It is time to spring into action, regardless of the weather! We are offering you a college planning guide by grade. Are you ready to gain new financial knowledge that will come in handy when you send your child off on his/her upcoming college journey?We are experts in the field of college planning and can make the process flow smoothly for you. Because each family is different and you may have several children in different stages in school, we’ve divided the newsletter into sections organized by grade to help you go directly to the year your student is in. FRESHMAN YEAR If your student is in t ..read more

Where are those financial aid awards?  That’s a question we have been asking.  The FAFSA Simplification has really thrown a wrench into the planning aspect of finding the college that your student can succeed and you can afford.  The latest information from the Department of Education is that the schools should begin receiving student data the first part of March.  Financial Aid Awards will most likely follow a few weeks later.  There are a few of the changes in the calculations that may impact families. One change is multiple siblings in college.  In the past ..read more

“The Six Opinions That Actually MATTER While Your Child Prepares For The College Years” Preparing for college or university studies is a competitive process, in many ways. The simple fact is that the admissions process for better institutions and programs is a competitive one, because there are almost always more applicants than available positions for desirable schools. Because of this, we find that the preparation and application process can often take on a sometimes-unpleasant “edge” that really need not be there. Of course, the simple fact that we don’t like the tone of the process does no ..read more

Welcome to 2024! Each year we make resolutions, how many of us actually have kept those resolutions? From making healthy choices, learning a new language or adding a few thousand steps to our day, we all strive to be a bit better in the new year. Let us help you keep your financial and academic goals, we will coach you and in some cases, nag, until we get your plan solidified. For our college planning clients: We ask that you complete the initial spreadsheet from the welcome email. We ask that student athletes complete the profile form. If you are a senior, share the admissions acceptances an ..read more

“How To Link College Studies to Actual JOBS – Avoiding Unemployment After Graduation” One of the biggest challenges facing many college and university students today is not necessarily the substantial work of higher education itself – but the fear of what comes after graduation!  This is especially worrisome in a current economic climate which has large numbers of college students facing unemployment (or, equally as concerning, UNDER-employment) after the completion of their university studies.  After all, one of the main points of higher education is to prepare a young person f ..read more

  There’s a hitch in the financial aid process this year, to be honest, it is a bit of a mess. The Department of Education is updating the process. The change started a few years ago and it is taking a bit longer than anticipated to complete.  As of today, the FAFSA will be available sometime in December.  The new design will be streamlined.  We have asked our clients to get us the necessary information by October 15. One change in the process is the required verification for FSA usernames.  Previously usernames could be created as the form was being submitted, now the ..read more

                                                                                 “How To Get Colleges To Fight Over YOUR Student For Their Incoming Freshman Class” Setting up your child for college admissions success starts now.  The Common App opened on August 1, with over 1,000 colleges participating.  We work with families to determine the schools and application type that will b ..read more

“How To Find The Right College Or University For Your Child…And His/Her Interests” Dear Parent, We are pleased in this month’s newsletter to focus on something that counts among the most exciting parts of the college preparation process. Yes, it is actually true – not ALL of the preparation for college is stressful! In fact, if you work with a good college funding advisor it can become an exciting and inspiring time, indeed. With this in mind, we are pleased to provide you this month with some of our most valuable and helpful tips for selecting the optimal college or university for your child ..read more

“Organized, Extracurricular College Prep Activities:      What Are The Options?” For this month’s newsletter, we are pleased to present some of the extracurricular college prep options that could be worth considering for your child.  They are, after all, EXTRA-curricular.  Nothing is mandatory in this regard, but some of them could be helpful.  Costs will vary from almost nothing to rather significant, so consider all of the options available!  Remember also, if you have questions about these activities – or any others that you might come across – please feel ..read more

“Financial Skills That Your Future College Student (&parent) Should Be Developing Now” As college funding professionals it is absolutely imperative that we understand the college preparation experience from two specific perspectives.  The first is the academic admissions process itself, so that we can help students optimize their experience in higher education for the brightest future possible.  The second is the financial side of the process – without which the higher education experience is impossible to begin with! However, we have seen time and time again that, in order ..read more