<p>Essentially, because it doesn't cost enough already, you can pay upwards of 40 grand for advice just on getting into college!</p>
<p>As an incoming transfer who needed a year to get my life together - I went from thinking I would major in acting up in Boston to pursuing politics in Washington and finally ending up studying a whole number of things in New York City - paying for college advice seems like the biggest waste of money in the world.</p>
<p>Feedback from parents of students starting to apply? Those who have already applied and are going?</p>
<p>My daughter was just reading this and thought it sounded a bit insane…the lying of some of the admission specialists on their background, the “fashion show”, which seemed a bit odd, the high cost, etc. She didn’t “get it” but I’m glad…we could never afford something like that but I dont think one or two schools would ever be that important even if we could. For the families that it is, what happens when it doesn’t work?</p>
<p>There’s at least one laugh-out-loud funny bit in the article. When the reporter catches the Ivy Success website in a flat-out fib about one guy’s qualifications, the response is: ‘Don’t remember all the details … We really don’t want to be a part of your article as we’re not a service for the masses.’ Can’t overstate the snob appeal of chucking $15-40 grand at a challenge most folks have to handle themselves, I guess. And Michele Hernandez makes my skin crawl - what a self-congratulatory piece of work she is.</p>
<p>I think there’s a legitimate place in the college search process for qualified admissions counselors. I know people whose children would definitely have had better choices if they’d involved an objective professional to work with their family. Let’s face it - some folks can’t begin to approach seeing their own kids objectively, and some parent-child relationships just won’t stand up to the stresses of junior/senior year. I’m pleased to see that a certifying organization is out there. </p>
<p>Since all the info is available for free, however, I really am flabbergasted that anyone would pay so much for it. A fool and his/her money are soon parted, I suppose. Though it is surprising that so many people with that kind of money are so darned foolish.</p>
<p>I laughed after reading the article and said to myself that the College Confidential forum is free and IMHO over the last three years has offered me better (and free) advice than these so-called counselors could.</p>
<p>Debruns: “For the families that it is, what happens when it doesn’t work?”</p>
<p>That’s what I want to know. Slap on the wrist? Kid grounded? Lawsuit?</p>
<p>It would seem that the families who can afford these programs are already the ones who donate heavily to the schools they see their children attending.</p>
<p>The appalling factor of those quotes pale in comparison to this one:</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=Michelle Hernandez]
“I’m at the top of my field. Do people economize when they have a brain tumor and are looking for a neurosurgeon? If you want to go with someone cheaper, or chance it, don’t hire me.”
[/Quote]
</p>
<p>Don’t know of anyone who could do neurosurgery for themselves, but I suspect there must be a few students who do leave it up to chance and get into an Ivy League college without her help.</p>
<p>Here’s what I don’t get: Wouldn’t most of the people who could afford these kind of private college counselors presumably go to schools where there is already an excellent college counseling department in place? Of course, you’d most likely be paying a lot of tuition, so that school counselor isn’t exactly “free,” but you’re certainly not paying 40k for it…</p>
<p>These were the two ‘slap on the forehead’ bits in the article for me as well. Some “counselor” at Ivy Success takes $40,000 to “counsel” kids into their top 3 choices, yet he’s unable to “remember all the details” about a supposed job he held a few years prior??</p>
<p>OY. Such a red flag!</p>
<p>And very well said frazzled1, about the self-congratulatory Michele Hernandez making your skin crawl. My gut reaction was “Ewwwwww, get me away from her!”</p>
<p>I think it’s all a matter of how much money you’ve got. I think it’s ridiculous to pay $200 for a pair of jeans or $30 for an A&F T-shirt, but people do it all the time. The people who are using this service have a LOT of disposable income.</p>
<p>I’ll offer a dissenting voice. I’m surprised that Jacques Steinberg authored such a one-sided piece. Yes, there are private college counselors out there who overhype, overcharge, and underperform. And the same few names are the ones always in the news. But there are also independent counselors out there who perform valuable services for students and families at a reasonable price. Many of them incorporate pro bono work into their practices, too.</p>
<p>Dissenting voice welcome, but how do you justify upwards of 40 thousand over a number of years? </p>
<p>And does anyone want to comment from a student’s perspective, or consider his or her child’s experience? How will this affect the way a teen goes through high school and enjoys life? Don’t kids get enough stress these days? </p>
<p>Plus, later on in life, they won’t have access to $40k JOB counseling. They’ll have to figure it out on their own. To me, that seems like part of the process of maturing, growing, and choosing. The whole idea of going off to school is that those safety nets you’ve had your whole life are now being pulled out from under you.</p>
<p>Personally, I know that no amount of preparation could have gotten me to where I am now for school. Is the idea of having all of this advanced counseling even philosophically swallowable? I think not. It is a violation of a young adult’s “freedom,” whether they want the counseling, or if their parents do.</p>
<p>Read my post again. I offer no justification for that kind of overpricing. There are many honest and professional counselors out there who charge reasonable fees for their services. The folks charging 40,000 are few and far between, but they’re the ones who make it to the front page of the Times.</p>
<p>I think the Times wants to sell papers, the subject matter was timely and they gave them more fodder than probably expected. Maybe they just wanted to show how bad it can get.
If college can be “bought”, let them try and pay, that’s why more holistic daughter just wanted to be herself…it can get beyond crazy. I’m sure admissions has openings for the less wealthy and “do it yourself” types. : )</p>
<p>How do we justify $40,000 for many things people are willing to pay that for? For the super rich there will always been services that are very expensive that hold their hands through the process.</p>
<p>I think we can all seek advice according to our pocketbooks, even if it’s the $15 we shell out for the Princeton Review.</p>
<p>Fortunately, all the advice given for the $40K can be gotten by thorough research. The only thing that can’t be duplicated is connections, and some people are willing to spend quite a bit for that.</p>
<p>Just to be clear, neither of my kids used the services of a college consultant. However, I did copious research and did counsel many other kids (for free.)</p>
<p>You all do know that CC offers similar services (some cheap, some extremely costly, right? (Even though I think the services may have “spun off” to an affiliated website a couple of years ago…)</p>