Hi Reader,

Tomorrow is one of our favorite days of the year.

While many people view January 1st as a day to set goals, resolutions, and intentions for the new year, we believe August 1st is equally significant for students and families to reflect, plan, and set objectives for academic and personal growth.

For seniors, August 1st marks the opening of the Common Application and their official journey to applying to college, and that is something to celebrate! Over the next few weeks, our students—and your children—will begin to see all of their hard work come together as they load up their activities, accolades, and essays into their applications.

Our tips to seniors: stay organized, break down the to-do list into daily bite-sized pieces, find an accountability partner, take breaks - and celebrate accomplishments and wins along the way.

Our tips to parents of seniors: take a deep breath and offer to help - but ask first, "Do you want my help or advice, or just need me to listen?" is one of the best questions you can ask. And make sure to find a support system - student's aren't the only ones having big emotions these days!

Have questions about your child's journey? Join us in our Facebook group and ask away! And watch for our announcement about our brand new parenting membership!

For our juniors, August 1st marks the beginning of Phase 1 of their journey - research and discovery. We encourage our students to take time and stay curious, to ask lot of questions and take notes! This is their year to try new things - discover who they are becoming and who they want to be before building a list of colleges.

And parents of juniors (and underclassmen) - know that every student comes with their timeline. Some juniors are ready to jump into the process today; others, even the word college, will throw them off kilter. Know your child, understand their timelines, know that they will be ready when they are ready, and remember we are here for you - sign up for a free 30-minute consultation, and we can tell you how we can help!

Until next time,

Eydie, Rebecca, and Shweta

​

August is also a busy time for admissions offices as they gear up for fall open houses and planning their regional visits, so their annoucnements have been a bit slow this week. We did here from Stonehill College Admissions officers that students can join them on August 7th for an introductory session on navigating the Common Application and writing the college essay, followed by a campus tour. Their admission counselors will walk through the different sections of the Common Application, provide tips and best practices, and answer any questions about how to complete the application.

While colleges may not be hosting larger scale visits, many schools still have tours and information sessions - the best way to stay ontop of those is to have your child get on the mailing lists of schools they are interested in! But remind them they have to actually read those emails!

Join Washington University, Emory University, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Notre Dame August 13th to learn about their individual programs and admissions processes.
​
Or grab your computer and log on to hear from admissions officers from Yale, Harvard, Princeton, University of Virginia, and Wellesley College. Sign up:https://admission.virginia.edu/hpuwy​

Is your child applying to Hofstra from Massachusetts? There is a new admissions officer in your region. Contact Charlotte Fiordalisi if you have any questions about Hofstra!

The University of Vermont pairs aspiring journalists with local editors to write news stories at their Center for Community News. Check out a recent story about the center in Inside High Education's newsletter.

Make a big school smaller by finding your community of people with similar interests right away!

​The University of Wisconsin, Syracuse University, Northeastern University Boston College, Elon University and many others offer learning living communities where students live and learn with others who are interested in a specific academic, cultural or other insterest which helps with transition to school and helps to make a large university feel smaller and more intimate.

Check out this recent article in Inside Higher Education to learn more.