Archive for the ‘Admissions’ Category

The standard college rejection letter announces, “While you are a qualified applicant, we regret to inform you that we are unable to offer you admission.”

However, the rejected student often reads a subtext into the letter: “You are not good enough. You are not getting into this amazing college that would have changed your life.”

Allison Singh, 37, understands that reaction. That is how she felt when Princeton rejected her 20 years ago. She nursed her wounds until she realized that she ultimately benefited from the loss.

So, when a high school friend asked her to help her boss’ daughter deal with a rejection by her dream college, Singh composed a long email that began, “I was crushed when I wasn’t accepted to my first-choice college. I felt like a failure and was angry that all of my hard work hadn’t been enough for admission.”

But Singh ended the email with, “But slowly, I gave my school and my classmates a chance, and gave myself a break…I came out of …

Continue reading Dealing with college rejection: Students can get over not getting in »

UPDATED a 11:45 a.m with news that Luella High in Henry also has twins in the top slots.

UPDATED at 2 p.m with news that triplets took the top three slots at Upson-Lee High School.

UPDATED at 3:34 p.m. with news that twins took the top honors at Franklin High School.

Bill Maddox of the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education pointed me to these two news story, which he thought were worth noting. I agree. The valedictorians and salutatorians at Grovetown High School in Columbia County and at Clarke Central High in Athens are twins.

In addition, I am awaiting details from Henry County where twin brothers are the valedictorian and salutatorian at Luella High School. Sheldon C. Scoggins  is valedictorian; his brother Brennan M. Scoggins is salutatorian.

I just confirmed a twin valedictorian/salutatorian at Franklin High School. According to principal Wayne Randall, Scout Josey is valedictorian and her sister Kate is salutatorian. They are the twin daughters of Ricky …

Continue reading Triplets and four sets of twins take the very top honors at their Georgia high schools. »

Most metro Atlanta seniors must make their college choices tomorrow. (AP Images.)

My niece from New Jersey is on a plane now flying south for a one day visit to a college that accepted her into its prestigious pharmacy program. She had been planning on attending a college closer to home but had last-minute doubts and decided to make this trip since she had not seen this one last school.

The reason for her rushed visit: Like thousands of students in metro Atlanta, she has to commit tomorrow to the college of her choice.

I would love to see her come South, although I have no idea whether the college is a match for her.

I feel for my brother who was scurrying yesterday to find low-cost flights to Charlotte, but I think it’s important to see a college at least once. Two years ago, my oldest son spent the last weekend of April ricocheting from a college in New York to one in Ohio, neither of which he had visited before applying but both of which had a lot of the elements he wanted …

Continue reading Tomorrow is D-day for seniors: Deciding which college to attend »

President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are now speaking at Fort Stewart, Ga., about abuses in the for-profit college sector, which is getting an increasing share of veteran education dollars, often through deceptive marketing.

Obama described one for-profit college recruiter who visited brain-injured Marines at Camp Lejeune and enrolled them in courses.

“They are trying to swindle and hoodwink you,” said Obama. “Here at Fort Stewart, we are putting an end to it.”

He then outlined the content of an executive order that will require more disclosure from the colleges

Here is a good AP story on the issue from AJC.com:

The Obama administration wants to trademark the term “GI Bill” in an effort to shield veterans and military families being swindled or misled by schools that target their federal education benefits.

President Barack Obama is signing a wide-ranging order on Friday that partially addresses growing complaints about fraudulent marketing and recruiting practices …

Continue reading Obama at Fort Stewart: Many for-profit colleges “are trying to swindle and hoodwink you.” »

Many students around the country have marched for the Dream Act, which remains in limbo. (AP Photo)

A modified version of the Dream Act is being pushed by a Republican senator from Florida who’s been mentioned as a possible candidate for vice president. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio wants to break the logjam around the controversial legislation that would give children of illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.

The bill faces resistance from the GOP, but it is an election year and the Hispanic vote may be critical.

According to The New York Times:

The compromise would grant students who are the children of illegal immigrants a new kind of nonimmigrant visa that would let them live in this country legally for a period of time. They could work, drive and pay taxes. He would also grant nonimmigrant visas to the graduates of colleges and trade schools, enabling them to stay here and work.

The proposal would not grant them green cards, giving them permanent residency, which sets it …

Continue reading Could a modified Dream Act pass GOP muster in an election year? »

A Georgetown University freshman has a compelling essay in the Washington Post on how poorly his schools, among Washington’s finest, did not prepare him for the demands of a highly selective college.

Darryl Robinson attended the Cesar Chavez Public Charter School for Public Policy, a well regarded prep school in the District where getting accepted to a college or university is a prerequisite for graduation. But Darryl says he still found a gap between what he could do and what his better-prepared classmates could do. He explains that his high school teachers did not push him “to think past a basic level, to apply concepts, to move beyond memorizing facts and figures.”

But Darryl understands the struggle that his teachers and now his Georgetown professors faced — playing catch-up with students who arrive in their classes ill prepared to handle the workload.

Darryl did not give up, crediting twice-weekly tutoring and regular sessions with his professors with helping him …

Continue reading Even the “best” schools didn’t prepare him for college, but he refused to give up »

Communities that buy lottery tickets at a high rate get the least return from HOPE, according to a new study. (AJC file)

Today’s guest entry is by Taifa S. Butler, deputy director of the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, a nonpartisan nonprofit providing research and analysis of the state budget and impact of policy decisions.

The institute released a report today on the HOPE Scholarship. The report — “HOPE for Whom: For Some it Doesn’t Pay to Play the Georgia Lottery” — outlines a few of HOPE’s shortcomings and builds a case for the necessity of HOPE reform. Read it here.

By Taifa S. Butler

Georgia’s commitment to graduate 250,000 more college students by 2020 is a worthy goal — and a necessary one if the state wants to remain competitive in an economy that increasingly requires knowledgeable, highly skilled workers.

Ensuring that Georgians can afford to attend universities and technical colleges is a critical component of this effort. Financial hardship is the No. …

Continue reading Less HOPE for those who contribute larger share of their income to the lottery »

The SAT cheating scandal involving an Emory student has led to tougher security measures for test takers.

Last year,  the Nassau County district attorney charged Emory University student Sam Eshaghoff, who is from New York, with scheming to defraud, criminal impersonation and falsifying business records. The DA alleged that six students at Great Neck North High School in Long Island paid him as much as $2,500 to take the SAT in hopes of achieving a higher score.

Now, the test companies are taking steps to prevent such blatant cheating.

According to The New York Times:

Stung by a cheating scandal involving dozens of Long Island high school students, the SAT and ACT college entrance exams will now require students to upload photos when they sign up for the exams, and officials will check that image against the photo identification the students present when they arrive to take the test, the Nassau County district attorney said Tuesday.

The change was one of several …

Continue reading SAT cheating scandal involving Emory student leads to new rule about photo IDs »

The students admitted to Tech have grades and scores comparable to Ivy League admissions. (AJC File)

It’s that time of year when college admission letters go out, and Georgia Tech released some info today about its successful applicant pool for the class of 2016

It’s a deep pool and quite similar to the caliber of student admitted to Ivy League colleges.

According to the AJC: The high school seniors admitted to Tech have an average grade point average of 3.9 and a 1430 out of 1600 on the math and verbal SAT.

By high school graduation these students would have taken an average of eight college-level courses, such as Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate.

About 14,700 students applied for one of the 2,400 spots for fall or the 250 spots for this summer.

AJC higher ed reporter Laura Diamond sent me some more details to share with Get Schooled readers:

If you want to consider the 2400 SAT base, the Tech average was 2105. Also, when Tech reviews applications, there …

Continue reading To get into Tech, stakes, scores and grades are higher »

At a Georgia State rally in support of the Dream Act, police order students to move. Six students were arrested at the August protest. (M. Martinez/mundohispanico)

The Wall Street Journal reports that the “titans” of Silicon Valley are coming to the aid of undocumented students who want to attend college in the United States, a dream that is being derailed by state legislatures intent on limiting access to their public colleges, including those in Georgia.

On Monday, the state Senate approved a bill that would bar illegal immigrants from attending all of Georgia’s 60 public colleges, the 35 colleges in the University System of Georgia and the 25 in Technical College System of Georgia.

If Senate Bill 458 becomes law, Georgia would join Alabama and South Carolina in barring undocumented students from its public college classrooms.

According to the AJC, Sen. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville, said his bill guarantees that taxpayer-supported colleges only serve citizens and …

Continue reading Tech leaders lend a hand to undocumented students who dream of college »