Musings: The blog that's not a blog.

4/1/23

(This is not an April Fools' Day post, although maybe I'm a fool to post it.)

From Week 3 lecture:

How much help is too much help?
© Julia Mitchell Varriale, M.A., CEP, 2010

Over the years [in my UCLA Extension classrooms], I've frequently been asked "How much help is too much help?"; and I've had plenty of time [took me about two years] to hone my response down to, ""Ask yourself if your help will, in any way, change the way an admission reader will view the student's ability to think and communicate those thoughts in writing. If the answer is yes, you've probably done too much."

What percentage of your students do you think can truthfully check the box on the Common Application statement, attesting the application is entirely their own work? I'd love to ask this on an anonymous questionnaire given to [graduating] high school seniors. While nothing about the college process is generalizable and there are many, many students who do fill out their own applications, I think the responses would be enlightening.

(Note I think this statement should be signed before the student begins filling out their application and writing their essays, when they register, not before hitting submit.)



10/3/22

Note: This was written in late 2015 in preparation for a session proposal that was not accepted ;-). It was updated to reflect the prior-prior change to the FAFSA and has been retyped here in its entirety, but it is basically a 2015 piece. Quite a few of my UCLA Ext. classes have read it as optional reading in our "Hack the Gates" week, as well as a few colleagues and friends. I've been planning to add it here for years. I'm just a little slow. And, of course, a lot has happened in the interim, so it needs a significant update, but I'm waiting on that, as I wanted to give an indication of my thoughts at the time I wrote it. As I reread this while typing, I was itching to update it, but that's for another day, or year…). I may also move this to a blog page eventually. It's been so long since I've typed up a page for Collegevale that I don't know what I'm doing anymore. :-)

Remember: This was written in 2015!


Simplification of the College Process: Is it really that simple?
© Julia Mitchell Varriale, M.A., CEP, 2015-2016

With the introduction of the new Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success application, there has been a tidal wave of pushback from counselors across the country, calling for a simplification (a reduction of the "needless complexity") and reform of the college admission process. Most of the rhetoric surrounding this has come from the high school side and access programs, citing the new application will just add to the stressors of an already unnecessarily complex process for both students and counselors. What they really want is to de-stress the process, not increase the stress. But the conversation got me thinking what colleges — and high schools and families — could do that would make the process less complex, what they could do to simplify the college admission process.

First, it should be understood that stress and complexity are found on all sides of the admission coin, in every corner of the process, and all sides have practices that contribute to the problem. I also understand that, while we all seem want change, we don't want to be part of that change, so I expect pushback to these thoughts, too.

My thoughts, not necessarily in order:


Testing

Rather than feeding the testing beast by requiring SAT or ACT scores, colleges should use the state exit exam (whether the SAT, ACT, SBAC, or PARCC). Nothing else. JUST.ONE.TEST. I do not recommend no testing at all. As long as there is grade inflation, and there is a considerable amount of it, there is a place for testing. But just one test, just one time. It will still be stressful, but time and energy currently spent on test prep and multiple test sittings will be better spent elsewhere. And because, apparently, when states use the SAT, there are lower hurdles for getting extra time, flagging needs to come back.


Application(s)

I applaud any selective* college that attempts to downsize ("right-size") its applicant pool. One way they do this is with college-specific questions. Students should care about the college enough to put in any extra work they may require to be able to articulate why the school is a good fit for them, and why they think the they are a good fit for the college. If they don't care about the college enough to answer college-specific questions or an extra essay, or have trouble thinking about what to say on the Why Us? essay, they should not be applying to the school, period. As the saying goes, you should have "eight first choices." When I used to teach hunt seat equitation, I used to talk about having a hard versus soft focus. With a hard focus, the body automatically tenses and can move against the horse. With a soft focus, peripheral vision widens and the body relaxes and moves with the horse. Having "eight first choices" is the soft-focus approach to the college search — and a natural de-stressor. To quote the old "Golden Rule" of college admissions from the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), "Never apply to a college you could not happily attend for the next four years."

All computer-based applications should put the affidavit that the student signs, affirming that the application is their own work, at the start of the application process, when they register, so that the student sees it before they (or their family) begin filling out the application. Some studies have shown that it reduces cheating on papers and tests if students are reminded at the start what constitutes cheating/plagiarism.

*Not all colleges have the admission funnel yields to be able to afford to downsize their applicant pool.


Essay

The Common App and Universal App essay prompts should go; applicants get too much help on them these days. Rather, each college should have their own essay — whether Why X or Why Study X (your desired major, along the lines of the UCAS statement) or a listing of short answer questions that will help them gather a sense of the student (favorite movie, last book read for pleasure, etc.) — in a supplement (all schools should have a supplement, if they require admission to a special program or require an essay; this should be included in their membership fee to the application service, not extra).


High Schools

Recommendations

FERPA Waiver and Disclosure Policies — all schools should have a written disclosure policy, one that protects teachers' and counselors' honest evaluations of the students strengths and weaknesses and any issues they've had to deal with (personal or disciplinary). This is particularly important if there are any issues that may affect the student's college experience and ability to succeed. If the teachers and counselors do not feel they can be honest in their recommendations and/or their office has a nondisclosure policy, they should have the option to check a box and just send a generic, uninformative letter in its stead. No one should fear litigation as a result of being honest. While I'm not an "it's not fair" person, this is not fair to teachers and counselors, and it's not fair to the students, who deserve to attend a good fit college (versus get "into" the most selective college they can) and the colleges that should be getting what they see on paper. Without honest evaluation of the student, recommendations from teachers and counselors are useless to colleges.

Transcripts and Profiles

All transcripts and profiles should follow a national form, so that information is easy to find and interpret.

Profiles should preferably be modeled on the one at the College Board site, and include a thorough description of the grading (grade distribution chart, a conversion chart from numeric to letter grade, minimum passing grade (e.g., 60, 65, 70), testing rates of the class, and a thorough description of classes offered. If a student takes notably difficult/rigorous courses that are not AP/IB, it should be noted on the counselor recommendation.

Grading

There should be a national norm for the grade scale — e.g., on a 4- or 5-point grading or 100-point numeric scale — which is consistent across all areas: numeric to letter grade conversion, minimum passing grade, labeling, and weighting of advanced coursework. The most common weighting is 1.0 point for AB and IB and .5 for Honors. Alternative schools that use narratives instead of grades should just be thorough in discussing a student's strengths and weaknesses (narratives are often more informative than grades, readers just don't have the time to read them as thoroughly as they'd like), their school philosophy, and be as honest as possible in their assessment of the student's ability to succeed at the college level.

College Lists

Resist pressures from administration to direct students to "name brand" schools. Easier said than done, given attendance at those high profile schools attracts affluent families to the public high school communities, which in turn raises property taxes and who vote through overrides that benefit the schools, and at the private schools, where encouragement of this are often school community, financial, and marketing imperatives. The counseling office should include banners, posters, and show excitement about and support for all postsecondary options. This goes for consultants too.


Colleges

Recalculation

Colleges vary considerably in how they recalculate grades. Some don't bother at all. Those that do use varying formulae. I would recommend colleges use a consistent method of recalculation, while still having flexibility as to which courses they include (they should be open about this on their admission page, so that students and counselors can get a sense of how the college will view their GPA). Colleges could have a GPA recalculation calculator on their admission website.

Academic/Rigor Rating

If the college unweights the grades and then includes an academic/rigor rating, this should be noted on their admission page. It would reduce stress considerably if colleges would adopt a policy of not giving more weight to a student with ten or more AP scores over the student with five or six, and state this upfront on their admission page. Too many AP's —> less sleep —> poorer performance —> higher stress —> chronic stress —> (can lead to) clinical depression and a host of later physical and mental health issues.

Personal Rating

It would be helpful if colleges would mention that a summer job is just as impressive to them as an expensive service mission overseas. Frankly, I'd rather read an essay about a student working to save for their first car and then lovingly describe the car they bought in their personal statement (I think a terrific question colleges should ask is to have the student tell them about their "happy place").

Deadlines

With the introduction of prior-prior and the ability of students to file the FAFSA earlier, colleges may be revisiting their deadlines. Colleges should adopt a consistent set of deadlines, whether they are rolling admission (start reviewing on X date and continue until we have filled the class), ED (I and II), EA, or RD deadlines. This may not reduce the stress of "getting in," but it will reduce stress by making the process slightly easier to understand and follow (fewer dates to keep track of) — e.g., if I am applying ED I, this is the deadline; if I am applying RD, this is the deadline.

Application Process

Colleges need to have a paper option for students who do not have regular access to the Internet (and there are many areas of the world and this country where this is still an issue). This is one of my major concerns with both the computer-based Common App and the new Coalition App.

Institutional Priorities

It is impossible to quell all anxiety surrounding the college process. There will always be some "mystery" behind college decisions, as colleges have different resources, philosophies, and missions. They should still be able to set and find ways to meet their institutional priorities. I would not touch this, other than to be honest, if asked, about various policies — on testing, financial aid, GPA recalculation, need sensitivity, etc.


Parents

Change needs to start at home. We cannot control the pressures that surround our children in their schools and social circles; we cannot control what our children's friends and their families have to say; but we can control what we say — and how we say it. We need to watch not only our words but also our nonverbal messages. The people kids want to impress the most are their peers, but the people they want to please the most are their families, even when they are telling us they hate us. Families, like counseling offices, need to be excited about a variety of educational paths and options. They should show just as much enthusiasm for a Deep Springs or Landmark or Hampshire or state school or even non-degree based vocational postsecondary education options as they show for those name brand institutions, and they should start early. No bumper sticker is worth your child's physical, emotional, or mental health.