BRITTANY MASCHAL CONSULTING

Text to Text: John Milton’s ‘When I Consider How My Light Is Spent’ and ‘Today’s Exhausted Superkids’

By Brittany MaschalDec 16, 2016

Right now, many students are entering the final college-application sprint. They’re wondering Are they enough? about their lists of accomplishments. Some may even be wondering Is it worth it? about college at all.

Centuries ago, the poet John Milton wondered how best to live his life as he went blind. In his sonnet “When I Consider How My Light Is Spent,” he contemplates his condition. While for him, the “light” he spends is literal — he was completely blind by age 42 — he uses it metaphorically to meditate on what it means to really live.

In this Text-to-Text they pair Milton’s poem with Frank Bruni’s Op-Ed “Today’s Exhausted Superkids,” which discusses the high costs of following the narrowly defined and proscribed path to an elite college.

This a thoughtful read for parents and students alike, or really, anyone working with adolescents today. Check it out here!!!

Advice, NYTcollege, college admissions, college application, college counseling, counselors, Frank Bruni, Milton, New York Times, parenting, sleep deprivation

Upcoming Early Application Decision Release Dates

By Brittany MaschalDec 09, 2016

It’s that time of year again!

TODAY (FRIDAY)
(12/9) Wiliams (PM), Bowdoin (PM), UPenn (3pm ET), Stanford (3pm PT)

SATURDAY
(12/10) Wesleyan, Caltech, Carnegie Mellon

SUNDAY
(12/11) Week of 12/11: Boston College

MONDAY
(12/12) Vassar (5pm ET), Columbia (6pm ET), Colgate (mailed)

TUESDAY
(12/13) Harvard

WEDNESDAY
(12/14) Brown (7pm ET), Dartmouth, Duke (7pm ET)

THURSDAY
(12/15) MIT (6:28pm ET), NYU (5pm ET), Yale (5pm ET)

Newsadmissions, college, college admissions, college application, early action, early decision, high school

Poets&Quants Undergraduate Business Ranking

By Brittany MaschalDec 07, 2016

And the top spot this year goes to…WashU, Olin Business School!

Love seeing a new name at the top of the list. The usual suspects follow in spots 2-5 and include Mendoza, Wharton, McDonough and Haas.

The full article is a must-read if you are considering an undergraduate business program.

Newscollege, college application, college counseling, Olin Business School, P&Q, Poets&Quants, undergraduate business, WashU

College Board Simplifies Request Process For Test Accommodations

By Brittany MaschalDec 02, 2016

College Board Announces New SAT^®Testing Supports for English Language Learners

NEW YORK—The College Board has overhauled its request process for testing accommodations, making it easier for eligible students to receive the support they need on College Board assessments.

Beginning January 1, 2017, the vast majority of students who are approved for and using testing accommodations at their school through a current Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 Plan will have those same accommodations automatically approved for taking the SAT^®, PSAT^™10, PSAT/NMSQT^®, SAT Subject Tests^™, and AP^® Exams. Most private school students with a current, formal school-based plan that meets College Board criteria will also have their current accommodations automatically approved for College Board exams. This streamlined process builds on the College Board’s August 2016 expansion of testing accommodations that can be approved directly by schools without the need for additional documentation.

Read full release here: https://www.collegeboard.org/releases/2016/college-board-simplifies-request-process-for-test-ccommodations?ep_ch=PR&ep_mid=11326140&ep_rid=163330058

Academic Resources, News, Testingadmissions, AP, college admissions, college application, College Board, college counseling, PSAT, SAT, testing

The Future of SAT Subject Tests

By Brittany MaschalNov 30, 2016

Why are Subject Tests required by drastically fewer colleges than a decade ago? Is the relevance and popularity of the tests actually diminishing? Are the tests likely to survive or will they be discontinued by the College Board?

The perceived necessity of College Board’s Subject Tests has been on the decline since 2005 when the SAT II Writing test was essentially folded into the SAT. Subject Tests are explicitly required (no substitutions or exceptions) by only five U.S. colleges, about 90% fewer than just a decade ago. Read more via this helpful Compass post.

News, Testingadmissions, college admissions, college application, College Board, Compass, high school, SAT IIs, subject tests, testing

What Do College Counselors Do?

By Brittany MaschalNov 28, 2016

College building

Great post from the Princeton Review on college counselors—high school and independent. Give it a read to learn more about both!

College counselors—both school counselors and independent consultants—can play a huge role in your college search. And when it comes time to apply and evaluate schools, both can help you make that all-important decision.

High School Counselors

Your school counselor can help you:

Stay on top of class selection and graduation requirements
Navigate your high school’s processes for
- Getting letters of recommendation from teachers
- Completing the counselor letter of recommendation
- Sending your official transcript to colleges
Select extracurricular activities
Research colleges and draft your college list
Answer your FAFSA questions
Find and apply for local scholarships
Complete and send your applications

Your school college counselor can be an invaluable resource! That said, the national average student-to-counselor ratio is 350:1. And if you go to a large high school with more than 2,000 students, your student-to-counselor ratio may be closer to 500:1 (Source: The College Board).

Depending on the amount of face time they get with their school counselor, some families decide to hire independent college counselors to guide them through the admissions process.

Independent College Counselors

An independent college counselor works alongside your school counselor to help you with all of the above, and in addition:

Find a best-fit school for you based on qualities like
- professors and academics
- access to experiential learning
- size and location
- campus culture
- quality of life
- financial aid and Return On Investment (ROI)
Refine your list and pick which schools to focus on
Craft a personalized admission strategy tailored to each school
Present yourself on your applications so that they stand out from the crowd
Keep college stress at bay by coaching you (and your family) through each step of the process
Choose tests and courses that will best represent your strengths
Decide which offer of admission, and financial aid package, to accept

Whereas your school counselor can advise you on more than just college, independent counselors spend all their time on college counseling and tend to work with fewer students.

Are you looking for strategic college advice based on your personality and goals? Our College Counselors will help you find, apply, and get accepted to your dream school. Get a personalized college admissions plan today!

Advice, Newsadmissions, college, college admissions, college application, college counseling, counselors, high school

How to Interpret New ACT Score Reports

By Brittany MaschalNov 22, 2016

The redesigned ACT student score reports aim to contextualize students’ scores and offer details about students’ individual strengths and weaknesses. Unfortunately, these goals are impeded by the overwhelming volume of information included on score reports.

This excellent post from Compass breaks down the exact contents of the student score report and explores how both students and parents can benefit from the information.

Academic Resources, News, TestingACT, admissions, college, college admissions, college application, college counseling, Compass, high school, New ACT Scores, testing

Why You Need a College Counselor

By Brittany MaschalNov 17, 2016

Most high schools have at least one on-site college counselor to advise students on finding and applying to colleges. As the point person for your applications, college counselors keep you on top of deadlines and graduation requirements and ultimately send your official transcript to colleges. They can also help you find schools that fit you, identify dream/match/safety schools, complete your FAFSA, craft strong school-specific application essays, and help manage anxiety and stress.

Depending on how much one-on-one time they get with their schools’ college counselors, some families decide to hire independent college counselors to guide them through the admissions process. I always tell parents who are thinking about hiring an independent college counselor to make sure that person is a member of a professional organization, like IECA or NACAC. Why? Because not all IEC’s are created equal. For example, IECA members have met the highest standards of the profession. IECA’s required qualifications include a master’s degree; at least three years of admissions counseling experience; and experience working with scores of students. IECA also requires extensive member undertake campus visits—members, on average, have visited over 150 campuses each—and continue to visit an average of 35 campuses annually.

Whichever route you go, check out this Princeton Review article that outlines five (accurate) reasons you need your college counselor. You can also read more about IECs from IECA here, or from me directly during a consultation!

Advice, Newsadmissions, college, college admissions, college application, college counseling, counselors, high school, IECA, NACAC, Princeton Review, success

Why I’ve Stopped Doing Interviews for Yale: Because the Admissions Situation is Crazypants.

By Brittany MaschalNov 02, 2016

Ben Orlin is right, college admissions is crazypants. The Business Insider article that stemmed from his Twitter post is worth a read.

Rejection by a university ought to feel like getting swiped left on Tinder,” he wrote. “There’s nothing terribly personal about it. The admissions office doesn’t really know you. The university is just looking out for its own interests, and you don’t happen to fit into the picture.

Orlin’s hesitation to be a part of a process that results in near total disappointment for applicants is even more understandable when looking at Ivy League acceptance rates.

For the class of 2020 the admission rate is below 10% for almost all Ivy League schools.

He flips that number around to talk about how many rejection letters Yale doles out.

No matter how sincere their intentions, the Yale admissions team is beholden to grim statistical reality: 94% of students are getting rejection letters,” he wrote.

Orlin suggests that Ivy League admission decisions should be chosen by lottery, and have base requirements that students must meet before applying in the first place. Will it happen? No. But something needs to be done.

Advice, Newsadmissions, admissions officers, admit rates, college, college admissions, college admit rate, college application, college counseling, Common Application, high school

Best Global Universities Rankings

By Brittany MaschalOct 27, 2016

I do not rely much at all on “rankings” but since many families like to take a look at them, I thought I would post the latest from US News. These institutions from the U.S. and around 60 other countries have been ranked based on 12 indicators that measure their academic research performance and their global and regional reputations. Students can use these rankings to explore the higher education options that exist beyond their own countries’ borders and to compare key aspects of schools’ research missions. These are the world’s top 1,000 universities.

Newsadmissions, college, college admissions, college application, college counseling, counselors, early decision, high school, rankings, US News