Special

(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the third day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

Three wake-up calls about college financial aid and recruiting.

3 Hard Truths About Financial Aid

For the majority of families, the EFC is going to be much higher than they anticipated.

3 Reasons Why Your Kid’s Good Grades Won’t Pay for College

Yes, your teen may have great grades and test scores. But are they substantially better than everyone else’s that attends the colleges she’s applying to?

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the second day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

Two lists worth taking the time to review before creating your college list if you want to save money.

Harvard Scholarships: No Such Thing

This post is actually about Colleges that don’t Offer Merit Scholarships, Harvard is just the example. Skip down to the middle of the post to see a list of 84 colleges that provide little to no merit aid. And not all of them meet full need.

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the first day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

In case you missed it this past year, one must read.

15 Things Parents of High School Freshmen Must Know NOW About Getting Into and Paying for College!

If I had only one post people read from my website, I would pick this one. Ideally, it would be read by parents when their kids are freshman. The earlier parents are aware of the realities of paying for college, the more likely they will be able to orient the college admissions process to maximizing their potential financial aid. After all, you can’t get financial aid from colleges you never apply to.

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the twelfth day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

The twelve most viewed Frequently Asked Questions for the year.

What is a Tier 1 school? (university or college)

If my EFC is 0 does that mean I can go to college for free?

What is a flagship university?

Do I Need to Take Both the SAT and ACT?

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the tenth day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

Ten ways to contribute to student debt.

10 Things Parents Do That Increase College Student Debt

If you don’t have the money talk, your student may never apply to the colleges that would provide the needed scholarships. So you take out loans instead.

The 10 Worst Colleges – Do It Yourself College Rankings

 Prioritizing rankings over affordability is a good way to contribute to student debt.

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the ninth day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

Nine ways to improve your opportunities.

9 Resources for Creating Your Own Softball or Baseball Recruiting Video

If you have a video camera, a video stand, and a basic editing program, you can create your own video that will be perfectly fine for college baseball or softball recruiting.

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the eighth day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

Eight college admissions money tips.

8 Things Parents Must Know About Paying for College

The most competitive colleges offer few, if any, academic scholarships.

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(I’m taking a break from regular blogging and newsletters during the holidays. Hope you enjoy the DIY College Rankings version of the 12 Days of Christmas.)

On the seventh day of Christmas, DIY College Rankings wrote to me:

Seven things you should know in college admissions.

7 Things You Need to Know When Looking for College Scholarships

Approximately 7 percent of undergraduate students received private scholarships, with an average value of $1,982.

7 Things to Look for to Find a Good College

Finding colleges you like and worrying about how you will pay for them later is a bad idea.

7 Steps to a Smarter College List

Even if finances aren’t a primary consideration, most people don’t do a very good job of creating a college list.

7 Things You Should Know about College Net Price Calculators

The vast majority of colleges do not create their own net price calculator. Rather, they license an application from one of the major providers or use the free version offered by the federal government. The free version has some major limitations.

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