As a school administrator I’m am confidently familiar with the college application processes, the anxiety of families as they navigate this and the many questions of cost and opportunity (and opportunity cost) that arise from the mind boggling amount of information that arises even after a college list has been pared down to 10 or fewer options. I’ve been fortunate to work with some amazing counselors who have provided thorough information and guidance on this high stakes decision.
But still, none of this quite prepared me for taking this all on as a parent for the first time. And we’ve got two more waves of this ahead in the next five years.
So from a personal and professional perspective I was excited to see an enthusiastic review for this book. They were right. I can’t imagine how many times I am likely to recommend this book in the future. It’s potentially a nice tool for college counselors and an especially wonderful trove of information for parents.
There are some parts for all readers, especially history and processes that have been put in play to establish tuition pricing over the last 40 years. Similarly, he spends some time outlining the different approaches universities take to hiring and empowering their professors. Getting an idea of whether your tuition money is paying for professors to do great research but not likely to spend any significant time with students or building a strong teaching and learning culture for undergraduates can be a helpful distinction in these costly choices.
Other sections may be used a bit more like a handbook. Interested in athletic scholarships?…then check out that section. While some sections may be brief, Lieber seems to consider almost every unique consideration and circumstance. I admit to skimm/pping a few of these.
What Lieber addressed most carefully though is the huge impact the fear and anxiety inherent in the college research, application and decision process. His advice for students and parents about how to avoid unneccesary stress and how to deal with other anxieties that may be inherently unavoidable in a flawed process.
Indirectly, the information he provides should make it easier for those blindly committed to the Ivy League dream or Stanford plans to find relief in the reasons why this might not happen and to be excited about other alternatives. More directly, he acknowledges the challenging emotions and conversations that might occur through this process and provides some advice on how to manage them.
In reflection of our first round of college decisions I felt like we deserved a pat on the back. It also confirmed that we’ll need to start again for the next two rounds to make sure individual needs and interests are considered; I suspect none of our children will follow the same path.
I actually get a bit envious whenever I get on a college campus and think about the deep discussions, new discoveries and lifelong connections that can come from a great college experience. I understand why so many feel it’s worth any price. But knowing all the inputs, options and alternatives can provide a lot more confidence for a final decision whether it’s full tuition or financial aid free.