The Compass Academics Blog
Our blog is designed to educate and inform students and their parents in all subjects related to college planning.
Power of the Yield Protection Myth
To paraphrase Nietzsche: Humans can tolerate suffering, but humans can't tolerate meaningless suffering. There is no doubt that many students are suffering right now with news of rejection from schools where they hoped they would spend the next four years of their...
On the Subject of SAT Subject Tests
I recently gave a presentation for parents of HS Sophomores and Juniors and the subject of SAT subject tests came up. Compass Academics is based in St. Louis and many of our local clients are not very familiar with the SAT, much less SAT Subject tests. When I...
Diversity Diversion?
In a recent article, “When Colleges Seek Diversity Through Photoshop,” InsideHigherEd.com exposes the lengths to which schools will go to appear to be more inclusive than they actually are. Scott Jaschik reports that a recent ad campaign from York College in...
Admissions Demystified
What Does it Take to Get into College? Each year, the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) publishes their industry report: “State of College Admissions.” This is a fantastic resource for parents and their college-bound students. NACAC...
Activism and Academia
The Political Campus The recent mid-term election further illuminated the political spectrum of our country and college-aged voters turned out in record numbers. With the highest turnout in 25 years, voters between the ages of 18-29 took to the polls and influenced...
Students for Sale
How much are applicants worth? In the world of Big Data and ever-increasing competition, universities are target-marketing to potential students like never before. What used to be a seasonal outreach program to students who generally fit a profile, has now become a...
Degrees of Debt
How much should college cost? Recently, Reddit posted an excellent thread in their Life Pro Tips forum. For those of you unfamiliar with Reddit, it is known as the “Front Page of the Internet” and is essentially a site that aggregates web content, news, and...
ACT, SAT, or Both?
Which college admissions test should you take? It is that time of the year when rising Seniors are considering taking their college placement tests at least one more time before they submit their college applications. If they did not do as well as they had hoped...
Admissions Essay Tips
Overcoming college essay writer’s block The College Admissions Essay is a genre unto itself and, arguably, the most anxiety inducing component of college applications. In an era dominated by tweets and status updates, you would think that this generation is...
Forward-Thinking Majors
What’s your major? Recent estimates suggest that over five million jobs will be lost by 2020 due to the Fourth Industrial Revolution. According to the World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report, the following are the top 10 skills that employees will need to be...
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