DO THEY HAVE SORORITIES AT SLIPPERY ROCK?
A SELECTED LIST OF SOURCES OF INFORMATION ABOUT COLLEGES
College Admissions in a Broader Perspective
Jay Mathews,
Harvard Schmarvard. Getting Beyond the Ivy League to the College That is Best for You.
New York: Three Rivers Press, 2003.
- Washington Post education reporter and columnist Jay Mathews, a Harvard alumnus,
combines humor, his personal experiences as an undergraduate who transferred from Occidental College
to Harvard, and extensive research and anecdotes gathered from students, parents, college counselors
and college admissions officers in an effort to debunk the myth that "being admitted to a college
with a luminous name will guarantee a life of happiness." On the contrary, Mathews stresses,
"The notion that the brand-name schools can guarantee high salaries and satisfying careers for all
their graduates is a scam. The success of many graduates of Ivy League schools is a matter of
qualities established long before they ever got to college and has little, if anything, to do with
what they learned or whom they met at those great universities." Mathews encourages students
and parents to investigate the hundreds of "good colleges" that are not "brand-name schools" and to
choose the "one that best suits a student's needs,…no matter how hard or easy it is to get into."
To assist in the search for such schools, Mathews offers a host of reassuring anecdotes and
advice as well as an annotated list of 100 "hidden gems," colleges which are much better than those
obsessed with brand names think they are.
Jacques Steinberg,
The Gatekeepers: Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier College. New York:
Penguin Books, 2002.
- New York Times education reporter Jacques Steinberg spent the 1999-2000 school
year observing the admissions process at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut from the
inside. He traveled to high schools and college night programs alongside a Wesleyan admissions
officer in the fall, and observed Wesleyan's admissions committee deliberations during the winter and
spring. Steinberg follows several actual applicants through the entire process and provides
unprecedented insight as to why these applicants were ultimately admitted or not admitted to
Wesleyan. Steinberg concludes that-thankfully-as much as grades and test scores, the human
element is critical to the admissions process at highly selective universities like Wesleyan, that
"now more than ever, an applicant's fate...[hinges] on the personality, interests and judgment" of
senior admissions officers, and that there is no secret formula for gaining admission.
General Guidance
Bill Mayher.
The College Admissions Mystique. New York: The Noonday Press, 1998.
- Mayher's sensitive, even-handed analysis helps demystify the college admissions process while
describing a model very similar to the one we use at Pembroke Hill. Mayher emphasizes the
decisive role of the student's record of achievement in acceptance to college. He reassures
students and parents that they can rely on college counselors to be strong advocates for students
and to provide information and emotional support to both student and parents.
This is an excellent book, a must read for both students and parents.
Joyce Slayton Mitchell. Winning the Heart of the College Admissions Dean:
An Expert's Advice for Getting into College. Revised and Updated edition. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 2005.
- This book offers straightforward, and sometimes blunt, talk from a veteran college
counselor.
It is full of anecdotes and quotes from actual college admissions deans, such as Fred Hargadon
from Princeton and Bill Fitzsimmons from Harvard. Mitchell helps students think of the
college admissions process as a learning experience and encourages them to take control
and enjoy the process. A strong advocate of "eight first choices," Mitchell urges students
and parents to appreciate the wide range of outstanding educational opportunities available
to students at schools like Pembroke Hill. She offers specific suggestions for being creative
on the application, for preparing for college interviews, and for keeping standardized testing
in its proper perspective. Like Bill Mayher, Mitchell encourages students and parents to maintain a
good working relationship with the student's college counselor.
Comprehensive Guide Books
Peterson's Guide to Four Year Colleges Peterson's Guides.
- The most comprehensive guide,
filled with helpful information. Information is largely statistical.
Barron's Profiles of American Colleges. Barron's Educational Series, Inc.
- A comprehensive
guide book that includes information about admissions requirements and academic
programs. Free disks included with your purchase of the guide book.
Selective Guide Books
Robert Franek, et. al.
The Princeton Review: The Best 357 Colleges.
- Conveniently organized,
two page snapshots of 357 four year colleges and universities. Intended as a supplement to
lengthier guides, its greatest strength is its full page summaries of "what students think" about each school.
Edward B. Fiske. The Fiske Guide to Colleges. Three Rivers Press.
- A very readable, but admittedly
subjective series of essays on each of 300 of the more selective colleges and universities.
Includes a helpful list of "overlaps" (e.g. students who are interested in or apply to
College X also tend to look at Colleges Y & Z).
Robert Mitchell. The Multicultural Student's Guide to Colleges.. Noonday Press.
- Although intended for African-American, Asian-American, Hispanic and Native American applicants,
this collection of subjective essays can be consulted profitably by students and parents interested
in a multicultural environment.
Specialty Guide Books
Barry Beckham The Black Student's Guide to Colleges.. Fourth Edition.
Madison Books.
- Intended primarily for African-American students and their parents, Beckham's guide
provides profiles of 182 colleges. It contains the most complete set of profiles of Historically
Black Colleges as well as helpful sections on choosing a college and the application process.
Ruth Fredman Cernea. The Hillel Guide to Jewish Life on Campus.. B'nai B'rith Hillel
Foundation.
- Intended primarily for Jewish students and their parents, the Hillel guide provides
assistance in determining "which schools have the best campus Jewish life" for an individual student.
Brief profiles of more than 500 campuses in the United States and abroad contain information on the number of Jewish students, nature and quality of Jewish activities,
availability of Kosher food and religious services, and number of Jewish studies courses offered.
Loren Pope. Looking Beyond the Ivy League.. Penguin Books.
- A highly subjective, iconoclastic
book which argues that students can obtain a better education at lesser known small liberal arts
colleges than they can at most Ivy League schools. See chapter 8 for his supporting evidence
and chapter 10 for his favorites.
Loren Pope. Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools You Should Know About
Even If You're Not a Straight-A Student. Revised edition. Penguin Books.
- Elaborating upon and updating chapters 8 and 10 of Looking Beyond the Ivy League,
Pope presents more detailed portraits of forty colleges which admit students with a wide range of
qualifications and provide a quality undergraduate education which features close interaction between
students and faculty.
"How to Get In Handbooks"
Edward B. Fiske. How to Get Into the Right College. Times Books.
- A very brief, very readable
overview of the college admissions process aimed at the student interested in lesser
known liberal arts colleges.
Thomas C. Hayden. Handbook for College Admissions. A Family Guide.. Peterson's Guides.
- A
detailed handbook, serious in tone, aimed toward the student interested in highly selective colleges.
"How to Write A College Application Essay" Handbooks
Harry Bauld. On Writing the College Application Essay. Secrets of a Former Ivy League
Admissions Officer. Barnes and Noble.
- An excellent guide, well written and humorous. It contains solid practical advice
that students can understand. Students enrolling in Pembroke Hill's summer school class, taught by Ms. Gordon,
on writing the college application essay will be using this book as the required text.