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

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

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 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

They almost named their mascot the Moss. The rainy, cool climate of Portland provides the prime conditions for moss to grow everywhere at Lewis & Clark College. It’s on the cobblestone walks, the rock walls, the branches and trunks of trees about to bloom. But the L&C colors are orange and black, so the bright green of the moss wouldn’t

Recommendation Etiquette by Karen Anne Hott I’m an independent educational consultant and the founder of Two Bridges College Consulting. Before going into college advising, I taught AP English Language & Composition, standard and honors English, journalism, and newspaper production in a Maryland public high school. Today I love working with students on their college searches, applications, and essays, facilitating the

Congratulations! You made it through those exhausting AP exams. Now it’s time to take a break and reward yourself with some self-care. Pat yourself on the back. Acknowledge what an accomplishment this is. You took hard courses, stuck with it, and took the end-of-course assessment. Sounds like you’re ready for college. Meditate to singing bowls. Tibetan singing bowls make a

I visited Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, over two fresh spring days in April as part of a counselor fly-in event. The redbud trees were in full dark-pink bloom and the oaks were just leafing out. If you really want to be seen for who you are, to have support to lift you to your highest potential, and to have

As we turned into the broad green lawn of Reed College in Portland, red brick buildings with limestone accents around doors and windows in Tudor Gothic style greeted the busload of 40 counselors touring five Pacific Northwest liberal arts colleges. A city with character Portland, Oregon, is known for its progressive ethos and its abundance of food trucks. It sits