Greetings!

Your December newsletter comes with best wishes for a joyous holiday season.  In it you’ll find:

• Majors, Minors and Concentrations – Your guide to understanding the meaning of these terms, how they differ, and how to make your choices work for you.
• Majoring in Criminology –  Criminology is the study of the attributes of crime, how and why it happens, why people commit them, the behavior of these people, and the nature of the criminal-justice system. If you’re fascinated by shows like NCIS and Criminal Minds, this may be the major for you.
• Searching for Scholarships –  You don’t have to pay anyone to search for a scholarship for you, but it does require legwork and dedication on your part. Start here.
• Understanding and Using your PSAT Report –  Although your scores on these tests are not reported to colleges, the results can help you better understand your academic strengths and weaknesses and suggest the skills you should focus on in preparing for college entrance exams such as the SAT and ACT.

Enjoy!
Patty

You’ll find your October newsletter attached with articles on:

• 7 College Admission Blunders to Avoid –  the journey to college will likely go smoother if you avoid making these seven common mistakes.
• Focus on Majors – Geology – Fascinated by rocks and minerals and the forces that shape the earth?  Geology is an interdisciplinary science that involves not only a study of the physical makeup and history of the earth, but also how humans and other life forms are affected by the earth.
• The CSS Profile –  About 400 colleges, universities and scholarship programs use a financial aid form, the CSS Profile, in addition to the FAFSA, to gather more information in order to award their own institutional funds to deserving students.
• Show Them Some Love –  Through both your responses to application questions and your actions (numerous meaningful contacts with that college), you can influence your chances of acceptance at your top college choices.  Learn how here. 

Enjoy!

Patty

• Adjusting to College Life – Understanding the most common challenges reported by freshmen – and what to do about them — can make the transition to college life go more smoothly for both students and their parents.
• Majoring in Landscape Architecture –  If you’re creative, interested in the environment and science, and enjoy working with people, landscape architecture may be just the career for you.
• Talking to Your Kids About Money – They use gift cards, credit cards, debit cards and apps such as Venmo and PayPal. Money, the green stuff, is not a meaningful part of many teenagers’ lives. Before your child leaves for college, a conversation about finances is in order.
• How Movies Can Help You Write Better Application Essays – The best college application essay, don’t merely tell what happened to you; they also let admission officers understand why what happened matters.   To do that in 650 words or less you need to think like a screenwriter.

Enjoy!

Patty

Happy Holidays!!

Hope you are enjoying a bit of Spring weather. Inside the April Newsletter you’ll find:

• Facts & Myths about Liberal Arts Education – Ask twenty people what they think about the term “liberal arts education” and you’ll likely get twenty different responses. Get the facts here.
• Majoring in Nutritional Sciences – The food industry is the fourth largest industry in the world. Nutritional science is a great major for people interested in a health-related career, for those who want to work in the fitness industry, for individuals who love to cook and create recipes, and for budding entrepreneurs.
• Appealing your Financial Aid Award – Are you short in funds needed to enroll at your first choice college? Consider appealing your financial aid award.
• Handling Rejection – Advice for Parents – College rejection happens to most students, but it doesn’t need to define the rest of their life. Here are some tips to help your teen deal with denial.

Enjoy!

Patty

Hello:

Attached you’ll find The College Planning Center’s February Newsletter.  Topics include:

• Athletic Recruiting – families may dream of “signing day” but what are the realities facing prospective college athletes?
• Majoring in Statistics/Data Science – Data Science was just named the #1 career by Glassdoor and the “sexiest career of the 21st century” by the Harvard Business Review.  Could this be a career for you?
• Understanding Net Price –  Families often experience sticker shock when contemplating the cost of college, but it’s the net price, rather than the sticker price, that prospective students need to consider.
• Don’t Get Caught Up in Senior Slump –  Every year some students get a little too relaxed and cling to a false sense of teenage invulnerability. And every year, to the shock of these students, colleges across the country revoke a small but significant number of their acceptances.

If you know anyone that can benefit from this information please pass it along. Thank you.

Enjoy!

Patty