No new events scheduled at this time.
Summary of Past Events
College Planning Essentials -3 Key Principles You Can Begin Using Today!
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
5:00 to 6:30 PM
Centerville, Massachusetts
Learn how to predict what college could actually cost your family. Hint: it's about demystifying how colleges make admission, financial aid, and scholarship decisions. --And, given it's March, learn how to apply this information as students select courses for next year.
21st CENTURY COLLEGE PLANNING: Getting In & Paying the Bill
Thursday, February 11, 2016
6:30 to 8:00 pm
19 Northbrook Drive, Falmouth, ME (off Route 1).
Attend a FREE workshop to learn how to plan for the financial aspects of college by paying close attention to your child's admissions outlook as well as your own retirement needs. Features panel discussion with Bill McMurray, M.Ed of College Search U and Michael Goldman MA CFP of Goldman Financial Planning. For parents of college-bound (middle and high school aged) children.
CLICK HERE for complete details and to RSVP!
IT'S COLLEGE MYTH BUSTER NIGHT on Sept 22nd at 7:00 pm!
How do you know your college essay is good enough? Does applying “early” really matter? Will your grades affect the amount of financial aid you might receive?
Come to College Myth Busters Night on Tuesday, September 22nd (7:00 to 8:30 p.m.) at the Scarborough Municipal Building and learn answers to these and other questions from Bill McMurray and Kathy Strand of College Search U. The objective of the evening is to save high school seniors (and juniors/sophomores wanting a jump start) TIME, MONEY & SANITY as they prepare their applications and finalize their college list. Parents are also encouraged to attend this FREE workshop offered to the Greater Portland community.
Why the focus on BUSTING MYTHS? Because it’s clear in our work/research, and in following the media and professional/governmental studies, that our society is caught in a trap of some deeply believed, but wrong assumptions about college and the admission process. Acting according to these myths costs families significant time, emotional energy, and money each year. Moreover, the energy invested in pursuing myth-based college searches causes students to miss discovering colleges that represent better fit options. This is why, as we adhere to the best practices of our profession, we explain the realities of the college admission process and debunk the myths to individual students and parents.
- How do colleges strategically use financial aid and merit scholarships in enrolling students?
- What are the most important terms to understand amid the alphabet soup of EFC, COA, IM, FM, GAP, etc.?
- Why is knowing your "EFC" as early in the process as possible important in ensuring that your list of colleges includes financial/affordable options?
- What are some strategies families can take to reduce the financial unpredictability of the college search and selection process?
- Read/evaluate sample applications and make decisions as an admission committee.
- Learn how colleges' institutional priorities can affect admission policies and practices.
- Discover which elements are in/out of an applicant’s control and how he/she can put the best foot forward through the application.
- Develop a deeper understanding of how selective admission works and how to avoid some of the common pitfalls.
There will be plenty of time for Q & A on all evenings. Feel free to email your questions ahead of time to: info@CollegeSearchU.com.
For more information, email info@CollegeSearchU.com.
ABOUT THE PRESENTERS:
Bill and Kathy bring nearly 45 years of combined experience in higher education and college admissions to the families they advise through College Search U, a completely independent, unbiased college counseling service. Their insider perspective, gained from reviewing and making decisions on tens of thousands of applications, is invaluable to students and their parents as they navigate this increasingly complicated, nuanced, and hype-laden process.
- What are the statistics/numbers that everone focuses on as they enter the college search?
- What are the statistics that really don't matter when it comes to the search for the right fit school?
- What are your personal "admission statistics" and how can you use them to shape your search for the right fit college for you?
- How can you maximize your remaining time in high school, in terms of both the college admission process AND your personal fulfillment?
- What are some of the key statistics that college admission offices focus on improving each year?
- What other types of institutional priorities drive enrollment policies and practices at colleges and universities?
- How do enrollment managers utilize data on applicants to make decisions?
- How do enrollment management decisions consider and/or ignore the concerns of individual students?
How Colleges Make Admission Decisions:
- read/evaluate sample applications and make decisions as an admission committee.
- learn how colleges' institutional priorities can affect admission policies and practices.
- discover which elements are in/out of an applicant’s control and how he/she can put the best foot forward through the application.
- develop a deeper understanding of how selective admission works and how to avoid some of the common pitfalls.
