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 "C you at home."- Marie D, beloved parent and a favorite mom of mine.

As she cupped her forefinger and thumb, "C you at home" were the last words Marie spoke to her son while dropping him off at college—UMiami.

I know, I heard it live. And it got her son's attention!

In my 15 - 20 years working in this profession, those are the wisest words I've ever heard from a parent... not the second or third wisest... the wisest! 

So that everyone catches the context here, Maria was informing her son that if he gets a "C" in any course, he will not be permitted to return to college. 

Marie's approach was very direct. This was no idle threat. Her son called me two weeks ago to help him in a class that worried him about getting a "C". 

C's reflect a sizable deficiency in one's understanding of course content. It's compounded by putting a student in a weak position going forward in higher-level classes. 

I don't like weak positions. Why not? Success is not attained from a position of weakness. 

Here's my theme for today's memo-

The unspoken secret to academic success is "mastering the content."

Why is it unspoken? Because it implies harder work!

The bigger the ambition, the harder the work. Success is built upon mastering the content. 

This doesn't begin in college. Rather, it begins in the early stages of high school- 9th grade.

It's important to master the content early to build upon that mastery later. It will play forward through college. 

"C you at home." Thank you, dear Marie!

Misguided strategies result in predictable outcomes.

In a recent article- Valedictorian with 1590 SAT Score Rejected from Every IVY League School, lessons were learned.

Limmy, a 1590 SAT student and Valedictorian, thought his academic credentials were enough to warrant submitting applications to all the IVY colleges.  When the results came in, he and his family were shocked. He had not received a single acceptance.

So, what happened?

Limmy is an outstanding student, academically qualified to receive substantial consideration from any college. But there's more that goes into winning acceptances at top elite colleges, and that includes a strategy.

Let's look at the approximate "yield" rates of IVY colleges. The yield rate reflects the percentage of accepted students who enroll. 

Yale- 65%
Harvard- 70% 
Brown- 65%
Columbia- 65%
Dartmouth- 60%
PENN- 70%
Cornell- 60%
Princeton-70%

Limmy's denials were predictable. The strategy to apply to all IVY colleges was misguided.  

Here are the two primary reasons why.

1) The private college business model depends on hitting the targeted yield rate. Admission counselors are evaluated on their yield rate. The admission counselor must believe the student will enroll at the likelihood of the school's stated rate to offer an acceptance. 

For yield rates over 50%, the admission counselor can only feel that high of a probability from their Early Decision applicants. 

When a student applies to high-yield colleges with any application status other than ED, they know the student's preferred college choice is elsewhere. 

It does not mean the student is not qualified. It simply means that the admission counselor doesn't believe the student will enroll at the stated rate, 60% - 70% in these cases. The denial decision is easy to make. 

2) When students get bogged down in writing complicated supplemental essays for multiple colleges, they get distracted from focusing on the few preferred colleges.

Being distracted happens when students apply to over ten colleges. They will not follow up properly with their preferred colleges because they are too busy chasing others. They will unlikely be attentive to their applicant portals. 

While Limmy was accepted to some other great colleges, such as Georgetown, if he wanted to attend an IVY, he needed to focus more of his attention there.

The lesson here is simple. The more applications submitted, the fewer acceptances will be received from their top-choice colleges.

This lesson applies to all levels of colleges, not just the elite colleges. Admissions is a numbers game governed by their yield rates. The better we understand this dynamic, the higher success we will have in winning acceptances into our preferred colleges. 

My strategy is to focus on the top 6 -7 preferred colleges getting those applications submitted early, and keeping close communications with their decision-makers. After that, we will consider a few other applications to supplement our overall strategy.

CollegeLogic students have a long history of winning acceptances into their top colleges. Our strategy and student focus are good reasons why.  

All parents will live their life knowing they either got college right for their child or they didn't!

When it comes to college, kids need their parents to be on top of their game more than ever. Parents who are not current in their understanding will compromise their chance of getting it right. 

College is no time to come up short. The gap between right versus wrong is big. It's perhaps the size of the Atlantic Ocean.

Parents who defer to their children or the school's guidance counselor to navigate the complexities of the college process live in oblivion to its significance.

College represents the "Transformational Bridge" taken by a teenager to becoming a young adult. 

Who possibly wants to leave this to chance and the random outcomes that result?  

It's not that parents consciously choose to leave it to chance. But, it's the default outcome of not being actively involved from a position of strength based on knowledge and conscious intention.

The 2022/ 2023 Admissions season has changed the landscape of college admissions. Tens of thousands of parents are in disbelief of their results.

Excuses are running wild. While there is no excuse, there are reasons. The number one reason is they left it all to random chance. 

Random chance occurs when-

• Parents desire specific colleges in support of their interests over the interests of their child
• Students randomly hit the "Submit" button in hopes of winning a random acceptance
• College visits center around taking tours rather than personal engagement
• College majors are chosen based on sounding impressive rather than having substance
• Colleges are chosen based on rankings that get manipulated to create a false perception
• Parents feel that the exorbitant cost of college and its prestige guarantees success

On the flip side, my role is to put your child on a path of success and satisfaction. We achieve when-

• Colleges are purposefully chosen
• Proper attention is paid to the priority colleges
• Essays are written to express genuine meaning
• College visits build meaningful relationships
• College decisions reflect the deep personal interests of the child
• College majors studied reflect the desired outcomes of the child
• College cost is decided upon responsibly

When you approach college this way, you will substantially increase your odds of getting college right for your child. 

Through the angst of this current college season, my CollegeLogic students and families are thriving. None of it has resulted from applying random chance to our process. 

I advocate for your child to live the life they want for themselves, which may differ from the life you desire for your child. Please accept that. 

I support parents to live life forever knowing they got college right for their kids without bankrupting themselves. Perhaps you will appreciate this.

Our ultimate responsibility is to put these precious children on a path of true success and satisfaction.

The work of the Admission Office drives the business model of the college!

I don't understand. My son got deferred while other students having lower GPAs were accepted.

I don't understand. My daughter got denied while having a 1520 SAT score.

I hear it often, and they're right. Most people don't understand how college admissions work.

First off, GPA and SAT/ ACT scores are applied to pass the application through the initial 10-second glance. For applicants who get into the system for further evaluation, the ultimate decision is made based on the importance of the remaining factors. Each college weighs the remaining factors differently. 

But let me be clear, applying "test-optional" is not an option for my students. Test-optional is a highly compromising application decision. The SAT score was more important this year than ever before.

Save-  "My child doesn't test well" for others. People at the college level translate "doesn't test well" to "don't prepare well." Test-optional is the easiest 10-second decision made with applications.  

Part 3- Factors Considered for Admission Acceptance

Understand, Admission counselors work for the college, not for you. They are employed to serve the business model of the college, which hinges on the conversion rate of acceptances to enrollments.

A higher conversion rate allows for lowered acceptance rates, allowing tuition costs to rise and scholarships to shrink. The work of the Admission Office drives the business model of the college. It's that important!

This equation is the essence of Enrollment Management. The admission counselors who manage it best get promoted, and the others get replaced. 

Once an application passes through its initial Pass / Fail decision on GPA and Test scores, all decisions defer to a combination of the following ten factors.

Five measurables-

1. Course rigor- measured by the gap between unweighted and weighted GPA
2. Essay quality- determined by its content meaning and writing quality
3. Student substance- determined by the real purpose of a student's chosen major
4. Activities- measured by the deeper meaning of performing each activity 
5. Senior year performance- measured by the first and second quarter grades

Five intangibles- 

1. Wealth position- measured by the family's affordability to pay the cost
2. Relationships- determined by the student's genuine engagement with the admission office
3. Cultural diversity- refers to the ability of a student to contribute to the college culture
4. Early applications- refers to submitting early applications and following up with the Portal
5. The serious interest of the student- factors in to supporting the "conversion rate"

• Randomly submitting applications will result in undesired outcomes; it's just a poor strategy.
• Being inattentive to the applicant portal will delay matters; there are no excuses.
• Submitting late applications with poorly written essays will result in denials; the cold-hard truth.