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The Cost of College

Hard Truth Alert: For most middle class or wealthier families, college will cost a fortune and tuition will increase faster than the yearly rate of inflation. A decent college option for your child costs a minimum of $25,000 per year, before any merit or financial aid. Since schools only keep 6 year graduation rates, we follow their assumption that it will take 6 years to matriculate. The cost is $150,000 for those 6 years. Your investment, however, is not for the 6 years but also for the additional 40 years of work your child most likely will put in. The math will tell you that the investment for those 46 years works out to be approximately $9.00 per... Read More »

How To Prepare New College Freshman For Academics and Life On-Campus

As you may have read in the media, like this from the Washington Post, most high school students are dramatically unprepared for life as a college student.  There are 3 weak-spots that standout as key indicators of a coming struggle in the first year(s) college.  First, as per the ACT survey of Educators: your high school faculty and staff are telling you that your child is well-prepared, but the truth is much different. Only 26% of college professors believe that their students are well or very-well prepared for college-level academic work!!  In practice, even less than that 26% are actually studying efficiently and achieving grades equal to their talents. Contrast... Read More »

It’s a Rough Job Market for College Grads in 2014

Accenture, a global leader in management consulting, has published their 2014 College Graduate Employment Report. The employment prospects for recent college grads are still quite bleak.  Even amongst those who graduated in 2012 and 2013, steady and fruitful employment has not yet been acquired by most. Here are some of the highlights:

• 26% of 2012/2013 college grads are making less than $19,000
• 13% of 2012/2013 College Grads have been unable to find a job since graduation
• 46% of 2012/2013 grads are underemployed in 2014, a 5% jump since last year
• 42% of 2012/2013 college grads are living at home w/parents
• Only 21% of employed 2012/2013 college grads are earning more than $40k

Clearly, the lingering affects of... Read More »

Openings at Texas Colleges and Universities for Fall 2014 as of May 6, 2014

If you are still seeking a place to go to college this fall, do not fret; some options still exist.  Please see the attached PDF for openings available to freshman and transfer applicants for Fall 2014 at Texas colleges and universities as of May 6, 2014. Some schools still have financial aid available, including Baylor University. SpaceAvailability at TX Colleges for Spring... Read More »

Make No Mistake, 10th Grade Counts!

While Most High Schools and Families Emphasize 11th and 12th Grade Performance, College Admission Staff Insist That 10th Grade is Just as Important

Somewhere along the way, a false notion became conventional wisdom with local schools and families. The lingering incorrect idea is that the first two years of high school are less consequential in the college admission process than the final two. In fact, there are some who falsely believe that 9^th and 10^th grade do not matter at all. Well, this notion is flat out wrong. In fact, the college admissions staff that we talk to (at SMU, UT-Austin, USC, Vanderbilt, Trinity, and Texas A&M to name a few), advise that 4 semesters make or break a... Read More »

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