Academics
The Hazards of Brainiacs on College Campuses
I’ve often wondered why colleges and universities are so fixated on admitting students with extremely high SAT or ACT scores. Some of these teenagers only excel at taking tests and earning top grades, which can lead to awfully uninspiring young adults. I’ve heard admission folks privately lament that kids with high test scores can be […]
21Nov2010 | Lynn | 1 comment | Continued
Attending College With Too Many Rich Kids
When I talk to California teenagers who are interested in attending college outside of the state, their preferred destination is usually the East Coast. As a native Midwesterner it is disheartening that so many Californian teenagers dismiss so much of the country as simply real estate that makes flights from California to New York or […]
19Nov2010 | Lynn | 5 comments | Continued50 Top Colleges for Science & Engineering PhDs
I flew up to the Bay Area yesterday to give a college talk to a group of affluent families. I was told that some of the parents in the audience worked for Google, Facebook and other high-tech goliaths. Not all of their children, however, are necessarily as smart as they are. I expect that having […]
18Nov2010 | Lynn | 0 comments | Continued
Is Your Smart Child Being Left Behind?
How many times have your read news accounts about American students lagging behind countless other countries in academic achievement? In a recent standardized test of math proficiency, we’re way behind Taiwan (No. 1), Hong Kong (No. 2) and Korea (No. 3), but wait. We can’t even compete with the likes of Slovenia and the Slovak […]
16Nov2010 | Lynn | 0 comments | Continued
6 Tips for Performing and Visual Art Majors
In my college blog post last week for US News & World Report, I wrote about students who want to major in the performing and visual arts. Here it is…. If your child wants to major in musical theater or some other performing art, go ahead and blame it on Glee, American Idol or America’s […]
14Nov2010 | Lynn | 1 comment | Continued
University of Chicago’s Ego
I had lunch today with a dear friend whose son hopes to be attending the University of Chicago in the fall. This is a kid from Southern California who fell in love with the institution when he visited. Taylor, I changed his name, applied early action to the University of Chicago and he remains optimistic […]
11Nov2010 | Lynn | 2 comments | Continued4 Reasons to Consider Canadian Universities
Ever thought about attending a Canadian university? A growing number of Americans are considering earning a college degree from up North. Actually, it’s not as far north as you might think because most Canadian universities are near the US border. There are some hidden academic jewels in Canada, which explains why you might be interested […]
20Oct2010 | Lynn | 5 comments | ContinuedLooking For Colleges In All the Right Places
Where do you begin a college search? When you research colleges, you’re going to want to find schools that will provide your teenagers with an excellent education and get them out the door in four years. But how do you even start such a daunting college search? Scattered around my blog, I’ve written plenty about […]
20Oct2010 | Lynn | 0 comments | Continued
Why High School Counselors Don’t Know Much About College
I spent yesterday afternoon giving a workshop for some families about how they can increase their chances of finding wonderful schools for their teenagers while shrinking their costs at the same time. The parents, whose teenagers attend both private and public suburban schools in San Diego, were shocked that they hadn’t heard about any of […]
18Oct2010 | Lynn | 0 comments | ContinuedThank God My Kids Aren’t Toddlers
There are a couple of reasons why I’m glad that my two children, who are both in college, aren’t toddlers. One reason is obvious. I don’t think I’d have the energy today to chase toddlers around. The second reason occurred to me last week when I reading a story in The New York Times entitled, […]
13Oct2010 | Lynn | 4 comments | Continued
