Time To Prepare For Financial Aid Applications

For most high school seniors, December is often "push month" for finishing up college applications. In the rush to meet application deadlines, however, don't forget that financial aid deadlines will quickly follow. Here are five things you should be doing this month if you will need financial aid to attend college:

1. Make certain your college list includes at least one financial safety. A "financial safety" is a college that you would both be happy to attend and that your family is almost certainly going to be able to afford, either because of its overall cost or because the college's financial aid policies are likely to work in your family's favor. Not sure if you have a financial safety on your list? Start by reading this article which includes a list of important questions to ask every college.

2. Plan ahead. Each year, I hear from students and parents who have missed important financial aid deadlines because they didn't look at what was required until it was too late. Don't let this be you! If you haven't already done so, take a few minutes this month to put together a list showing the financial aid deadlines and application paperwork required for each college on your list.

3. If your parents are divorced or separated, let each parent know what to expect. Divorce and separation can add an extra layer of complexity to the financial aid process. If your parents are divorced or separated (or you're a parent who is divorced or separated), make sure you understand how divorce and separation can affect financial aid and have a clear understanding of the policies of each of the colleges on your list. If your non-custodial parent needs to submit financial information to a college on your list, now is the time to let them know, not the day before the college's financial aid deadline.

4. Get your FAFSA PIN now. Although you can't submit your FAFSA (the application required by most colleges) until after January 1st, you can apply for FAFSA Personal Identification Numbers now on the FAFSA PIN website. You'll need a PIN for both the student and a parent.

5. Get organized. The process of applying for financial aid will go smoother if you have all of the information you'll need on hand. Here's a list of most of the information you'll need for the FAFSA and the CSS Profile - but, check with each college on your list as well, since some colleges ask for additional information.

- Your social security number
- Your driver's license (if you have one)
- The student's 2009 tax return OR 2009 W-2 Forms and other records of other money earned by the student in 2009.
- The parent's 2009 tax returns OR 2009 W-2 Forms and other records of other money earned by parents in 2009. (Note: For the FAFSA, financial information for the custodial parent and step-parent is required; for the CSS Profile, financial information from the non-custodial parent is often required as well).
- 2009 untaxed income records for parent(s) and student, if applicable, including veterans benefits, child support, and worker's compensation.
- Current bank statements
- Current business and investment mortgage information, business and farm records, stock, bond and other investment records, if applicable
- Your alien registration or permanent resident card (if you are not a U.S. citizen)

Three Websites For College Research

I am constantly amazed at how little real research some students do about the colleges where they're applying. Often, a student will tell me that they "know enough" about a particular institution because "my friends all say it's a good school." Yet, when I ask them about how they think their grades, class rank, and test scores stack up against the typical admitted student, what's unique about the school's academic program, the college's application process, or the availability of much-needed financial aid, their eyes tend to glaze over. "Finding out all that stuff is too hard!," these students tell me.

Don't let this be you.

Whether you're a senior already slogging through the application process, or a junior (or sophomore) just getting started thinking about your college options, the decision of where to apply - and attend - college is too important to leave solely up to the advice of friends. You must do your own research.

Luckily, finding the facts, information, and data you need to make well-informed decisions doesn't have to be too time-consuming or difficult. You just need to know where to look. Here are three websites where students and parents can get quickly get up to speed about individual colleges and admissions policies:

1. The College Portrait. This is the place to go if you're looking for reliable information on public colleges and universities. Sponsored by two nonprofit higher education organizations - the Association of Public and Land-grant Colleges and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities - College Portrait offers detailed information on the admissions statistics, academic programs, and financial aid opportunities at more than 325 public colleges and universities. The website will be adding new profiles regularly over coming months.

2. U-CAN Network. U-CAN is the private college equivalent of the College Portrait website. Sponsored by the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, this site offers detailed profiles of over 800 non-profit private institutions. This site is a terrific resource for quickly comparing facts and data in standardized form.

3. College Navigator. The U.S. Department of Education's College Navigator website is designed to give students and parents a quick and easy method for quickly gathering and comparing data on every institution of higher education in the United States. In addition to data about admission rates and average test scores, College Navigator provides useful information about institutional financial aid, disabilities services, graduation rates, and even campus crime. You can even pinpoint data on the number of majors in different disciplines. The College Navigator site also has useful links to Federal government sites for financial aid and career planning.

Of course, don't forget that colleges all have their own websites, which can provide a wealth of information and insights to students who look beyond the pretty pictures on the admissions website. No college website visit is complete without searching for at least these three items: the freshman admissions profile for the most recent freshman class, courses required for graduation beyond your major, and the student newspaper.

Good luck in your college information hunt!

Seven Rules For College Admissions Success

Applying to college is a stressful time, filled with details, deadlines, and yes, even a little dread. Just like any complex endeavor, however, having some basic rules to follow can help. Here are seven rules to follow for college application success:

Rule Number One: Build In A Safety Net Every college list needs a back up plan. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that adding more reach schools is a back up plan; it isn’t. A true safety net means having at least two colleges on your list that you would sincerely like to attend and which are highly likely to admit you and be financially possible for your family. That safety net is what will help you sleep well each night between now and next April. If you don't yet have a safety net in place, get one. Pronto.

Rule Number Two: Get and Stay Organized Applying to college is stressful enough as it is. You don’t want to add more stress because you can't find some vital piece of information or suddenly realize at 11 p.m. that an important deadline occurs at midnight. If you haven't already done so, make it a priority to set up a "command central" for all of your application materials and supplies, and be diligent about keeping track of every item that goes in or out. Make a checklist of all important application deadlines, and check it at least once a week. File folders can be a college applicant's best friend. Save yourself stress later: Get organized NOW.

Rule Number Three: Give Yourself Plenty of Time Most students are surprised by how many tasks are involved in completing college applications. As a result, the job almost always takes longer than students expect, especially when the inevitable last minute questions and snafus pop into the picture. A certain amount of procrastination time should also be added into your time estimate. And, let's face it, senior year is busy and demanding in and of itself. The bottomline: don't plan on getting started the week before deadlines are due. Allow as much leeway time as possible.

Rule Number Four: Never Assume Just because one college wants something done a certain way doesn't mean all of the colleges on your list will want it done the same way. Just because your friend or a stranger on an internet discussion forum who seems to know a lot about colleges told you it was OK to do something doesn't mean that it is. Just because your recommendation writers said they'd get your recommendations in the mail by last Friday doesn't mean they did. And, just because you hit "send" on your application, doesn't mean that everything has arrived safely and been put into your admissions folder at a college. Never assume. Verify.

Rule Number Five: Read The Fine Print When it comes to applying to college, the devil is in the details. Before you dive in and begin filling out applications, read ALL of the instructions and information carefully. In your rush to get applications finished, the fine print may seem unimportant, but it's usually where the most unpleasant surprises lurk for applicants who haven't taken the time to read it. Pay attention to the details.

Rule Number Six: Don't Be Shy About Asking For Help Some students seem to feel they need to shoulder everything themselves. Others simply don't want to appear dumb by asking questions when they're confused. You should, of course, make sure that your application is, in the end, your work alone. But, this is a complex task and nearly every student will need help or advice at some point. And, here's an important point to remember: your school counselor, your teachers, your parents, and even college admissions and financial aid people want to see you succeed, and that includes being willing to help you find the answers you need. There is always someone you can ask for help! Ask for help when you need it.

Rule Number Seven: Don't Stress (Too Much)! Everyone applying to college will feel stressed at some point. It's a normal part of the process. However, don’t let college application stress consume your life. Take the process seriously, but also allow time for a little rest and relaxation along the way. Remember: you're not going to be applying to college forever. This too shall pass.

Best of luck with your applications!

Advice for Writing the University of California Personal Statement

If you're planning to apply to one of the University of California campuses this year, be sure to spend a few minutes watching the a new video from the University of California about writing the personal statement.

The video is filled with excellent advice from UC admissions officers and currently UC students on how to write effective personal statements. Some of the highlights:

Don't procrastinate! Writing an effective personal statement takes thought, time and effort. Admissions readers can tell when a student has written the personal statements the night before the deadline.

Focus on "adding clarity, richness and meaning" to the information in the rest of your UC application. Don't just repeat the same list of extracurriculars you have provided elsewhere; add depth.

Review your accomplishments. Think about the accomplishments you're most proud of, and how you can bring them to the forefront in your personal statements

Be true to yourself. It's called a "personal" statement for a reason.

Keep things in perspective. "No student is admitted or denied based on the personal statement alone," says a UC admissions officer in the video.

The University of California application period runs from November 1 to November 30. If you're planning to apply to one or more of the UC's, you should already be working on your personal statements.

One last tip: It's not uncommon for the UC application system to experience "technical difficulties" on November 29 and November 30 due to the volume of applications students are trying to cram through the system at the last minute. Take this into account, and, if possible, plan to submit your UC applications a few days before the deadline. After all, you really don't want to spend Thanksgiving weekend writing your UC personal statements do you?

Best of luck!

Link: Video: Writing the University of California Personal Statement

How To Answer "Why This College?" Essay Prompts On College Applications

One of the most perplexing essays for many students is the one that asks the most important question of all: Why do you want to attend this college? Here are some tips for handling this essay.

First, let’s talk a bit about why colleges ask this question in the first place. These days most colleges, especially highly selective ones, get many more applications than they have places for in their freshman class. Obviously, the admissions office does not want to waste an admittance on an applicant who is not likely to attend – and they also want to make sure that every student who does attend next fall has thought through their reasons for wanting to be there. In short, they are looking for evidence that you didn’t just toss in an extra application on a whim, but that you truly are interested enough to have thought through your decision to apply.

They’re also looking for clues to your personality, interests, and goals, and how you will contribute to or participate in all that the college has to offer. So, this question isn’t just about why the college is a fit for you, but why you’re a fit for the college. It’s a subtle but important difference to keep in mind as you work on this sort of essay. Don’t just tell the college why they are right for you – also tell them why you are right for them.

Here are some tips to help you tackle “Why This College?” essays:

1. Brainstorm before you start writing. Make a list of the five or ten most important things you are looking for in any college, not just this one. Next, write a list of your most important goals and interests. Then, brainstorm how this particular college might meet those needs, desires, and interests.

2. Do your homework. Learn everything you can about the college and its programs. If you’ve visited, think back over your visit and jot down anything that particularly struck you during the visit. Try to remember conversations you had with faculty or students, and places on campus that particularly resonated with you. What made you decide that this college was worth considering during your visit?

College websites are also loaded with information. Use them! Ignore the pretty pictures and catchy slogans in the admissions section this time around. Read the descriptions of departments you’re interested in, explore a few faculty bios, find out the details of graduation requirements and advising for freshmen, examine the school’s mission statement, read the online archives of the student newspaper, and scroll through recent press releases issues by the college news office.

Then, refer back to your list of what you are looking for in a college and match up the data points you’ve uncovered in your research with the most important things you’re seeking in any college. What makes this school a particularly good match?

3. Make it personal. Don’t write about things that any applicant can say about the school. Tell the admissions committee why everything you mention relates specifically to you. Instead of “I like University XYZ because it has a wonderful science program” say “I have a lifelong interest in zoology and the opportunity to work in University XYZ’s on campus primate research center in Professor Smith’s undergraduate research program will allow me to get hands on experience working with chimpanzees."

4. Don’t comment on the obvious. The admissions office already knows they have a beautiful campus, a world-renowned faculty, rank high in U.S. News & World Reports, and are located in an exciting city. If you keep it personal, and focus on why this college or university and you truly are a match, your essay will stand out.

5. Be specific. Don’t just say, “I was impressed with your library when I visited.” Look up the name of the library, and tell them exactly what impressed you (beyond, of course, the coffee bar in the lobby.) Sometimes little details can speak loudly. I once read an excellent essay from a student which began, “When I entered the drawing and painting studio on the third floor of Smith Hall, felt the warm sun streaming through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, and smelled the pungent aroma of fresh turpentine, I knew that I had found a place where I could not only create art, but live it.” Here's the litmus test to know if you've been specific enough: Try changing the name of the college in your "Why this college?" essay. If you can drop in the name of a different college, and the essay still makes perfect sense, it's a sign that you've written too generic of an essay.

Finally, if you find yourself struggling with explaining why this school is a unique match for you, it may be time to sit down and consider whether this college or university is truly a good match for you. If, after doing some additional research and thinking about your college expectations and dreams, you still can't explain why you want to attend this particular college, you might want to think twice about applying.

College Admissions Scams To Avoid

U.S. News & World Reports' education blog has a great article today about 6 scams that target college students. Actually, four of the six don't just target students who are already in college, but also students (and parents) who are still in high school.

Those four are:
- Fake scholarship scams
- Dodgy student loan offers
- Untrustworthy counselors
- Diploma mills

The article is worth reading, but here are three more scams that wise high school students and their parents need to be on the look out for during the college admissions season:

Essay writing services. You're busy. You're stressed. You have no idea where to begin when it comes to writing your college application essays. While searching the Internet for ideas, you stumble across a company that promises to write your college application essay for you, for a fee of course. Sounds great - no more stress, no effort on your part. But, if there's one piece of advice I can give you it's this: don't let anyone else write your college application essays for you. No matter how busy, stressed or clueless you feel, YOU are the only person who should write your college application essays. By reading your essays, colleges are hoping to get a clearer picture of who you are, what matters to you, and why you are a good match for them. If you buy an essay, the "you" part of the personal essay will be lost. Worse, there's a good chance that the essay you buy will be very familiar to college admissions people. Several admissions officers have mentioned to me that it's not all that uncommon for them to not only easily pick out the essay-writing service essays, but also that they often get several applications from different students with the same essay from a service. So, while you might be busy, stressed, and clueless, don't waste your money buying someone else's essay. Write your own.

Misleading test prep firms. Some test prep firms serve a very real purpose: they can give you a good overview of the test and some strategies for preparing. But, not all test prep firms are cut from the same cloth. If a test prep firm promises you a 100+ point increase on your SATs with a minimum amount of effort on your part, be very cautious. Preparing for any exam - not just the SAT or ACT - can't be done for you; YOU have to put time and effort into preparation. And, no test prep company or tutor can guarantee a specific point increase on the day of the exam. Period.

College 'advice' from Internet discussion forums. If you've spent much time looking for college admissions information on the Internet, you've undoubtably stumbled upon a college admissions discussion forum or two (or more!). On the surface, these forums seem like a great place to get advice and information --after all, here's a whole group of people who are just as panicky and scared about college admissions as you are! What could be better? The trouble is that very few college discussion forums are moderated for accuracy, so mis-information and misconceptions abound. More importantly, in cyberspace, no one really has to tell the truth about their (or their children's) grades, test scores, and extracurricular accomplishments, so it's easy to get a very skewed perception of what it takes to get into college from reading these boards. That only serves to ramp up student and parent anxiety at a time when stress levels are already high. Finally, would you trust a stranger on the Internet to give you advice about what to wear, which house to buy, or whether you'll be a good candidate for a job opening? Then, why trust strangers who don't know you and who don't have your application in front of you to "estimate" your chances of admission? While crumbs of good information can be found here and there on college admissions discussion forums, they should be visited sparringly. And, don't let the information and "advice" on discussion forums replace doing your own research, talking to colleges directly, and seeking advice from your school counselor and other adults who know you personally in "the real world."

Help! My Parents Are Driving Me Crazy About College Applications!

A few years back, at just around this time of year, I received an email from a young woman asking a very important question: What is the best way to go about the college application process without getting into huge arguments with my Mom? I know that it is a very stressful time for both of us and especially me, but the fighting is not helping my stress level at all.

Since I know that other students (and parents) are probably asking themselves the same question again this year, I thought I'd re-post the response I wrote to her here in this blog. By the way, all turned out well for this young woman. She was admitted to almost all of the colleges she applied to (and yes, she DID get her applications in on time). Here is my reply to her question:

I laughed out loud when I read your email just from imagining how hard my daughter will laugh when I tell her someone asked me for advice on getting along with your parents during the college application process. My daughter and I have always had a great relationship, but I would be lying if I didn't admit that at this time in her senior year, we were both really annoyed with each other a lot of the time. There was an evil word lurking between us, the "A word": Applications. I was convinced she was doomed to a life of failure if she didn't get them done right this minute, and she was convinced she was doomed to hear me nagging about them for the rest of her life. And, it wasn't even October yet!

A very strange thing happens to a lot of parents - especially mothers - when the time comes for their children to apply to college. Maybe it's that we can see the door closing on our being needed as our kids prepare to leave the nest, or maybe it's that we have this burning Mom (and sometimes Dad) drive to want to protect our babies from the sting of rejection, or maybe it's just our menopausal hormones going wacky at the same time our babies are applying to go. But a lot of us go plumb crazy for a while.

Of course, this is totally unfair to you kids. You're facing what is the first major step in your adult life. It's normal to feel scared and excited and just a little doubtful about how it will all turn out. The last thing you need is this crazy woman (or sometimes crazy man) hovering over you as you try to stretch your wings and find the courage to fly. It's no wonder that a lot of kids go plumb crazy for a while too.

What helped at our house was that, in early October, my daughter sent in her first application, to a rolling admissions "safe bet" college. Seven days later, she was admitted. Now that we knew that she could definitely go somewhere the following year, she made me swear - and I am not making this up! - that if I mentioned the "A word" again, I would eat nothing but Cheerio's for a week. I hate Cheerio's, so this was no idle threat. With the threat of the Cheerio's diet hanging heavy, I gradually learned to keep my mouth sh...uh...thoughts to myself. It wasn't easy. The large carton of duct tape I bought for my mouth helped a bit though.

Seriously, the best advice - aside from invoking the Cheerio's diet yourself - is to try to separate out the fear, anxiety, and unhappiness of the application process itself from the feelings you have towards your mother. Sure, your Mom may be trying to help too much, and no one likes to be nagged, but she isn't the source of your true anxiety, and realizing that might make it easier to step back and respond calmly when she is keyed up herself.

Moms also need LOTS of reassurance when they're half-insane. Keep her in the loop, let her know that you are working on your applications (assuming you are), and tell her that you definitely will need her help for some things. One thing my daughter assigned to me is addressing and stamping all of the recommendation envelopes. She even had me write out postage paid cards from the post office with her name and address on them for the schools to send back when the recommendations arrived. It was a very simple thing but it made me feel like I was contributing in some way and that got me off her back for a few weeks at least. So, try to find some simple things like this to make your Mom feel like she is helping you out and relieve some of her anxiety about letting you control the process. We parents really do need to feel needed, so the more "dumb" tasks like that you can give us, the better we'll behave. (Making copies at Kinko's can burn up time too!)

And, try to find some time to do something fun together that doesn't involve the "A word." Go to the movies, go shopping, go out to lunch. Feel free to invoke the Cheerio's diet if necessary.

Anyhow, hope this helps with your question, even if just a bit. Just remember, this too will pass. If you and your Mom generally get along, you will get along just as well once the applications are in the mail. Just take deep breaths when she's really driving you nuts, try to keep your sense of humor intact, and feel free to tell her to email me if she needs to vent some anxiety. I've been there. I understand. I will stock up on the Cheerio's.

Now, I need to go call my daughter. It will be great to hear her laugh.