Princeton Review Top 20 List #1 - Most Accessible Professors

I just picked up my 2012 copy of The Best 376 Colleges. This is one of my favorite "go to" resources for students.

One of my favorite sections are the 62 "Top 20" ranking lists in eight categories:

Academics/Administration, Quality of Life, Politics, Demographics, Town Life, Extracurriculars, and Social Scene.

My next 8 blog posts will provide you with my favorite "Top 20" list from each category.

Most Accessible Professors

1. US Military Academy
2. US Coast Guard Academy
3. Pomona College
4. US Naval Academy
5. Air Force Academy
6. Reed College
7. Sweet Briar College
8. Skidmore College
9. SMU
10. Williams College
11. Sarah Lawrence College
12. Wabash College
13. Claremont McKenna College
14. Amherst College
15. Franklin & Marshall College
16. Webb Institute
17. Colgate University
18. Hampden-Sydney College
19. Ohio University - Athens
20. Muhlenberg College

Money Saver: Free Online College Applications

In today's economy, who couldn't use an extra $250-$700 dollars?

Below you will find a list of colleges/universities that will allow you to apply online for FREE.

Most of these schools are a part of the Common Application.

This is not an exhaustive list, but a selective one, based on past Casady students who have applied to one of these institutions. This extra savings should make the schools below that much more attractive compared to universities online.

• Agnes Scott College
• Allegheny College
• Baylor University
• Bryn Mawr College
• Butler University
• Carleton College
• Case Western Reserve University
• Centre College
• Colby College
• Colgate University
• Creighton University
• Dayton, University of
• Denison University
• DePauw University
• Drake University
• Drexel University
• Furman University
• Grinnell College
• Guilford College
• Hamilton College
• Hampshire College
• Hendrix College
• Hiram College
• Hobart & William Smith Colleges
• Holy Cross College (IN)
• Illinois Institute of Technology
• John Carroll University
• Juniata College
• Kenyon College
• Lewis & Clark College
• Loyola University Chicago
• Loyola University New Orleans
• Lynchburg College
• Manhattanville College
• Marquette University
• Maryville University of Saint Louis
• Millsaps College
• Morehead State University
• Mount Holyoke College
• New College of Florida
• Ohio Wesleyan University
• Oklahoma Wesleyan University
• Pacific, University of the
• Randolph College
• Randolph-Macon College
• Regis University
• Rhodes College
• Roanoke College
• Saint Louis University
• San Diego State University
• Seton Hall University
• Sewanee: The University of the South (Common Application only)
• Smith College
• Southwestern Oklahoma State University
• St. John's College (MD and NM)*
• St. Olaf College
• Susquehanna University
• Sweet Briar College
• Trinity University (TX)
• Tulane University
• United States Coast Guard Academy
• Ursinus College
• Valparaiso University
• Washington & Jefferson College
• Wellesley College
• Western State College of Colorado
• Westminster College (MO)
• Whittier College
• Whitworth College
• William Jewell College
• William Woods University
• Wittenberg University
• Wooster, College of

To see the full list of schools click here.

ACT Superscore Colleges/Universities

My colleagues with ACCIS (Association of College Counselors at Independent Schools) have been compiling a list of colleges and universities that superscore the ACT.

The list continues to grow.

Here is the most updated list as of March 2012:
Beloit College
Boston College
Brandeis
Clemson University
Drexel University
Dickinson College
Emory University
Florida State University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Gettysburg College
Hamilton College
Haverford College
Lehigh University
UMass-Amherst
McGill University
Middlebury College
Northwestern University
RPI
University of San Diego
Santa Clara University
Sewanee: University of the South
Swarthmore College
Trinity College (CT)
Trinity University (TX)
Union College
Vassar College
Williams College
University of Vermont
Pepperdine Univ.
Cal Tech
Connecticut College
Soka University
Tufts Univ.
Westmont College
UNC Chapel Hill
Amherst College
Babson College
University of Colorado
Eckerd College
Elon University
George Washington University
University of Illinois
University of Indiana
Lawrence University
Loyola Marymount University
University of Miami
Northeastern University
University of Puget Sound
Stanford University
Washington & Lee University
Washington University in St. Louis
Wesleyan University
Colorado College
DePauw University

10th Grade College Night Snapshot

A couple weeks ago we had 10th grade college night at Casady.

This year we did this event with both parents and students.

We brought in Peter Van Buskirk, former Dean of Admission and author.

Mr. Buskirk did his 2-hour College Admission Game workshop.

Our hope was that our 10th grade students would be energized by the event to keep going hard and avoid the "sophomore slump".

Mr. Buskirk focused on the "big picture" in the first hour. Both the big picture of the college admission landscape. And the big picture of aiming for the "best college fit".

The second hour was comprised of mock admission simulation. Mr. Buskirk took his committee of almost 100 students and parents through 4 student applications. They discussed the strengths and weaknesses, possible "hooks" and possible hurdles. In the end, the committee made a decision on who to admit to their selective liberal arts college.

Here is a video snapshot from the mock admission discussion.