Category Archives: High School Seniors | College Students

Practical Advice to Incoming College Students

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Incoming College Students

Incoming college students are often a mixture of excitement, uncertainty, and fear.

That’s understandable.

To help quiet first-year jitters, we present an open letter to first-year college students written by Professor Kim Pearson of the College of New Jersey.

A College Professor’s Advice to Incoming College Students

August 13, 2019 

Dear College Student,

First, congratulations on embarking on a great adventure. Whether you are just out of high school or you are starting college later in life, you are beginning an endeavor that can open up opportunities that you had not envisioned for yourself and your families. It certainly did that for me.

No doubt, you are anxious about how to make the most of this experience. You are getting a lot of advice – probably too much to take in at one time. I don’t want to pile on, but I do have some perspective, having worked with students for the last 30 years, as well as having experience in the corporate and health care sectors. Some of these tips are things I found personally helpful, and others are things that I’ve learned from some of the highly capable students with whom I’ve had the honor of working. Many are things I wish I had known when I was an undergraduate

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Transferring Colleges

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Transferring colleges can be a good choice if it’s done for valid reasons. It can be disastrous when done for the wrong reasons.

Recently, I performed a quick cost-benefit analysis for a parent.

The family lives in New Jersey. The student wanted to transfer from his current NJ state school to a school in upstate New York.

The son proffered that the upstate NY school has a better program for his major, Computer Science.College Walkway

The mother was aware of the potential financial issues a transfer would cause but needed to see it on paper.

After crunching the numbers, which included out-of-state tuition charges, loss of NJ state aid, airfare, or another mode of travel, the costs were clear.

A transfer would have been a minimum of an additional $20,000.

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For College-Bound High School Seniors

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You’re In. Now, Don’t LetIt Up.

How to Keep Your Spot

College-bound High School SeniorEarning your acceptance letter is a milestone, but it is also a provisional contract. Every year, top-tier universities prove that they are not afraid to pull the rug out from under students who fail to maintain the standards that got them admitted in the first place.

1. The Reality of the Rescinded Offer

A “Yes” from an admissions office can be revoked for a variety of reasons, ranging from a sudden academic decline to poor judgment outside the classroom. Here are the most common “offer-killers”:

  • Social Media & Digital Conduct: In 2017, Harvard rescinded admissions for at least ten students after they traded offensive and sexually explicit memes in a private Facebook group. More recently, the University of Florida and others have revoked offers due to racist social media posts.
  • The “Senior Slump”: While one “C” is rarely a dealbreaker, a significant “academic freefall” (dropping from As to multiple Ds or Fs) signals to a college that you have checked out. Schools like UC Irvine have famously revoked hundreds of offers due to late-stage grade drops or missing final transcripts.
  • Criminal or Disciplinary Action: If you are suspended for a “Senior Prank” that involves vandalism or if you are arrested during graduation season, your high school is often legally or ethically bound to report this to your future college.

2. Protecting Your Reputation

Your digital footprint is permanent and searchable. To ensure you don’t become a cautionary tale:

  • Audit Your Groups: If a private group chat starts heading in a toxic direction, leave it. “I didn’t post it, I just saw it” is rarely a successful defense when a school is protecting its brand.
  • The “Front Page” Rule: If you wouldn’t want your post printed on the front page of the New York Times, do not hit “send.”

3. Fulfilling the Administrative Contract

  • The Final Transcript: Your admission is contingent upon your high school certifying that you graduated in good standing.
  • Deadlines are Non-Negotiable: Missing a housing deposit or a mandatory health immunization deadline can result in losing your spot in the freshman class.
  • Transparency: If you have a legitimate crisis (illness, family emergency) that affects your grades, call the admissions office first. Proactive honesty is always better than them discovering a failing grade on your final transcript in July.

4. Transitioning with Maturity

The months between May and August are a “trial period.” Treat your college like a professional partner:

  • Check Your New Email: Colleges will stop emailing your personal Gmail and start using your new .edu address. Missing a placement test or orientation deadline shows a lack of readiness.
  • Clear the Path for Others: Once you have committed, notify other schools that you will not be attending. Holding multiple spots is not only unfair to waitlisted students but can cause logistical flags if you are double-deposited.

Final Thought: You worked too hard for four years to lose your future over a four-second decision on social media or a four-week “vacation” from your studies. Finish strong and stay disciplined.

Go forth and do great things!

Additional Resources

✔️See our New Budget Impact on Education and the Perilous State of Pell Grants for what lies ahead.

✔️Also subscribe to our “Education Unpacked” YouTube channel for more updates.

✔️ Read the advice from a college professor to incoming freshmen.