392. College Access and Success News

Here are links to recent news on college access and success.

by

Joe Rottenborn
Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Read The Joe Rottenborn Daily ▸ today's top stories on college access and success via @rottenbornj ▸ http://paper.li/rottenbornj

2. Most bizarre essay questions - http://m.golocalprov.com/70548/show/7acfb5cb851c6ca4865138c70d1503a9/ - "According to the National Association for College Admissions Counseling (NACAC), the importance that colleges place on student essays has been steadily increasing. While the Common Application provides standard essay prompts, individual colleges often ask additional essay and short answer questions . . . ."

3. College Early Admission Is Tougher Than Ever http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/12/19/college-early-admission-is-tougher-than-ever.html via @thedailybeast - "This year’s early admission applicants had it tougher than ever, reports Steve Cohen."

4. Startup raises $2.5M to put college admissions on Apple's iPad http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/news/2011/12/19/college-admissions-ipad-app-raises-25m.html?ana=twt via @BBJNewsroom

5. Your College Advisor - End-of-the-year checklist for high school seniors - http://northjersey.com/ http://shar.es/Wmcjm

6. Teen musician, 17, graduates from UWM - JSOnline http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/teen-musician-17-graduates-from-uwm-ll3g3or-135835833.html - And a guitarist, at that!

7. Sample College Admissions Essays on a Fictional Character http://collegeapps.about.com/b/2011/12/18/new-sample-college-admissions-essay-on-a-fictional-character.htm?r=twitter - "Common Application Sample Essay - An essay for option #4 on a fictional character"

8. Achievement gap among Seattle black students Education News - The News Tribune http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/12/19/1951412/achievement-gap-among-seattle.html via @thenewstribune - "A new look at test scores by Seattle Public Schools shows American-born black students lag behind black immigrants in academic achievement."

9. The Poverty of School Reform -- In These Times: http://bit.ly/vWbuHR via AddThis

10. The Financial Aid That You Didn't Know Existed http://www.educationfact.com/blog/financial-aid-didnt-existed/ - "A blog post offering information regarding the some of the often-overlooked financial aid options to investigate"

387. College Access and Success News

Here are links to recent news on college access and success.
by
Joe Rottenborn

Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Read The Joe Rottenborn Daily ▸ today's top stories on college access and success via @rottenbornj ▸ http://paper.li/rottenbornj

2. Child homelessness up 33% in 3 years, by Marisol Bello – http://usat.ly/t6ym1z via @USATODAY - "One in 45 children in the USA — 1.6 million children — were living on the street, in homeless shelters or motels, or doubled up with other families last year, according to the National Center on Family Homelessness."

3. Valencia College wins first Aspen Prize, by Paul Fain Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/s4d4l4 via AddThis - “Valencia reworked many traditional processes that other colleges view as immutable,” according to an Aspen-produced pamphlet describing the 10 finalists for the award. By giving students earlier advising and orientation, as well as offering a “Student Success” course, the college has tried “new things where they’ll matter most, for the neediest students." The three-year, full-time graduation and transfer rate for minority students at Valencia is 43 percent, which outpaces the national average of 33 percent. And the completion rate for Valencia’s career programs has grown 44 percent over four years."

4. Congressman Targets Pay of For-Profit-College Chiefs Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/vPEPcy via AddThis - "Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said in a speech to a consumer group today (see video below) that he had sent letters to the CEOs of 13 for-profit education companies, asking for the compensation agreements to help "determine whether salaries, bonuses, and other compensation are appropriately tied to the performance of students they educate, the vast majority of whom pay for their education with federal tax dollars."

5. Tackling colleges' Common Application, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy - http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57341025/tackling-colleges-common-application/?tag=mncol;lst;6 - "As the name suggests, the institutions share one application that is intended to make the admission process easier. The name Common Application, however, is somewhat misleading, because schools routinely ask students to answer extra supplemental questions on the document. A typical supplemental question requires applicants to explain why they are interested in their schools."

6. More Students With Disabilities Heading to College, by Nirvi Shah - http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/12/14/14disabled_ep.h31.html?cmp=SOC-SHR-TW via @educationweek - "Earlier this year, a national study found that six years after high school, students with disabilities were less likely than peers to have attended any college—55 percent compared with 62 percent, though that includes students with all types of disabilities. Among people with intellectual disabilities, the rate of employment is just 9 percent."

7. Online Schools Score Better on Wall Street Than in Classrooms, by Stephanie Saul: http://nyti.ms/u1uQmd - "A look at the company’s operations, based on interviews and a review of school finances and performance records, raises serious questions about whether K12 schools — and full-time online schools in general — benefit children or taxpayers, particularly as state education budgets are being slashed. Instead, a portrait emerges of a company that tries to squeeze profits from public school dollars by raising enrollment, increasing teacher workload and lowering standards."

8. Military Children Outdo Public School Students on NAEP Tests, by Michael Winerip: http://nyti.ms/vImAF1 - "They would find that the schools on base are not subject to former President George W. Bush’s signature education program, No Child Left Behind, or to President Obama’s Race to the Top. They would find that standardized tests do not dominate and are not used to rate teachers, principals or schools."

9. Colleges Mine Data to Tailor Students' Experience, by Marc Parry -http://chronicle.com/article/A-Moneyball-Approach-to/130062/ - "Today, half of students quit college before earning a credential. Proponents feel that making better use of data to inform decisions, known as "analytics," can help solve that problem while also improving teaching."

10. For Community Colleges, a Time to Shine, by Kevin Carey -http://chronicle.com/article/For-Community-Colleges-a-Time/130064/ - "The best community colleges, they found, were unusually focused and intentional when it came to structuring the learning experience. Large or small, the top two-years didn't just offer courses and wait for students to sign up. Lake Area Technical Institute, in South Dakota, for example, has 27 technical programs, each with a defined curriculum. Sixty-six percent of its students graduate within three years, far above the sector norm."

356. College Access and Success News

Here are links to recent news on college access and success.
by
Joe Rottenborn
Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Read The Joe Rottenborn Daily ▸ today's top stories on college access and success via @rottenbornj ▸ http://paper.li/rottenbornj

2. Tips on Finding and Securing Scholarships, by Rebecca R. Ruiz: http://nyti.ms/vLFbCd - "His principal tip was volume. “The trick to winning is to apply to lots of scholarships,” he said. All students – including the “very lucky and very skilled” – will get far more rejections than they will get wins, he said."

3. Your Common Application Essay, Uncut - The New York Times: http://nyti.ms/vmfPUd - ". . . The Common Application now asks that essays be between 250 and 500 words long. That upper limit was reimposed — after four years without one — amid feedback from admissions officers that essays had grown too long. But unlike other parts of the online application, which may cut off students midword when they exceed character limits, the essays are sent to colleges in full, and aren’t even labeled with word counts. Many seniors are pondering: to cut or not to cut?"

4. Pentagon Pledges Not to Change Tuition Reimbursement Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/t1ikrK via AddThis - "The Pentagon on Friday pledged not to change tuition reimbursement policies for active duty military at this time. Cuts in benefits have been expected (and the Marine Corps indicated earlier in the month that it was ready to make cuts), causing concern to many active duty military members who are enrolled in various programs."

5. Schooled in Sports: NCAA Raises Minimum GPA for Incoming Student-Athletes, by Bryan Toporek - http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/schooled_in_sports/2011/10/ncaa_raises_minimum_gpa_for_incoming_student-athletes.html via @educationweek - "Starting in August 2015, high school student-athletes who hope to play sports in college will be held to a higher academic standard. While freshmen only need a 2.0 GPA to be eligible for competition now, the new rules require student-athletes to have a 2.3 GPA to have immediate access to competition.
If a student-athlete meets the current 2.0 GPA requirement but falls short of the 2.3 GPA required for competition, the NCAA approved a proposal that will allow him/her to still remain on his/her athletic scholarship. The NCAA is calling this an "academic redshirt" year."

6. More Students Migrate Away From Home, by Eric Hoover and Josh Keller -http://chronicle.com/article/The-Cross-Country-Recruitment/129577/ - "Public universities across the country are engaged in an all-out war for out-of-state students. Deep cuts in support are driving the search for revenue, and in many states, a stagnating pool of local applications has pushed colleges to recruit broadly. The winners, like Arizona State, bring in higher out-of-state tuition and get to skim from a larger pool of prospective students. . . . Randy Hodgins, the former chief lobbyist for the University of Washington, said he once told a joke to his counterpart at the University of California that has more than a grain of truth. "The answer to both of our budget problems is, I take your kids and you take mine, and then they're both nonresidents," Mr. Hodgins said."

7. Where Does Your Freshman Class Come From?http://chronicle.com/article/Interactive-Freshman-Class/129547#id=204796 - "Ohio State University was the 1st most popular in-state university for Ohio freshmen in 2010."

8. Bottom of the Heap - The New York Times - http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2011/10/29/opinion/29blow-ch.html?ref=opinion "Selected measures from the report "Social Justice in the OECD--How Do the Member States Compare?" Includes some categories of index ratings and some raw data."

9. Want to earn more money? Study STEM. by Daniel de Vise - College, Inc. - http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/college-inc/post/want-to-earn-more-money-study-stem/2011/10/28/gIQALikjPM_blog.html?tid=sm_btn_twitter via Washingtonpost.com - "Math-science majors can earn more than humanities majors even with a lesser degree. Carnevale believes the economy has shifted over the past 30 years to reward academic fields over educational attainment. In other words: It doesn’t matter how long you have studied; it matters what you study. . . . 63 percent of STEM workers with associate’s degrees earn more than non-STEM workers with bachelor’s degrees."

10. Know Before You Owe: Student Loans - http://www.consumerfinance.gov/students/knowbeforeyouowe/

338. College Access and Success News

Here are links to recent news on college access and success.

by

Joe Rottenborn

Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Youngstown News: With YSU pact OK’d, focus shifts to morale, by Denise Dick - http://www.vindy.com/news/2011/oct/05/with-ysu-pact-ok8217d-focus-shifts-to-mo/ via Vindicator - "Although neither the union nor the administration has divulged agreement details, The Vindicator has learned that it calls for no raises in the first two years with a 2 percent increase in the third and final year. The employee health-care contribution also would increase in an amount that equals 10 percent the first year, 12 percent the second and 15 percent the final year."

2. Study Finds Minority Students Get Harsher Punishments, by Nirvi Shah - http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/10/05/07discipline_ep.h31.html via @educationweek - "Analyzing 2006 data from the U.S. Department of Education’s office for civil rights, Mr. Losen found that more than 28 percent of African-American middle school boys had been suspended at least once, compared with 10 percent of white males nationwide. For girls, it was 18 percent of black students, compared with 4 percent of white students."

3. Read The Joe Rottenborn Daily ▸ today's top stories on college access and success via @rottenbornj ▸ http://paper.li/rottenbornj

4. Saving the 'Lost Boys' of Higher Education, by Robert B. Smith -http://chronicle.com/article/Saving-the-Lost-Boys-of/129243/ - "Higher-education officials have been wringing their hands about our own "lost boys" for years. And yet the flip-flopped gender gap continues to widen: In April 2011, the U.S. Census Bureau released data showing that, for the first time, women have sailed past men in obtaining both bachelor's degrees and advanced college degrees."

5. School lunch investigation: One teacher exposes the worst meals, by Nanci Hellmich - http://usat.ly/niDHR2 via @USATODAY - "This week she is revealing her identity for the first time — Sarah Wu, 34, a speech pathologist in the Chicago public schools — and releasing her new book, Fed Up With Lunch (Chronicle Books). "With the blog, I really wanted a public record of these meals that I couldn't believe were being served to kids," she says. . . . She was working in a large elementary school where more than 90% of the kids qualified for free and reduced lunches. "Many of my students were coming from poverty," says Wu, who has a 3-year-old son. "Their families were living paycheck to paycheck. Many of my students relied on school lunch for their best meal of the day."

6. Tips for younger siblings of college freshmen, by Jenna Johnson - http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/campus-overload/post/tips-for-younger-siblings-of-college-freshmen/2011/09/30/gIQADcwGLL_blog.html via @washingtonpost - "A lot of energy (and marketing) goes into fully prepping students for their first year of college. And prepping their parents to let go. But what about younger siblings? Quite often, they are forgotten until their older sibling is long gone."

7. It’s not all about the teachers, by Will Fitzhugh - The Answer Sheet - http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/its-not-all-about-the-teachers/2011/10/03/gIQAPRt7LL_blog.html via Washingtonpost.com - "More recently, and less on the fringe of this new concern, education historian Diane Ravitch wrote in her 2010 book The Death and Life of the Great American School System: “One problem with test-based accountability, as currently defined and used, is that it removes all responsibility from students and their families for the students’ academic performance. NCLB [No Child Left Behind] neglected to acknowledge that students share in the responsibility for their academic performance and that they are not merely passive recipients of their teachers’ influence.”

8. The Last and Definitive Word on Writing the Common Application Essay, by Robert S. Schwartz - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-s-schwartz/writing-the-common-application-essay_b_995186.html - "The college application essay is really your last and best chance to show a college admissions officer who you really are. Some think of the essay as a "tie breaker," something they use when they want to see beyond grades or test scores, which will push an applicant "over the top." Tell a great story. Tell it very, very well. Enjoy the process of edifying the reader. Be smart, be interesting, be yourself. And in the words of Steve Martin --"be so good they can't ignore you."

319. College Access and Success News

Here are links to recent news
on college access and success.

by

Joe Rottenborn

Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Seeking Your Back-to-School Questions on Admissions, by Jacques Steinberg: http://nyti.ms/o0vwcR - "Readers of The Choice can submit questions for the authors’ consideration by using the comment box below. The answers will begin appearing on Monday and continue through Sept. 16."

2. St. Lawrence University: Study By SLU Profs Shows Students Get Higher Grades If Classes Start Earlier - http://bit.ly/oABsrf via AddThis - "She notes that while later class times predicted only slightly lower student grade-point averages, there is no question that later classes were associated with more drinking. Excessive alcohol consumption is the main negative influence on academic performance in college."

3. Is technology in the classroom a bust? by Davin McHenry - http://p.ost.im/p/eNqY7Q -"The New York Times ran a front-page piece this past weekend on the fact that test scores don’t seem to be getting a boost from the billions being spent on new technology in the classroom. The education-policy world has been all over the story, with some knocking The Times and reporter Matt Richtel. Others are saying the story is an important reminder that technology isn’t a cure-all."

4. Online Search Ads Hijack Prospective Students, Former Employee Says, by Josh Keller - http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/online-search-ads-hijack-prospective-students-former-employee-says/33047 - "The entire process was designed to redirect students who wanted information on a public college to a for-profit college, Mr. Soloway says. “The expectation was that we were not to allow a call to end with a student until we had created three private-school leads.”

5. Back to School and Deeper in Debt, by Arianna Huffington - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/back-to-school-and-deeper-in-debt_b_951205.html - "Increasingly, graduating from college no longer means putting your education to work for you -- it now means being a virtual indentured servant to your education. Instead of propelling you into the future, more and more it means trapping you in the past."

6. Check this video out -- Financial Aid 101 Part 1 - http://t.co/4quu1OP via @youtube

7. Which Assets Matter Most in Financial-Aid Formulas? by Cameron Huddleston - http://www.kiplinger.com/columns/kiptips/archives/which-assets-matter-most-in-financial-aid-formulas.html

8. 6 Ways Colleges Are Behaving Badly, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy: http://www.thecollegesolution.com/6-ways-colleges-are-behaving-badly/#.TmgY4tDDwio.twitter via @AddThis

9. RT @usnews: Should I Use The Common Application? - College Admissions Q&As (usnews.com) - http://t.usnews.com/b9DBF

10. Read The Joe Rottenborn Daily ▸ Today's top stories on college access and success via @rottenbornj ▸ http://t.co/x7cmxSo

293. Summer College News

Here are some links to today's stories

about college access and success.

by

Joe Rottenborn

Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Colleges boost student fees to fill gaps in state funding, by Mary Beth Marklein - http://t.co/a1pYDOo via @USATODAY - "Colleges are tacking on mandatory student fees at a time when state funding is dwindling and public universities are trying to hold the line on tuition."

2. Pell as a Paycheck, by Libby A. Nelson - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/pHk5gG - "Many students use the check to pay for their books, or to buy a laptop or other equipment to use during their studies. For others, it covers living expenses while they are enrolled. A new project from the Institute for College Access and Success and MDRC, a policy research organization, wants to use the leftover money in a different way: as a biweekly paycheck for students."

3. Promoting Educational Opportunity: The Pell Grant Program at Community Colleges - http://www.aacc.nche.edu/Publications/Briefs/Pages/pb07212011.aspx - "In this brief, we examine the historical and programmatic nature of the Pell Grant program and investigate how it has come to form trends over time. Underlying the examination is the use and importance of the program to college students, with a focus on those attending community colleges."

4. Obscure Colleges That Produce Highly Paid Graduates, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy - http://t.co/rhG743d via @cbsmoneywatch - "If you look at the schools producing the highest paid graduates, many of them are earning diplomas from places that you’ve never heard of. . . . You don’t have to attend a top university to earn a great salary. What you major in can be even more important than where you get that degree."

5. Debt Ceiling Victims: Colleges Could Be Forced to Close, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy - http://t.co/flG1YFb via @cbsmoneywatch - “If Congress doesn’t raise the debt ceiling, the government will not be able to make new federal education loans and it is very likely that all other federal student aid programs, including the Pell Grant, will be eliminated. Most colleges would be forced to lay off some faculty and staff and many colleges would be forced to close. It would be nothing short of a national disaster, and one of man-made origin.”

6. A Sleepaway Camp Where Math Is the Main Sport, by Rachel Cromidas - http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/28/nyregion/a-sleepaway-camp-for-low-income-ny-math-whizzes.html?_r=1&hpw - "She and 16 other adolescents are spending three weeks at Bard College here in a free, new camp for low-income students gifted in mathematics. All are entering eighth grade at New York City public middle schools where at least 75 percent of the student body is eligible for free lunches. And all love math."

7. Summer learning program seeks to close opportunity gap, by Emma Brown -http://t.co/P9F7muI via @washingtonpost - “There’s a real disconnect between how much we know about the negative impact of summer learning loss and what is actually being done in terms of policy and programming,” he said. “We spend nine months, from September through May or June, devoting enormous amounts of time and energy — not to mention resources — to promoting student achievement and learning. And then we step away for three months and allow a good portion of those gains to be lost.”

8. The 13 Worst-Paying College Majors: PayScale List - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/28/the-13-worst-paying-colle_n_911809.html#s317428&title=Children_and_Family - "Salary data site PayScale calculated the dirt on the best and worst-paying college degrees in their annual salary survey and, according to its findings, the latter career paths include things having to do with art, children and social services."

9. Common App available Aug 1st, by Jolyn Brand - http://t.co/o2kWjJj - "This year, the Common Application will be available on Aug 1st for students applying to college admissions Fall 2012. The most obvious change is the addition of a word requirement to the personal statements. Students will now be limited to 500 words.Other changes include questions about language proficiency, parents' marital status will now have an option for 'civil unions", and revised language on disciplinary problems.The Common App will also be avaiable via smartphone!"

261. Review of College News

Here are some links to today's stories about

college access and success.
by
Joe Rottenborn
Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. A college education is your best bet, by Joseph E. Aoun - http://t.co/xmXnAe1 - "In addition, a new Georgetown University study that analyzed the earning outcomes of 171 types of college degrees found that every single one generates a positive return -- even after college costs and foregone earnings are taken into account. It found that, overall, college graduates make 84% more over a lifetime than their high school-educated counterparts."

2. I'm an entrepreneur: College was invaluable, by Brian Forde - #cnn - http://t.co/nUGyUKl -"I applaud Thiel's efforts to encourage entrepreneurship, although if it is under the claim that education is better served through experience than the classroom I would disagree. If everyone took this route, the future of business would be all innovation and no operation."

3. Study shows preschool's benefits are long-lasting - USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/jaYGkh - "Better jobs, less drug abuse and fewer arrests are among advantages found in the study. The researchers tracked more than 1,000 low-income mostly black Chicago kids for up to 25 years.Those who attended public preschool at Chicago's intensive Child-Parent Center Education Program were compared with those who mostly didn't attend preschool."

4. College mulls tuition hike - TribToday.com - Tribune Chronicle - Warren, OH: http://bit.ly/kZdJqm - "The proposed hike would increase a full-time student's tuition by $90 per semester, adding $6 to each credit hour. Currently, the college's tuition rate is $99 per credit hour in Ohio and $93 for Jefferson County residents due to the local levy."

5. Mind the (Scholarship) Gap, by David Moltz - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/lSLqd1 - "The National Collegiate Athletic Association defines a “full" athletic scholarship as “financial aid that consists of tuition and fees, room and board, and required course-related books.” By contrast, the NCAA and most college financial aid offices define cost of attendance as “an amount calculated by an institutional financial aid office, using federal regulations, that includes the total cost of tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, transportation and other expenses related to attendance at the institution.”

6. Schools Strengthen Counseling on Postsecondary Options, by Mary Ann Zehr - http://t.co/tlPIQ26 via @educationweek - "But experts say many counselors get little preparation themselves on how to advise students on choosing the right four-year college—let alone other kinds of postsecondary options.“There are numerous graduate school programs around the country that don’t even have a course dedicated to developing college-counseling skills for high school counselors,” says Jim Miller, the president of the National Association for College Admission Counseling."

7. National Coalition for College Completion - http://finishhighered.org/ - "Every student – of every race and every income level – needs quality education beyond high school."

8. More Hispanic Students Graduating And Attending College, Census Says - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/09/more-hispanic-students-graduating_n_874237.html?ir=College - "A higher percentage of young Hispanic adults is finishing high school, and the number attending a two-year college has nearly doubled over the last decade, according to Census data released Wednesday."

9. Summer jobs take a back seat for teens angling for college, by Jeffrey Sheban - http://t.co/RWOIfg1 - "With the job market tight and competition keen for college scholarships, more students are forgoing summer employment to pursue activities that will give them a leg up on college admissions."

10. Write 500 Words, Get Into College: Common Application Sets Essay Length Limit, by Kayla Webley - http://t.co/Wt1fle7 via @TIMENewsFeed - "In the essays, which are now accepted by 415 colleges and universities, students choose one of five prompts to write on. One of the prompts is, "Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence."The remaining prompts and a full preview of the 2011-12 Common Application is here."

178. MVCAP fyi

See free MVCAP e-books on college admissions and financial aid for sharing, printing, and downloading at our online resource library: http://issuu.com/mvcap

1. Recent grads finding jobs - in their living rooms, by Jessica Dickler -http://t.co/dMEGo9a via @CNNMoney

"She's one of a growing number of young professionals choosing to work from home as telecommuting opportunities have jumped nearly 400% in the past three years, according to job-search site FlexJobs.com."

2. Oversigning offenders won't be curbed by NCAA's toothless rule, by Andy Staples - http://bit.ly/g6iYgS /via @SI_24Seven

"When Football Bowl Subdivision schools across the nation begin signing football players on Feb. 2, they'll have to adhere for the first time to an NCAA bylaw that limits them to 28 signees between Signing Day and May 31. Unchanged is the rule that declares schools can bring in only 25 new scholarship players each academic year."

3. On education reform, safe is for losers, by Richard Whitmire - http://usat.ly/eD79K7 - RT @USATODAY

"On this round of the trusted National Assessment of Educational Progress, only one in five high school seniors scored proficient in science. Worse, only a handful scored at the advanced level — not an encouraging sign as the nation faces international economic competition based more on brains than brawn."

4. A January Deadline Met, but the Applications Continue, by Uyanga Tamir - http://nyti.ms/gwqYWP

"So here I am, a second semester senior still filling out applications and writing good old essays. Since the bigger wave of applications has passed, I also have started my scholarship search. Most of the scholarships that are available have deadlines in the second semester, which is convenient for all students. To those other students who believe that second semester of senior year is going to be a breeze, it really will not be if you are serious about your future. Life does not get easier, only more challenging – something that I anticipate with enthusiasm and readiness."

5. Shielding Education and Research, by Doug Lederman - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/fhRsZM

‎"The president's speech was relatively short on details about programs he would seek to shield from the overall five-year freeze on domestic spending he proposes; it made no mention of Pell Grants or other financial aid (which many college leaders fear could face cutbacks if Republicans stick to their goal of slashing domestic spending) . . . ."

6. The Same Boxes to Check, by Scott Jaschik - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/fitseI

"The Common Application has rejected a proposal that it add optional questions on sexual orientation and gender identity. The board of the organization issued a statement suggesting that colleges have other ways to indicate support for applicants who are gay or who don't identify with traditional gender categories, and that adding the questions could pose problems."

7. Deal Stopped in Its Tracks, by David Moltz - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/fDrCtZ

"Though Cuyahoga would keep all tuition from in-county students in this program, it would have to give 70 percent of tuition from out-of-county students to Academic Partnerships. Ross noted that the college would pilot two course offerings of 30 students to see if the model made financial sense, then expand it if deemed appropriate."

8. Enrollment Management, Inc.: External Influences on Our Practice -http://www.usc.edu/programs/cerpp/docs/EnrollmentManagementInc.ReportFINAL_002.pdf

A report on the enrollment management industry, by Scott Andrew Schulz and Jerome A. Lucido, both of the University of Southern California

9. Top Schools See Record Applications for 2015 - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/25/top-schools-see-jump-in-a_n_812455.html#s227215&title=University_of_CaliforniaLos

‎"This year, the ten University of California campuses all attracted large volumes of applicants, with UCLA topping the list with a record 61,498 applications. Among private schools, Columbia University saw a massive 32 percent increase in applicants from last year, for a total of 34,587 applications."

10. Is College Tuition Too Low? by David Leonhardt - http://nyti.ms/fBBp08

‎"In essence, Mr. Becker and Mr. Posner are calling for a higher list price for public colleges. Well-off families would be able to pay this higher list price. Their children would still go to college, graduate and, far more often than not, earn enough of a wage premium to make college a fabulously good deal. Middle- and lower-income families, on the other hand, would not have to pay more than they’re now paying."

11. Census Data Show Rise in College Degrees, but Racial Gaps in Education, by Alex Richards-http://chronicle.com/article/Census-Data-Reveal-Rise-in/126026/

"For instance, the census estimates that in 2009, 28 percent of Americans 25 and older had at least four-year degrees. But the rate for black Americans was just 17 percent, and for Hispanic Americans only 13 percent."

12. Proficiency Eludes U.S. Students on Science NAEP, by Erik W. Robelen - http://t.co/2J5jeSL via @educationweek

‎"Only one in five high school seniors scored at least proficient on the exam. Meanwhile, 34 percent of 4th graders and 30 percent of 8th graders were deemed proficient or better in science on the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress, known as “the nation’s report card.”

13. Application Boom Begets a New Strategy, by Eric Hoover - http://chronicle.com/blogs/headcount/the-application-boom-begets-a-new-strategy/27800

"So Rutgers decided to allow applicants to submit their academic information—courses, grades, grade-point averages, and class rank—via an online form called the Self-Reported Academic Record. Students who decide to enroll must then ask their high schools to send an official copy of their transcript by July 15, so the admissions staff can verify the information they had submitted. In other words, the university must process transcripts only for those students who enroll."

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1. Common Application Users Find Glitch In Common, Too, by Jacques Steinberg - http://nyti.ms/hrIqxS

"When he would follow the program’s instructions to execute a “print preview” of his answers — which would show him the actual version that an admissions officer would see, as opposed to the raw work-in-progress on his screen — his responses were invariably cut off at the margin, in midsentence or even midword."

2. Showdown in the Offing - http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/12/23/top_republican_vows_legislation_to_stop_rules_on_for_profit_colleges

"One possible scenario has House Republicans putting forward 2011 budget legislation in early March that would cut the Pell Grant Program or slash Head Start or other Democratic priorities -- but would soften those stances in exchange for an amendment to the legislation that gutted gainful employment."

3. 46% Of Fed Loans To For-Profits Will Go Into Default - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/23/46-percent-default-rate-o_n_800283.html

‎"The staggering percentage of defaulted loans at proprietary institutions may garner support for federal efforts to regulate such colleges and provide a boost for the DoE's proposed "gainful employment" rule, which would screen for-profit institutions according to their students' ability to repay loans. Essentially, the rule would test the likelihood that students will graduate and then become gainfully employed."

4. For-Profit College Loan Fail, by Andy Kroll - http://t.co/NCkkTI5 via @motherjones

"The DoE's regulations would mandate that for-profit college graduates earn enough to repay their federal loans, or else the schools could lose access to federal loan funding. That would be a serious blow to much of the industry, which relies on such funds to survive. Most colleges receive 75 percent of more of their revenue in federal loan funding; at others, like the University of Phoenix's parent company, Apollo Group, federal dollars comprise upwards of 90 percent of the revenue. (The legal limit is exactly 90 percent.)"

5. At Kaplan U., 'Guerilla Registration' Leaves Students Deep in Debt, by Chris Kirkham - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/22/kaplan-university-guerilla-registration_n_799741.html?ir=College

"Far from an aberration, Castillo's experience typifies the results of a practice known informally inside Kaplan as "guerrilla registration": academic advisors have long enrolled students in classes they never take, without their consent and sometimes even after they have sought to withdraw from the university, in order to maximize the company's revenues, according to interviews with former employees."

6. Experts Begin to Identify Nonacademic Skills Key to Success, by Sarah D. Sparks - http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2010/12/23/15aera.h30.html?tkn=TOOFSR%2B4810CTp1N9ef4pgxwBLgqJMYV0Ew0&cmp=clp-edweek&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EducationWeekAmericanEducationNewsTopStories+%28Education+Week%3A+Free+Daily+Stories%29 via @educationweek

"Across education and industry, research by Mr. Sackett; Neal Schmitt, a psychology professor at Michigan State University in East Lansing; and others shows the biggest predictor of success is a student’s conscientiousness, as measured by such traits as dependability, perseverance through tasks, and work ethic. Agreeableness, including teamwork, and emotional stability were the next-best predictors of college achievement, followed by variations on extroversion and openness to new experiences, Mr. Sackett found."

7. Last-Minute Budget Bill Spares Pell Grants - http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/last-minute-budget-bill-spares-pell-grant-program/29308

"But Republicans, who will control the House come January, are already signaling that they may not be so generous in the future. In a news release issued today, the incoming chairman of the House Appropriations Committee described the additional Pell money as a “bailout” for the program."

8. Top Colleges Reconsider R.O.T.C. After ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Vote, by Tamar Lewin and Anemona Hartocollis - http://nyti.ms/efkKY0

"The R.O.T.C., which has units on 327 campuses nationwide, was sent packing from several Ivy League and other prominent campuses in the late 1960s and early 1970s, in the firestorm of student protests against the Vietnam War. More recently, though, it has faced opposition because of discrimination against gay men and lesbians in the military."

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1. When Listing Extracurricular Activities, No Need To Fill All Blanks, by Jacques Steinberg - http://nyti.ms/bqSxIL

"Here’s how Monica C. Inzer, the dean of admissions at Hamilton College in New York and a member of the Common Application board, put it: We’d rather see depth than a longer list. I think students think we want well-rounded kids. We do. But we really want a well-rounded class. That could be lots of people who have individual strengths. Distinction in one area is good, and better than doing a lot of little things."

2. The Rise of the 'Edupunk' - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/9azAXt

“We're still trying to fit the Web into our educational paradigm. I just don't think that's going to work,” said Mary Spilde, president of Lane Community College, in Eugene, Ore. Today's students are “pretty bored with what we do,” she added. In a notable acknowledgment of the tail wagging the dog, several panelists alluded here to the possibility that if colleges don't change the way they do business, then students will change the way colleges do business.College leaders don't yet know how to credential the knowledge students are gaining on their own, but they may soon have to, said Mark David Milliron, deputy director for postsecondary improvement at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. We are not far from the day when a student, finding unsatisfactory reviews of a faculty member on ratemyprofessors.com, will choose to take a class through open courseware online and then ask his home institution to assess him, Milliron said. Colleges need to prepare for that reality, he said."

3. When Social Media Is Irrelevant - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/bW8sTL

"In an admittedly limited study of 65 students (mostly from graduate programs) -- presented Thursday to a packed room here at the Sloan Consortium International Conference on Online Learning -- university officials discovered that the students cared mainly that their instructors clearly communicated the expectations and requirements for a class and responded in a timely manner to their questions. They cared less about getting to know their classmates, looking at instructor profiles, having real-time chat sessions, and simulating face-to-face communication with video. Also, students who had previous experience learning online were more likely to be relatively indifferent toward social intimacy with their instructors and classmates. The notion that “social presence” might help with retention in online programs has prompted vendors to infuse their online learning platforms with more social media tools, particularly synchronous text- and video-chat features."

4. Veterans who go back to school want more support, by Jenna Johnson - http://t.co/XTPoFI4

"Researchers with the National Survey of Student Engagement interviewed nearly 11,000 student veterans who were first-year students or seniors at four-year schools. The veterans reported interacting less with their instructors than did classmates who had not enlisted, and they were less likely to partake in educational opportunities such as internships or study abroad. The Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research produces the survey each year to measure how students and faculty interact and learn. The latest, results of which will be released Thursday, found that colleges should "seek ways to more effectively engage student veterans in effective educational practices and provide them with the supportive environments that promote success."

5. Banks Spend $83 Million to Promote Student Credit Card Use, by Scott Gamm http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-gamm/banks-spend-83-million-to_b_778709.html

‎"According to a new report released by the Fed, credit card issuers paid a whopping $83,462,712 to colleges, universities and institutions of higher education to promote student credit cards. As a result of this $83 million+ spent, credit card issuers gained an extra 53,164 college credit card accounts in 2009. Let me get this straight: $83 million was spent to encourage college students to open up credit card accounts, which allow students to spend beyond their means and rack up huge amounts of credit card debt (the average per student is over $4,100, according to Sallie Mae). You may think that college students use credit cards for books and groceries. But when 50% of college students have 4 credit cards or more, according to Sallie Mae, it's hard to believe that only necessities are being charged on their credit cards! Irresponsible credit card use in college will not only ruin the credit score of students, but it will instill poor spending habits for years to come."

6. College Applications Continue to Increase. When Is Enough Enough? by Eric Hoover - http://nyti.ms/dARwf9

"For this fall’s freshman class, the statistics reached remarkable levels. Stanford received a record 32,022 applications from students it called “simply amazing,” and accepted 7 percent of them. Brown saw an unprecedented 30,135 applicants, who left the admissions staff “deeply impressed and at times awed.” Nine percent were admitted. The biggest boast came from the University of California, Los Angeles. In a news release, U.C.L.A. said its accepted students had “demonstrated excellence in all aspects of their lives.” Citing its record 57,670 applications, the university proclaimed itself “the most popular campus in the nation.”

7. Education Department to Review U. of Phoenix’s Federal Student Aid http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/education-dept-to-review-u-of-phoenixs-federal-student-aid/28111

"Phoenix, like many for-profit colleges, relies heavily on federal student aid, and its prediction last month that by 2011 such aid would exceed 90 percent of its revenue—breaking a federal threshold—helped send the company’s stock price into a tailspin. According to recently released data from the department, last year Phoenix took in $1-billion in federal Pell Grants, the first institution, for-profit or otherwise, to receive that much."

8. NCAA Puts U. of Michigan on Probation for Rules Violations in Football Program

http://chronicle.com/blogs/players/ncaa-puts-u-of-michigan-on-probation-for-rules-violations-in-football-program/27703

"The Division I Committee on Infractions announced its decision in the closely watched case Thursday afternoon, when it released a 29-page report detailing the allegations—and sanctions—against head coach Rich Rodriguez’s football program. In addition to placing the institution on probation, the committee also upheld Michigan’s self-imposed penalty that would reduce the amount of practice time allotted to its football team through the end of the 2011-12 academic year. In the report, the NCAA faulted Rodriguez for allowing his program to run afoul of the association’s rules in several areas, including the number of coaches he had on staff and the amount of practice time athletes were required take part in. The NCAA also said the head coach—as well as the athletic department at large—failed to monitor the football program, and directed Rodriguez to participate in an upcoming seminar about NCAA rules."

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1. Check Every Word Before Hitting 'Send,' by Caren Osten Gerszberg - http://nyti.ms/aTZCGN

‎"There is an option to upload and attach the personal essay document to the application, but for the short answer, Nicole needed to cut the text from her Word document and paste it into the application’s limited space (“limited” being the critical word here). We put in the payment information. She hit SEND. “Congratulations,” I said. “You’ve officially applied!” But then, I looked at the printout we’d made and noticed the last line of her short-essay answer, which ended abruptly, midsentence. It had been cut off on the application.“Nicole? What’s this?” I muttered.“Oh no!” she said, panicked. Apparently, her short answer had exceeded the 150-word limit by 12 words, and had somehow gone unnoticed."

2. No Curveballs for Higher Ed - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/cghJJQ

"In the House, Republicans are expected to push for budget cuts and greater oversight of all of higher education, not just for-profit colleges. In the Senate, Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) will continue the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee’s examination of for-profit colleges into next year. Harkin and Senator Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) have said they plan to introduce legislation in 2011 targeting perceived waste, fraud and abuse in for-profit higher education."

3. Shift in the Statehouses - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/b0WsTm

‎"Early Wednesday morning, television networks projected that Strickland had been defeated by his Republican opponent, John Kasich, a former Ohio Congressman with a reputation as a deficit hawk. In many ways, given the constrained budget picture in Ohio, that trait of Kasich's may ultimately be more important than whether he will continue the agenda undertaken by Strickland and his hand-picked chancellor of the new University System of Ohio, Eric Fingerhut -- an agenda of performance-based budgeting and reorganization that has won plaudits nationally. In addition to the reforms, Strickland has prioritized colleges in state funding decisions, viewing higher education as essential to Ohio's (and Ohioans') economic future -- an example few expect Kasich to follow."

4. The 9 Most Expensive Dorms: Campus Grotto List http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/02/the-9-most-expensive-dorm_n_777750.html

"According to Campus Grotto, the price of year's worth of dining hall meals and campus roof over one's head increased by 3.9 percent and 4.6 percent for private and public institutions, respectively. On average, public school students pay $8,535 for college housing; private school students must cough up $9,700. So at which schools must you reach the furthest into your pocket to pay for a standard double room? When taking into account Campus Grotto's new list of the 20 most expensive college dorms, odds are the school will be in an urban setting in New York or California. Surprised?"

5. Is A College Class For $138 Too Good To Be True? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/02/straighterline-inc-offers_n_777850.html

"Launched in 2008, for-profit online college course provider StraighterLine, Inc. is starting to capture media attention with its offer of general education courses for as low as $138 per month -- or $999 for a first-year course load. According to the Baltimore Sun, StraighterLine differentiates itself from other inter...net-only institutions because it does not offer degrees -- rather, it sells courses that most universities require, and encourage students to transfer credits earned via its website to more traditional institutions."

6. 25 Most Expensive Colleges in America, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy http://t.co/WtpanXT

‎"Brace yourself, college costs are continuing to rise. Two years ago, five colleges smashed the $50,000 barrier, but today 100 colleges are now charging $50,000 or more.Using new College Board data, The Chronicle of Higher Education compiled a list of the nation’s 100 most expensive colleges. You can find the complete list of the most expensive colleges on the newspaper’s site, but here are the top 25 colleges and universities that have broken the $50,000 mark."

7. Smallest College Endowments Perform Best, Study Finds, by Tamar Lewin http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/03/education/03brfs-SMALLESTCOLL_BRF.html?_r=1&hpw

"College endowments returned an average of 12.6 percent in fiscal 2010 — and, unusually, the smallest endowments performed better than the largest ones, according to preliminary data from 80 colleges and universities gathered for the comprehensive Nacubo-Commonfund Study of Endowments to be released in January. According to the data, institutions with assets under $25 million had an average return of 14.1 percent, compared with 12.3 percent for those with assets over $1 billion. Smaller endowments tend to be invested more than larger ones in traditional assets such as domestic equities, which performed well in the rebound from the previous year’s sell-off, and fixed income, which benefited from declining interest rates."

8. Unready and Unsuccessful, by Joanne Jacobs http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joanne-jacobs/unready-and-unsuccessful_b_775668.html

"Seventy percent of California's degree-seeking community college students failed to earn a credential or degree -- or to transfer to four-year universities -- within six years, concludes a new study. Most students drop out quickly, reports the Institute for Higher Education Leadership & Policy and the Campaign for College Opportunity. Between 2003 and 2009, only 40 percent of students earned at least 30 college credits, which is considered "the minimum needed to provide an economic boost in jobs that require some college experience," reports the LA Times.Blacks and Latinos did worse: Only 26% of black students and 22% of Latino students had completed a degree or certificate or transferred after six years, compared to 37% of whites and 35% of Asian Pacific Islanders. Students fail because they're not prepared for college-level reading, writing and math. Many are juggling jobs and family responsibilities too, of course, but college readiness is the make-or-break issue."

9. For-Profit Colleges Curry Favor With Candidates for State Offices, by Eric Kelderman http://chronicle.com/article/For-Profit-Colleges-Curry/125224/

"Among for-profit colleges, the Apollo Group, which owns the University of Phoenix, has been the most generous to state candidates, according to data from the National Institute on Money in State Politics, a nonprofit organization that tracks state-level campaign contributions. The Phoenix-based company, along with a few of its key employees, has poured nearly $350,000 into state campaigns during the current election cycle, with roughly two-thirds of that amount going to campaigns in Arizona and California. Those contributions are meant to build the companies' influence among lawmakers who could have the greatest impact on future proposed regulations, in particular, new state laws and regulations that authorize for-profit and online institutions to operate in a state. Under new federal rules, which take effect next year, some colleges will have to be approved to operate in a state in order for its students to receive federal financial aid."

10. Republican Gains in Congress Could Temper For-Profit Inquiry, by S. Hebel and K. Kiley-http://chronicle.com/article/Republican-Gains-in-Congress/125233/

"The outcome is expected to have a more-immediate effect on the fight over for-profit colleges than on any other federal higher-education policy debate. Having reclaimed the House of Representatives, Republicans could block bills aimed at for-profits and attempt to overturn the administration's proposed "gainful employment" rule, which would penalize programs whose graduates carry unmanageable levels of debt. Republican leaders have said they want to focus on scrutinizing the outcomes and costs of all types of colleges, not just those in the for-profit sector, shifting attention from problems at proprietary institutions alone to issues facing higher education as a whole.Yet even the most sanguine of the sector's supporters acknowledge that the Republican takeover of the House won't be a panacea for for-profit institutions. Since Democrats have held onto the Senate, they can continue their investigation into for-profit colleges and thwart any Republican effort. . . ."

11. Career Education Corp. Could Pay $40 Million to Settle Lawsuit Filed by Culinary Students http://chronicle.com/article/Career-Education-Corp-Could/125231/

"Career Education bought the college in 1999. A 2007 story in SF Weekly described a litany of student concerns about the pricey institution, where tuition for a 15-month program can run about $50,000 and where, according to the article, students could graduate without knowing how to julienne vegetables or make a simple consommé. Ray Gallo, the lawyer for Allison Amador, the former student who along with 36 others first brought the lawsuit, said the amount of damages awarded to current or former students would depend on their particular circumstances—such as how long they were enrolled, what program they took­, and how much they paid—and how many of the 8,500 students ultimately elect to take part in the settlement, if the judge approves it. The $40-million includes fees for the plaintiffs' lawyers."

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1. Your Comments on High-Octane Parents, and their Blessedly Decaffeinated Children, by Jacques Steinberg - http://nyti.ms/9uzzqd

‎"I’ve been moderating your comments on Dave Marcus’s essay, “A Father’s Acceptance: His Son Won’t Follow His Ivy Footsteps,” and I’m having a bit of trouble keeping up. So many of you have been prompted to tell heartfelt stories of your own families, and the divergent, oft-rocky paths taken by parent and child. It’s obvious that Mr. Marcus touched a nerve, and that many of you saw yourselves in what he wrote about his relationship with his son, Benjie. (By the way, Benjie reviewed the essay in advance and gave it an enthusiastic thumbs up, his father says.)By contrast, some of you had a dissenting view from Mr. Marcus, which we’ll get to in a moment.I can’t possibly do justice to all your comments — you’ve posted more than 70, and counting, and the entire stream is probably worth savoring over a cup of coffee — but I’ll try to touch on a representative sampling."

2. Student Debt and the Class of 2009 http://projectonstudentdebt.org/files/pub/classof2009.pdf

"College seniors who graduated in 2009 had an average of $24,000 in student loan debt, up 6 percent from the previous year, according to data released Thursday by the Project on Student Debt. At the same time, unemployment for recent college graduates climbed from 5.8 percent in 2008 to 8.7 percent in 2009 – the highest annual rate on record for college graduates aged 20 to 24."

3. For-Profit Lobbying Escalates - Inside Higher Ed http://t.co/k3cOgYV

‎"As federal scrutiny of the sector has spread from the U.S. Department of Education's in-the-weeds negotiated rule-making process last winter to the high-profile series of hearings by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee that began in June, for-profit higher education has responded by spending increasingly more on lobbying the Education Department, the White House and members of Congress. From the first quarter of the year (January-March) to the third (July-September), based on Inside Higher Ed's analysis of public disclosure data, for-profits' federal lobbying spending nearly doubled, from slightly more than $1.3 million to just short of $2.6 million."

4. Changing Course - Inside Higher Ed http://t.co/cRc7JE4

"Some nonprofit institutions that partner with companies on online education have been careful to emphasize their commitment to keeping a wall between the business and technology of online course delivery and the actual instruction. “Some things, we would never turn over to the private sector,” Philip Regier, dean of Arizona State University’s online programs, said earlier this month, after his institution announced it was going into business with Pearson to help boost its online offerings. But Blackboard and K12 are betting that remedial education will be an exception. About 75 percent of first-year students at community colleges need at least one remedial course, according to a report released earlier this year by the The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. And yet the percentage of students who end up moving beyond such courses is typically less than half. Under the circumstances, it might be hard for faculty to reject outsourced courses on territorial grounds."

5. Somewhere Along the Line - Inside Higher Ed http://t.co/8kzMErN

"A greater share of students who began at higher levels of remediation -- in other words, those levels closest to “college-ready” -- were “of traditional college age when they entered community college,” and they “aspired to more ambitious academic goals,” “enrolled full time during their first year,” “completed college-level coursework beyond the [remediation] sequence,” and “transferred or completed a degree or certificate. ”At the other end of the spectrum, few students who began at the lower levels of remediation “completed the last course in the remedial sequence or beyond.” Black and Hispanic students “were overrepresented” in these lower levels."

6. Average Student Debt: $24,000 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/22/average-student-debt-2400_n_772276.html

"The report reveals that northeastern states have the highest concentration of debt, with averages across states ranging from $13,000 to $30,000. The report looked at graduates of private and public non-profit four-year colleges. Institute for College Access & Success President Lauren Asher told the New York Times that the "consistent growth in debt over the last few years really adds up." She said students should consider federal loans over private loans as they come with more repayment options and borrower protections."

7. New Measurements For Success At Community Colleges? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/21/new-measurements-for-succ_n_771488.html

"Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System currently publishes degree attainment for first-and full-time students who graduate within four years. Those who support a new means of measurement argue that the IPEDS falsely deflates the success of two year institutions by failing to report on students who transfer to a four year college before graduating, as well as on students who never intend to gain a degree (i.e. individuals who seek a certificate or retraining)....The study found that 50 percent of students who passed English classes within their first two years graduated, compared with only 20 percent of students who failed such courses, and that 55 percent of students who passed math classes in their first two years attained a degree -- as opposed to a graduation rate of 21 percent for those who did not earn passing marks. The report's authors contend that such figures should encourage states to make a nuanced effort to increase graduation rates. . . ."

8. Students Applying to More Colleges and More Online, by Caralee Adams - http://t.co/myyrqtW via @educationweek

"The 2010 State of College Admission Report shows that nearly 75 percent of students now apply to three or more colleges, an increase of 14 percent in the past two decades. The percentage of students who submitted seven or more applications reached 23 percent last year, up from 9 percent in 1990. Although most colleges reported increases in the number of applications for fall 2009, the largest proportion since 1996 (29 percent) reported decreases. The process is becoming electronic. About 80 percent of four-year colleges and universities received applications online for the fall 2009 admission cycle, up from 72 percent in 2008, 68 percent in 2007, and 58 percent in 2006."

9. Curious Case of ‘Catnip’ & the Common App http://chronicle.com/blogs/headcount/the-curious-case-of-‘catnip’-and-the-common-application/27589

"At the National Association for College Admission Counseling’s annual conference last month, several counselors discussed what they described as an increasingly common scenario: students using a fast-track application to apply to a college that’s a member of the Common Application. In such cases, high schools cannot electronically submit students’ supporting documents—transcripts, secondary-school reports, and letters of recommendation—to colleges. Why not? Because a member college isn’t able to download those documents until (or unless) a student submits his or her application through the Common Application’s Web site. In other words, a student can bypass the Common Application’s system by submitting a fast-track app, but that student’s counselor cannot do the same. In those instances, counselors say they must send supporting documents through the mail— and they must rely on students to tell them that they’ve filed a fast-track app in the first place."

10. When Choosing A College, What Really Matters? by Abby McCartney Choosing a College Unigo http://t.co/tXRts1I

"The process of matching yourself to a school is different for everyone, and I’m no expert. But I’ve been through it a few times now, with myself, my friends, my sister, and her friends, and we all made a lot of the same mistakes. So, whether you’re compiling an initial list or making a final choice, here are some tips from someone who’s been there before. Three things that do not matter as much as I once thought:"