SAT/ACT Q&A FOR CLASSES OF 2027 AND 2028 “It depends.” The changing landscape 1. Are colleges all going to require SAT or ACT now? Despite the headlines screaming that Harvard and MIT have returned to requiring testing for admissions, the majority of colleges remain test optional. According to FairTest, an organization that opposes standardized testing, 90 percent or more, over

Common App will close down at 5 p.m. ET on July 28 and reopen on August 1. Timing & logistics 1. Why does the Common App close every year? Common App performs a system refresh at the same time every year to transition from one admissions cycle to the next. It’s a routine, predictable process. They update deadlines for the

In just seven years, the admission rate at Northeastern University dropped from 28% to 5%, making it as selective as the Ivy League. Take a look at the chart below. Admit rate comparison 2017 to 2024 School 2017 Admit Rate 2024 Admit Rate 2017 SATmiddle 50% 2024 SATmiddle 50% 2024-25 CDSIn-state admit/out-of-state admit Northeastern 28% 5%  1330-1510 1460-1530 private UNC

Rosemary Martín Edwards, associate director of undergraduate admission at the University of Maryland, College Park, presented current information about UMD to the DC MIX group of HECA and IECA members on June 24, 2026. As usual, she delivered a wealth of information. By the numbers This year, Maryland at College Park had 69,000 applications for a freshman class of about

No, it’s not cheating to hire a college consultant.

In suburban Baltimore, you can hear the Tigers roar. First impressions: a campus in bloom When I visited Towson after the IECA conference in May, I was struck by all the greenery. In fact, there’s an arboretum in the middle of the campus. Buildings look well maintained and some are quite new, like the new Health Professions Building, which houses

I spotted a deer in the woods as our bus of counselors drove onto the Loyola University Maryland campus. Loyola is located within Baltimore city, in the upscale Roland Park community. It’s green and secluded even though it’s classified as urban. You’re a 20-minute drive from Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and 45 minutes from DC by train. Loyola serves just under

The address says Baltimore, but the campus says green.

I met Sister Jean! In October 2023, I met Sister Jean, the then-104-year-old nun of Loyola who became a video sensation as the men’s basketball chaplain rooting for the Ramblers courtside in the 2018 playoffs. She has an office in the student center with an open door, through which seven college advisers and I walked to say hello and snap

Also called an IEC (independent educational consultant) or college consultant Besides running my business of college consulting, I used to work as a writing tutor at my local community college. The Writing Center helps students with application and transfer essays as well as their written assignments for the community college. Let me tell you about two students who came to