By Brett E. Kennedy, Managing Director
The college admissions and aid process is clearly broken. I recently conducted a survey of parents and student from across the US and learned a bit about their perceptions of the college admissions and aid process. What do they see?
Parents and students see a process that is TOO COMPLICATED. With young people applying to more and more schools, managing the complexities of the application, admission and aid process at multiple institutions is a source of stress.
With so many rankings and marketing claims, students and parents do not have a trusted source of information. They see TOO MUCH MARKETING and not enough real counseling around questions of fit and match.
Parents and students see the admissions and aid procedures as AN OPAQUE PROCESS. Why are colleges and universities so hesitant to be transparent on how their decisions are made?
Finally, parents and students WORRY ABOUT INCREASING COSTS of higher education. Given the amount that both public and private colleges and universities cost, families are asking tough question of whether the outcomes justify the cost and are seeking to understand all the options available.
Simply put, it is an interesting time to be working with students on college counseling and with colleges and universities on crafting successful enrollment strategies.