Hire a Good College Admissions Consultant

Test prep, course tutoring, college visits ... now college consulting? Where does the list of misc. higher ed costs end??

Gone are the days when motivated high schoolers could easily apply, matriculate, and work their way through college without outside assistance.

No pre-college expense is more worthwhile than that involved in hiring a good college admissions consultant. Applying for a seat in an institute of higher learning these days is practically a Herculean effort, fraught with costly mistakes to make if one is unfamiliar with the territory, inexpert in assessing various pros and cons, or even slightly disposed toward disorganization, procrastination, anxiety, or forgetfulness.

As is generally the case in hiring professionals, a trusted personal recommendation is worth gold. In the "College Admission" section of the Professional Referrals page in the Resources section of my business site are listed several excellent college counselors whom I endorse. One can also find a college consultant though HECA and NACAC, two reputable national professional groups.

It's best to begin work with a college admissions counselor during a student's sophomore year in high school (or earlier); if possible, parents should research various options and have a consultant lined by the end of freshman year.

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borlandeducational.com

Copyright © 2006-present: Christopher R. Borland. All rights reserved.

Return of the Daily Quiz

A regimen of low-stakes testing in class – and self-quizzing (reciting notes from memory) while studying – vastly improves learning outcomes and makes high-stakes testing far less daunting.

So says professor Henry L. Roediger III, author of the well-reviewed "Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning" and an intriguing NYT article on the subject.

This certainly reflects my own experience as a student and teacher. The effort required to recall information does seem to exercise critical brain functions, improve intelligence, and promote academic success in a number of important ways. Well-established learning models like SQ3R and Cornell Notes are classic implementations of this idea.

Though out of fashion pedagogically for some time, memorization is an essential element of learning and an important part of what students should be doing during school hours and while studying at home.

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Contact Chris

borlandeducational.com

Copyright © 2006-present: Christopher R. Borland. All rights reserved.

The Rite of College Visitation

Given the tremendous importance of the decision involved, it's crucial to conduct purposeful college visits prior to acceptance of any offer of admission.

Students and parents should be convinced that the choice of institution is the best available for the particular student and family involved, and no amount of online data or guidebook information can take the place of personally setting foot on campus, examining facilities, talking with students and professors, taking the tour, checking out the dorms, sitting in on classes, and tasting the food.

The Princeton Review has published an excellent short article covering the basics of the rite of college visitation. Brennan Barnard, Deerfield's Director of College Counseling, offers his two cents on the subject in a NYT article, here.

As if higher education weren't already expensive enough, now you've got to fly out to trod the quad in person? Yes, indeed, you do.

College trips before matriculation are an essential part of the cost of college nowadays, helping to ensure that the major investment of time, money, and energy required will be most productively spent.

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Contact Chris

borlandeducational.com

Copyright © 2006-present: Christopher R. Borland. All rights reserved.

Two Dynamite Questions

Dave Denman, an expert educational consultant and long-time colleague, gave me a tip many years ago that was one of the best study nuggets I’d ever heard.

During or after completing your homework in a given class (say, history), think of two "dynamite questions" to ask your teacher the following day, about the general topic you’re currently discussing in class. Make these questions interesting, not run of the mill, but as thought provoking as possible. Jot these questions down in your notes.

Then, at an appropriate time during class the next day, be sure to ask your teacher these two questions!

Asking thoughtful questions is one of the best ways to make the class more relevant and interesting to other students, and doing so will certainly get you noticed by your instructor. In addition, coming up with these questions in the first place gets you thinking more deeply about the material you’re learning in class and therefore tends to make it more interesting and memorable to you. Teachers always greatly appreciate and respect students who ask great questions, especially those who make a habit of doing so on a regular basis. These students are obviously taking a special interest in the class, and nothing makes a teacher’s day like students who consistently put forth the effort to ask insightful, probing questions.

Although it only takes a couple of extra minutes to do so, recording and then asking dynamite questions really livens up class time, makes your teacher’s job a whole lot easier and more enjoyable, and goes a long way to making any class more fun and interesting for you and your fellow classmates.

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Contact Chris

borlandeducational.com

Copyright © 2006-present: Christopher R. Borland. All rights reserved.

Memorize The Quadratic Formula ... In Seconds

Ah ... the venerable Quadratic Formula. Algebra students everywhere have to memorize this well known formula for solving quadratic equations of the form: ax² + bx + c = 0.

Many students in early algebra courses lose critical test and quiz points just because they haven't yet fully committed the Quadratic Formula to memory.

I recently came across a brilliant way to do so almost effortlessly ... a memory trick so sublimely ridiculous I couldn't help but think of the famous line: "This is so crazy ... it just might work."

(Sung slowly to the tune of "Pop Goes the Weasel")

"X is equal to negative B

Plus or minus the square root

Of B squared minus 4AC

ALL

Over 2A."

Silly.

Effective.

Try it!

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Contact Chris

borlandeducational.com

Copyright © 2006-present: Christopher R. Borland. All rights reserved.