Right up my alley! Something of a “busman’s holiday,” as my mom would say, since I’m reading something for / related to work. I think I came across itRight up my alley! Something of a “busman’s holiday,” as my mom would say, since I’m reading something for / related to work. I think I came across it through one of the newsletters to which I subscribe.
To the outsider, or more specifically, the outsider with oversized dreams of a sexy brand-name college, it’ll seem awfully bleak. Sorry to say, but competitive colleges can only hang onto a very limited few spots for those students with no other qualities than excellent grades and wonderful community engagements. If you’re one of those people who thinks, “I’ll beat those odds, just you wait,” I really recommend going through this book. All the things we might have thought about “meritocracy” are turned on its head. And we’re reassured that despite the competition out there, it’s easier than ever to go to college, and you can get a great education in lots of places. Great reinforcements of truths in this business that get terribly overlooked.
Selingo gives us fantastic insight into the process, giving us exceptionally helpful detail, and somehow he doesn’t make a big deal about the revelations. The whole thing is told with a fluid, digestible style, one that comes down to our level. It reads very, very fast for something that might be considered academic. I read it in a day or two.
Not sure I agree with one thing: “undermatching.” Selingo proposes that if a strong student goes to a college with weaker ones, that are supposedly not serious about graduating, he/she can slip into inaction, not be as interested in engagement, and is thus in danger of failing him/herself. To me, that flies in the face of finding a great school just about anywhere. It also seemed to me that he didn’t make a strong suggestion of how to solve the issue, although he does have a chapter on how to seek out quality in the college search. My problem is that families with high expectations will consider ANY college that isn’t ultracompetitive as an “undermatch.” I’ve seen it happen: I’ve heard students say, “Notre Dame has an OK business program,” or say that some of the great Jesuit colleges are “beneath them,” or that they don’t want to end up at a state school, even though that’s the most viable financial option. He really should have couched the “undermatching” idea by reminding the reader of the danger of setting expectations too high.
Other than that, an excellent book about a hot-button issue. A must-read for counselors and parents of high-achieving students....more
Christopher
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