Mistake number two on my list of the 12 deadliest college planning mistakes is the one almost every parent makes without noticing.

You assume it works the way it worked when you applied.

It doesn't. Not remotely.

I graduated high school outside Boston. Back then Northeastern admitted 90% of the people who applied. Nine zero. It was the school you landed at when the other doors closed.

Northeastern's admit rate today is around seven percent.

Same school. Same name on the sweatshirt. Completely different institution to get into.

Now go run that exercise on your own list. The safety school you're penciling in because your neighbor's kid got in a decade ago may not be a safety anymore. It may not even be a target.

That's the trap. Not that parents are lazy. Parents are working incredibly hard off a map that expired.

Here's the rest of what moved while nobody sent out a memo.

Admit rates at the selective schools are at all time lows. A lot of colleges now cost north of $100,000 a year all i...