News, Updates, & Opinions

10 Resources for Making Your College Decision from Home during COVID-19

High School Seniors: How to Choose Your College

Congratulations on your College Acceptance, Seniors! But now…how will you choose your college campus? I love this time of the year! As high school seniors…

Stephanie MeadeApril 29, 2025

Ways to Get the Most of Admitted Students Day

College Search

Twelve Ways to Get the Most Out of Admitted Student Days

This article by Stephanie Meade originally appeared on the Grown & Flown website. Seniors, congrats on all your hard work and on being admitted to college. Can…

Stephanie MeadeApril 2, 2025

Extracurricular Activities

How Summer and Extracurricular Activities Fit Into the College Admissions Process [Video]

https://vimeo.com/814720972 Stephanie Meade shares information on extracurriculars and summer activities impacting college admissions. The full transcript is below if you are searching for a few…

Stephanie MeadeApril 4, 2023

College Application College Search What Colleges Want

Demonstrated Interest: 22 Ways Teens Can Boost Their Chance of Admission

This article by Stephanie Meade originally appeared on the Grown & Flown website. What is demonstrated interest? Anything students, prospective college applicants, can do which…

Stephanie MeadeJanuary 20, 2022

Extracurriculars in Quarantine: A Resource for College Admissions

College Application Extracurricular Activities Special Circumstances

What College Application Activities Can I Do During Quarantine?

Additional resources added on June 1, 2020, some updates on June 1, 2021 So, many of your favorite activities have come to a screeching halt,…

Stephanie MeadeApril 28, 2020

5 Facts From the College Admissions Cheating Scandal

College Application College Search

5 Facts About How the College Admissions Cheating Scandal Affects You

I love the college admissions cheating scandal (“Operation Varsity Blues”) for presenting us with so many “teachable moments” and opportunities to address widespread myths and…

Stephanie MeadeApril 27, 2019

College Application Press Mention

Survive College-Application Season With the Family in One Piece

This article was originally published on December 11, 2018 on the Wall Street Journal, By Sue Shellenbarger It’s a monthslong ordeal that could change the course…

Stephanie MeadeJanuary 18, 2019

Student studying with computer and notepad.

What Colleges Want

Essay Topics: Should I tell them what they want to hear?

"Should I tell them what they want to hear?" This is a real question a real student asked me this week while we were brainstorming…

Stephanie MeadeOctober 1, 2018

High School Planning

Choosing high school classes. How important is it?

Planning your high school curriculum might not sound too exciting, but high school classes may be the single most important, yet overlooked element of the…

Stephanie MeadeSeptember 1, 2018

Testing scantron with pencil filling in answers.

Testing/Test Prep

What You Need to Know About Standardized Testing: 2018 Update

Standardized testing is one of the most confusing pieces of the college application puzzle, and it looks like that is not going to change any…

Stephanie MeadeAugust 1, 2018