The Coalition moves closer to April launch with new ‘interim’ director

With the addition of new educational materials on its website and increased visibility at various Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success is moving closer to launching the first two of three components of a technology platform designed to support long-term college planning and a new approach to the application process. 

college conferences across the country, the

While no specific date has been set, the “Locker,” or portfolio development tool, and the associated “Collaboration Space” will be introduced as promised in April, with the application set to debut in July.

“Negativity is dying down,” said Colin Melinda Johnson, interim director of the Coalition in an interview on Coalition plans for the coming months. “We’ve been getting some positive press and the volume of misgivings is fading.”

In her new role, Ms. Johnson has been traveling to meet with various organizations to present the new set of online tools she hopes will improve the way students apply to college.  And from her office at the University of Chicago, she has been working with CollegeNet, the Portland, Oregon-based software developer, to put together instructional materials targeted to applicants, college counselors and Community Based Organizations (CBOs) that work with low-income, underrepresented students.

She is also coordinating a Coalition Counselor Community composed of 65 counselors representing 33 public high schools, 21 private high schools and 11 CBOs. In addition, Ms. Johnson is overseeing a series of beta tests currently being conducted by one school district, a CBO, and a Charter School. 

And while elements of the application have yet to be totally finalized, the structure is in place and the organization feels confident the new platform reflects state-of-the-art application technology and will be met with an enthusiastic response by users.

Here is an update:

Staffing.  In addition to appointing Ms. Johnson as interim director, the University of Chicago Office of Admissions is currently interviewing for an Assistant Director of Coalition Outreach to “work primarily on the Coalition’s behalf for at least one year,” after which the position is expected to transition to the Coalition. Both positions report to Chicago’s Vice president and Dean of Admissions, James Nondorf, who currently serves as the chairman of the Coalition.

Membership. Membership currently stands at 91 colleges and universities. Many are also members of the Common Application, but many are also current customers of CollegeNet. Those CollegeNet institutions meeting current Coalition membership requirements are mostly migrating to the new platform. A number of additional colleges are currently in the pipeline, but it’s unlikely the total will get as high as 100 active institutions, as some may want the association but will delay offering the application for a year. In the meantime, a committee chaired by Zina Evans, vice president for enrollment management at the University of Florida and William Fitzsimmons, dean of admissions and financial aid at Harvard College, is looking into loosening membership restrictions for next year.

Exclusives. For the moment, three universities have announced that they will be Coalition exclusive—University of Florida, University of Maryland College Park, and University of Washington. While a large percent are Common App members and intend to keep their association, others are hedging their bets by maintaining existing applications. Over the next several years, however, it is believed that many current CollegeNet customers will drop the redundant application and effectively be Coalition exclusive. Note that it is not the Coalition’s intent to encourage exclusivity. The new platform was created partly out of a perceived need for competition in the industry, which they feel benefits everyone.

Launch.  The Locker and associated Collaboration Space will go live in April. Students can open accounts at MyCoalition.org, where they will be asked to create a “profile” and have the opportunity to create a college list. For the class of 2017, the application portal will open in July, at which time students may begin the process of completing and submitting to those institutions ready to begin accepting applications.

Beta Testing.  For now, only the Locker and Collaboration Space are being beta tested. The application will begin testing later in the spring. Aside from technology input, the Coalition Counselor Community is providing feedback on educational materials, handouts, and press releases.

Training. The Coalition is in the process of putting together a series of webinars, a schedule for which should be posted on the website next week. In addition, representatives are meeting with various organizations, attending conferences and otherwise offering information and training as opportunities present themselves.

The Locker. Possibly the most controversial of the Coalition’s college planning tools, the Locker goes live next month and is a place for students to store documents related to the processes of planning and applying for college. It is entirely controlled by the student. While mentors may be offered opportunities to comment on items stored in the Locker, they will not be able to edit or otherwise “curate” these materials through the Collaboration Space. Examples of items a student may wish to include in the Locker would be a resume, a graded assignment, a research paper, a scientific abstract, a video or a recording.  These materials may be later transferred to specific applications as requested by individual colleges. For example, next year the University of Chicago plans to allow for the submission of a graded paper in its application process.  This paper may be one originally loaded into the Locker. Finally, the Locker will serve as a repository for confidential materials uploaded by teachers and counselors including recommendations, official transcripts, and school reports. These items will be placed in “sealed envelopes” and will not be visible to the student, but they will be available for submission to colleges as part of the Coalition application process. 

Mentors. A student may invite mentors to provide guidance and support and otherwise collaborate with them throughout the college planning and application processes. Mentors include, but are not limited to, teachers, counselors, CBO staff, clergy, coaches and independent educational consultants (IECs). They may be invited to comment on, but not alter or edit, items stored in the Locker and shared in the Collaboration Space. The Locker and its contents are not visible to universities and colleges, although a student may (under certain specific circumstances) use the Coalition Space to share an item from the Locker with an admissions officer acting as a mentor.  The purpose of the Locker is to facilitate college planning as well as to store and organize materials potentially relevant to the application process. Students using the Locker tool are not required to use the Coalition application. At the same time, students using the Coalition application are not required to make use of the Locker and/or invite mentor comments in the Collaboration Space. 

Naviance. The Coalition is looking toward integration with Naviance in Year Two.  For this year, a technical group representing Naviance and Hobsons is partnering with Coalition staff to put together a series of instructional documents walking counselors step-by-step through the process of coordinating the Naviance system with the Coalition application.  This guidance should be available on the Coalition website next week.  In the meantime, it is hoped that with cooperation from Naviance and input from school counselors beta testing the tools, any additional work involved for this year will be minimal and the systems will function together smoothly.  Counselors will be able to determine their level of engagement with the Coalition platform, which may range from document submission through the Collaboration Space to opening an account with a dashboard keeping track of all students using the Coalition application and their status in the application process—not too dissimilar to the dashboard provided by other shared application products.

As planned, the Coalition application will allow for a significant amount of customization of individual applications. There will be shared elements, and many of the individual applications will look similar, but they will differ in terms of what is required. This is not too much of a departure from how CollegeNet currently works with institutions using their application. Note that the decision whether or not to require a shared personal statement is still under consideration, but the Coalition is leaning away from this requirement in favor of allowing individual colleges to fully script their own writing requirements.

For more information and greater detail on the current status of various elements of the application, visit the Coalition website.

4 fantastic summer resources—and they’re FREE

Summer can’t come soon enough for millions of families frozen in place by the mountains of snow and confounding temperature swings characteristic of the mercurial winter of 2016.

And for those who are hoping to have seen the last of the white stuff, this may be a good time to start researching the various programs available to  high school students interested in finding a fun, valuable and/or educational summer experience.

For this purpose, the internet can be a wonderful and truly valuable resource.  But be aware:  all websites are not created equal.

When it comes to summer programs, there are lots of different marketing incentives that may get in the way of helping you make sound decisions about the quality and cost of different opportunities.

For example, an enormous number of colleges now offer classes, camps, internships, and other related programs during the summer months.  They’ve discovered these kinds of activities are useful for filling residence halls, employing professors and administrative staff, increasing visibility, and making a little money. And colleges can be relentless marketers using their websites and mailing lists to attract prospects. 

If you understand why the college might want to sign you up for the summer (see above) and if you’re willing to pay some of the enormous fees associated with these programs, fine.  But don’t think that that taking a summer class at Outrageously Prestigious University will somehow fast-track you through admissions or that the academic credit offered is worth much, if anything.

Also be wary of websites that ask too many questions to “register” or appear to promote a group of expensive programs through “featured listings.”  These may be fronts for larger marketing operations which accept placement fees from advertisers.  They don’t have your best interests in mind.

And don’t fall for the honor of being “invited” to participate in or attend a particular summer program.  Again, you may be the target of a marketing scheme designed to make the opportunity look selective.  These typically pricey programs may be worthwhile for introducing careers, making friends, and having fun, but don’t be deceived into thinking they are anything more than glamorous summer camps.

The following four websites have no incentives other than to provide you with basic information on what’s available for the summer.  They accept no advertising and represent no particular interests.  Check them out:

College Lists Wiki
College Lists Wiki is a free, publicly-available site designed to support college counselors as they assist students navigate the college search process.  It’s a labor of love maintained by Cigus Vanni and Shelley Krause, who use the “wiki” format to invite collaboration with college counseling professionals. 

To use the site for the purpose of searching for summer opportunities, simply type “summer programs” into the search bar and various lists and resources will appear.   There is no advertising, no registration, and no pressure to choose one program over another.  What you have are wonderful lists of links to programs you are free to evaluate in terms relevant to what you need or find interesting.

Davidson Institute for Talent Development
While technically targeted to “gifted” students, the Davidson (not to be confused with the college in North Carolina) website actually contains a wealth of information and resources potentially useful for any student. The most generic and wide-ranging list contains summer programs organized by topics of interest including arts, enrichment, leadership, literature, math, outdoor, precollege, science, technology, engineering and more.

Links to websites are provided for more specific investigations. And note that the programs listed have been recommended by parents, professionals and students associated with the Davidson Institute.

Rochester Institute of Technology Co-op/Internships and Summer Research Opportunities
For a number of years, RIT has thoughtfully compiled a list of co-ops, internships and summer research opportunities for high school students.  All of the opportunities listed offer stipends or salaries, unless otherwise indicated.  And many of the opportunities also provide travel reimbursement, housing or meals.

Note that this listing is focused on opportunities in positions directly related to biology and biotechnology.  There is no registration required nor is there any glitzy marketing associated with the website.  To access information, you simply click on a link. 

Summer Program Finder (SPF)
SPF is a wonderful resource that made its debut last year.  Designed and compiled by a school counselor, the site is a FREE summer search engine targeted to high school students, parents, counselors, teachers or anyone searching for opportunities at the high school level.  You can specify the terms of your search to include such factors as cost and location.

Focusing primarily on academic programs on college campuses, the site also lists internships and research possibilities, volunteer and community service programs, and travel and study abroad programs.  In addition, there’s a blog with monthly articles relevant to summer planning for teenagers.

Many high schools also compile lists of summer programs and share these lists on their websites.  These too are free of marketing intent.  You may want to check with your school counselor or college career office to see what’s available.

Zero in on summer activities that will help you explore or expand upon your interests. Don’t spend your summer participating in activities only because you think they will “look good” or impress colleges. Keep in mind that you don’t always need to go far from home, spend huge amounts of money or otherwise appear privileged.

And most important—remember to have some fun!

College Board adds unexpected experimental section to ‘some’ SATs

William and Mary will not be requiring the Essay section of the new SAT

Thanks to some terrific reporting from Valerie Strauss, of the Washington POST and excellent by Catherine Gewertz, of Education Week, we now know that the College Board will be adding a fifth, entirely unexpected, section to the “redesigned” SAT (rSAT) administered to some students taking the new test for the first time tomorrow.

follow-up

Despite repeated promises of “transparency” in the development and introduction of the rSAT, the College Board is stonewalling requests for information and steadfastly sticking to a largely unhelpful script explaining the addition of a 20-minute, multiple choice section for some students, specifically those without accommodations and those opting out of the 50-minute Essay section. 

According to information provided to Education Week by College Board spokeswoman Kate Levin, “on some test dates in some test centers, test-takers will take some pretest items that are not included in computing their scores. These items may appear in any of the sections.” The fifth section “may include either pretest or operational test items.”

For those not familiar with the jargon, “pretest” questions are experimental and don’t count toward a student’s score. “Operational” questions are those that count.

Both the SAT and the ACT have always had experimental sections—the SAT going back as far as 1926. It’s good way to field-test questions for various attributes too complicated to describe and decide which to include on future exams. 

In other words, test-takers have traditionally provided a little free research assistance for both the College Board and ACT.  Although students never knew which kind of questions they might receive, they knew for sure the section was there.  And sometimes, particularly in the last few administrations of the old SAT, it was very clear which questions were experimental and which were not.

But sensing the experimental nature of some of the questions didn’t always relieve the anxiety a student felt when encountering questions that were different from the rest. In fact, it usually increased the anxiety, which could be a real problem if the student’s mind suddenly got “out of the game.”

In the months leading up to the introduction of the rSAT, no mention was made of an experimental section leaving students prepping for the test to believe that the basic length of the exam would be 180 minutes. This impression was underscored by test prep materials made available online and through Khan Academy. And this was a good thing—a selling point for the new test.

But with the addition of a fifth 20-minute section—for some but not all students, the exam grows to 200 minutes—the same as the old SAT minus the essay.  And all the problems associated with exam fatigue potentially come into play (depending on where the experimental section is placed), along with the unsettling feeling that something is not quite right about a set of questions.

It would help if the College Board would do what ACT does and signal where the additional section will appear—beginning, middle, or end of the test. It would be even better if they would explain what they mean by the suggestion that the additional section might also include “operational” questions. 

But in absence of more guidance, here are some pointers for students taking the SAT this weekend who do not receive special accommodations and who have opted out of the essay:

• Don’t be surprised if you have an additional 20-minute multiple choice section and your overall test-taking time grows to 200 minutes.  Plan for this eventuality by warning your parents or anyone coming to pick you up that the test may be a little longer than originally expected.
• While the College Board isn’t disclosing when the additional section might appear, most test-prep professionals believe it will be at the end of the test. Don’t waste valuable time speculating about or anticipating the additional questions. Treat every section as if it matters.
• There’s no telling what kinds of extra questions you may be asked. They could be math, reading or writing. It’s luck of the draw and has nothing to do with you or your skill set.
• Don’t panic if the questions seem more difficult or slightly out of sync with the rest of the test—do your best. Keep in mind that unlike the old SAT, there are no penalties for wrong answers.  Guess if you need to.
  
• Given the lack of transparency about the existence of “operational” questions in the additional section, assume every question counts even if you suspect you have pinpointed the experimental questions. Again, do your best.

“It has always been advisable for student to not even think about what material might be experimental and this is especially important now due to the uncertainty that College Board has created,” suggests Adam Ingersoll, of Compass Education Group. “Bottom line, just do your best on every section.”

Connect with veterinary programs at the 2016 AAVMC Medical Career Fair

Prospective veterinarians, including high school students or undergrads on a pre-professional veterinary track, should mark their calendars for the 2016Veterinary Medical Career Fair.  Sponsored by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), the fair is scheduled for Sunday, March 6, from 2:30 to 5 p.m., at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, located not far from the National Zoo!

This is a terrific opportunity to meet veterinary medical school admissions officials, get advice on veterinary school admissions, and learn about various veterinary medical career opportunities.  Note that it’s one of very few college fairs in the country totally targeted to students interested in pursuing careers in veterinary medicine.

Already gathered for an annual conference, representatives from national and international colleges of veterinary medicine will be on hand to walk students through the application process while explaining the kinds of credentials necessary to attend any of the AAVMC member institutions.

You may be surprised to learn that some veterinary medical schools are very interested in time spent in animal care related activities as early as high school.  In fact, prospective vets are well advised to start keeping track of their volunteer hours in activities related to animals or animal care throughout all four years of high school.

And we’re not just talking about cats and dogs!

“This year’s event will feature two veterinarians in non-clinical practice areas,” explained Lisa Greenhill, AAVMC associate executive director for institutional research and diversity. “We really want students and their families to understand that there are a wide range of things to do in veterinary medicine.”

By the way, US News lists veterinary medicine among the 100 “best” jobs for 2016, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that veterinarians earned a median salary of $87,590 in 2014.  In addition, the healthy growth rate of veterinary jobs—nine percent between 2014 and 2014—reflects the fact that more Americans are getting pets and are willing to spend money for their health care.

To meet this need, some of the best-known veterinary programs in the country are expanding Cornell University launched a $22 million renovation project to upgrade and expand its College of Veterinary Medicine, which will enable the college to sustain its class size at 102 and “sets the stage for an additional increase that will stabilize Cornell’s pre-clinical class size at about 120 students per year.” 

And the Texas Tech University System has announced plans to develop a veterinary school and veterinary medicine doctoral program, citing student demand and industry needs. There are currently more than 150 students enrolled in pre-veterinary education at the College of Agriculture Sciences, but “the lack of veterinary schools prohibits many qualified students from becoming veterinarians,” university officials say.

And for high school students thinking ahead, the choice of undergraduate school could possibly fast track acceptance to veterinary medical colleges as opportunities exist for early admission to DVM programs by bypassing completion of the BS.  For students committed to the field, this could mean significant savings in terms of time and money!

This year’s AAVMC event will feature information sessions held in conjunction with the medical career fair, which will include veterinary school representatives from Auburn, Cornell, LSU, NC State, Ohio State, Purdue, Tufts, and the University of Florida—to name a few.

“Students visiting the fair should remember to ask about summer programs and how to get veterinary-related experience while still in high school,” suggested Dr. Greenhill. “Research programs are available with undergraduate ‘feeder’ opportunities at some vet schools.”

And there are prizes for inquiring students.

“We will continue featuring our special ‘I’m a Future Vet’ t-shirt—as a prize only—as well as some new giveaways,” added Dr. Greenhill.  

Although not required, students are asked to register in advance for the fair. Last year’s event was very well attended, and early registration helps conference organizers do a better job.  And note that while hourly parking is available at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, students and their families are strongly encouraged to take the Metro (Red Line exiting at the Woodley Park/Zoo Station).

But if you can't attend, take the time to check out the AAVMC website for information on how to become a veterinarian, including links to a new set of webinars designed to introduce students to the veterinary application process.