts to name a few) choose not to publish their Common Data Sets making their statistical data unavailable to prospective students.

So, given the ease with which rankings can be manipulated, how can a student use them to help figure out where to apply? Herewith, a few suggestions to keep in mind when using rankings:

• Forbes rankings uses Ratemyprofessor.com to determine student happiness. Students have been known to create dozens of screen names to post harsh reviews after getting a bad grade. That is no way to decide if a school is right for you. 
• Some highly regarded schools like Reed College (ranked #4 in PhD productivity meaning only 3 other schools produce a greater percentage of students who go on to get a PhD) have low rankings because they choose not to participate in rankings. 
• If a school site touts their ranking in a giant banner on the first page, be sure to read the fine print. Is it a regional ranking? Ranking based on some other factor like weather, food, or dorms? Many schools omit that key factor when announcing their most recent ranking.
• Some schools, like Clemson, openly admitted to manipulating faculty salary data and class size to influence their ranking. They stated they had a mission to bring up the school's ranking and figured out how. It worked but at what cost?
• Payscale.com ranks schools based on income upon graduation. The list is weighted heavily to Engineering schools. Not a surprise given that starting salaries in Engineering are consistently higher than any other field. 

Use rankings to make sure you aren't missing a school that has a program you might love, or gives great merit aid, or likes students who fit your profile. Don't use them solely to make a list of colleges to apply to. The top schools don't accept more than 5-15% of applicants so be sure you take off the blinders and see the other 2950 schools in the USA. Rankings can help add to or narrow down a list, but they should be only one factor in a decision that may influence the rest of your life.  

What Exactly is Rigor?

What exactly does rigor of curriculum mean? Does it mean that a student should cram in as many AP and/or honors classes that can fit in a schedule, even if it means possibly earning lower grades and maybe having a lower GPA? Or, should students stick with accelerated classes only in subjects they are good at? If APs are not weighted, how beneficial are they on a transcript? If a high school practices gatekeeping, meaning they have non-negotiable pre-reqs for every honors or AP class, it is worth it to beg to be put in? Sign a waiver acknowledging you are taking the class without the teacher's approval? Or hire a tutor from the first day to assure success?

Everyone wants to know the answer to the big question: would a college admissions officer rather see a 3.3 with several AP and honors classes or a 3.6 with fewer? Well, the pat answer from the most competitive college admissions offices is they want rigor AND excellent grades. Colleges, especially those that have the lowest admissions rates, typically weight an applicant's curriculum more than anything else, excepting those of recruited athletes. They want to know that a student will be successful in a place filled with "super-achievers", and the best way to show that a student will be is with a really impressive transcript.

• If you are an inquisitive student, one who loves to learn, load up that transcript! The highest level courses are often taught by the most passionate teachers, so odds are that a student might just learn to like a subject he or she may have felt lukewarm about before.
• If you have good time management skills, and can manage a heavy workload along with extra- curriculars, community service, sports, music, a job, and a few hours here and there for sleep, then go for it! At the AP or honors level, the workload grows exponentially, so be prepared for a lot of reading, writing, labs and problem sets.
• If you are a science and math type, consider taking AP English or a foreign language if you can. Most schools value students who have a strong foundation in lots of different disciplines. 
• The admissions officer who reads applications for your high school will likely know exactly what is offered, and may wonder why you didn't take that tougher Chemistry class if you are applying as a pre-med. If they aren't too familiar with your school's offerings, one glance at the profile can answer any questions.
• Don't worry if your high school doesn't weight your GPA; most admissions officers will highlight your honors, AP or dual-enrollment courses when reviewing your application. Your GPA is typically adjusted to adhere to a fixed methodology and they will know you took 8 APs!

The bottom line is take the hardest classes you can if you are looking to earn admission to a school with competitive admissions. Even athletes seeking admission to the Ivies or top ranked LACs have a better shot at the tippy-tops with a rigorous curriculum based on the Academic Index calculations that govern Ivy athletic recruiting. So, push yourself now and you will be so glad you did later!

The NACAC "Panic" List

Each year, in early May, after the date by which students were to have sent deposits, NACAC (governing body for college counselors) releases a list of schools that still have openings for their freshman class, spots for transfers, and still have aid in the coffers. 72% are private colleges, 99% have housing available, and while some may not be household names, a few are Colleges that Change Lives, some have excellent programs in specific areas, and some might surprise you! These schools have space because their yield projections were off, and they have not met their target class size. It doesn't mean they aren't "good" schools, it just means their math was off a bit this admissions cycle. Colleges want to fill every seat; an empty seat means lost tuition dollars.

Why, you might wonder, would anyone need to access this list? Well, there are a few reasons- some HS students may have been unsure of what they wanted to do after graduation, some may have had financial concerns that may have kept them from making plans, others still may not have had the outcomes they expected in terms of acceptances, and still others may have other reasons-health, family issues, etc. Whatever the reason, there are still options for students to attend college in September. Below are some of the schools that still have space. If a student is interested in applying, the first order of business is to call the Admissions office and confirm the space availability. The admissions office will guide the student from that point as schools may have different processes for late applicants.

Arcadia University (formerly Beaver College), PA  Freshmen, Transfers, Aid and Housing available
Arizona State University, AZ Freshmen, Transfers, Aid and Housing available
Beloit College, WI Freshmen, Transfers, Aid and Housing available
Bryant University RI, Freshmen, Transfers, Aid and Housing available
Coastal Carolina University, Freshmen, Transfers, Aid and Housing available
University of Florida, Limited Freshmen, Transfer, Aid and Housing available
University of Maine, Freshmen, Transfer, Aid and Housing available
University of San Francisco Freshmen, Transfer, Housing available, limited Aid available

For the complete list, follow this link!
http://www.nacacnet.org/research/research-data/SpaceSurvey/Pages/SpaceSurveyResults.aspx

Waiting on the Wait List

Now that National Deposit Day has come and gone and students have made their decisions, it's time for the wait lists to begin to move. May 1, a.k.a. National Deposit Day is the day by which schools will have (ideally) received enrollment deposits from all the students who intend to attend. Some students who feel they need a little more time to decide may send deposits to more than one school. While everyone knows choosing a school is a big decision, and one that cannot be made hastily, if you send a deposit to more than one school, know that you might be prolonging the wait another student has if that student is on the wait list.

During the next 10 days, schools will begin to tally their acceptances and accompanying deposits. Once they have established how much of the class has been filled, they can move on to the wait list or not use it at all. Let's look at a hypothetical situation; a competitive school with a class size of 1000, accepted half the Class of 2017 through ED and EDII. For the 500 remaining spots, the school accepted 1500 students and assumes a 33% or 1/3 yield based on historical trends and tweaked for a greater (or lesser) number of applicants. If less than 1/3 send a deposit and the target class size has not been met, a college will turn to the wait list. They may choose who gets a phone call (it's a phone call typically) based on whether they need a student from a certain region, someone who has indicated a selected major, a theatre type, or even another male student- there are currently more females seeking admission these days. Some wait list students were offered a spot as a courtesy to legacies or those with other types of connections, and likely will not be offered a place.

If you do get the call, you will probably be given a very small window in which to make your decision. Some schools will give you 24 hours, some that are far from your home town might give you a week to make a quick visit to help you decide, and still others will expect an answer within a few days. While you should never count on a wait list moving in your favor, it is a good idea to consider what you might do if the call should come. Don't call the admissions office to ask if they have moved to the wait list. They have a lot of work to do over the next few weeks finalizing the class and they know you are waiting to hear. If you have communicated with them and let them know you would attend if offered a place, you have done all you can. Just get on with the fun of the end of your senior year and get ready for the next part of your life.

Key Questions to ask about Study Abroad

Almost every school with a residential population offers students chances to study somewhere else but there are many variable and options. If a chance to live abroad is really important to you, do your homework and ask questions. It's a good way to show interest, and you will get an idea of whether any given school will have what you want.

Here are a few of the questions students should really ask at those info sessions!

• Does the school run its own programs?
• If so, does faculty from the campus travel with the students?
• If not, where are the faculty from?
• Can I choose to study with a program from another school if my school doesn't have a program in the country I want to go to?
• Can I study at a university in the country where I will be living or do I just take classes with the other students from my college?
• Does the credit from a foreign university transfer? 
• If so can it be used to fulfill a core curricular requirement?
• Does it cost more to study abroad?
• Does financial aid travel with me when I go abroad?
• Do I live with a family, in a dorm or in another kind of student housing?
• How strong do my language skills have to be?
• Will I have to sign a language contract to speak only the language of the country I am in?
• Can I go abroad if I am premed/an engineering student/in a combined or accelerated degree program?
• Will I have housing when I get back? 
• Will the program offer travel opportunities within the country with faculty?
• If I go through another school's program, how will my grades be included on my transcript?
• Are there cultural opportunities, community service projects and enhancements to the program included?

Every school has different programs, requirements, options, merits and weaknesses, so be sure to ask questions before you apply. If you don't, you might find out your first choice school might be missing something key to your desired experience.
                                                                                

A FinAid Primer; Just the Tip of the Iceberg

Here are a few terms that every college applicant and his or her family should be familiar with. Financial aid is more than student loans. It may mean merit aid, loans made to the student at beneficial interest rates, loans for parents, and what it really means when a school declares it meets all demonstrated need, or is need-aware.  Less than 1% of college bound HS seniors can foot the bill for college without loans.

Free Application for Federal Financial Aid (FAFSA): This document is the jumping off point for all need-based money for college that comes from somewhere else besides the student and his or her family. Even if you don’t think you will qualify for aid, this document will allow students to get federal loans for college not based on need. There is some evidence that students who don’t need aid but have small student loans do better in school and are more likely to graduate on time!

Net Price Calculator (NPC): Any school that provides federal loans to students has to have an NPC page on their website. This calculation estimates how much a student will have to borrow, or, in the case of a school that has institutional need-based grants or scholarships to give away, how much that student will receive, and not have to pay back, ASSUMING THEY ARE ADMITTED. These calculators start with the Cost of Attendance (COA) and can give applicants a rough idea of what it might cost to attend.

Estimated Family Contribution (EFC): a fairly complex calculation that predicts what a family will be expected to contribute to the cost of one year of college. It is based on parent income, assets, student income, state of residency relative to taxes and a few other items. The last year’s tax return for the family is required to complete the EFC

CSS Profile: Another financial aid document that some schools use that requires more in-depth information and data. Many of the most competitive schools, those with the greatest institutional aid to give away (think big endowments) require this document in addition to the FAFSA.

Need-aware: this means a college admissions office takes into account whether you are applying for financial aid. If you are a full-pay student, meaning you don’t qualify for aid, and are footing the bill yourself, you may have a slight edge in admissions at these schools. While it can’t make up for a low GPA and lousy test scores, it might help if your application hangs in the balance!

Need-blind: This means a school completely disregards your financial need when deciding whether to admit you. It doesn’t matter if you need a full ride, a half ride or a little extra cash. Wait lists are rarely need-blind; colleges replenish their depleted funds at the end of the admissions cycle with full pay students from the wait list. If you don’t need aid, your chances of admission off a wait list are slightly better.

Meeting all Need: a small handful of schools are committed to meeting all demonstrated need (FAFSA and CSS Profile documents must be filed in order to have all need met). This means they will foot the bill for anything beyond the EFC (see above). This means students will graduate without any debt and why the lowest income student will likely pay less at a top private than at an in state public U.

Need-blind but not meeting all need: This means that while the admissions office does not consider need in the application process, the financial aid office may not be able to defray the cost of attendance enough to make attendance possible. So you may get in, but the school won't help you foot the bill.

Confused? Lost? Need help? Drop me a note at AthenaAdvisors@optimum.net for a lifeline!

The Envelope Please!

The Envelope Please!

Ok so it’s not really an envelope anymore.  It’s an email with a link, or a webpage login and password punched in as the clock strikes the appointed hour. However your news arrives, it is either the end of a journey, as a front runner emerges, or it’s the start of another journey that can last a couple of months. The admissions cycle is far from over for some, who will be zigzagging around the country, attending Accepted Students events, sitting in on classes, appealing Financial Aid packages, collecting string bags and pens, and trying to decide which school feels right and which sticker looks the best on the rear windshield. Others await the news on whether the wait list will move this year. Here are a few tips to get through the next few months if you find yourself in wait list limbo:

• ·      Don’t count on a wait list moving. Treat it like a deferral from ED. Assume you won’t get in and be pleasantly surprised if you do.
• ·      Wait lists are almost always need-aware, so if you are applying for financial aid, it is unlikely you will be admitted with any grant or gift aid- money that need not be paid back- and be offered only loans instead.
• ·      Put a deposit down at the school in second place. Don’t wait to see if the wait list moves or you may lose your spot.
• ·      Go through the motions as if you were attending #2 choice; housing deposits, Facebook Class of 2017 pages, even roommate searches should all be completed, joined and checked off.
• ·      Summer melt, the admissions term for wait list spots that open after June 1, are rare and unlikely, so once you receive word that the list has closed, move on.
• ·      Don’t inundate the admissions office with love letters and news about your recent accomplishments. If they need a softball player who plays the piccolo and wants to study Swahili, they know where to find you.
• ·      Check the Common Data Set for the school at which you are wait listed to see what has happened with their wait list in the past. You can see how many were offered a place on it, how many accepted one and how many actually earned admission. While every year is different, it can shed some light on how much competition you might have.