The Best U College Admissions Consulting

 Many students come to us with the dream of college life in the big city – be it NYC, LA, Chicago, Boston or beyond, city life captivates a lot of students picturing their college experience. If you are big city dreaming for college, here are the factors you want to consider in choosing a college experience that’s right for you – Do you care about a campus? The urban college experience can vary quite a lot. Some students love the idea of having access to a city, but still want the sense of that quintessential college campus – a quad to stroll on, centralized campus hangouts, and dorms within walking distance of class. If this is important to you, be sure to really scope out the campus life and experience. Taking a virtual tour of campus is a good start for campuses that are far from home. While a handful of urban campuses offer this ‘best of both worlds,’ most are integrated into the surrounding city life, with students needing to be more independent, take public transportation th...

As students prepare to submit their first applications this season, there is ongoing confusion about how to navigate test optional policies. If you are wondering when to send scores, when to opt out, and how to make it all happen, read on for everything you need to know about testing and the admissions process. Know when to submit your scores When colleges have a test optional policy, it can be difficult to know what to do. In general, there are a few key things to know: ○ The best way to determine if you should send your scores is to examine how your scores compare to the typical admitted applicant profile. Most colleges make recent data available via the Common Data Set. If your scores fall within or above the middle 50% of admitted student scores, then it’s to your benefit to submit your scores as part of your application. ○ If your scores are below this middle 50% range, it is likely to your benefit to submit your application under the test optional policy. Not all majors are crea...

 Legacy admissions policies are back in the news. Just this fall, the state of California announced a ban on legacy admissions. This policy change is significant as it is the first in the nation to ban the practice of considering an applicant’s familial history at both public and private colleges and universities. Wondering if legacy still matters and how the practice might impact admissions? Read on for what you should know… Which states have laws against legacy admissions? In 2021, Colorado became the first state in the country to ban legacy admissions at their public institutions. More recently, Virginia, Maryland, and Illinois passed similar legislation. These laws apply only to public institutions; and while legislatures in Connecticut and Massachusetts have discussed such policies, California is the first, and currently, only state to ban the practice across all public and private institutions. Though other state and even federal legislators have raised the possibility of fu...