Friday, October 20, 2017

An Evening with Admissions Expert Mark Montgomery

How Not To Apply to College:
Avoiding Big Mistakes on the Road to Acceptance



An Evening with Admissions Expert Mark Montgomery, PhDOctober 24, 2017, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm
Mark Montgomery, a national college admissions expert, offers his advice on how to avoid the pitfalls and pain of applying to college.
Burlington HS
Filled with good humor, a healthy dose of reality, and concrete examples of real students who avoided these mistakes, the presentation addresses these crucial questions and more:
          • How do you calculate “return on investment” in higher                                          education?
          • What is the right way to shop for colleges?
          • What are the 12 factors in the admission process?
          • What are the “hidden” parts of the Common Application?
          • Why is it so important to start early in this process?
          • How can you develop a personal strategy for success?
          • How do you preserve sanity in your household?

Dr. Montgomery earned his BA at Dartmouth College and his Masters and Doctorate at Tufts University. He has been an instructor at Harvard and a consultant at Yale. He specializes in demystifying the ways in which colleges recruit and admit students. His views and advice have appeared in US News & World Report, Money, USA Today, Forbes, The Apple Daily (Hong Kong), The Huffington Post, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and The Denver Post. He also writes a popular blog on university admission at GreatCollegeAdvice.com.

Montgomery Educational Consulting is a full service educational firm that assists students and their families as they select and apply to the best and most appropriate universities. With offices in New Jersey, Hong Kong, Oregon, and Colorado, Mark works one-on-one with students to guide them in their choices in secondary school, to articulate which educational environments lead to academic success, and identify how personal and family needs, preferences, and ambitions can be combined to help them pick the right universities—and get in.



Thursday, October 19, 2017

College Topics Breakfast for Senior Parents

The Guidance Department will host a breakfast called “College Topics for Senior Parents” on 10/25/17. The purpose of this breakfast is so the counseling staff can give a very brief overview of important tasks associated with the college selection and application process. This event is geared for parents that missed the Senior College Planning Night on 9/28/17. Please join us for this informative event on October 25th at 8:30 AM in the BHS Guidance College and Career CenterParent's MUST RSVP by calling 781-270-1780.

Friday, October 13, 2017

Financial Aid Night Review


                                                                   

Financial Aid Night for Senior parents was well attended with roughly 50 parents. Many aspects of the financial aid process were covered by Amy Staffier from Harvard University. We encourage parents to get familiar with the MEFA web-site. MEFA provides a wealth of free, accurate and up to date information. Amy encouraged parents to try the MEFA tools page, which has a number of tools you can use such at the EFC Calculator. The EFC calculator can estimate the figure that colleges will use to determine eligibility.

Two very important forms were mentioned. The FAFSA and the CSS profile. We encourage parents to investigate both applications ASAP. Don't forget you can take advantage of  a FAFSA on the web work-sheet. This can be helpful as you navigate through the FAFSA process. 

Please remember that the BHS will be a host site for FAFSA Day on Sunday January 28th beginning at 1PM. Parents MUST register for this event in advance. FAFSA Day is a volunteer driven effort which allows parents to get free assistance on how to complete the FAFSA form.
        

Thursday, October 12, 2017

College Fair at the Shriners Auditorium

On Wednesday October 18th from 6:30 -8:00p.m., a college fair will be held at the Shriners Auditorium in Wilmington, MA. The Burlington High School Guidance Department co-sponsors the event with many other Middlesex League High Schools. Usually over one-hundred colleges will attend. A college fair can be a very overwhelming experience for parents and students. The National Association for College Admissions Counseling (NACAC) has developed a very helpful tips. We also recommend bringing a pre-determined list of colleges. Make it a priority to visit the schools on your list, then time permitting check out some others. Please remember you are not obligated to stay the whole time, many students spend about an hour at the event.  Below is the most up to date list of colleges attending:

Albany College of Pharmacy
Albertus Magnus College
Anna Maria College
Assumption College
Babson College
Becker College
Benjamin Franklin Institute
Bentley College
Boston University
Brandeis University
Bridgewater State University
Bryant University
Caselton University
Catherine Hinds Institute
Champlain College
Clark University
Clarkson University
Colby-Sawyer College
Colgate University
College of Mount St. Vincent
College of Our Lady of the Elms (Elms College)
College of the Holy Cross
Curry College
Dean College
Dickinson College
Eastern Nazarene College
Emmanuel College
Endicott College
Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising
Fisher College
Fitchburg State University
Framingham State University
Franklin Pierce University
Gordon College
Hamilton College
Hampshire College
Hartwick College
High Point University
Hofstra University
Husson University
Johnson and Wales University
Keene State College
Lasell College
LeMoyne College
Lesley University
Marist College
Mass College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
Massachusetts College of Art & Design
Massachusetts Maritime Academy
Merrimack College
Middlesex Community College
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Ida College
New England College
New England School of Photography
Newbury College
Nichols College
North Shore Community College
Northern Essex Community College
Northern Vermont University--Johnson
Northern Vermont University--Lyndon
Norwich University
Pennsylvania State University
Pine Manor College
Plymouth State University
Quinnipiac University
Regis College
Rivier College
Roger Williams University
Rutgers University--New Brunswick
Sacred Heart University
Saint Anselm College
Saint Joseph's College - Maine
Saint Leo University
Saint Michael's College
Salem State University
Salve Regina University
Savannah College of Art & Design
School of Fashion Design
Simmons College
Smith College
Southern New Hampshire University
Springfield College
Stonehill College
Suffolk University
SUNY Stonybrook University
SUNY-Geneseo
SUNY-University at Albany 
Syracuse University
Temple University
Thomas College
Unity College
University of Connecticut
University of Maine-Farmington
University of Maine-Orono
University of Massachusetts - Boston
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth
University of Massachusetts-Lowell
University of New England
University of New Hampshire
University of New Haven
University of Rhode Island
University of Saint Joseph's
University of Scranton
University of Southern Maine
University of Vermont
Vermont Technical College
Villanova University
Wentworth Institute of Technology
Western New England University
Westfield State College
Wheaton College 
Worcester State University

Friday, October 6, 2017

Financial Aid Night

The BHS Guidance Department strongly recommends that senior parents attend a presentation on Thursday, October 12th, 2017 beginning at 6:00 PM in the BHS Auditorium. MEFA will host and give an overview of the financial aid process, specifically in regard to completing the FAFSA. The FAFSA is an on-line form that must be completed for seniors to be eligible for state and federal loans and grants (https://fafsa.gov/). This form is NOW available.