college applications

On Thursday April 4, Aristotle Circle held a “Meet the Experts” event in Montgomery County, MD. The attending Aristotle Circle Experts covered everything from college admissions to scholarships to writing essays while providing invaluable information.

The goal of the event was to invite parents and students to learn best practices in college selection, SAT vs. ACT, financial aid, leadership activities, personal essay statements, resumes, and more from Aristotle Circle’s top Admissions Experts.

Our College Admissions Experts can help you perfect your applications no matter what stage of the process you are on. Contact us if you are interested in scheduling a consultation with one of our experts. Just one hour of application review can make all the difference!

Aristotle Circle expert Dr. Dean S. explores the last minute things that applicants must double check before they send their college applications off.

Documents to have ready when you fill out the FAFSA:

Filling out financial aid forms like the FAFSA can become a hassle and take a while. However, if you have the documents you need to fill out the form before hand, the process can become much simpler and quicker. Here’s a list of documents you will need to fill out the FAFSA.

• Your child’s Social Security Card/Number, permanent resident card, or alien registration card.
• Drivers License, if you own one. (Students)
• 2010 W-2 forms, pay stubs, and any other records of money earned.

For families and students who have completed the first round of early applications it may feel like you are just waiting for the decision, however there are still a number of things about the college admissions process you should be thinking about.

Good follow-up techniques

• Send "thank you" notes to anyone on campus that you met with
• Update the school if you have new test scores, new awards or other achievements
• Correspond with any coaches or professors at your first choice school in your interest areas

Running behind on your early application? This year because many homes across the northeast lost power, colleges have extended the early decision deadlines for students.

You can find a list of all the new deadlines by school here.

Among the schools that allowed for an extended deadline are:

• Cal-Tech: Now November 5, 2011
• Columbia University: Now November 4, 2011
• Cornell University: Now November 3, 2011

There are some questions about college that students have that just can’t seem to be answered by peers, teachers, or even online forums. Recently, some of my friends and I came up with several questions to ask experts on college admissions and Ivy League Schools about the college process.

What can I do in high school to get ready for college?

Over and over again you will hear that universities are looking for students who are unique - and yet most successful candidates will also match the criteria of good grades, high test scores and experience with classes at a certain level of academic rigor.

College admissions teams use the letters of recommendation to get to know you as person beyond your in class grades and list of activities. Often a well-written letter of recommendation can go a long way to demonstrating:

• what type of student you are
• how involved you have been in the culture of your high school
• how good you are at interacting with adults
• what your value and aspirations are
• providing a context to your accomplishments

Many students are faced with the challenge of knowing that colleges are looking for community service on the application but not being sure what about community service experience is going to make you stand out and be unique. Not everyone can travel abroad to a remote location

When you are evaluating your options for community service consider these three qualities:

By Heather R.
It’s September, and you are finally a high school senior! By now, you have toured campuses, taken the ACT and SAT tests and are deciding where you want to apply to college. It’s now time to face the task of completing college applications and essays. More and more colleges are requiring essays as a way to get to know applicants beyond grades, co-curricular activities, and standardized test scores. The essay allows admissions staff members, who may read through hundreds of applications, to find out if an applicant can express himself or herself clearly and grammatically, and to learn about the prospective student as an individual. The essay may be the one time, you as a student, can differentiate yourself from other applicants. The essay should provide a personalized glimpse into the life and background of you, the student writer.