Chapter One We sat cross legged on the couch, our knees touching, in complete silence. My laptop in his lap and his notebook open across mine. “You used the wrong word. I think you meant innocent not innocence,” Nate says pointing to the computer screen. I took a mental note to change that and then jumped back into his world of heroes and demons. We would sit like that for hours reading each other’s work until we had read...

When explaining low scores in an essay make sure you detail all the ways that you have grown since and how that time has made you better student in some way.

The essay is a great way to express yourself and to show a school who you are. As you see in my sample personal statement, you should start with a story that relates to you on a personal level and then move into how you see college helping you grow as a person or what you bring to the table. In the supplemental essay you can be more logical and straightforward about certain things. Like if you chose to explain...

My favorite college courses so far have been those in my minor. I am an English Literature minor and one of the best classes I have taken was called Banned Books. I highly recommend filling your core courses with classes that sound interesting to you rather than just classes that fill a requirement. You will be way happier in the long run...

Transferring can be a long and scary looking process. I would recommend trying to nail down the core reason why you are transferring so can find a school that fits your needs better. In my case, I knew I wanted a school with more things to do off campus. Therefore, I decided to look in Boston and found a school in the perfect...

I would have taken more time to decide what I really wanted. I panicked and rushed through the application process, picking schools just because they seemed good enough. I don't think I really found the one school I loved and that is...

I highly recommend spending your time doing something productive. Start volunteering or look for a part time job filing papers for a local business. It is a great way to make connects and find people who can...

My advice is to apply for every scholarship that you can. Even if the criteria remotely applies to your life, try for it. The worst they can say is no. College loans are a really scary prospect but keeping them at a manageable amount is the key to graduating with less stress. Scholarships are a great way to help keep costs low. Apply to everything and...

I chose Emmanuel because it is in a great location. It is a small school with a closed campus so it doesn't feel like a city school, yet it is in the city and is so close to amazing food and entertainment. I knew that they...

I highly recommend going in for an interview and practicing with a school counselor or a teacher before hand. If nothing else you will gain valuable interview skills. I did end up going in for an interview with a school I was denied at but it set me up with an idea of how interviews go so that when I interviewed at other schools I was better prepared. I still remember how nervous...