‘Vanderbilt Admissions Website’
ED I Update
Dec. 12, 2010—Much of the information below will come as a repeat to you if you’ve kept up with the comments. Many questions keep popping up, though, so I wanted to address those major topics here. Additionally, I want to add a bit of a personal perspective in these last few days before our ED I applicants...
Understanding the Mid-50%
Dec. 9, 2010—As a counselor at a highly selective college I frequently field questions about standardized testing. I noticed in recent months, though, that many students I work with don’t apply testing statistics to their college search process appropriately. Numbers aren’t helpful if you don’t understand their reference. Here I break down testing statistics: questions to ask...
Committee 2011
Dec. 6, 2010—I know that once you click “Submit” on the Common App it feels anti-climatic. This year I’m walking applicants through the process at Vanderbilt in real time. Hopefully this transparency helps you feel less stressed. In a previous post I walked you through how I read an actual file. Here I answer questions about the...
What Not to Fret About
Dec. 1, 2010—I had a writing block this week. I think my head is full of all the writing my students put into their applications, which is amazing, but a block of sorts for my own words. I’ve been stewing for days and as I summarily rejected numerous ideas I put them into a mental category I...
Meet Alex Gano
Nov. 29, 2010—My hometown is Charleston, Illinois. I am the admissions counselor for Illinois (non-Chicago) and Southern California. I share these territories with Nicole Molina.
Thanksgiving Week Information
Nov. 23, 2010—Hopefully the information below helps keep you in the loop this holiday week! I hope you have an amazing time with friends and family on Thanksgiving. Relax and give yourself the break you deserve.
Meet Torrey Morgan
Nov. 23, 2010—My hometown is Golden, Colorado, but I spent most of the past 13 years in Southern California and Seattle. I am the counselor responsible for the areas of DC, South Florida, and Wisconsin. I also work with home school students.
How We Read a File
Nov. 19, 2010—In a previous post I walked readers through how all of our mail makes it into a complete application file. I ended with the file landing in the “Read me!” bin of my office. The question begs, then what? How does an admissions counselor actually read a file, what are we looking for, and where...
Vanderbilt Changes Lives
Nov. 9, 2010—Loren Pope’s tome Colleges That Change Lives offends me. Responding to the book, however, is difficult. Here’s my dilemma: CTCL highlights 40 schools that deserve serious consideration from students as they progress towards post-secondary education. In no way do I find fault with the talented students, staff, or faculty of these aforementioned schools. These 40...
Application Status UPDATE
Nov. 3, 2010—You hit submit. Whew. Take a breather, you’ve earned it. I understand that now you want to follow up and confirm we’ve received materials. However, give us some time. We have HUNDREDS of applications and pieces of applications pouring into our office every day. It takes time to process all of that snail mail and...
Not an Ivy in the South
Nov. 2, 2010—Vanderbilt is not an Ivy League in the South. No, I’m not going to be one of those naïve jerks who tells you the Ivy League is just a sports conference. I understand it means more than an athletic schedule. Wikipedia (the authority on all things pop culture) says the Ivy League has a “connotation...
Early Decision on the Mind
Oct. 26, 2010—Yesterday I was sitting in a coffee shop in Bloomington, Indiana spacing off and thinking about the small joys of life – I had my first John Cougar Mellencamp sighting! I spent four years in Bloomington and it wasn’t until I came back several years after moving that I saw JCM milling about. This was...