<p>For those of us who need to know what to read and where to get all of our information, post any college admissions help books you've read/found to be helpful here!</p>
<p>Also go ahead and post your preferred SAT/ACT/AP books as well.</p>
<p>dawn – </p>
<p>We used: 1. Princeton Guide; 2 USN&WR Best Colleges; 3. This website; and 4. For many schools the most recent Common Data Set (which can be googled if the school has released it).</p>
<p>SAT – private course, but I think the methodology was similar to Princeton. Probably Princeton for AP too – though D may have used others as well.</p>
<p>Choosing the Right College 2010-11: The Whole Truth about America’s Top Schools :John Zmirak
This book was a nice read. I appreciated that the general course of study for each school was included. It also rates schools on a traffic light system, green means school is open to different points of view to red means the school does not readily accept differing points of view. Rating both the educational value as well as the social aspects of schools helped us narrow down which schools we would tour and consider. From our visits I would say it was right on target in our opinion. Good luck to you!!</p>
<p>Fisk Guide is excellent as is Rugg’s Recommendations. For getting the feel of the individual schools we used college p r o w ler site and Princeton Review site. </p>
<p>Colleges that Change Lives (book and site) and Colleges of Distinction site are great for looking at schools that are not hidden gems. </p>
<p>I enjoyed Acceptance and the Gatekeepers to understand the process. </p>
<p>Always follow up with intense review of the college’s own website. </p>
<p>For parents, Crazy U has been a fun read this summer as well.</p>
<p>Unless you a below average “meh” student that was “never challenged” or “turned on by a professor” that wants to get into a bunch of hippie colleges, DON’T bother reading Colleges that Change Lives by Loren Pope. </p>
<p>I had to read it for my Honors Program and hated it. He spends half the time bashing the Ivies and the other half promoting schools that “don’t believe in grades” (which makes it practically impossible to get into a graduate school that does believe in grades, which would be most of them)</p>
<p>I loved the Fiske Guide</p>
<p>The Princeton Review Guide was decent for selecting colleges. However I believe the actual collegeboard site is a phenomenal resource for looking at colleges and stuff like stats.</p>
<p>Merewaut - I would hardly call Wabash, Denison and Centre “hippie” colleges, but to each his own.
No, they are not ivies, but my DS has no problem applying to a school with great financial aid, 82% med school acceptance and 1 in 8 grads earning the title of CEO or President in their lifetime. That is a college that changes lives.</p>
<p>Fiske Guide</p>
<p>The Insiders Guide to the Colleges</p>
<p>Also liked the Zmirak book, as well as 8 First Choices.</p>