Private Consultants...

Parents Forum
1

<p>Interesting article...</p>

<p>Paid College Consultants Help Kids Get In
Wednesday March 1, 8:19 am ET
By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez, Associated Press Writer<br>
Paid Consultants Replacing High School Counselors by Helping Kids Get Into College </p>

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) -- As high school seniors across the country wait anxiously for the responses to their college applications, some can take comfort in knowing they sent out the best money can buy.
Their parents paid hundreds -- sometimes thousands -- of dollars to private consultants who help the students draft admissions essays, rehearse for interviews, prepare for tests and even pick after-school activities in the hopes of bettering their chance of admission.</p>

<p>Andrea DuBrow, 54, of New York City, wanted to give her daughter every edge when she applied to Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. So instead of relying on the advice of the guidance counselors at her daughter's private boarding school, she hired a consultant.</p>

<p>"There's just so much pressure now and so many good applicants," said DuBrow, a vice president for a women's accessory company. "We felt our daughter could benefit from some extra help."</p>

<p>The consultants charge for work traditionally provided free by high school counselors, but with rates averaging $120 an hour to $2,900 for two years of consultation, it is a luxury. One exclusive two-year consulting program rings up at nearly $40,000.</p>

<p>"Certainly it skews things for people who can afford it, but the whole system is skewed that way, unfortunately," DuBrow said.</p>

<p>Parents are spending money on consultants because they promise more individualized attention than high school counselors and often tout their connections with colleges. "We give parents an insider's view," said Jane Shropshire, a private consultant based in Louisville, Ky., who has admissions experience at three different colleges.</p>

<p>Many students who aren't getting all the attention they need from a high school counselor can't afford a private consultant. Some independent consultants, in an attempt to level the playing field, offer their expertise for free to some low-income students.</p>

<p>And there are some groups now dedicated to providing free college consulting for students with low-income parents.</p>

<p>College Match grants low-income students in the Los Angeles area free access to resources usually reserved for wealthier students: two years of intensive college preparation and guidance counseling, including all-expenses paid trips to East Coast colleges.</p>

<p>"We try to give these really great kids from public schools in Watts and East Los Angeles everything they would have received had they been born to wealthy parents in Beverly Hills," College Match founder Harley Frankel said.</p>

<p>Rosie Avila, 18, wanted to go to Yale but couldn't get all the help she needed at her East Los Angeles high school. She got picked for the College Match program and said, "There are a lot of privileged kids out there and we have to compete with them. So we have to do everything in our power to try to get to their level."</p>

<p>Kevin Quinn, a counselor at the public South Kingstown High School in Wakefield, R.I., and vice president of the American School Counselor Association, said most school counselors must juggle academics, social problems, special education and college counseling for hundreds of students -- something consultants don't have to worry about.</p>

<p>Mark Sklarow, executive director of the Independent Educational Consultants Association, a professional organization of private consultants, said the number of consultants in his organization has more than tripled in the past ten years and the growth shows no signs of slowing. He estimates that there are now as many as 4,000 private consultants in the country.</p>

<p>Sklarow pointed out that members of his organization, which was founded to institute professional and ethical standards for consultants, must have qualifications similar to certified counselors. One difference between school counselors and consultants is that counselors have to be licensed by states, while consultants do not, he said.</p>

<p>The National Association of College Admissions Counseling, the nation's largest group of professional counselors, counts 282 independent consultants among its 9,200 members -- about a 50 percent increase from 2000.</p>

<p>Edward Gillis, director of admissions at the University of Miami, doesn't see much benefit in hiring a private consultant. "In general, I don't think working with a private counselor changes where a student is going to be admitted to college," he said. Gillis said the main benefit of independent counseling is that it might help a student get more organized.</p>

<p>Bruce Poch, vice president and dean of admissions at Pomona College in Claremont, Calif., said many parents are driven to hire consultants out of "paranoia" about the difficulty of the application process. "Most of what a private consultant provides can be found in a few books or on the college's own Web site," Poch said.</p>

<p>But some admissions professionals do see a bright side. "I think the independent consultants often do fill a niche for students who don't get the kind of help that they need from their public high school counselor," said Lorne Robinson, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. He pointed out that there are good and bad independent counselors, just as there are good and bad high school counselors.</p>

<p>DuBrow's daughter got into Northwestern and Avila is now at Yale. DuBrow said the consultant may not have been the single reason her daughter got in, but did make her application stronger.</p>

<p>But for Avila, who said she hadn't even considered leaving California before College Match helped her out, the intensive college preparation made all the difference.</p>

<p>"I wouldn't be here without it," she said.</p>

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2

<p>Interesting. Since I have a senior, I have come across several families that have used independant counselors (this year, and last year). Most students who have used them are average. They are applying and ending up at the same schools as the kids with some good parental guidance. I have come across some students who have parents that do not have, or make the time to research any schools, and the students are not doing much leg work. I think these are the students that would really benifit greatly from such an outside source.</p>

3

<p>Northeastmom, you hit the nail on the head. As an independent counselor myself, I don't see that a counselor is going to get the student into a better college than he/she may have without a counselor. That is not a reason to use a counselor. Some turn to a counselor because their guidance counselor is assigned too many students, too many responsibilities other than college counseling, may not have expertise in the area of admissions they are trying for (ie., elite admissions, performing arts colleges), and can't provide the level of individualized support. Many parents COULD do this job. But for some families, for WHATEVER reason.....time, effort, lack of knowledge, can't work well with their own kids, whatever, benefit greatly from a support person knowledgeable about the process. Also it is not just families of top students who turn to college counselors. Many of the clients I have had lately are either average students or ones with very low stats. They have colleges on their list that are not realistic or not the right ones. They don't seem to know how to go about it. Not everyone reads up on CC, :o. The support of a knowledgeable person guiding them through the process can help yield a positive outcome but that doesn't mean getting into a better college than they could have anyway. It may mean applying to a more appropriate list, presenting themselves much better on an application than they would have otherwise, and so on. We all know that successful kids often have someone behind them in the process. For many, that is their parents. For some in a prep school, that is a counselor on staff. For some, they may turn to an independent counselor for help. </p>

<p>By the way, CC also works with low income students in a grant supported ongoing project at a school in NY.</p>

4

<p>I just think it's sad, everyone wants the big schools. I have had excellent instructors at community college, who specifically came from ivy league to teach people who really wanted to learn but didn't have opportunity. The whole thing is so unequitable. could we make the fafsa a little more difficult? could we be a little more obtuse on some of these essays they want? It's silly, and a game.</p>

5

<p>It's good to hear that CC is working with low income students. Those are the ones who most need such services, especially those who are first generation college applicants. Do you follow through a year later with the students to learn well they fit with their chosen colleges?</p>

6

<p>Ellen, I am not one of the CC counselors working with this grant funded program with this school in NY where the kids are first generation college students. However, it is ongoing and not just for one year, so I do believe there is followup because they are still working with the school and their students over more than just one school year.</p>

7

<p>While it's nice that low income students are getting help from CC, it's not as if CC is giving that help for free. Grant $ is supporting the program.</p>

8

<p>In our state, they're starting to have some services for folks who want more help with college choices as well. They offer a few free introductory services & one or two college fairs, intro info about financial aid, one intro class about SAT. They also offer paid services & more in-depth help on a sliding cost basis, I believe. </p>

<p>These services have a place, as long as they are recognized for what they are. They are not "miracles" & don't remake the student. If they can help students get a good fit, academically & financially & are within the family's financial resources, they can be helpful.</p>

9

<p>Private consultants-- whether through volunteers or grants -- for low income students are nice, but won't solve the problems of the fact that low income students are, in general, in very weak schools that don't give them the necessary preparation to use their talents and intelligence to the fullest.</p>

<p>Even more than do moderate and high income students, who have lots of advantages at home, low income students need to get more resources like excellent teachers and GCs -- not as a favor or as a luxury, but as a routine part of their education.</p>

10

<p>As a student at a top prep school with great college counselors, I was surprised to learn how many kids have outside counselors as well. Some have been followed since freshman year, being told what to do summers, what ECs to pursue and so on. Most don't talk about it but then a roommate will take a message from someone who wrote a book on college admissions or it will slip out.</p>

11

<p>Last year with my D we knew few students who used one. Or at least they didn't talk about it. But I have seen an increase in use amongst this years seniors. There is a college counselor who lives in my neighborhood and I have noticed a significant increase in traffic at her house.</p>