Some Excellent Reasons College-bound Students should give Thanks in 2013

At year’s end, it’s traditional to give thanks for all the many blessings received during the previous twelve months and to look forward to the coming year with a renewed sense of optimism. 

The following are a few very excellent reasons college-bound students should be giving thanks this year: 

• A Common Application that finally works
•  FAFSA’s "IRS retrieval tool"
• Permission to guess on Advanced Placement exams
• Colleges offering applicants a choice of applications
• Even more Colleges That Change Lives
• A new SAT (maybe)
• Admissions Matters by Sally Springer et al.
•  Canadian Colleges
• Colleges that let you substitute “Graded papers” for essays
•  The “Shopping Sheet” prototype for financial aid letters
• Colleges that don’t care where else you applied
• Campus tour guides who master the art of walking backwards
• Growing opportunities for Study Abroad
• Over 850 “test optional” colleges and universities
• Colleges with straightforward "Score Choice" policies
• College Navigator
• Scholarships for volunteers
• Colleges willing to extend deadlines
• A+ colleges for B students
• The freedom to substitute ACT scores for SAT’s
• Internships for high school students
• Free on-campus visitor parking
• The demise of SAT antonym questions—this happened in 1994 but you should continue to be thankful
• Smoke-free colleges
• The Universal College Application
• Teachers and guidance counselors still willing to write recommendations

And most important of all:

Family and friends who support and love you!

Best wishes for a healthy and Happy New Year!