The Wall Street Journal said it best:

In financial aid, it's not how much you've saved, but where (paraphrasing).

The rules that dictate how much -- or how little -- you'll receive in college financial assistance are complicated and unfair to many who lived below their means and learn, too late, that they'll be penalized for their responsible behavior.

If that sounds like you, I recommend that you turn into our newest online class this coming Wednesday, September 18, called How to Slash College Costs by 56.1%...even if you think "No way!  Families like us NEVER qualify for any financial assistance."

One of the key topics I'll cover is that WSJ notion of "where," not "how much."  

Specifically, which types of savings accounts penalize you (reduce your eligibility) more than other types...

...and which are completely penalty-free.

In addition to strategies to get more cash for college, I'll go over at least 10 mistakes families make in the financial aid process. 

Mistakes you'll ...

With annual college costs in excess of $90,000 and 50% of student loans in default, there's a big, big sleeping elephant in the room.

If you're the parent of a teen headed to college in 2025 or beyond, the more you learn about how to win scholarships and financial aid, the better...

...so that you can comfortably afford tuition for all of your children without scrimping your lifestyle, plundering your retirement savings or selling a vital organ. :)

Next Wednesday, September 18, we're running a brand new financial aid and scholarships "secrets" workshop, called How to Slash College Costs by 56.1%...even if you think "No way!  Families like us NEVER qualify for any financial assistance."

There's no charge to attend and nothing to purchase.

And you will DEFINITELY not hear these strategies at your high school's BS "college night" or the next college fair you attend, where the speaker is probably employed by a local college. 

Yeah, HE will tell you how to get more money from his coll...

Good morning!

We're hitting the airwaves this morning

-- 10:00am EST --   

as College Coffee Talk kicks off the 2024-2025 school year with case studies of how affluent families can slash college costs by tens of thousands (or more)...even if they think they can't possibly qualify for anything!

Tune In!

Grab a cup of joe and we'll see you at 10am EST (recorded if you can't make it)

- Andy "Sounds Too Good to Be True" Lockwood

I messed up last night.

Based on the 5 star reviews and the comments and questions in the chat , it looked like last night's "Late Stage" College Planning webinar went over well.

However, at the end, I learned that I did something pretty stupid.  

When I mentioned that if anyone wanted a free College Strategy Session, all they had to do was click the green button, a couple of people replied:

"Where's the green button"

I didn't post it, somehow.  Impressive!

To make things right in the world again, I'm publishing a recording of the webinar momentarily, and will keep it up all weekend.  If you want to chat about our college advising services, there will be a button under the video recording.  (I mean it this time. :)

Here's where to go: 

Watch Replay

- Andy "Not That Tech Savvy"  Lockwood

P.S.  The topics on the webinar were...

*The Inconvenient, Politically Incorrect Truth About What It Takes to Get Into an Ivy or Any Top College -- What do admissions officers REALLY want?...

I'm -ss deep reviewing our clients' college applications, and have noticed one thing they all have in common:

Everyone applying to college is a leader!

Apparently, followers don't go to college.  

I'm being SLIGHTLY facetious, but there is a point embedded in my snark:

If everyone is a leader, how important or special can leadership be to an admissions officer?

What if you're not the president, vice-president or one of 17 co-founders of a club?  Can you still stand out on your college applications?

I'll take a stab at answering that question, tonight, in a new workshop called  "Late Stage College Planning". 

The class is free and we're not set to record it.  Nothing will be sold, either.

Here are additional topics I'm planning to cover:

*The Inconvenient, Politically Incorrect Truth About What It Takes to Get Into an Ivy or Any Top College -- What do admissions officers REALLY want?   

Getting into an Ivy or other top college is about far more than merely curve-breaking high grades and standardized test scores.   Harvard and a handful of other super-competitive colleges brag every year about how many applicants with perfect scores didn't manage to get in.

So what does it take to get into an Ivy or near-Ivy college?

A superior academic record -- grades, scores and "rigah" as we say up in Boston --  is important.  But that's only 60% of the equation, give or take.

The other 40% is composed of stuff that's out of your control, such as race (still), ethnicity, your parents' educational and economic background...

...and stuff that's IN your control, like extracurricular activities.

There are two types of extracurriculars, Typical and Atypical.

The latter is the type that needs to be perfected to give yourself the best shot at getting accepted where you want to be accepted.

What's an example of an atypical extracurricular activity?

It's not being a member of the Na...

Summer's unofficially over, and if you have a high school junior, sophomore or younger, you might feel like reality has slapped you in the kisser harder than an Emma Navarro backhand.

Yep, the college process is coming atcha, like a fast approaching train.

And like a train, it arrives on its own schedule, and departs on its own schedule -- whether or not you are "ready".

This past year was, hands down, the CRAY-ZEE-IST year in my 22+ as a college advisor, between the Supreme Court declaring affirmative action in college admissions to be unconstitutional, campus protests after the October 7 attack on Israel, increased college applications and dropping admissions rates, huuuuuuge problems with FAFSA and getting financial aid into the hands of families who qualify for it, and uncertainty about test-optional policies as they started to lose favor.

Other than that, things went pretty smoothly!

That's why I'm holding a free online class this Thursday night, called "Late Stage College Pl...

Hi there,

If you have questions about the brand spanking new SAT, and/or the brand newer/spanking-er ACT that JUST came out three weeks ago. tune in for tonight's impromptu, live SAT- ACT Preview class.  

It starts at 8pm EST.

Here's the classroom link, no registration necessary.  Just show up at 8pm (bookmark the link so you don't forget):

FREE Preview Class

- Andy"At the Test Prep Movies" Lockwood

P.S.  Please share this with anyone you think could use this info.

P.P.S. One more no-risk, freebie for you:  a "Test Drive", Try Before You Buy actual free SAT or ACT Class.

(This is an actual class, totally different than tonight's walkthrough of both tests.)

College Coffee Talk | Free SAT & ACT Class

Good morning!

Two announcements:

1. We're hitting the airwaves this morning -- 10:00am EST --  for College Coffee Talk, our live show about college admissions and financial aid news that you can use!  

Here's what's on tap for today, it's a real doozy, bound to make some parents a little miffed:

How can parents support their children in the application process without overstepping?

In other words...

How not to be a helicopter parent even if you think nothing will get done if you don't micromanage your child until they're 35 years old.

2. Today's the last day for our Free SAT and ACT class promo, a/k/a Try Before You Buy.  Here's where to sign up.

Marissa will be doing a live Q&A tonight at 8pm EST. I'll send out the link for that session this afternoon.

Here's where to join us live on College Coffee Talk, in a few minutes, 10am sharp! 

Tune In!

- Andy "Caffeine Addict" Lockwood

Free SAT and ACT Class | Last Minute College Advising

 You may have heard, more and more colleges are abandoning their test-optional policies.   And for the colleges that still let you conceal your SAT and ACT scores, there's more to the story.

Plain and simple...

There's a difference between APPLYING test optional versus being ACCEPTED test optional

The three most important academic components of a college application are 1. GPA, 2. rigor of course load and 3. standardized test scores.  These three factors comprise approximately 60% of the entire college application.

Simple logic:  if you remove one of these three academic components -- test scores -- the other two factors take  on greater weight.  So do the non-academic ones (40% of the application).

Mass marketing by colleges has created a tsunami of applications, year after year.  But are those applicants from QUALIFIED students?

Or is a huge chunk of them from kids who think, "Princeton doesn't need test scores, so I'll thr...