Great College Advice

An article in Business Week published last month compared the application numbers from several top-ranked institutions.  The majority of the institutions have seen an increase in applications this year, making admission more selective than ever.  Several experts quoted in the article sight the increase in application numbers as a direct result of the economic downturn.  Students are seeking admission to top-ranked universities because they (or their parents) believe that they will be more likely to obtain a job after graduation.  Some schools have also increased the amount of financial aid available.

Meanwhile, the Yale Daily News, published an article on how their applications decreased this year, despite the trends mentioned above.  Officials at Yale are unable to pinpoint a reason for the slight dip in their application numbers and added that Yale “continues to attract top-quality candidates”.

Katherine Price

Educational Consultant

The value of a college degree may not be what it used to be.  Tuition hikes, increasing loan debt, extended graduation timelines, and uncertain employment opportunities due to the economic downturn all have led some to question the value of a college degree.  The Wall Street Journal recently published an article where experts debate the real value of lifetime earnings of a college graduates over high-school graduates.  While all the experts agree that college grads still do make more money than those that earn a high school diploma, some point out that the overall number may be less than originally estimated.

While it may be difficult to determine the monetary value of a college degree, there is also something to be said for the life lessons that a student can learn while at college.  Not only is college an opportunity to obtain knowledge, even beyond what is need for the job market, but it can also be an important opportunity to learn independence and other life skills.

Last month, the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA released the results of their annual “Freshman Survey.”  The survey is distributed to freshmen students all over the country and this year’s results show that the economy has “deeply impacted” freshmen students.  Not only are more students going to be dependent on loans, but they are also placing more emphasis on obtaining financially stable jobs after graduation.

InsideHigherEd.com also published a summary of the results.  The summary points out that students are turning away from business as a major.  From 2008 to 2009 the number of students planning to major in business fell from 16.8 percent to 14.4 percent, which is the lowest it has been since 1974.

This information corresponds with our recent post:  ”Majors and the Jobs of the Future“, where students are learning that they need to have multiple skills in order to obtain jobs in the future.  This is another sign that the economic downturn is going to impact students for years to come.

Katherine Price

Educational Consultant

Montgomery Educational Consulting is proud to introduce a new section of our website, especially for international students.  Since Mark and I have both worked with international students on the college search and admission processes we felt it is important to provide international students with additional resources.

The new international section of our website includes information on the higher education system in the US, what to expect from the application process and information on financial aid.  We hope you find the new page helpful.  Please feel free to post comments with feedback.

Katherine Price

Educational Consultant

Technorati Tags: international college admission, international students in US, resource for international students, resources for international students

We have written several posts on choosing a major in college. While there is much debate about the relevance of a student’s major and their professional future, the downturn in the economy has many parents and students concerned about long term job prospects.

Last month, The Wall Street Journal published an article called “Landing the Job of the Future Takes a Two-Track Mind”. The article describes how today’s undergraduate (and returning) students need to have a variety of skills in order to be marketable. This is great news for students who are not comfortable committing to one major. Several students have interests in a variety of academic areas, so it is beneficial for them to study multiple disciplines while in college.  As the article states, students need to pick up “secondary skills or combine hard science study with softer skills”.

Choosing a major in general can be a taunting task, especially if you only in high school and are asked to indicate your future career interest on a college application.  Yes it is important to think about your future, however, when you are considering which colleges to apply to, it is important to consider what your options are.  Here are some questions to ask:

• How easy is it to change majors?
• How will changing majors delay your graduation timeline?
• What kinds of jobs and internships are students getting in each particular major?
• What are you interested in studying?
• Are there other ways (besides academics) you can add to your “secondary skills”?

I have seen the decision to choose major completely stress students out.  In the end, it is about what is important to you and what you think you can be good at.  Everyone says you should “do what you love” but for some people that is a difficult quest to master.  Just remember that there is probably not a “perfect” job out there.  Every job is going to have some requirement that you don’t want to do, therefore there may be some “secondary skills” that you have to acquire even though you are not particularly interested in them.

Katherine Price

Educational Consultant