Resources to Save You from
College Admissions Madness

Select the resources you want, then click “download” at the bottom of the page.

A guide for parents on what's helpful and what's not when your kid is writing their Common Application. In addition to the 7 sections of the application covered in this resource, the Common Application is offering an additional optional essay section, so students have an opportunity to share how COVID-19 impacted them. Lean in to help your student think more deeply about the true personal impact of all the pandemic-driven upheaval. Then lean out to give him space to record it in writing.

If your high school requires an AP exam for your child to earn credit for a high school AP class, it benefits your child to take it, and so they should. If the high school does not require taking an AP exam to earn credit for an AP class, it is ultimately up to you if you want to invest $95 and your child wants to invest four hours of their life plus study time to take one. Here are some helpful tips for making that decision.

This chart reveals what all those abbreviations like ED and RD mean, as well as approximately when each type of application is due and when your child will be notified.

…plus a bonus Student Checklist For A Letter Of Continued Interest. This year, colleges may offer more spots from waitlists than in the past. You may have heard that colleges want to see that your child saved the world from global pandemic with her extra time during quarantine; not so! Download these student checklists, and feel your stress melt away.

Here’s the recipe for my favorite cake of all time, the one I requested from my mom (Celia) at every birthday growing up. You cannot dry out this cake, and it contains no nuts for those of us who are allergic. We all deserve moist, cinnamon yumminess with the world as it is right now.

My colleague, Natalie Borrell, a school psychologist and academic life coach for teens, has graciously offered to us her expert tips because not one of us expected online school this semester (combined with our teenager's assessment that the paper due tomorrow will only take a few minutes and can surely wait until after dinner, binge-watching TV, and Zoom chatting). Thank you, Natalie!

Please share this download plus the guidelines I provide in College Admissions Cracked (starting on p.175) with your student who is doing all this writing!

Please take this pledge:

1. I promise beverages will be available (morning java, evening wine, afternoon tea, or anything else comforting) during this discussion.
2. I understand we all need a safe space away from the outside world’s judgments and therefore promise to be perpetually kind and supportive of all my fellow travellers on the college admissions journey.
3. I will proudly wear my Parenting Medal of Valor (metaphorically speaking) at all times (see p.185).

Now you may download!

...with a bonus Thank-You Note Checklist (you’re welcome).

You can print this out and place it under your child’s nose a week (or the night or an hour) before a college interview. I’m a parent too, so I’ve added a Thank-You Note Checklist for Students hoping that the directive to write a note after the interview will seem like a “suggestion” from me instead of nagging from you. The book includes more such student checklists, but hopefully, this will help you get started.

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...will calculate for you, so you don’t have to do math!

You can use this tool to compare college costs either before your child applies or after notifications roll in. Erika and I have added some dummy numbers to show you how it's done. Substitute your own numbers into the calculator. I’m going to throw in Erika’s Fruit Crisp recipe for comfort in case you have either math anxiety (like I do) or stress about the formidable cost of college (don't we all).