Financial Aid and College Planning in Tough Economic Times, reprise

The Denver NBC affiliate picked up my post offering Ten College Planning Tips for Tough Economic Times.  A segment on college planning and financial aid aired this morning on 9 News KUSA.


Have a look at yours truly on air.


While they billed me as a financial aid planner, those who know me think of me as a college planner.  Obviously financial aid is part of the process, but I’m not like some of the guys I know who do financial planning for college tuition (if you want a name of a good one, let me know, and I’ll pass along a recommendation).


Anyway, it was fun to be on TV.


Mark Montgomery
College Counselor

Carnival of College Admission–Turkey Edition

Welcome to the 5th Edition of the Carnival of College Admission. As promised, and in commemoration of the America’s Holiday, we offer the “Turkey Edition.” Today you’ll learn all sorts of fun facts about turkeys that you can share with your friends around the dinner table tomorrow. So not only will you have the opportunity to gorge yourselves on the best of the college admissions blogosphere, but you’ll cram your cranium full of tidbits on America’s almost-national-bird: the Turkey.
 
Enjoy!
 
Admissions
Brad J. Ward, who is himself a glutton for social media in higher education, dares us to “GORGE yourselves on Social Media. Dig In. I know you’re hungry.” His post from his blog at SquaredPeg.com asserts that social media is NOT what you think.
 
Gregg Cohen of Campus Bound presents Why It’s Important to Look Beyond the Rankings posted at More Thoughts on College Rankings.
 

In 2007, the average American ate 17.5 pounds of turkey.  Not all at once.  Over the course of the year.

I love looking at students’ Facebook pages, don’t you?  I especially enjoy the ones who have a 2.7 GPA, whose mothers assure me they are “good kids” who are toking up and passing around the Jack Daniels.  TJ Hanson points out that Your Personal Online Brand – It Begins with your Facebook Profile in his post from the The Digital Student Blog.
 
Todd Johnson, an independent college counselor, explains Why Hiring a College Admissions Counselor in Difficult Economic Times Makes Sense over at his blog, College Admissions Counseling.
 
Transfer students are growing in numbers, but schools often give them the shaft when it comes to providing a satisfying, complete college experience. This post by Jessica Dye of Unigo pushed several readers’ buttons, apparently. Check out Survey Shows Things are Tougher for Transfers posted at theprereq.com.
 
Elizabeth Kudner presents Recession 101: College Applications and Shallow Bank Accounts posted at myUsearch blog. In this post, Brady Norvall gives some great advice about how to change your college application and finance strategy in this tumultuous economic time.

 
In the same vein, yours truly is happy to present 10 Tips for College Planning in Tough Economic Times at my blog, Great College Advice.
 

In 2007, 271,685,000 turkeys were produced in the United States–almost one per person.

Financial Aid
Jen Himottu, a student at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, asks and answers the question, How do you pay for college?…Scholarships! posted at True Life: I’m a WPI senior….
 
O. Daille Nation-Ashley, a parent who is mastering the ins and outs of financial aid, shares her understanding of What does Need-Blind Mean , from at her blog, CEOmum – Parenting is a Full Time Job.
 

97% of Americans surveyed by the National Turkey Federation eat turkey at Thanksgiving. Questions to ponder:  What does the other 3% eat.  And why?

Don‘s feathers are ruffled by the turkeys who run the student loan industry in the US, and he decries the fact that Big Banks Are Ending Student Loans For Community College Students.  Check out his post at his blog D.P. Lawson. As Don says, “Let’s give Thanks that Community College students still have vehicles like the Federal Direct Loan program to help fund their education.”
 
How do you plan for both retirement AND paying for college,  As Eric notes on his blog, this is the area most families are not prepared for, and the two go hand-in-hand.  Check out Eric’s post, entitled Paying for College and Planning for Retirement – A Double Edged Sword? over at Retirement.
 

Turkeys’ heads change colors when they become excited.  Turkeys can also see in color–so all that technicolor excitement is not in vain.

 
Be thankful for all the free money out there just waiting for you to claim it. Danny Wong gives advice on How to Finance Your College Education over at the myCollegeSTAT Blog.
 
While you may not be able to convince Uncle Sam to entirely forgive and forget your accumulated debt, he might be able to help you find some ways to reduce some of those financial woes. With this goal in mind, Khan presents Student Loan Forgiveness posted at Higher Education and Career Blog.
 

The average weight of a turkey purchased at Thanksgiving is 15 pounds.  A 15 pound turkey usually has about 70 percent white meat and 30 percent dark meat.

 
Boarding School
Peter Baron, principal at AdmissionsQuest, offers his Thoughts on the Opening of the Boarding School Financial Aid Season posted at onBoarding Schools.
 

The heaviest turkey ever raised was 86 pounds, about the size of a large dog. Woof!

 
Test Prep
Elizabeth King shares some quick thoughts for juniors as they begin to consider the standardized tests they’ll need to take over the coming months in her post, Juniors: Get Moving! over at elizabeth king’s smart blog.
 
Char presents Using Humor at Exam Time: With guest blogger Dan Brantly posted at PSI Tutor: Academic Mentor.  Now, who couldn’t use some chuckles just before the SAT?
 
PicktheBrain presents 10 Ways to E-Boost Your Brain posted at Ace Online Schools.
 

Wild turkeys can fly for short distances up to 55 miles per hour, and can run 20 miles per hour.  Commercially raised turkeys cannot fly (nor can they run very fast).

 
 
Graduate School
Jessica Daniels, the Doyenne of Blogging at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, serves up “Pass the Application: It’s Under the Pie,” over at her blog at Fletcher School Admissions.
 

Male turkeys gobble. Hens do not. They make a clicking noise.  (And they say men and women speak different languages!)

College Life
Sarah Schupp runs an information service for parents, publishing guides to colleges and the surrounding communities for parents.  She offers parents some advice in this post:  Home for the Holidays: Surviving your College Student’s Stay | University Parent Media posted at University Parent Connection.
 
Barbara Nixon, a university instructor, offers tips on How to Study for Final Exams posted at Making Connections.
 
Ali Hale dishes up great advice to college students.  This week she shares What are you having a knee-jerk reaction to? posted at Alpha Student.  As she says, “Don’t be a turkey – make the most out of your university years by trying out all those things you have a ‘that’s just not me’ knee-jerk reaction to.”

 

Turkeys have heart attacks. The United States Air Force was doing test runs and breaking the sound barrier. Nearby turkeys dropped dead with heart attacks.

 
Jim presents 40 Money Tips for College Students posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.
 
Joanne presents Tips For A College Student Buying A Laptop posted at Best College Laptops.
 

Turkeys have been bred to have white feathers. White feathers have no spots under the skin when plucked.  Most turkey feathers are composted.

 
Heather Johnson presents 100 Free College Rankings (Traditional, Unorthodox and Just Plain Crazy) posted at LearningXL.
 
Larry York presents Are College Kids All Spoiled Nowadays? posted at Dorm Earning.
 

Tom turkeys have beards. These are black, hairlike feathers on their breast. Hens sometimes have beards, too.

Deryl L Sweeney II is thankful for the leadership among our youth and for their collective dedication to promote change.  He shares his post, College students gave much more than 2¢ during this election posted at 2East: The College Living Blog. Deryl says, “If we, as college enthusiasts, cannot be thankful for the role our students played in the most recent election, then we are missing a big point.”
 
Speaking of missing the point, Gina LaGuardia presents Unpaid Internships: What’s the Point? posted at College – U. Got It?.  Can you guess what the point really is?
 

In 1970, 50 per cent of all turkey consumed was during the holidays, now just 29 per cent of all turkey consumed is during the holidays as more turkey is eaten year-round.

 
Hazing of underclassmen is a global phenomenon, it seems.  In India, they call it ragging, however.   Jayanta Deka tell us about it in the post RAGGING – JUST A HICCUP!!! posted at an odyssey….
 
If you enjoy your current college living arrangements, be thankful. Danny Wong presents Roommates: Friend or Foe? How many is too many? Co-ed? posted at myCollegeSTAT Blog.
 

The five most popular ways to serve leftover turkey is as a sandwich, in stew, chili or soup, casseroles and as a burger.

 
Other Cool Stuff
Dawn Papandrea (the host of our next Carnival edition) asks the question, McDonald’s Job Better Than MBA? posted at CollegeSurfing Insider.  A she says, “In a tough economy, be thankful for McDonald’s. We’re not talking about eating a Big Mac meal instead of turkey and yams, of course, but for the career lessons we’ve learned working there, or at similar low-level jobs. Some say the takeaway is even better than an MBA course!”
 
Tom Williams presents “DePaul Quad” – A Social Network for PARENTS! posted at InnoGage.  This post is a very cool recap of a session from the AMA Symposium on the Marketing of Higher Education. DePaul, a leader in higher education marketing, created a social network for Parents!  Check it out.
 
Dereck proves that it’s never too late to tie up loose ends and achieve your goals.  This post, entitled This is the Greatest Week of My Life posted at I Will Not Die.
 

Male turkeys are called toms, females are called hens, and babies are called poults.  A large group of turkeys is called a flock.

 
AndrewB presents Simple Steps To Deliver A Dazzling Presentation | Personal Hack posted at Personal Hack.
 
Alvaro Fernandez presents a review of a great book with compelling collection of tales about the amazing abilities of the brain to rewire, readjust and relearn. His post is called Neuroplasticity and the Brain That Changes Itself , and you’ll find it posted at SharpBrains: Your Window into the Brain Fitness Revolution.
 
Want to go on a turkey shoot?  Brad likes to procrastinate, and he’s willing to share his passion for this turkey of a time-waster, post on his blog Brad Laughs.
 
Jessica Dye of Unigo presents a cool post about a “college stereotype” campaign from ESPN that stirred a lot of Internet ire. The excerpted memo is hilarious, and it gives some insight into how companies try to appeal to college students (and how quickly it can backfire!). ESPN Nixes College Stereotypes Ad Campaign posted at theprereq.com.
 
Will “No Child Left Behind” actually help – or hurt future university degree program students? College Degrees believes that theproblem with “No Child Left Behind” is that it leaves every student in every classroom in the United States at risk of being left behind. Check out the article Will “No Child Left Behind” Hurt Future University Students? posted at Degree Talk Blog.
 
In a similar vein, Daniel Willingham from the Britannica Blog presents Education: Test From a Curriculum, Not a List of Standards | Britannica Blog . Daniel is not a big fan of NCLB, either, because states are gaming the system by lowering standards and by cutting time in science, social studies, music, and art, so as to spend more time on reading and math.
 

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

 
Well, thanks for joining us for this special holiday version of the Carnival of College Admission.  The next edition will be hosted by Dawn Papandrea of the College Bound Network, and will go live on December 10th.  So get your submissions in early by posting to our handy dandy form .
 
For those who would like to have a look at past editions, visit our Carnival Homepage and Archives.
 
Thanks to all our participants, and please continue to spread the word!  Our community is expanding, and already we’re beginning to rotate hosts.  With your help, ours will become one of the most useful and successful blog carnivals on the blogosphere!
 
Mark Montgomery
Educational Consultant and Carnival Enthusiast
 
 
 
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Advice for Completing FAFSA Form for Financial Aid

One of the most daunting tasks in the college admission and financial aid process is completion of the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.  A colleague forwarded this link to a great video that explains what the FAFSA is and how to complete it in five entertaining minutes.  Have a look.

Okay, it glosses over the details (which may lead to hair loss among some parents).  But at least it points out how important this form is in helping families get the best financial aid packages possible.


Mark Montgomery

College Counselor





Technorati Tags: financial aid, FAFSA, tuition, grant, scholarship, loan, student

Early Decision Applications Up–Despite Economic Downturn

Yesterday Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed reported in a lengthy (but characteristically thorough) article that despite the economic downturn, the number of early decision applications to many expensive, private colleges is up this year over last. Mr. Jaschik offers the following possible explanations:


1.  Colleges are better communicating that college fit matters, so students are making decisions earlier about which colleges fit them best.

2.  Colleges are more clearly communicating that early decision applicants will not suffer by receiving smaller financial aid packages than their counterparts who are accepted regular decision.

3.  State colleges are sending out panicky press releases that not only will it be tougher to gain admission, but faculty will be cut, programs slashed, and class sizes increased–messages that send families running in the opposite direction.

4.  Parents are unwilling to sacrifice a quality education for their kids, no matter the financial burdens.


Frankly, however, nobody really can figure out why early decision and early action applications are up at so many expensive private colleges.  What everyone does agree on,  however, is this is shaping up to be one of the wackiest, least predictable admissions cycles ever.


Here are some sample increases of percentage increases in early applications at some private colleges.


Haverford: 13%

Richmond:  14%

St. Olaf:  50%

Dartmouth:  10%

Northwestern:  15%

New York University:  1%

Hamilton:  8%

Warren Wilson:  30%



Mark Montgomery

Educational Consultant




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Ten College Planning Tips For Tough Economic Times

I’ve received a number of questions from readers, clients, and friends about how to navigate the college admissions and financial aid process in tough economic times.  By far the biggest worry on everyone’s mind is finding the resources to pay for college.

 

In some ways we have a perfect storm a-brewing.  As personal savings and college funds shrink, colleges are tightening their belts, and are likely to be stingy with financial aid.

 

So where does that leave the student who will graduate this spring or next?  What strategies does he or she pursue in order to get the best education at the best price?

 

Here are ten tips for weathering this storm.

 

1.  Don’t panic.  Keep a cool head.  Do your homework.  Get help, if you need it.  While the statistics look bleak, you are not a statistic.  Use every resource at your disposal to plan, prepare, and get the best deal for yourself.

2.  Whether the market is up or down, good students always have more options than poor students. Good students with good grades and good test scores should not dampen their ambition or lower their sights.

3.  Remember that if your assets and income have gone down, your federally-calculated financial need will go up.  Come January, you will complete the FAFSA forms, which will calculate your family’s “Estimated Financial Contribution” or EFC.  This is the amount the government calculates that you should be able to pay toward a college education–given your financial picture today.

4.  Pay close attention to financial aid statistics reported by colleges, with special emphasis on the percentage of financial need that college has met in the past.  Even in good financial times, many colleges have been unable to meet all of their student’s financial need with the usual combination of grants, work study jobs, and federal loans.  Most rich, well-endowed colleges and universities can meet 100% of their students’ financial need.  But some colleges have met only 80% or 65% or less of their students’ needs.  These are the colleges that have relied heavily upon the willingness of students and families to take out huge loans on the private markets.  As these loan markets have dried up, these colleges are the most panicked by the economic downturn.  Yet even financially strapped colleges may offer big bargains to some students (see tip #6 below).

5.  Redefine what a “stretch” or “reach” college will be for you.  It’s not simply about getting accepted to college–it’s about being able to pay for it.  The tougher it is for you to gain admission, the less likely you will receive adequate financial aid to attend that same school.

6. Develop a “top 25%” strategy that will help increase the likelihood you will get the aid you need.  While there is a great deal of variation in financial aid policies, most colleges shower their best financial aid packages on those students in the top 25% of their incoming class. Colleges routinely report the average ACT or SAT test scores by identifying the “middle 50 percent” range of scores of admitted students.  So if  Elmer Fudd College reports an middle 50% ACT range of 22 to 26, this means 25% of students scored lower than 22, and another 25% scored 27 or higher.   An applicant to Elmer Fudd College with an ACT of 29 has a much better chance of receiving a solid financial aid package than the applicant with a 22.

7.  Remember that not all debt is bad debt.  Racking up tens of thousands of dollars on a credit card is not the same as taking out a Stafford loan.  The former is a drag on current and future spending, and high interest rates on credit cards lead to wrack and ruin.  But a student loan is an investment in your future.  The relatively low interest rate on these loans will allow you to increase your earning potential tomorrow by making it possible to get a good education today.  The average student loan debt for graduating college senior is about $20,000, which is an acceptable amount for most students.

8.  If you plan to take out a loan to partially finance an education, start shopping for that loan now.  Do not wait until admissions decisions are made. Learn what loans are available (or not) so that you can make a realistic plan for how much you can borrow.  This knowledge will make it easier to compare financial aid packages later when they are finally announced.

9.  Don’t assume that your in-state colleges and universities offer you the best deal. As an example, see my post here about cost comparisons for a Colorado student considering University of Colorado vs. Montana State University or the University of Wyoming.

10.  Students with less-than-stellar academic records in high school should consider getting their start at community colleges.  Most states now have guaranteed transfer agreements between their community colleges and flagship universities.  Go to community college, pay less, do well–and you can still graduate from a top-notch university.  In fact, you have a better chance of getting accepted as a transfer if you do well in those general education courses at the community college.

 

Mark Montgomery

Educational Consultant

 

 

 

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College Shopping Tips: When Out-of-State is Cheaper than In-State Tuition

The financial downturn has high school seniors and their parents running scared.  How can we reduce costs?  How can we get the best deal?


The conventional wisdom says that an in-state college is the cheapest option.  As with most conventional wisdom, this assumption is wrong.


Let’s compare costs for a Colorado student considering majoring in business at three state universities in the region.



A few notes explain where these numbers come from:

  1. CU-Boulder tuition is $10,852, but Colorado students automatically are eligible for the Colorado Opportunity Fund, which effectively reduces tuition by $2760.
  2. Colorado students with an ACT of 28 or higher attending Montana State are eligible for a tuition discount under the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE–pronounced “woo-ee”).  Students with even higher ACT scores are eligible for other scholarships that reduce the overall price even further.
  3. Colorado students attending the University of Wyoming also are eligible for the WUE discount.


Sometimes what you major it makes a difference, too.  Business is the most expensive major at CU Boulder.  If you major in Arts & Sciences,  tuition is less:  $7,278 per year.  Engineering, however,  is $9,568.


So parents, don’t cut off your nose to spite your face!  If your student is interested in going out of state to college, do your homework before you assume that staying in state is the cheapest option.  Here we have compared only state schools, but even some private colleges will end up costing you less than the University of Colorado at Boulder.


As with most everything in life, it pays to comparison shop!


Mark Montgomery

College Counselor





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Carnival of College Admission–Fab Four Edition

We’ve come to the Fabulous Fourth Edition of the Carnival of College Admission.  And what better way to celebrate than to bring the original Fab Four to help us sing their classic songs?  So join in the Sing-A-Long as we present the Beatles’ Greatest College Admission Hits.


COLLEGE ADMISSIONS

Got To Get You Into My Life:  Andy Burns, the director of admission of Fort Lewis College, shares his post, A Holistic Review Process, which appears on his blog, Transitioning to College.


The Long and Winding Road:  Admissions consultant Todd Johnson presents How Long Does it Take to Graduate from College? posted at College Admissions Counseling.  The answer:  longer than most parents bargained for!


I’ve Just Seen a Face:  Tom Williams presents Facebook Fiasco – how to turn negative into positive posted at InnoGage. Tom provides an Interesting case study about handling a Facebook disaster. Many colleges are afraid of Facebook. Tom is trying to help dispel that fear and he sees it as an amazing admissions tool.


Do You Want To Know a Secret?:  Gregg Cohen of Campus Bound blogs for the Upromise community, and he shares his thoughts on College Rankings – Can you trust them? posted in Upromise community blog.  His answer?  Not much.  Better to start with a look inside yourself, and a think about what is best for you.


I Should Have Known Better:  Kate Scozzaro, a student blogger for the unbiased online college matching site, myUsearch , discusses all of the things she wishes she would have considered when choosing a college in her post Things I Forgot to Ask When Choosing a College .


With A Little Help From My Friends:  Gina LaGuardia presents How Seriously Should You Consider Student Reviews of Colleges? posted at College – U. Got It? The answer?  Student reviews can be fun and titillating, but you need to be very careful in judging whether to trust them.


I’ll Be On My Way:  Khan presents Benefits of Choosing a Career and Technical School posted at Higher Education Blog.


Here, There, and Everywhere: Larry Ferlazzo presents The Best Sites For Encouraging ELL’s To Attend College | Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… posted at Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day….  This is a very thoughtful post with good recommendations.


Ticket to Ride:  College Degrees presents Foreign Credentials Evaluations: What Diplomas Make the Grade? posted at The Degree People.  This is a helpful post for student from other countries who hope to study in the United States.


BOARDING SCHOOLS

Tell Me What You See: Peter Baron presents Perception vs the Reality of the Boarding School Experience posted at onBoarding Schools.  It’s an interesting little article by a mother who examines some of the reasons families choose to send their students to boarding school–or, choose not to.  As in so many other aspects of life, we often rush to judgment without gathering solid information ourselves.


FINANCIAL AID

Can’t Buy Me Love:  O. Daille Nation-Ashley presents Financial Aid for International Students posted at CEOmum – Parenting is a Full Time Job.  This is a wonderful resource that carefully explains the ways in which applications for financial aid are different for students who are neither citizens nor permanent residents of the United States.


Baby You’re a Rich Man:  The Editors of Financial-Aid-Resource-Center.com presents College Savings Plan posted at Financial Aid Blog.  Still uncertain as to what a 529 is?  Get some clarity!


SCHOLARSHIPS

You Never Give Me Your Money: Chris presents $2000 College Scholarship for Student Bloggers posted at Dorm Room Biz.  All you student bloggers should take note–could be an easy road to 2 Gs.


COLLEGE LIFE

I’m Happy Just to Dance with You:  Ali Hale, the Alpha Student, reminds us that even though it might not feel like it, your teens and twenties are the time of your life when you’ll have the most freedom and energy! Get as much out of your university years as you can, by seizing opportunities while you’re still young.  Read her post Being young – make the most of it.


Glass Onion:  Shae shares a post about why meat eaters should consider eating vegetarian while in college.  Read all Shae’s collegiate culinary advice at The Collegiate Gourmet.  She explores both the philosophy and the practicalities of becoming a vegetarian…or even a “partial vegetarian.” 


Tomorrow Never Knows:  Dawn Papandrea presents Before They Were Stars, They Were Students posted at CollegeSurfing Insider. There’s much to be said about fame and fortune, but it’s not very often that we talk about the hard work required to get to that point. For many success stories in various industries, that hard work begins in the college classroom.


Student blogger Jennifer Himottu at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) brags about (complains about?) how her college not only sets students up student for financial success after college, but also provides students with a seemingly endless supply of T-shirts.  Check out her blog at from the WPI website.


You Can’t Do That:  MBB presents College Students and The Lure Of Campus Student Credit Cards posted at Money Blue Book.  Credit cards can be helpful, but they can also become an albatross. This is a great post to help you think about using credit responsibly.


It’s All Too Much:  Alvaro Fernandez presents Memory Problems? Perhaps you are Multi-tasking posted at SharpBrains: Your Window into the Brain Fitness Revolution.


OTHER COOL STUFF

Eleanor Rigby:  Cranky presents Crazy Eyes, one of a series of posts about the nutty professors at Cranky’s college. Read the rest of Cranky’s posts at The Cranky Professor.  If I had Crazy Eyes for a prof, I’d likely be weirded out.


Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except Me and My Monkey:  Cranky also offers us Professor Playboy. The things you don’t know about your professors! , another profile of one of her oddball colleagues at The Cranky Professor.  Your professor may seem conventional enough in his tweed jacket.  But underneath that nerdy exterior is a hunk of burning love, baby!


There’s A Place:  Dave Van de Walle presents uSphere jumps on the Presidential Bandwagon with (selected) Alma Maters of the Presidents posted at U Sphere Blog.


Well, that wraps up the Fab Four edition of the Carnival of College Admission.  Please join us for the next edition, which will appear on November 26th, just in time for Turkey Day.  If you’d like to contribute to the next edition, use our handy-dandy submission form . Or you may want to check out our archives.


And if you’d like to host, please let me know! Ob-La-Di-Bla-Da!


Mark Montgomery

Educational Consultant

GreatCollegeAdvice.com


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Economic Considerations Remove Blindfold from Need Blind Admissions

A few days ago I wrote a post providing some of my predictions about how the credit crunch will affect college admissions.  The New York Times ran a story yesterday about how both rich and poor colleges are reacting to the economic downturn.


There are two points from this article I want to emphasize.


First, colleges and universities will try their best to freeze or reduce their expenses.  Representatives of colleges quoted in this article talk about hiring freezes, salary freezes, and putting building or renovation projects on hold. The plan is not to reduce financial aid offered to incoming freshmen.  I feel that the the press is exaggerating the effect of the credit crisis on the dollars colleges will devote to financial aid, largely because they do not understand that most financial aid is not actually money, but discounts off the full price of tuitoin.


The second point has to do with “need blind” admissions.  All colleges would like to be able to admit students regardless of their ability to pay.  However, only the most wealthy colleges can be “need blind” in their admissions policies, and even they are never fully blind to the financial implications of the admissions process (more on this topic in another post).  The issue is not that colleges will have fewer dollars to offer, in absolute terms.  It’s that more students may have more need this year, because families’ financial situations may be more bleak this year than in the past.  With assets having been decimated, the financial aid formulas will require colleges to spread around their financial aid dollars in creative ways in order to build the class that they want.


The effect, then, is that colleges will have to lift their blinders and take a cold, hard look at their budgets–as well as the credentials of the students seeking admission.  As I mentioned in my previous post, it will thus be easier for full-pay students go get into competitive colleges.


Mark Montgomery

Educational Consultant




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Carnival-Palooza

A couple of great carnivals are up that you might want to check out. Check out the Carnival of Homeschooling at Apollo’s Academy where my post about how the credit crunch may affect college admissions this cycle.


The same post was featured in the Carnival of Linked-In Users at Janet Barclay’s blog.  This is an eclectic carnival that features a huge variety of interesting articles from around the blogosphere.


Blog Carnivals are a great way to share your best blog posts.  If you’re interested in contributing to the Carnival of College Admission, make sure to submit the URL of a recent blog post to the handy-dandy Blog Carnival submission form.  The next edition of the Carnival of College Admission will go up on November 12th.


Mark Montgomery

College Counselor

Tuition Costs Went Up. What a Surprise!

The annual report from the College Board indicates that the cost of tuition went up last year.  On average, costs increased from 5-6%, depending on the type of institution.  If you want more specifics, you can see the summary of the report in today’s edition of Inside Higher Ed.


The big question is how much colleges will have to raise tuition in the next budget cycle.  A lot will depend on how their admission and financial aid numbers look.  But most colleges set their budgets for the coming year before the incoming class has been accepted–much less made commitments to attend by putting down deposits.  I expect colleges will be very conservative in the coming budget cycle.  Will colleges and universities raise tuition?  Is the sky blue?  Of course they will raise tuition.  But will prices rise by a much higher percentage than in the past?  Hard to tell at this point.


Mark Montgomery
Educational Consultant




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