Are dual-enrollment programs overpromising?
September 26th, 2016There are so many positives when high school students look into dual-enrollment programs. Dual-enrollment courses may save you thousands of dollars on tuition, look great on your college application, and help you prepare for college. However, there is a downside to all of these positives that we believe is important to look into before jumping on the dual-enrollment bandwagon: not all colleges award credit for these courses.
It is key to check with the schools to which you are applying to determine whether they will accept your dual-enrollment credits; some will not accept them at all. Other colleges will accept these credits but will not allow them to go towards your major course of study, in turn making students and parents disappointed.
Dual-enrollment programs are still a work in progress and therefore each college and university has its own set of requirements. Catherine Gewertz, author of the article posted below from Education Week, brings up many critical factors to consider when deciding whether to participate in a dual-enrollment program.
Article below published September 6, 2016
Written by: Catherine Gewertz
The popularity of dual-enrollment programs has soared nationally as high school students clamor to try college-level work. But the movement is dogged by questions about one of its key selling points: that students can get a jump-start on college by transferring those credits.
Take the case of Sabrina Villanueva. As an ambitious high school student in Dallas, she earned 12 credits at a local community college by taking speech, government, psychology, and sociology. Because the courses were part of a dual-enrollment partnership, they counted toward her high school graduation requirements, too.
Read more at Education Week >>Tagged: Choices, College, High school
College tour fail: Why can’t admissions offices tell it like it is?
September 19th, 2016The article we’ve posted today is written by a student (editor’s clarification: not a Shrop Ed advisee), Simon Kuh, who’s been touring colleges, and it’s wonderfully incisive. When I sat on college admission committees and led information sessions for visitors, I truly thought that what we were discussing was unique. When I left college admissions and became an independent college advisor, I learned how very wrong I was. We simply didn’t get it! Kuh has put his finger on the pulse of a very real problem for colleges: they’re asking families to make enormous investments, and in many cases failing to make the campus visit experiences reflect what’s truly distinctive about each of their institutions.
This is why we provide students with our favorite campus visit guide, filled with great questions to ask, and why we recommend adding unstructured time for further exploration of each campus. It’s still important to participate in the official tour and information session – students might learn something useful and they’ll be demonstrating interest to the college. But all campus visitors should ask plenty of questions to shape this experience to their own needs.
Article below published September 7, 2016
Written by: Simon Kuh
I traveled across 12 states, from Georgia to Rhode Island, touring colleges this summer, a ritual thousands of families take part in every year. I listened while admissions officials repeated the dos and don’ts of the application process: Don’t send 20 recommendation letters when only two are required, meet the deadlines, don’t email random questions to demonstrate your interest. Asking about the weather in a particular college town, for example, doesn’t qualify as a necessary or thoughtful query. (As one admissions officer said, “Do I look like the weather channel?”) I appreciated all their useful advice, and I’d like to return the favor with some of my own.
I went on my tour to get a sense of each college’s personality, to experience in person what I couldn’t by reading brochures. I wanted to feel a connection with a school. Yet I came away without a clear favorite since no school combined a great information session and a great tour. This led me to an unexpected conclusion: You never get both.
Read more at LA Times >>Tagged: Campus visits, College
FAFSA changes
September 12th, 2016In previous years students have filed their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on or after January 1st. No need for waiting any more! The federal education department will now open the application process as of October 1st in order to line up more effectively with the college application process. We’ve been hearing about this change for some time but we wanted to save this article to share as October draws nearer.
While October 1st is the opening date for FAFSA forms to be filed, it is by no means a deadline. Each college sets its own deadline for financial aid application completion. In this New York Times article, many of your FAFSA questions will be answered; however, it is always important to pay close attention to each college’s financial aid requirements.
An important note: some private colleges, especially those that are more selective, also require the CSS Profile and/or their own institution’s supplemental application. Every college’s financial aid website spells out steps and requirements quite clearly.
Takeaway: to be certain your financial aid applications will be completed for review, keep track of what’s needed, as well as related deadlines.
Article below published August 10, 2016
Written by: Ann Carrns
As college-bound students prepare for a new school year, they should be aware of a new date that’s important for future financial aid: Oct. 1.
That’s the new, earlier date after which students can file the Fafsa, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The infamous form is used to calculate how much students and their families must contribute to the cost of college, and how much help they will get in the form of grants, scholarships and loans. Students seeking financial aid must file the form, used by most states and colleges as the gateway to financial aid, each year.
Read more at New York Times >>Tagged: College, Financial aid
Welcome freshmen – your college degree may soon change!
August 8th, 2016There is no doubt that earning a college degree is worth the investment. The question here isn’t whether the degree is valuable, but are you getting what you pay for?
Author Jeffrey J. Selingo, whose work we’ve linked to previously, outlines how vastly different universities, namely Georgetown and Arizona State, plan to engage students with more hands-on learning experiences so that students can see the worth of obtaining a degree from their schools. Competing universities are realizing that earning a four year degree doesn’t necessarily measure how much a student learns while in college.
Our thanks go to the astute parent who shared this link with us.
Article published July 23, 2016
Written by: Jeffrey Selingo
Across from Washington, D.C.,’s Georgetown University is a red clapboard house where this 226-year-old Jesuit university is trying to reinvent itself.
Georgetown has long enjoyed a top twenty-five spot in the U.S. News & World Report rankings and a stellar reputation among prospective students, who often choose between it and the top Ivy League universities. But Georgetown’s endowment of around $1.4 billion pales in comparison to that of the University of Pennsylvania ($10 billion), Princeton ($9 billion), or Stanford ($22 billion). Without that kind of financial cushion, Georgetown’s biggest boosters worry it may not continue to attract top students in the future, especially with an annual price tag of more than $60,000.
Read more at The Daily Beast >>Tagged: Career, College, Opportunity
