Advice for coping with the thin envelope

We've been there, we've worked with a bunch of kids who didn't get in where they wanted, and we're still out here pounding the pavement on your behalf...so if you're dealing with the disappointment of not getting in...here are a few coping strategies.

1. There's still time. Sure, not with your A-list school, but there are TONS of colleges with rolling admissions dates that go well into the Spring. LIKE MAY AND JUNE.

2. Learn about something called "transferring." NOT transferring to another school, but transferring the negative energy into something else. Seriously - you've spent all this time working on this activity and joining this group - all to try to get in, and what did it get you? Take a step back and get involved in something that YOU want to do. Even if that means reading a book you've always wanted to read and couldn't because it's not on the approved reading list.

3. While we're on the "transfer" subject...A lot of students don't get in the first time around, go spend their first year somewhere else, re-apply after kicking royal hiney, and get in as a transfer. (I've got a good friend who tried this approach at Colgate and it worked.)

4. Think Canada. I am not paid by the Canadian Government. But there are great schools up north -- your application is still welcome at lots of them and a bunch of American students come back after 4 years and it's like they've lived abroad.

5. TAKE A YEAR OFF. My wife did the gap year thing before it was even called that. She was a Rotary Exchange Student and, funny enough, she didn't get into her first or second or even third choice of country. She was a high school graduate and didn't fit the traditional mold (most students take maybe their Junior or Senior year in this program, not do it after high school) they stuck her in a place that wasn't even on her list. Brazil. Changed her life forever. Mine too.

Finally, we're here to help. FREE HELP, PEOPLE. Sign up with U Sphere and use this code -- 9EF -- and your application ain't costing you nothin'. It's our way of trying to help make as many matches as we can.

Hang in there. The ride can suck sometimes, and can be absolutely phenomenal other times. And the in-between isn't bad.

EZ FAFSA?

And you thought "EZ" was just for eggs and rappers.

The House of Representatives has a couple bills being floated around that would make it, well, EZ-er to get Federal aid. Here's a link to one as well as a nice picture of a mustachioed gentleman who is also a Representative.

This is a lovely idea. So is a simplified tax code a lovely idea. But there are 99 problems with this whole process -- sorry, Jay-Z -- and here are some:

Profile. Actually, that would be a good rapper name. But it's a form that augments/replaces the FAFSA -- some schools PREFER it to the FAFSA. But it's not called the FREE Profile, it's just the Profile, and there's a cost attached. Like there's a cost attached to filing your taxes.

Sticker price vs. MSRP vs. actual cost. Sure it sounds like you're buying a car -- but the similarities are too obvious. When you walk into a Saturn dealership, you know what the car costs by looking at the sticker. When you apply to some schools -- Eureka College is a beautiful example -- you know exactly what you will pay based on certain performance parameters. They don't monkey with the sticker price or the MSRP. They discount the tuition up front -- 13K and change a year is the total price -- and it comes down based on a very obvious merit aid formula. Some public schools (Montana State, Kent State come to mind) have the same ideas in place. Bravo.

Oh yeah, transparency. I've yet to meet someone who understands this FAFSA stuff and how it works and whether EFC really has an impact on what you pay. But negotiating tuition and aid packages is a delicate matter -- families make one wrong step and the college of choice can penalize them.

Finally: why is it I know EXACTLY what I should pay for a brand new car -- I know the financing, I know what an advertising charge-back is -- but I'm completely in the dark when it comes to what my college or university is costing?

A couple online options to look at...

Schools that are either entirely online or are online properties of "brick-and-mortar-board" schools might be worth a look-see: especially if you're a non-traditional student.

Cornell has an electronic school (called, get this, eCornell).

Capella is everywhere -- literally and figuratively, what with their school being online and all. Ideal for working adults.

And Argosy has campuses all over the place.

OMG this is scary (or LOL managing your online life)

Christopher Penn, of the Financial Aid Podcast, has gotten permission of a colleague to take a look at all of her online lives, and he shares this information in the attached link.

This is frightening for anyone who spends any time on any of the sites like mySpace or Facebook or any of the countless others....

Link:

Does 740 constitute a trend?

That's the number of schools now reported by Fair Test that have made SATs, ACTs, and other standardized tests optional.

Denison University explains why, in a clip shared by Fair Test's Bob Schaeffer.

Of course, if students don't have to take tests, how can they get their names on lists of test-takers? That's a story for another day.

AND...U Sphere's Personality Profile

The Holistic Admissions question got us thinking about whether our own Personality Profile (TM) is holistic enough...love to get the U Sphere community's thoughts...do y'all think the below paints a good picture of the student and his/her body of work?

The U Sphere Personality Profile™

Please explain your personal "world view" in 10 words or less.

Detail a time when you were a "fish out of water." What did you learn from the experience? (50 words or less)

Do you play any musical instruments?

Give an example of a time when you were forced to try something new. (50 words or
less)

Where do you expect yourself to be in 10 years? (50 words or less)

How important is spirituality to you? (50 words or less)

Would you rather be a big fish in a small pond, or a small fish in a big pond? Please explain. (50 words or less)

If you were given a free ticket anywhere in the world, where would you go? How would you get there? What would you do? (50 words or less)

What is your favorite big word?

Do you have a favorite trivia question? If so, what is it? What's the answer?

If you could be the best in the world at one thing, what would it be?

What invention has changed your life for the better?
What invention has changed your life for the worse?

If you could have dinner with a famous person -- living or dead -- who would it be? Why? (50 words or less)

What one thing should people know about you?

Holistic at OSU (the one out West) with a twist on the essay

If you're off to college,http://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif kids, you probably dread the essay questions on the typical college application. And they're all the same, right?

No. Meet Oregon State University -- Corvallis, OR, and a school that hands out really cool orange pens at college fairs. Here are their essay questions (taken directly from their ):


"Insight Resume (Written Experiential Assessment)

OSU would like to better understand student perspectives, contributions, qualifications, and diverse talents. Students will be asked to address their experience in each category keeping in mind how they could contribute to the future community of excellence at OSU.

Students will be asked to respond to the six questions and limit answers to 100 words per question.

1. Leadership/Group Contributions: Describe examples of your leadership experience in which you have significantly influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time. Consider responsibilities to initiatives taken in or out of school.

2. Knowledge in a field/creativity: Describe any of your special interests and how you have developed knowledge in these areas. Give examples of your creativity: the ability to see alternatives; take diverse perspectives; come up with many, varied, or original ideas; or willingness to try new things.

3. Dealing with adversity: Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to address this challenge. Include whether you turned to anyone in facing that challenge, the role that person played, and what you learned about yourself.

4. Community service: Explain what you have done to make your community a better place to live. Give examples of specific projects in which you have been involved over time.

5. Handling systemic challenges: Describe your experiences facing or witnessing discrimination. Tell us how you responded and what you learned from those experiences and how they have prepared you to contribute to the OSU community.

6. Goals/task commitment: Articulate the goals you have established for yourself and your efforts to accomplish these. Give at least one specific example that demonstrates your work ethic/diligence."

We like it...it does look a little like the "Personality Profile" that you find on U Sphere's site. But it's also quite different.