Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review
(84 customer reviews) 160 of 173 people found the following review helpful
Excellent book with more insights than any other I have read,
November 29, 2003 Gaetan Lion - See all my reviews
This review is from: A Is for Admission: The Insider's Guide to Getting into the Ivy League and Other Top Colleges (Paperback)
Many reviewers indicated this is the best book on the subject. I agree. Why is it better than the other ones? There are several reasons, as described in the following paragraphs. The author is a true insider, as she was an admission officer at Dartmouth for four years. She uncovers many insights about Ivy League admission that the other books do not. By reading this book, you will get an in depth knowledge about peculiar formulas used by the Ivies, including the Academic Index, and its subset the Converted Rank Score (CRS). The CRS indicates that the Ivies do not care so much about GPAs, which at the top level does not differentiate between candidates, but they care instead about class rank. Another factor that is key is the strength of your curriculum (honors and AP classes). If you took easy classes to get As, forget it, your 4.0 GPA will be discounted accordingly. According to the author, test scores are crucial. They account for 2/3 of the Academic Index...Read more
35 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Demystifying, informative look at the application process,
February 4, 2004 By A Customer
This review is from: A Is for Admission: The Insider's Guide to Getting into the Ivy League and Other Top Colleges (Paperback)
College applications are a mystifying process. With directions often never exceeding a sentence or two, students are often left with the question "Well, what exactly DO they want from me?" Well, this book tells you. Mrs. Hernandez's brutally honest look into the application process lays everything out crystal clear for the reader to see. As they say, knowing is half the battle, and knowing how top colleges look at your application let you tailor your application so that the best qualities of you are shown. It also offers plenty of good advice on what to do if you're a NKB (Nice kid, but...) and aren't one of those people with a 1600 and have published their own bestselling novel.The only warning I would have is that college admissions has gotten exponentially harder over the past 5 years since this book was published, and what is said in the book about Academic 7, 8 and 9's (i.e. the most academically qualified)isn't as true as it was five years ago. Current academic 7...Read more
37 of 40 people found the following review helpful
Satisfied customer,
October 30, 1999 By A Customer
This review is from: A Is for Admission: The Insider's Guide to Getting into the Ivy League and Other Top Colleges (Paperback)
The book offers a much-needed dose of reality for anyone approaching the competitive world of college admissions. While the author relies on her experience on Dartmouth's staff, general concepts can be gleaned and applied to other competitive schools. The book is particularly helpful to those unfamiliar with the subject and gives an idea of what to expect from the mysterious and uncertain selection process. Hernandez' book is specifically designed for ivy-caliber schools and does not purport to help unqualified students gain admission to highly selective colleges. It is more of a common-sense manual that helps candidates within range improve their chances by maximizing their attributes and submitting flattering and reasonably polished applications. Helpful suggestions are offered, such as pitfalls to avoid in personal essays and strategies for tackling wait list purgatory. Complicated statistical tables and analyses are provided; interpreting the data may require...Read more
