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Selected blog posts
How to Conduct a Great College Search: Dare to Make Decisions
Last Updated on November 10, 2020 by Real College Matters 23 April 2019 (Earlier post, revised for the Class of 2020 and their mentors) “If you all would make some decisions before you apply, we wouldn’t be in this mess.” The year was 2014. The speaker was an admissions officer at a highly selective university. By “this mess,” she meant the admissions frenzy as she saw it then. Ah, 2014—the halcyon days when Stanford admitted 5% of its hopefuls. When UCLA received fewer than
Leigh Moore
Mar 5, 20222 min read
For Seniors: A Candid Message
(Originally printed December 2020) by Leigh Moore Tens of thousands of early-round application decisions have already begun to appear on student portals, but many more of you still wait. December 15 usually marks the crescendo of December results. Students, are you ready? Anyone who knows me will tell you that I’m typically a touchy-feely encourager type, sometimes told I “care too much.” I am sorry if this message seems harsh in contrast; I write it only because I fear no o
Leigh Moore
Dec 7, 20213 min read
Why I Quit College Counseling (for a while!)
by Leigh Moore Please forgive me for the long delay since my last post. It’s been a season of introspection for sure, one which culminated in the decision to phase out my advising practice in order to focus on writing projects. In an effort to describe the rationale for doing so, I created a document which has now grown to 10,700 words. The good thing is, I guess I’ve written my book. The bad thing is, it was supposed to be this blog post. My current state of affairs can be w
Leigh Moore
Aug 4, 20213 min read
The Key to Understanding Admissions
by Leigh Moore, college advisor and proud Class of 2021 mom Note : This is a lengthy post, despite my best efforts at an economy of words. I hope it provides some measure of understanding for those families who are navigating uncharted waters. The enrollment management principle For years, people have talked about admissions as a game. It’s not; unfortunately, it’s a business which coincides with the pursuit of dreams, with kids who take personally dynamics beyond their contr
Leigh Moore
Dec 21, 20205 min read
What’s More Important Than College Admissions? College Is.
March 10, 2020 All day, every day, the reality of one’s college experience is a lot more important than test scores or binding Early Decision stats. Spring is the time to set admissions hype aside, because hype doesn’t matter. Real college matters. It’s time to start differentiating between the sense of scarcity, the amenities which launched a million applications….and the real place the student plans to attend. It’s a little tricky to write about admissions hype without sou
Leigh Moore
Mar 10, 20202 min read
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