College Admission: From Application to Acceptance, Step by Step

Product Review

College Admission is the ultimate user's manual and go-to guide for any student or family approaching the college application process.

Featuring the wise counsel of more than 50 deans of admission, no other guide has such thorough, expert, compassionate, and professional advice.

Let’s be honest: applying to college can be stressful for students and parents. But here’s the good news: you can get in. Robin Mamlet has been dean of admission at three of America's most selective colleges, and journalist and parent Christine VanDeVelde has been through the process first hand. With this book, you will feel like you have both a dean of admission and a parent who has been there at your side.

Inside this book, you'll find clear, comprehensive, and expert answers to all your questions along the way to an acceptance letter:

   • The role of extracurricular activities
   • What it means to find a college that's the "right fit"
   • What's more important: high grades or tough courses
   • What role does testing play
   • The best candidates for early admission
   • When help from parents is too much help
   • Advice for athletes, artists, international students, and those with learning differences
   • How wait lists work
   • Applying for financial aid

This will be your definitive resource during the sophomore, junior, and senior years of high school.

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review

(12 customer reviews)

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

Tremendous resource for families, March 18, 2012

John Carpenter - See all my reviews

This review is from: College Admission: From Application to Acceptance, Step by Step (Paperback)

Finally. A resource book about college admissions for students and parents that is current, comprehensive, and accurate. What I like the best about College Admission is that it offers suggestions and guidance based on real knowledge about the process today--not what applying to college was like ten years ago. I also like that the authors have included wisdom from dozens of deans, financial aid administrators, and college counselors who do this work every day. That perspective makes a real difference.

Every step of this guide is absolutely right on, and much of the info and advice here is exactly the same that I give parents and students. There are no secrets, no tricks--just up-front and honest information about how admissions works. When families understand admissions, then the application process is less threatening and less stressful.

The chapters on testing and on financial aid are particularly useful. Each contains information that is terrifically...Read more

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful

Important answers for important questions, August 16, 2011

Reid D Saaris - See all my reviews

This review is from: College Admission: From Application to Acceptance, Step by Step (Paperback)

We loved reading this book, and especially seeing the research about the importance of academic rigor and challenging high school coursework in college admissions. This is thoughtful material, presented to be actionable for students and families. There are answers to critically important issues -- like: should students opt for a more challenging class even if they think they will end up with a slightly lower GPA? This question is one that I've seen many of my students struggle with, not knowing that college admissions officers tend to prefer students who stretch for tougher coursework when they have the opportunity. Many times, people make these types of important decisions using intuition or hearsay. Why not go to the experts -- an experienced parent and an experienced admissions officer -- who have packaged major findings and tips together in one place for you to use? For this and other questions, they provide specific answers to help students achieve college goals. Well done!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

More depth and insight than most guides offer......, September 28, 2011

Sheila Murphy (JAMAICA PLAIN, MA, US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: College Admission: From Application to Acceptance, Step by Step (Paperback)

Some guides to looking for a college seem to want the reader to believe that the process is overwhelming and awful. This book makes the reader feel that both the process and the outcome can be a good experience -- for the student and for the family. The candid advice from Admission Deans at a wide variety of schools is a great feature of this book: these are the conversations parents and students wish they could have throughout the process. Robin Mamlet's savvy insight and Christine VanDevelde's informal and fact-packed writing add up to make this the "must have" guide.