You may have seen this already but I thought I would pass on the link to the just-released 2012 Open Doors Data: http://www.iie.org/en/Research-and-Publications/Open-Doors/Data.
This report is produced each year by the Institute of International Education and provides a look into the comings and goings of students in higher education in the U.S.
Here are a few pieces of info that I found interesting:
*Though China leads the pack in the number of students heading to the U.S. from abroad to study (more than 194K students), Saudi Arabia actually experienced the highest percentage increase (50%) in number of students enrolling this year vs. last year.
*The top five most popular destinations for international students this year are: USC, U of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign, NYU, Purdue, and Columbia.
*Top two fields of study for international students: Business/Management and Engineering.
*The number of international students studying in the U.S. has increased by nearly 200k students in the past 10 years.
(DON'T FORGET THE FALL SPECIAL ENDS 12/7/12)
The earlier you start on the College Planning Process the greater the chance of success. Please remember that the environment is very competitive and many students will be working towards the goal of getting into the best college possible at the lowest possible cost. TAKE THE TIME TO LEARN HOW AN INDEPENDENT COLLEGE CONSULTANT CAN GIVE YOUR FAMILY THE EDGE THAT MOST STUDENTS DON'T HAVE - CALL FOR A FREE ONE-ON-ONE CONSULTATION.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
The Pros and Cons of Advanced Placement
While it's true that Advanced Placement courses and subject tests can help you get into the college of your dreams, there are some potential drawbacks as well.
The Pros of Advanced Placement
Taking an AP class will usually get your GPA knocked upwards. Depending how your particular school rates them, AP classes can be worth a full grade higher (That’s how some students end up with GPAs greater than the theoretically-perfect 4.0.) And even if your school doesn’t inflate AP grades, many college admission offices will do it for you.
Good AP scores can reduce your eventual college course load and potentially, your time in college. Generally speaking, a high score of at least three, but often a four or five out of the five-point Advance Placement test will equate to one semester of the equivalent test. So, if you place out of four courses it's possible to bypass an entire semester of college. This may save tens of thousands of dollars. Even placing out of one or two classes can lead to a semester of part-time student status... and significant savings.
College Admissions offices usually view AP classes as an indicator of “initiative.” By taking the more challenging path, schools know you aren’t scared to push yourself. In addition, since AP classes are supposed to be college level, you are showing schools that you are fully capable of doing the necessary work.
The Cons of Advanced Placement
Your AP scores could have zero bearing on your admissions. That’s a whole lot of work that may not have much to do with which college you get into – especially if your colleges don’t inflate grades according to the difficulty of courses.
Not all colleges accept AP scores for course credit, or factor in any GPA bump from the AP.
AP classes and study takes an inordinate amount of time. It isn’t unusual to have two or three hours of homework out of an AP class. That’s time you can’t pursue other studies, can’t devote to extracurricular activities, and can’t practice for the SAT – all things that definitely will help you get into college.
The long and the short of it is this: AP courses can pay off in the long run (for example, if you were to graduate early), but there are no guarantees.
As always, the answer depends on the student. Do remember, that you know your student's capacity and don’t overload the system. Overload could result in unfavorable results. Keep a balance in your student’s life.
While it's true that Advanced Placement courses and subject tests can help you get into the college of your dreams, there are some potential drawbacks as well.
The Pros of Advanced Placement
Taking an AP class will usually get your GPA knocked upwards. Depending how your particular school rates them, AP classes can be worth a full grade higher (That’s how some students end up with GPAs greater than the theoretically-perfect 4.0.) And even if your school doesn’t inflate AP grades, many college admission offices will do it for you.
Good AP scores can reduce your eventual college course load and potentially, your time in college. Generally speaking, a high score of at least three, but often a four or five out of the five-point Advance Placement test will equate to one semester of the equivalent test. So, if you place out of four courses it's possible to bypass an entire semester of college. This may save tens of thousands of dollars. Even placing out of one or two classes can lead to a semester of part-time student status... and significant savings.
College Admissions offices usually view AP classes as an indicator of “initiative.” By taking the more challenging path, schools know you aren’t scared to push yourself. In addition, since AP classes are supposed to be college level, you are showing schools that you are fully capable of doing the necessary work.
The Cons of Advanced Placement
Your AP scores could have zero bearing on your admissions. That’s a whole lot of work that may not have much to do with which college you get into – especially if your colleges don’t inflate grades according to the difficulty of courses.
Not all colleges accept AP scores for course credit, or factor in any GPA bump from the AP.
AP classes and study takes an inordinate amount of time. It isn’t unusual to have two or three hours of homework out of an AP class. That’s time you can’t pursue other studies, can’t devote to extracurricular activities, and can’t practice for the SAT – all things that definitely will help you get into college.
The long and the short of it is this: AP courses can pay off in the long run (for example, if you were to graduate early), but there are no guarantees.
As always, the answer depends on the student. Do remember, that you know your student's capacity and don’t overload the system. Overload could result in unfavorable results. Keep a balance in your student’s life.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
A COUPLE OF FINANCIAL AID TIPS
Private Sources Of College Funding
You don’t want to waste too much time looking for private scholarships since they only make up approximately 2% of all the aid out there, but it’s worth spending a little time looking for these sources.
It is best to focus on local awards from foundations, organizations, and corporations. You can usually get more information on these awards from your student’s high school guidance counselor.
Don’t Get A False Sense Of Security
All too frequently, guidance counselors will tell parents, “Don’t worry about it – financial aid is an easy process – just fill out the forms and sit back and wait for your award letter.” Just filling out the forms can be a serious mistake and it’s not that easy.
If you want to get the maximum amount of money from each school, you’ve got to set up your finances properly, fill out the forms accurately and on-time, and appeal with colleges and universities to get the best possible financial aid package.
Unfortunately, guidance counselors often don’t have the time or the training to do these things – so you may not to want use this advice to help you maximize your eligibility for college funding.
College aid officers may offer to help you apply for financial aid. But going to a financial aid officer and asking them to help you get more money from their school is like going to the IRS and asking them to help you save money on your taxes! You see it’s not in a school’s best interest to teach you how to get more money from their school. After all, they have a limited number of funds to give out to a large number of people.
Think twice about your strategy before the base year slips by (base Year- Tax Year beginning January as a Junior in High School and December of the beginning of the Senior Year). Start as early as possible in the base year, for two reasons. One - as the year goes by there are less and less strategies that can't be implemented. Secondly, you can't go back and change the base year, so you get one shot at achieving the best results. It is all about planning.
You don’t want to waste too much time looking for private scholarships since they only make up approximately 2% of all the aid out there, but it’s worth spending a little time looking for these sources.
It is best to focus on local awards from foundations, organizations, and corporations. You can usually get more information on these awards from your student’s high school guidance counselor.
Don’t Get A False Sense Of Security
All too frequently, guidance counselors will tell parents, “Don’t worry about it – financial aid is an easy process – just fill out the forms and sit back and wait for your award letter.” Just filling out the forms can be a serious mistake and it’s not that easy.
If you want to get the maximum amount of money from each school, you’ve got to set up your finances properly, fill out the forms accurately and on-time, and appeal with colleges and universities to get the best possible financial aid package.
Unfortunately, guidance counselors often don’t have the time or the training to do these things – so you may not to want use this advice to help you maximize your eligibility for college funding.
College aid officers may offer to help you apply for financial aid. But going to a financial aid officer and asking them to help you get more money from their school is like going to the IRS and asking them to help you save money on your taxes! You see it’s not in a school’s best interest to teach you how to get more money from their school. After all, they have a limited number of funds to give out to a large number of people.
Think twice about your strategy before the base year slips by (base Year- Tax Year beginning January as a Junior in High School and December of the beginning of the Senior Year). Start as early as possible in the base year, for two reasons. One - as the year goes by there are less and less strategies that can't be implemented. Secondly, you can't go back and change the base year, so you get one shot at achieving the best results. It is all about planning.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Should I Start Planning for College?
There are 2 parts to the question – Saving FOR College and Saving ON College. First, you should start saving for college before your child is born, ok maybe not realistic but accurate. With the cost of college going up at an alarming rate, it is difficult to imagine that the average current cost for a public university is almost $100,000 for a four year degree (some students get done in 4 years, but the average is more than 5 years). There are many options for saving for college. The key is to start saving.
The second component is Saving ON College which is deadline based. My first recommendation is not to rely solely on the current system in our high schools. Much of that responsibility is put on the high school counselor, who usually helps over 400 students at any given time. So as much as they would like to help, it is physically impossible to give each student what the parent may expect. All is not lost, there are options. The key is not to wait for the current system to control your student’s destiny. Start having the college discussion with your student when entering high school. This will give them a chance to recognize the importance of high school, as it relates to getting into college. This is not a one-time conversation; their needs to be encouragement throughout High School. Early planning will allow for many opportunities to Save ON College (including the best chance for Financial Aid). The longer the family waits to address the financial aspects, the more likely they will pay full price for the education.
As an Independent College Consultant, I offer an amazing amount of help and support to my enrolled students, but it works best when the Family System is engaged. The Family System starts with educating the parents about the entire college admission process. Then, their role is to encourage and motivate the student. In addition, the parents should help the student to embrace the need for a successful high school experience. This in turn, will result in many options for a positive college experience. Starting at a very early stage in the process, the parents must be engaged and involved. The student must understand why high school academic performance, testing, and extracurricular activities are so important in determining their future collegiate experience.
An Independent College Consultant will play a vital role in getting students into the best college possible at the lowest cost possible. Are you aware that in certain parts of our country families start strategic college planning as early as 1st grade (this may be a bit early), while in other locations the process starts as early as middle school. When do you plan to start? Remember the competition is the students from every high school in the country plus the international students. Approximately 3 million students apply for college each year in this country. How do you plan to prepare?
Contact Ron Rotenberg, Independent College Consultant, if you would like to learn more about the planning process or would like to become a client. Located in Torrance, CA 310-377-0668, www.collegefinancialfunding.com
The second component is Saving ON College which is deadline based. My first recommendation is not to rely solely on the current system in our high schools. Much of that responsibility is put on the high school counselor, who usually helps over 400 students at any given time. So as much as they would like to help, it is physically impossible to give each student what the parent may expect. All is not lost, there are options. The key is not to wait for the current system to control your student’s destiny. Start having the college discussion with your student when entering high school. This will give them a chance to recognize the importance of high school, as it relates to getting into college. This is not a one-time conversation; their needs to be encouragement throughout High School. Early planning will allow for many opportunities to Save ON College (including the best chance for Financial Aid). The longer the family waits to address the financial aspects, the more likely they will pay full price for the education.
As an Independent College Consultant, I offer an amazing amount of help and support to my enrolled students, but it works best when the Family System is engaged. The Family System starts with educating the parents about the entire college admission process. Then, their role is to encourage and motivate the student. In addition, the parents should help the student to embrace the need for a successful high school experience. This in turn, will result in many options for a positive college experience. Starting at a very early stage in the process, the parents must be engaged and involved. The student must understand why high school academic performance, testing, and extracurricular activities are so important in determining their future collegiate experience.
An Independent College Consultant will play a vital role in getting students into the best college possible at the lowest cost possible. Are you aware that in certain parts of our country families start strategic college planning as early as 1st grade (this may be a bit early), while in other locations the process starts as early as middle school. When do you plan to start? Remember the competition is the students from every high school in the country plus the international students. Approximately 3 million students apply for college each year in this country. How do you plan to prepare?
Contact Ron Rotenberg, Independent College Consultant, if you would like to learn more about the planning process or would like to become a client. Located in Torrance, CA 310-377-0668, www.collegefinancialfunding.com
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Four Year Degree or Not?
There are options other than a 4 year college degree, There is a shortage of skilled workers in manufacturing. The bottom line is high school students need to make a decision and there are options, parents should be involved at an early age, I call this the "Family System".
http://wapo.st/xVwvBU
http://wapo.st/xVwvBU
Friday, February 3, 2012
Application Season
High School Seniors are still scrambling and get very concerned about their College Plans. The concerns range from career planning, college selection, financial aid, application and much, more. Some are concerned whether a college degree is even worth the investment. I believe it is a great investment, with a high rate of return. On average, a person with an Undergraduate degree will earn twice as much as someone with only a high school degree. From an employment perspective many employers are now requiring a minimum of a Bachelor Degree to even be considered for an interview. Then there are the unemployment numbers. The percent of non-degree unemployed is much higher than people with degrees. Before going much further ask your student if they want to go to college and why? What is their plan and what is their goal? If everything seems positive, then you as the parent must be their advocate and help them meet their college enrollment goal.
Remember the cost of college has become the second largest investment most people will make during their lifetime. The cost of a public school bachelor degree is about $100,000 and double that amount for a private school.
The main question that I get from parents is “How do we prepare for this experience and keep our cost from spiraling out of control.” My response depends on each family’s situation and their student. There are many strategies that parents should implement well in advance of the submitted financial aid forms. When parents do not implement these strategies they can risk losing thousands of dollars in Financial Aid.
It is a very competitive environment (the competition is not in your student’s high school anymore, but the 3 million other students applying for college each year). The process is complex and daunting, parents must get involved early. Visit my website at www.collegefinancialfunding.com to learn more about the college planning process or you can call Ron Rotenberg an Independent Certified College Planner with College Funding Solutions at 310-377-0668, he offer’s a free one hour consultation on the college planning process.
Remember the cost of college has become the second largest investment most people will make during their lifetime. The cost of a public school bachelor degree is about $100,000 and double that amount for a private school.
The main question that I get from parents is “How do we prepare for this experience and keep our cost from spiraling out of control.” My response depends on each family’s situation and their student. There are many strategies that parents should implement well in advance of the submitted financial aid forms. When parents do not implement these strategies they can risk losing thousands of dollars in Financial Aid.
It is a very competitive environment (the competition is not in your student’s high school anymore, but the 3 million other students applying for college each year). The process is complex and daunting, parents must get involved early. Visit my website at www.collegefinancialfunding.com to learn more about the college planning process or you can call Ron Rotenberg an Independent Certified College Planner with College Funding Solutions at 310-377-0668, he offer’s a free one hour consultation on the college planning process.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Some College Don't Require SAT Scores ..... But!!!!
Although some colleges don't require an SAT score for acceptance don't get too comfortable and think that those scores are not important. There appears to be a growing practice by some universities of purchasing lists of students names that have done well on their SAT to focus their marketing activities. See the link below for some additional insight to the topic.
"Colleges from Bowdoin in Maine to Pitzer in California dropped the SAT entrance exam as a requirement, saying it favors the affluent, penalizes minorities, and doesn't predict academic success. What they don't advertise is that they find future students by buying names of those who do well on the test."
To see this recommendation, click on the link below or cut and paste it into a Web browser:
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/07/20/colleges_drop_sat_but_still_buy_names_of_high_scoring_students/?s_campaign=8315
"Colleges from Bowdoin in Maine to Pitzer in California dropped the SAT entrance exam as a requirement, saying it favors the affluent, penalizes minorities, and doesn't predict academic success. What they don't advertise is that they find future students by buying names of those who do well on the test."
To see this recommendation, click on the link below or cut and paste it into a Web browser:
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/07/20/colleges_drop_sat_but_still_buy_names_of_high_scoring_students/?s_campaign=8315
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