After completing a rigorous program in independent educational consulting at University of California, Irvine, Karen Hott has been granted associate membership in the Independent Educational Consultants Association. The organization’s mission is “to promote the highest quality independent educational consulting to
How to Ask Your Teachers for Recommendations–
Without Annoying Them by Karen A. Hott, Two Bridges College Consulting August 2019 As a former teacher of AP English Language and Composition at a large public high school, I was frequently asked to write college recommendations for
Stetson U. in DeLand, FL
An ethos of service The really brief version: Stetson University is a small liberal arts and sciences school between Orlando and Daytona Beach, Florida. The most striking thing about it to me is its public service ethos, which comes across
Small College or Big U?
Pros: Because small colleges usually have few or even no graduate programs, the focus is squarely on the undergraduates. Teachers are more student-oriented than research-oriented, and classes are taught by professors, not TAs. Class sizes will be smaller, even in the
Pros, Cons of Gap Year
The pros and cons of taking a year off between high school and college, a.k.a. “taking a gap year” Pros: If done intentionally and with clear purpose, taking a gap year can be a year of growth and fulfillment. You can
Look into Hood College
Frederick, Maryland Students who go to Hood College, with 1,100 undergraduates and 1,000 graduates, get the personal touch that only a small school can give. Admissions counselor Ryan DiGirolamo, a former newspaper student of mine, found his place in Frederick,
College Visits 2019
Since January of this year, I have personally visited and talked to admissions representatives at 19 schools; by the end of August, that will be 20. Here are the schools I’ve visited: In Florida: Eckerd College University of South Florida,
Common App to open August 1
Site will be closed July 28-31.
SAT “Adversity Score”
You may have heard about the SAT’s new “adversity score.” College Board calls it the Environmental Context Dashboard, and it does not affect the student’s actual SAT score. It’s an attempt to contextualize a student’s score by providing colleges with
What Colleges Want to See
According to a survey of independent educational consultants, this is what colleges want to see in applications: a high school transcript that reflects rigor and challenge high grade point average in major subjects, though slightly lower grades in AP or