Is college even worth it?
In recent years, Americans have expressed growing doubts about the economic value of college. Is it still worth the cost and time of earning a bachelor’s degree?
This question is a very good one, but it is not easy to answer with a flat “yes” or “no” because colleges can differ dramatically in their return on investment. For example, a typical public four-year college costs only 61% the price of a private school. So it can depend a lot on the college in question and how much debt a student is willing to take on.
But in general, data from the last twenty-five years shows that a college grad earns between 2 to 3 times as much as someone with just a high school diploma. That same data shows the average person with a bachelor’s degree breaks even by the age of 26 or 27.
That doesn’t mean that parents and students shouldn’t plan carefully as they consider schools, finances, and majors. But in pure economic terms, it does mean that college still generally offer good return on investment.
It is also worth pointing out that the college experience, at its best, should be about more than just dollars and cents. Historically, the university has been a place that majors in the intellectual and personal formation of its students, rather than serving as a job training program. In fact, it has only been relatively recently that college became the institution expected to launch students down a particular career path.
Common sense is essential, of course. But if a student can match with a good school at a reasonable price that will help them become the kind of person they hope to be, then college remains a worthy and even sensible pursuit.
What makes for a good list of colleges?
Particularly if you’re just beginning to think about college applications, prioritize quality over quantity. You can expand the college list later, but start by identifying 6-10 schools. This list should have some variation in cost, quality, prestige, and especially acceptance rate.
This last point is a very useful way of quickly identifying how difficult it is to receive admission to a particular school. Colleges usually advertise this number prominently somewhere on their websites. The lower the number–so the thinking goes–the more prestigious the school. (For that reason, colleges will sometimes recruit high school students to apply not because they have particularly good chances at admission but because it increases the number of applicants and artificially pushes down the school’s total acceptance rate.)
Many successful application strategies sort their core list into three tiers based on relative probability of admission: Reach, Match, and Fall-back. But how do you know whether your student is likely to match with a school or not?
This is where standardized tests can actually be useful in helping the right schools and applicants find each other.
Do standardized tests still matter?
In short, yes, standardized tests are still very important. Since the COVID outbreak, however, there has been a strong push to make standardized tests optional for college applications. In fact, one group estimates that more than 90% of colleges do not require test scores.
But there are still formidable reasons to take standardized tests seriously. One is that this situation is still fluid. Some policy experts have raised alarm about falling standards and urged schools to again require standardized tests, which some colleges have done.
As we noted above, standardized testing can actually be a useful tool for finding an appropriate match for students and colleges. These exams can, for example, indicate your chances of matching with your list of schools, as many colleges will advertise what the typical range of scores are for successful applicants. So even if schools don’t strictly “require” the ACT, SAT, or CLT, good scores will still get their attention.
Another related reason is that scholarships can hang on test scores. A good test score not only can get you into a better school, it can save you tens of thousands over a four-year degree. This is one of the few areas of your application that you can control and improve. And we can show you how.
How much do grades matter?
Grades also matter, of course. GPA can be a crucial factor in whether a student is admitted or given merit scholarships.
The catch is that GPAs are not the same across the board, so university admissions tend to put less weight on them than standardized tests.
Go-getter high schoolers sometimes take great pride in a perfect 4.0 and go to significant lengths to protect it. While this is certainly an achievement that shows consistency and scholastic diligence, college admissions are less interested in perfect number and more interested in whether the grades and the classes together indicate a readiness to do college-level work. An A- or B+ in a tough, college-level class may look much better in an application than a perfect 4.0.
Who should write letters of recommendation?
Many applications require letters of recommendation. Getting these can be tricky, especially for homeschool students who are a rapidly growing share of the K-12 population but who may also have a narrower pool of potential letter writers.
Ideally, you want writers who can speak to a student’s academic ability and personal dependability. If an application requires two letters, for example, it might be wise to get one letter from a familiar teacher whose classes you’ve excelled at and another from a coach who has seen a different side of your work ethic and character.
Most likely, a letter of recommendation won’t be the thing to make or break an application. But if you think a few years ahead, you may be able to enhance this part of your resume.
One way to do this: find a way to take a college-level course somewhere, such as at a community college or online. If you pass the right class, this can be an efficient way to knock out some general ed credits that you will need for a college degree anyway. And it can validate your GPA in a different setting and demonstrate readiness to jump up to the next level.
If you earn a high grade in the class (A’s are best here, obviously) , it is also acceptable to ask if the instructor would be willing to write one of your letters. Just be careful not to assume that they will do so automatically! Ask ahead of time and give them plenty of lead up–months, ideally–before any applications are actually due.
What makes for a good college application essay?
First and foremost, make sure you use good grammar and proofread the essay thoroughly. Remember, this is more than an expression of your personality, it is also a concrete writing sample. An admission committee is likely to frown on a sloppy essay that is slapped together because it indicates how you are going to write in your college classes.
With that opening advice, find a topic that works for you. Most application essays will offer you prompts to choose from. You can help your child think through potential prompts that link to their personal experiences and interests.
Finally, make sure the essay has a deliberate structure. Each paragraph should be doing a specific job answering the prompt. And each sentence should be playing a specific role in its paragraph. Your student shouldn’t randomly throw together thoughts, which is an easy mistake to make when a prompt asks you to talk about yourself.
What should we do if we had a late start strategizing for college?
Maybe your child’s junior year snuck up on you as a parent, and now you suddenly feel the clock ticking. First of all, don’t panic.
A good place to start is putting that list of schools together.
From there, it is probably worth making a phone call to the admissions department at each school. You should be able to talk with an admissions officer who can give you a pretty quick rundown of the school’s strengths, your child’s match, and steps that can be taken to strengthen an application.
Next, do think about standardized testing: what exam best fits your students, dates, and how you can go about boosting scores. Remember, this is one area on your application where you have some control, even on fairly short notice. Taking an exam twice is a proven method of immediately raising scores. Test prep also has a good track record.