From Preschool to Grad School: Strategies for Success at Any Level of Competitive Admissions

What if the best advice for improving your child's chances of getting into a great preschool and improving an adult's chances of getting into a great graduate school were the same? "From Preschool to Grad School" will show you-unequivocally-that it is. Together, the elements of the admissions process aim to predict whether the candidate will be capable and happy as a student, engaged as an alumnus, and become somebody whose actions after graduation improve the school's image. Schools need successful alumni in order to attract the best talent, charge sustainable tuition, and show a return on investment. This book exposes patterns found across application processes and deconstructs the vital role they play in candidate success. In doing so, it answers that critical and elusive question: what are the best schools really looking for? "From Preschool to Grad School" will help you master admissions fundamentals that will never change, such as:

• The three things all schools want
• The two questions you must be able to answer
• Finding the bar (and knowing how you stack up)
• Crafting your story
• Deciphering unhelpful admissions committee jargon
• Avoiding common mistakes

• Admissions consultants
• Helicopter parents
• The role of social and emerging media
• Application fraud and cheating in the digital age
• Application inflation and yield games
• International enrollments
• In-state vs. out-of-state applicants to state colleges
• The impact of declining public schools on private school admissions
• Current competitive dynamics (e.g, application and enrollment volume, acceptance rates, testing trends, transfer rates, etc.)