Summer College Planning: A Guide for Rising Seniors

For rising seniors, summer represents a time of exploration, relaxation, and, importantly, college planning. With application deadlines on the horizon, the summer months are an opportunity for seniors to map out their college application plan and gather and complete most of the application materials. Here's a comprehensive guide to navigating summer college planning for rising seniors:

1. Reflect and Set Goals: Take the time to reflect on your academic achievements, extracurricular activities, and personal interests. What are your strengths, passions, and aspirations? Set clear goals for your college application process. Whether it's aiming for specific schools, pursuing certain academic programs, or securing scholarships, having defined objectives will help guide your efforts.

2. Research Colleges: Use this free time to truly research potential colleges and universities that align with your academic and personal preferences. Consider factors such as location, size, academic programs, campus culture, and financial aid offerings. Create a list of reach, target, and safety schools to ensure a balanced application strategy.

3. Visit Colleges (in person or virtually): While college campuses are a bit sleepy during the summer with most students on break, an in-person visit is still your best option to get to know the school if possible! Try to tie in some campus visits while mapping out your family summer vacation plans. For the colleges you are unable to physically visit, take advantage of online information sessions and virtual tours. Read my tips for remote campus visits here.

4. Finalize Standardized Testing Plans: Determine whether you need to take or retake standardized tests such as the SAT, ACT and/or English proficiency exams. Utilize the summer months to review test materials, enroll in test prep courses, or schedule exam dates. Remember that if you are applying Early Decision or Early Action, the October test date will be the latest possible for you to have your scores in time. Don’t wait until the last minute!

5. Write College Application Essays: The Common Application announced that their essay prompts for the 2024-25 application year will remain unchanged from the past year. This means you have plenty of time to brainstorm and write your best essay. Colleges which require additional essays may not confirm them until later in the summer, but once your college list is finalized, you should begin creating a list of what supplemental essays are needed and get started on them as soon as you can.

6. Explore Extracurricular Opportunities: Engage in meaningful summer activities that demonstrate your interests, leadership skills, and commitment. Whether it's volunteering, internships, research projects, or part-time employment, these experiences can enrich your college application and showcase your diverse talents. This is your last summer to explore your interests and add to your resume for college applications.

7. Review Financial Aid Options: Discuss the potential college costs and how you plan to pay for them with your family. Take a look at the net price calculators for some of your colleges to get a general idea of what the colleges on your list may cost. Familiarize yourself with the financial aid process and deadlines of your prospective colleges. Investigate scholarship opportunities and explore avenues for reducing the costs. Many independent scholarships are open for application over the summer, it is a great time to apply.

8. Stay Organized: Maintain a detailed calendar and checklist to track application deadlines, requirements, standardized test dates, and other important milestones. Break down tasks into manageable steps and allocate time each week to make progress.

By approaching summer college planning with clear goals and good organization and time management, rising seniors can prepare most of their college applications before senior year even begins. If you do need extra support, ACM College Consulting is ready to help you find colleges fit for YOU and kick off your applications. Limited space is available for rising seniors and the more time we have, the better - start now!

The Importance of the College List

As of the end of January, the Common Application reported an increase in application volume of nearly 20% and an increase of 13% in the number of single applicants from the 2019-2020 application cycle. With the increase in number of applications due to reasons such as the ease of applying to more schools via the Common Application and more than 75% of colleges in the US now going test optional or test blind, it makes sense that the acceptance rates at some popular universities are going down. But how do you explain to a student with an excellent resume and top academics that they didn’t get in to a school they have worked towards for years?

The college admissions world comes with no guarantees. Every day, I hear stories from fellow counselors of top students getting turned down from schools they thought they were more than qualified for. But there are many factors considered beyond the basic application criteria often discussed such as the geography of the applicants, number of fellow applicants from the same high school, financial need, major applied to, demonstrated interest, predicted likelihood of a student enrolling if accepted, etc.

I recently lost a potential client because I would not ‘guarantee’ them admission to the schools they suggested to me. How could I ethically do so? While I can not guarantee admission to a certain university or the award of a certain scholarship, I can give my word that I will do my best and that includes helping students find additional schools which are great fits and helping them understand the factors to consider both within our control and beyond.

Building a college list the student ‘loves’ and a balanced list is more important than ever. While it may be difficult to convince some students to add a few colleges  they don’t consider ‘top’ or colleges they may not have heard of before, it is important to open their eyes to the options available to them. When I work with my students, I strive to help them create a list which goes beyond the obvious. I have had many students apply to and/or end up attending schools they had not even heard of before working with me. It is an important part of my job to help them consider ALL options available to them and help them build a balanced list of schools – a list that is not ‘top heavy’, a list which includes schools who do not turn down more students than they accept. Most importantly, I help them build a list which includes schools where the student can be successful both socially and academically, a list of schools the student is truly happy with before they hit ‘submit’.

While reading the most recent article by Brennen Barnard, I was struck by the wisdom and optimism in some of the quotes such as this: “finding the college that will help one be successful isn’t a matter of gaining admission to X school, it’s a matter of going somewhere that can take you down the path to your goals and working hard when you get there.”…“admission is a door to a path and there is more than one door and more than one path. Getting an acceptance isn’t the ultimate goal and denial (or waitlist or deferral) isn’t the ending.” 

Yes, it can certainly be frustrating and stressful, but there are so many wonderful options out there if you are willing to look and open your mind to the possibility of them. And if you plan ahead and build a solid list, you will find your place. More than half of colleges in the US accept more students than they turn down. Keep your head up!

 Additional Articles to Consider:

https://www.collegeconfidential.com/articles/college-applications-in-2022/

https://www.collegedata.com/resources/the-facts-on-fit/understanding-college-selectivity

https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/all-time-record-high-number-applicants-apply-uc-chicanolatino-students-comprising-largest

https://www.ppic.org/blog/college-admissions-in-an-era-of-uncertainty/

College Planning for Juniors

If you have not already begun, it is time to get started! Juniors who begin planning for college now will give themselves a few extra months to prepare quality applications and find better fit schools. Unfortunately, many students delay planning until the summer before senior year and end up squeezing months of work into just a few weeks before they submit their applications which are often sub-par. Here are a few things to work on over the next few months to help you prepare to apply for college before you begin senior year.

COLLEGE SEARCH

Begin researching colleges online and thinking about the qualities you want your future school to have. Often, students do not know what they want until they actually set foot on a few campuses. Planning now allows you plenty of time to do some visits this Spring while the semester is in full swing and you can get a feel for student life on campus. Use your breaks and weekends to do some campus visits. If you can not visit, do your best to research online and connect with past or current students to get more information.

RESUME BUILDING

Take the time to truly write down everything you have done throughout high school. Include activities both in- and outside of school as well as jobs, hobbies and awards. Write quality descriptions of the activities and your role in the organizations. Doing this now will give you a better picture of what may be missing. While it is not a good idea to suddenly add lots of new activities or clubs, you still have time to increase your involvement in what you currently do and add things which complement it. Writing your resume now will also make the process of completing your application later much simpler.

TESTING

If you begin preparing now, you have months to prepare for the Spring and Summer SAT and/or ACT test dates. You should allow yourself 4-6 weeks to prepare for the tests and by taking them earlier, you will have time to get your scores, work on your areas of weakness and retake them before you have to submit your applications. Also, taking these tests early will give you an idea of where you stand and what level of schools you should consider your targets, safeties and reaches. Students who end up taking their tests in the Fall of senior year face the added stress of having to worry about getting the new scores added to their applications and making sure they arrive in time to be considered.

ESSAYS

The Common Application recently announced that their essay prompts for the 2020-21 application year will remain unchanged from the past year. This means you have plenty of time to brainstorm and write your best essay. Schools which require other essays may not announce them until later in the summer, but you can get this one out of the way early and often times it can be re-used for schools which do not use the Common Application. Take the time to write several drafts and review for grammar and content improvements.

CAREER EXPLORATION

A very important part of college planning is figuring out what you want to study. While you may change your mind several times throughout the next few years, you can do some exploration now to get on the right path. Organize job shadows, internships and/or summer exploration programs to help you dig a little deeper into potential careers and college majors. Do not be afraid to ask family and connections for help with organizing these opportunities. Even if it is only for a few hours or days, that may be all that’s needed to help you eliminate or solidify your interest in something.

What Happens After You Hit Submit?

After applications are submitted and the giant feeling of relief has subsided, there are a few things to keep in mind. Each school has their own timeline for when they will inform applicants of their admissions decision. In general, schools which have rolling admissions take 2-3 weeks, schools with Nov. 1 EA will inform you between mid-December and end of January, and schools with RD in January will inform you by end of February or March. So what do you do while you wait?

Within 2-3 days, most colleges will create an account on their website for you to check the status of your application and submit additional materials needed. Check your email consistently and make sure you do not miss these emails from your colleges. After receiving them, log in and check that the colleges have received all of your application requirements. While doing this, keep in mind that it may take some time for the websites to be updated as colleges are inundated with materials around their deadlines. If about a week after the deadline you still see that your application is missing something you have already sent, follow up with the admissions office. Although some colleges will send you a reminder that something is missing, you do not want to rely on that.

After applying, Florida students will need to connect their Student Self-Reported Academic Record to their applications of the schools which require them. These instructions will be on the Admissions website or sent via email. Also, financial aid forms such as the FAFSA and CSS Profile will need to be completed if they are not already. For some schools such as FSU, proof of residency will also be completed after the application is submitted. You will be able to see which of these materials you need by checking your new student account assigned to you.

If you do indeed find out that something is missing, do not overreact. Remember, with so many documents and emails being sent back and forth during such a short time span, it is very easy for something to get lost in the shuffle. If what is missing can be taken care of by you, do it right away. If it is something a counselor, teacher, or testing agency should have taken care of, politely follow up with them yourself. Whatever it may be, respectfully ask them to resend the materials as soon as they can. Confirm with the admissions office that you have taken care of it and verify if they have received the missing materials. While doing all of this, it is important that you advocate for yourself and be patient. Colleges would much rather hear from the students themselves than from a parent or counselor. You want to show them you are ready for college.

It should go without saying, but keep working hard and maintaining or improving your grades. Colleges ask for mid and final reports from your counselor for a reason! If you are given admission to a college and your grades sink, they have the right to revoke their offer. On the other hand, if you end up getting deferred or waitlisted, you want to be able to show progress to improve your chances of acceptance. No matter what your situation is, continuing to work hard and get good grades can only help.

Now try to relax and wait for your acceptance (hopefully) letters to roll in! Remember, there is a school for everyone and it WILL work out. Stay posted for my next article on what to do if you are waitlisted or deferred and how to weigh your options.

Additional Help:

FSU Admissions FAQs - https://admissions.fsu.edu/images/pdf/2019%20First%20Year%20Admissions%20FAQ.pdf

FAFSA Tips: https://www.nasfaa.org/fafsa_tips

College Planning Timeline for Juniors

Spring break is here and many high school juniors are FINALLY coming to the realization that it is time to focus on the college search. Here are my tips and timeline for juniors at any stage in the process. Start now!

1. Spend time researching college and career options

While many juniors have (hopefully) already done this, there are probably equally as many who have not. Most students have had a broad discussion of college plans with their parents and/or high school counselor. What they probably haven't done enough of is actually sit down and do some self reflecting and research. What are their potential career and course of study interests? What type of college do they envision for themselves? What are the requirements for admission to those colleges? They should make it a goal to spend time doing research now while they still have time to visit colleges when the semester is in full swing, prep for standardized tests, and plan summer activities to help them with their admission and final decision.

2. Establish college application timeline and goals NOW

Juniors should draft their timeline for college applications now. Although they may not have their 'list' narrowed down to the final few schools, it is not too early to establish personal deadlines for getting their applications done. The key is to set those deadlines early - take the potential college deadlines and move them back by 6-8 weeks! There can be a lot of unexpected delays, added requirements and other bumps along the college application road, and it is better to be done early than to risk an incomplete application. Students who do not stay organized or prepare early often forget to take into consideration the fact that there are pieces of the applications which are not in their hands. Recommendation letters, high school transcripts, and test scores are just a few examples of requirements which may not be sent directly by the student. Students need to give their counselors and recommenders plenty of time to complete their pieces.

3. Plan Productive Summer Activities

The value of a job shadow, volunteering, or internship for all high school students is often underestimated. There are many other benefits aside from building one’s resume. Students who are unsure of their college major or future career interests should research local companies and organizations where they can shadow or volunteer in the summer. Even a few hours or a week would be helpful for the student to get an idea of what actually goes on in a particular job beyond the standard descriptions read online. While most companies may not want to pay a high school student or don’t openly advertise unpaid internships or job shadows, students should not shy away from seeking them out. Many professionals are open to helping. Students should seek out opportunities for self-exploration and learning more about potential careers and majors before they apply for college and summer is the perfect time for this.

ACM College Consulting, LLC

For more tips check out these other great resources:

The College Essay Guy: https://www.collegeessayguy.com/blog/junior-february-whats-next

The College Board: https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/CollegePlanning/media/pdf/BigFuture-College-Planning-Calendar-Juniors.pdf

The Decision Season Panic

As admissions decisions continue to roll in, some students are celebrating while others are unfortunately beginning to panic. What has become clear so far this year is that most if not all 'upper level' schools are increasingly difficult to get into and the number of early applications has once again jumped. The unpredictability of it all has become more evident than ever. Highly qualified students are shocked to find out they did not get into their colleges and are beginning to worry that they will not get in to any that they want. While it is perfectly normal and reasonable for the students to be concerned about not getting into their favorite schools, there is a lot which can be done to get these students into a more stable situation during this confusing college application season.

1. Make a BALANCED List They LOVE - an idea that is by no means revolutionary, but still not entirely understood. Students continue to make very top heavy college lists. Even worse, they are putting back up schools on their list which they would not be happy with. It is worth the time and effort to do the research early on and establish a list which is balanced and which does not include schools the student merely added to have a safety. They need to understand that nothing is a guarantee and a safety school should still be one they would be happy to attend. As with any of the schools on their list, it would be even better if the student has had the opportunity to visit their safety schools and know what they are like before including them on their list. The last thing anyone wants is to end up only getting in to the 'mystery' school they added in a moment of panic. If students make a balanced list they love, they will be able to get through application season with less anxiety over the possibility of not getting in anywhere or only getting into a school they are not even interested in attending.
   

2. Understand the Options – students need to have a clear understanding of the application options and what they can do with the decisions they receive. This plan should be established before application season, not after the decisions are already coming in. Students should be aware of the true meaning of applying ED and EA and have a plan set in place for the possible denial from those schools. (Check out my previous post for tips on what to do with the decisions for how to handle deferrals and waitlists.)
   

3. Stop the Comparison – as mentioned, the unpredictability of college admissions is more evident than ever. The stories of highly qualified students getting turned down while their counterparts get accepted are countless. Students with nearly identical credentials are getting very different responses. Although easier said than done, students, their parents and counselors need to stop the comparison and big name game. One's college acceptance is not a determination of their future success or in many instances, an accurate assessment of the work they have done thus far. There are so many factors which have to do with enrollment quotas, diversity, distribution of financial aid, and massive increases in the various application pools that make the admissions system much more complicated and difficult to predict or even understand. Being a top student is no longer an automatic in and there are so many great schools which may not be well known, but nevertheless provide top notch education. Students need to understand that they can forge their own paths to success at any college they choose, and not getting into a top school does not make them any less of a person.

While not getting into a top choice school may be a shock and of course a disappointment to any student, we can all play a part in reducing the stress, anxiety and panic surrounding college applications and decisions. We have to assume the admissions counselors are making the best decisions they can with the time, demands and resources they have. We can not begin to try to understand the reasoning behind each decision they make and need to prepare our students for any response they may receive.

Tips for the Common Application

As college application season is fully underway, it is time for some tips for jump-starting your applications and filling out the Common Application:

• Once you have created your Common App account, search for and add your colleges to your list via the search tab.

•  Create a timeline with all relevant application deadlines for each school to keep you on task. Include personal deadlines for completing the essays and other materials you will be submitting.

• Make an essay chart which includes all essay requirements for each school along with the wordcount limits. Begin drafting your essays as soon as possible to give yourself time for several rounds of editing. Set an early deadline for essays to keep yourself on time for all applications.

• Make a designated application folder and gather all documents and information needed  for the Common Application. Take a look at the quick guide below to get an idea of what information you will need to complete the app. By gathering materials needed such as your transcript, counselor and teacher contact info, resume, and testing information before you begin, you will save yourself time and stress while you are in the middle of it. If you do not have a resume, now is a great time to put one together for future use.

• Formally ask your recommenders in person to write their letters before inputting their contact information and sending the request via Common App. For more tips about that, check out my previous post here:  http://acmcollegeconsulting.com/the-recommendation-letter-2/
  Before you submit your application, please follow up with your teachers and counselors to ensure they will be able to complete and submit a recommendation prior to the school’s stated application deadline. You will not be able to make changes to the teacher/counselor list after you submit your application, you will only have the option of re-sending the notification to your teacher or counselor.

• When entering your activities, list them in order of importance. You can use the arrows to rearrange them. You have the space to include 10 activities with a description of up to 150 characters not including the 50 character title/role section. You may need to be creative to fit a decent description into such limited space. You can use easily understandable abbreviations and incomplete sentences, but do not use acronyms. Use active verbs and try to include details which demonstrate your affect on the organization such as factual results. Whatever you do, be consistent with the formatting you are using for listing each activity. Just because there are 10 spaces for activities, do not feel the need to fill them. However, if you do happen to have more than 10 substantial activities, you can use the additional information section to include others. Do not do this unless the activities are truly meaningful. Your application readers will know the difference between something significant and fluff.

• Invite your counselor, consultant or a mentor to serve as an Advisor for your Common App. You can add them under the Recommenders and FERPA section for your colleges by using their email address. This will allow them to login and view an outline of your application.  It is great to have someone else look over everything you entered and make suggestions for optimizing your activity descriptions, etc. Note that the Advisor will not be able to edit or submit anything on your behalf and colleges will not be able to see them.

• Make a copy of materials submitted and take screenshots of submission verifications in case data is lost or somehow received late. Believe it or not, these screenshots have played an important role in discussions of timely submission of applications with colleges.

More Tips from the Common App

The Recommendation Letter

In the most recent NACAC State of College Admissions report, more than 50% of the colleges responded that the teacher and counselor recommendations were of moderate or considerable importance in their admissions decisions. In basic terms, this means the recommendation letters are nothing to shrug off. As with the essays, this is another way for students set themselves apart from the ‘competition’ and give the reader more details about who they are.

Each college has different specifications for how many recommendation letters they require, recommend or will accept. Typically they require one from a counselor and at least one from a teacher. Students need to be sure to fulfill these requirements and ask the proper people. If a letter from a teacher is required, it should be a teacher from their school, preferably from a core subject. Students should only submit supplemental letters from recommenders connected to an extracurricular activity or something outside of school after they have fulfilled the teacher and counselor recommendation requirements and even then, only if the college accepts 'others'.

It is important for students to ask someone who knows them well and with whom they have had a good relationship. The last thing the admissions office wants to read is another generic letter. If students feel that the teacher or counselor may need more information about them in order to write a detailed letter, they can give the recommender a ‘brag sheet’ or resume with the details of their accomplishments and academic history. This can be a great help for infusing letters with personal details about the student. Note that one detail the recommendation letter should not contain is the names of the other schools to which the student is applying.

A common mistake made during this process is students not giving their recommenders enough time to write a quality letter. Keep in mind that they are most likely writing letters for many other students and will need more than just a few days. I suggest requesting the letters in August to allow plenty of time to meet any of the application deadlines. Students can check the status of the recommendation letters by logging in to whichever application platform they are using, but they will not be able to read them.

Whether it is via Common App, Coalition App, Naviance or another platform the student uses to request recommendations, they should be sure to formally ask their teachers and counselors in person before sending the request online. Not only is this the polite thing to do, it also gives the recommender a chance to ask the student any questions they may have before writing their letter. They will more than likely be happy to hear more about the student's future plans and colleges they are interested in.

Students should begin thinking about their recommendation letters earlier than senior year. If they have someone they think they would like to have write a letter, they can foster that relationship earlier on. Many students even ask for their letters at the end of junior year to give the recommenders more time before the rush of the new school year begins.

Tips for Recommenders:

https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2016/12/02/how-write-stronger-letters-recommendation-students-essay

For Students:

Building your Brag Sheet

Parenting Your Child Through the College Application Process

While helping your child search for and apply to college is an exciting time, you are most likely battling both of your feelings of stress and anxiety on the side. Here are several tips to tackle those feelings and help you and your student along the way.

Listen – This process is about your child discovering themselves and their dreams. Although they may not have an exact idea of what they want, you can definitely help them if you only listen. The college search is about finding what fits them, not what fits you. Understand what their strengths are and help them go from there. You may think you know what is best for them, but this is a time for you to listen and learn from your child. Let them direct the search. Ask questions instead of giving answers.

Visit – You may have read my previous post about campus visits, but if you have not, do not underestimate the importance of them. Touring schools gives your student the chance to learn more about what they want from their future college and helps them fine tune their search to schools which are a better match. Go on the tours with them, notice what gets them excited and ask them questions to help them ground their opinions along the way. It is a great time for some family roadtrips!

Do not focus solely on those big names and rankings - If you have Googled schools or discussed them with your friends or peers, chances are the famous (or infamous if you ask most college counselors) U.S. News & World Report rankings have been mentioned. While those lists are undoubtedly filled with great schools, there are thousands more out there worthy of consideration. Those rankings are created using questionable data and leave many important factors out of the picture (read this Washington Post article for more on that). If you only focus on those lists or the big name schools, you are missing out on finding others which may be much better matches for your student. Not only that, you are adding to the anxiety and pressure your student may be feeling to get into one of those schools. You want them to be comfortable with wherever they are accepted, not setting them up for a potential let down.

Teach self advocacy – you can use this time to teach your student to advocate for themselves if they are not already. Once they get to school, you won't be there to call their professors or take them to their doctor's appointments. Let them take ownership of this process and teach them to take care of themselves. If they need something for their applications, let them be the one to ask their counselor or teacher. If they want more information from a college or would like to contest a financial aid award or admissions decision, they need to do this for themselves. In fact, it is viewed poorly when a parent contacts a potential college on behalf of their perfectly capable child. Send them off to college knowing they can take care of themselves!

Last but not least, remember that where your child goes is not a reflection of your parenting success. Yes, you can most likely attribute part of their success in high school to your parenting and support. Yes, you probably had an affect on their decision to go to college and where they are going. However, the school and career path they choose is their own and in no way should you think less of yourself as a parent because of their decision. Your child is becoming an adult and their choices are their own to make. Congratulations on making it this far and enjoy your time left with your child at home!

New Years Resolutions for High School Students Considering College

Most 15 and 16 year olds are thinking about their next game, their latest high school crush, or getting their driver’s license, not about their college plans for 2 -3 years down the road. It seems a bit unfair that they should have to think about such important things at a young age, but that is what the process has become and it is in their best interest to start early. Here are four resolutions for high school students considering college.

SOPHOMORES – Spend time researching college and career options

By now, many students have already taken some version of the SAT or ACT and had a broad discussion of college plans with their parents and/or high school counselor. What they probably haven't done is actually sit down and do some self reflecting and research. What are their potential career and course of study interests? What type of college do they envision for themselves? What are the requirements for admission to those colleges? They should make it a goal to spend time doing research now while they still have time to adjust their high school path, visit schools, prep for tests, and set up job shadowing and classes to help them with their admission and final decision. That small amount of time they spend over the next year has the potential to make a BIG difference.

JUNIORS – Establish college application timeline and goals NOW

Students in their next to last year of high school should establish their timeline for college applications now! Although they may not have their 'list' narrowed down to the final few schools, it is not too early to establish personal deadlines for getting their applications done. The key is to set those deadlines early - take the potential college deadlines and move them back by 6-8 weeks! There can be a lot of unexpected delays, added requirements and other bumps along the college application road, and it is better to be done early than to risk an incomplete application. Students who stay organized and work ahead often forget to take into consideration the fact that there are pieces to the applications which are not in their hands. Recommendation letters, high school transcripts, and test scores are just a few examples of requirements which may not be sent directly by the student. Students need to give their counselors and recommenders plenty of time to complete their documents.

SENIORS – Continue to put forth best effort in school and remember college decisions are NOT everything

By now many students at this stage in their high school careers have completed their applications, especially those for out-of-state colleges. Most of those even have their offers of admission already. The first of two resolutions for students at this time are to continue to put forth their best effort in school. There are plenty of other students willing to take their spot at their potential future college and there is little room for slacking and decline in grades. Colleges do pay attention to this and indeed have the power to revoke their admission offer if they feel the student is not meeting their academic standards.

The second resolution and unarguably the most important, is for students to remember that admissions decisions are not everything. Unfortunately colleges are unable to truly get to know each student before making an acceptance decision. Although a student may not have gotten into their dream school, their future is still very bright and they have plenty of opportunity to shape it the way they want it to be. Every college has something great to offer, students just have to take advantage of it. I do believe some colleges are better fits than others and strive to help students find the best matches, but ‘the perfect college’ does not exist. College is only the beginning of the journey. It can be a spectacular part of it, but it is not everything and it is certainly not the end.