Mark Montgomery
Educational Consultant 
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Here’s the transcript if you’d like to read:

I’m here on the Campus of the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio. And I could say that the College of Wooster is another one of those Mid-Western surprises. I’ve had on this trip where you walk into the campus and are really shocked by how really wonderful it is. I can’t say I was completely shocked because I knew from reputation that this is a really solid academic school. It’s kind of under the radar screen for a lot of people but a fantastic little liberal arts college in Ohio.

The thing I wanted to mention is the way I visit colleges. I tend not to go on canned admission tours. I tend to just show up kind of unannounced without a lot of fanfare or giving them prior warning of my visit. Then I walked into the Admissions Office today at 4:15, okay it closes at 5.

Immediately they said, let’s get you in touch with the person, what are the admissions reps and he sat down with me. He talked with me for about 40 minutes. He gave me kind of a personal tour of the campus as much as he could before he had to run off to pick up his wife. But really took a personalized – he gave me personal attention. And that’s really indicative of what the College of Wooster is all about spending the time and the energy and giving personal attention to each and every student.

Loren Pope put the College of Wooster in his book 40 Colleges that Changed Lives and, you know. It’s not surprising just my little experience here on an August day when the campus is pretty dead to walk into the Admissions Office and get a lot of personalized attention. We just met with the professor he was walking out of his office, stood there and talked with us for a few minutes, really impressive place.

Yes, the landscaping and the architecture yes that’s kind of a surprise to me. Because it really does kind of help to get a feel of the physical plant of a college. But really by reputation College of Wooster is one of those places that they take – maybe their students are diamonds in the rough not necessarily the tippy top academically. They will take students who have academic potential and they will mold them into scholars. That is really the hallmark of education here at Wooster, excellent education, someplace that is definitely off the radar screen for a lot of students but it shouldn’t be. This is a high value education and it deserves more attention.

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The post Denison University: Hands-On Education first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

Great College Advice

The post Ohio Wesleyan University: Oh-Woo! first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

According to the Colleges That Change Lives website, these are schools that have:

• Low student-to-faculty ratios
• Classes taught by professors
• Commitment to undergraduate education
• Undergraduate research opportunities
• A residential living and learning component
• Small student enrollments
• Out of classroom learning experiences
• Holistic admissions
• Strong alumni networks.

Go listen to representatives from these colleges as they share their learning components and the latest research on campus characteristics during a panel discussion.

After the panel presentation you can attend a college fair with these schools where you will be able to collect information from, and speak directly with, admission representatives. The CTCL events are free to the public, and pre-registration is not required.

To find the date and location of a CTCL program near you please visit https://www.ctcl.org/events/program

For more about CTCL and a list of the colleges that are included please visit https://www.ctcl.org/about/ctcl 

Mark Montgomery
Expert Educational Consultant

The post Mark Your Calendars For The "Colleges That Change Lives" first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

Check out this video.

Mark Montgomery
Educational Consultant
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Here’s the transcript if you’d like to read it:

I’m here right now on the campus of Ohio Wesleyan University. This is a Methodist – traditionally Methodist university in Delaware, Ohio, which is just north of Columbus. Ohio Wesleyan University is a nice mix of Liberal Arts, and Business, and Pre-Professional Education; about 2,000 students. So it’s a very nice, intimate, little campus.

Ohio Wesleyan has a reputation for being a party school, and it’s true that it has a very important fraternity and sorority program of Greek life here. The administration is often trying to rein the Greek system in and make sure that alcohol use is under control. But I think it would be unfair to say that Ohio Wesleyan is a party school. I think pretty much every campus in America is a party school in one way or another.

There are somewhere alcohol plays a relatively minor role, but really any campus is going to have alcohol available. So, for the student who makes good choices – I think that’s what we have to think about when we’re thinking about party schools. Are students prepared and able to make good choices once they arrive on a college campus?

Now, if a student is unable to make those choices and is turned loose, shall we say, on campus, whether it’s Ohio Wesleyan or any other university campus in America. Yes, they’re going to make some bad choices and end up getting fined and maybe put on probation, as Ohio Wesleyan sometimes does. But really, if you make good choices, if you remember that college is about your education and not just about partying. Then you’re going to get a great education at a place like Ohio Wesleyan.

Now, opportunities are terrific. There are small class sizes and really good relationships with professors. The opportunities are here. But the opportunities also are here for getting into trouble. So that’s really the case at any college campus.

As you’re making choices about which school? Yes, you can decide whether you want the Greek system or whether you don’t want the Greek system. But what you really need to decide is, how are you going to stay on track academically and achieve your goals educationally. So that that will propel you into your future?

The post Ohio Wesleyan University–Where Greek Life Dominates the Social Scene first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

The post McDaniel–A High Quality, High Value Liberal Arts Education first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

• Low student-to-faculty ratios that foster collaboration, engaged learning, and personal attention. Classes are taught by professors, not TAs.

• A commitment to undergraduate education that focuses on the liberal arts and sciences. Opportunities for undergraduate research are prevalent.

• A living and learning environment that is primarily residential and emphasizes the benefits of community, personal growth, participation, and involvement.

• Smaller student enrollments that allow students to be known and recognized as individuals.

• Out-of-classroom learning opportunities that provide students with an added perspective about themselves, their interests, and the global community. Participation in internships, study abroad, service to others, and special interest activities is common and expected.

• Holistic admission policies including several with “test-optional” applications for admission. These schools take into consideration everything about an applicant—not just their numbers on an application.

• Alumni networks that help graduates with professional and career development opportunities as well as foster lifelong friendships based on an involved and engaged undergraduate student experience.

• For many talented and motivated students, CTCL colleges provide the ideal living and learning environment for students to meet and exceed their own expectations for personal intellectual growth—indeed, an experience that changes lives.

The post Colleges That Change Lives Comes to Denver first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

Katherine Price
Educational Consultant

The post Colleges That Change Lives first appeared on College Admission Counseling.

1. What is the “course load” for faculty members? How many undergraduate courses is each faculty member expected to teach every year? Is this number the same for all departments, or does it vary by discipline?
2. What percentage of courses is taught by adjunct or part-time faculty? Is this percentage the same across departments, or do some departments rely on part-timers more than others?
3. What percentage of courses has a waiting list? How does the college (or the individual department) determine who gets off the waiting list and when?
4. How many campus lecture halls seat 100 students? 50 students? 500 students? How many seminar rooms are there? What is the ratio of lecture halls to seminar rooms?
5. How small must a class be before it is canceled by the administration?
6. What is the most popular course on campus (or in your department)? Is enrollment in this course capped? Who gets in, and who doesn’t?

As you ask these questions, you should not permit admissions people to give vague answers. They will hem and haw. They will will be imprecise.
But these figures do exist on campus, and they exist in the office of institutional research. The administrators in this office crunch the numbers. They have the facts. If you really want to know this information, you need to ask to be put in touch with someone in institutional research who can provide this information to you.
Still, you must not focus solely on the statistics. Every educational institution has administrative problems like the ones cited at Dartmouth in my previous post. You will never be able to guarantee that your son or daughter will not be shut out of a class. You will not be able to ensure that every course he or she takes is a gem.
But if you dig deeply enough, you may be able to figure out how forthcoming and honest the faculty and administration is about these difficulties, and you will learn how they are working to solve them.
Mark Montgomery
Independent College Consultant and
Former College Administrator

The post Quality of the Educational Experience: Questions to Ask Admissions Officers first appeared on College Admission Counseling.