Member View: Foster Acceptance in the New Year

iStock

A brand new year, a brand new you?

Across the country, millions of Americans are setting resolutions — vowing to build good habits and break bad ones over the next 12 months.

Hit the gym? Eat right? Unplug? All valid goals, says NACAC member Brennan Barnard.

But for college-bound students, he’d like to add one more to the list.

“In 2018, I am resolving to foster acceptance, and will encourage my students to do the same,” Barnard, who works at The Derryfield School (NH), wrote in a recent column published by The Huffington Post.

Continue reading Member View: Foster Acceptance in the New Year

Report: Enrollment Slide Continues in US Higher Ed

iStock

The number of students enrolled in postsecondary education fell for the sixth straight year, according to data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

Enrollments in US higher education dropped by 1 percent from fall 2016 to fall 2017, a loss of nearly 200,000 students. Notable decreases were recorded among first-time college students, which experienced an overall decline of 2.3 percent.

The decrease in the new-to-college category was seen among both traditional-aged and adult students.

Continue reading Report: Enrollment Slide Continues in US Higher Ed

Member View: Application Process Leaves Students Stretched Thin

iStock

NACAC member Nicholas Soodik has seen the trend with his own eyes.

As college acceptance rates have declined over the last decade, many students feel compelled to apply to more and more colleges. The shift has changed the application process for college-bound teens, and not necessarily for the better, Soodik noted in a recent column published by Inside Higher Ed.

“Students have to balance being successful high school seniors while working on college applications, many of which include supplemental writing sections,” writes Soodik, assistant director of college counseling at The Pingree School (MA). “The applications add stress, and we live in a cultural moment when anxiety diagnoses, rates of depression, and sleep deprivation among teens are rising. We ought to worry about how college applications contribute to these problems.”

Continue reading Member View: Application Process Leaves Students Stretched Thin

Report: Lack of Access to College Counselors Stymies Success for NYC Students

iStock

A lack of access to college counselors was cited as a major factor in a new report on New York City’s low college success rate.

Only 22 percent of students who enter community college associate degree programs at the City University of New York (CUNY) earn a degree in three years and just 55 percent of students enrolled in four-year CUNY programs finish after six years, according to the research.

Continue reading Report: Lack of Access to College Counselors Stymies Success for NYC Students

Testing Companies to Offer More Free Score Reports to Low-Income Students

iStock

New policies unveiled this week by ACT and The College Board will reduce the fees low-income students encounter in the college admission process.

Starting in September, students who use a fee waiver to register for the ACT will be able to send up to 20 free score reports to the institutions of their choosing. Previously, ACT test-takers were allotted only five free reports, with each additional transmission costing $13.

Under the new College Board policy — which goes into effect next spring — low-income students who take the SAT will be able to send unlimited score reports to colleges. Previously, low-income SAT test-takers were allotted up to eight free score reports, with additional transmissions costing $12 each.

Continue reading Testing Companies to Offer More Free Score Reports to Low-Income Students

Year in Review: ‘Admissions Live’ Will Examine the Top Trends of 2017

iStock

What a year it’s been!

Review the highs, the lows, and everything in-between Monday during a special year-end episode of Admissions Live.

Host Adam Castro will be joined by Eric Hoover, a senior writer at The Chronicle of Higher Education; and Jon Boeckenstedt, associate vice president of enrollment management and marketing at DePaul University (IL). Together, they’ll identify the topics that got professionals talking this year and discuss how those trends will impact the field in the future.

Continue reading Year in Review: ‘Admissions Live’ Will Examine the Top Trends of 2017

Regular updates on NACAC and the world of college admission counseling. For more information about NACAC, visit nacacnet.org.