Top of the morning,

Quick reminder that we're doing a live, unscripted Q&A tonight on everything you need to know about the SAT and ACT, especially in the face of the confusion, half-truths and urban legends about the world of test-optional policies.

Wondering which test is best?  We'll help you figure that out tonight.

Wondering which test colleges prefer?  Ditto.

Other issues on tap include:

*Are high school teachers who moonlight as SAT or ACT tutors best suited to help you "crush" the test?

*Should you allow the College Board to send your SAT score to colleges, no charge?

*Do colleges see how many times your kiddo  took the SAT or ACT?

*Do colleges care how many times she took the SAT (or ACT)?

*How many times does he need to take the SAT or ACT?

Tonight, we will answer these and any of your "Burning Questions" about the SAT or ACT, when you join me and our head tutor, Marissa U, for our SAT and ACT Town Hall meeting.

You can pre-submit your...

The latest ACT scores have started coming out, and the Internet is abuzz with questions and comments like:

*Why was her score so low?  She's got a 94 average in school!

*Should we take the SAT instead?

*Which one do colleges want?

*Is there any point in taking the SAT or ACT?  Aren't colleges test optional these days?

*How many times does he need to take the SAT or ACT?

*Do colleges see how many times he took it (SAT or ACT)?

*Is it OK to sing a sad song with an upbeat tempo?

*Do colleges care how many times she took the SAT (or ACT)?

Just kidding about that second to last one, I wanted to check if you were reading all the way down there.

Tomorrow night, we will answer these and any of your "Burning Questions" about the SAT or ACT, or college admissions, scholarships, financial aid if you insist.  I'm hauling in our head tutor, Marissa U, for our first ever SAT and ACT Town Hall meeting.

You can pre-submit your questions ahead of time (as opposed to...

Good morning!

We're hitting the airwaves this morning -- 10:00am EST --  for College Coffee Talk, our live show about college admissions and financial aid news that you can use!  

Here's what's on tap for today:

*A long list of FAFSA problems

*Boston College Negotiation Case Study

*Your questions!

Join us on our Facebook page, Facebook.com/lockwoodcollegeprep, or click this big blue button:

TUNE IN

Grab a cup of joe and we'll see you at 10am EST (recorded if you can't make it).  This is a great opportunity for Q&A, live, free college coaching, anything goes!

- Andy "Java Jive" Lockwood

Webinar | Tutoring  

I just finished tweaking tonight's "encore" presentation, "Late Stage College Planning for Juniors" and have been patting myself on the back since, because of all of the clever phrases and analogies I came up with.  Here's a few, submitted for your approval:

"The college process is like a train, it comes into the station and leaves the station, whether or not you are 'ready.'"

"There is life beyond the same Rear Window Sticker Colleges that everyone applies to"

"Each college application must have a 'Thread of Continuity' that runs through it, tying everything together"

There's a whole lot more where they came from, I'm merely scratching the surface (who's excited now????)!

If you're getting sick to your stomach about where to even get started in the process of making a list of colleges that your kiddo can even get into...

...i.e. are there any "Safety Schools" any more?  Or...

Do I have a snowball's chance in hell at...

Webinar | Tutoring  

A client, Ava, just got into her Early Decision college.  Everything went silky smooth, and there wasn't a hint of a scintilla of any drama whatsoever during the 10 months we worked together.

Not.

Here's what really went down.  Literally the day before she got the GREAT news, Ava's mom and I spoke on the phone for about 25 minutes.  Most of the conversation was along the lines of:

*She's so bummed out, she doesn't think she's going to get into a "good school"

*None of her friends are getting into their top choice colleges, she's really, really nervous"

*What can we do, while we wait to hear from [College]? Anything?"

*When I ask her anything, she yells "I don't want to talk about it, mom!" and leaves the room.

That was Tuesday.  On Wednesday, I logged into my email, to see "I GOT IN!" screaming at me at the top of my inbox.

It's quite a roller coaster, this college admissions game.  You're down in the dumps one day,...

Webinar | Tutoring 

Hi, real quick like a bunny...

Last night's "Late Stage College Planning" webinar for 11th grade families got all 5 star reviews and a whole bunch of positive comments in the live chat, but apparently, 111 of the 256 folks registered couldn't make it.  (Sniff.)

So, because I am a prince among men (just ask me) I have graciously decided to run it back, old school, one more time for an "encore" performance this Sunday, 7pm EST!

(Pause for standing ovation.)

(If you think these jokes are lame, I dare you show up Sunday!)

Kidding aside, the information you'll get from me is 1,000 per cent unlike anything you will ever hear from your guidance counselor or other so-called experts.

And some of it is borderline politically incorrect.  

Fine.  Delete "bordeline."

But it's da truth, and you may not stumble across it anywhere else.

Here's where to sign up:

REGISTER

- Andy  "Not Always Sure What Will Come Out of My...

We're Starting!

"Late Stage" College Planning for 11th Graders

February 15th 6:45pm  EST

We just started but you can still stop by!  Here's where to join us:

JOIN CLASS

See you in the classroom!

-Pearl and Andy

Tonight's Webinar for 11th Graders

One of the dumbest college-related news stories I've seen repeated in the past week:

"Top colleges settle claims they favor wealthy students for admission."

Is that really news?  This story covers a lawsuit against Yale, Georgetown, Northwestern, MIT, Dartmouth, among others, that alleged that these colleges favored applicants who could pay full price for college, despite the colleges' agreement to be "need-blind" (not consider whether the applicant needs financial aid).  My take...

Seriously.  This is news?  Or do some people think things work differently, like there's a level playing field.

Second:  is this a bad thing?  At virtually every college you've heard of, full-pay families subsidize all the other families.  In other words, their full boat dollars help colleges afford to give aid to families who need it.

Ditto for "development list" families who donate seven and eight figure amounts to colleges. ...

Webinar | Tutoring 

The New York Attorney General fined the College Board -- the good folks behind the SAT, PSAT, AP curriculum and the CSS Profile financial aid application -- 750 Gs for "violating students' privacy."

In case you were getting choked up, please don't cry for this "non profit" - it holds $1.66 Billion in assets.  Its president makes $1.8 Million per year.   They can write the check.

My surprise over this news is not that the College Board shares student information.  I'm sure you're not shocked either, particularly if you have an 11th grader who's registered for one of the above College Board products, and, since that fateful day, opened your floodgates to a tsunami of emails, social media posts magically served up to you or your child, glossy brochures from colleges you've heard of and several that you haven't, featuring multi-racial, smiling, acne-free kids frolicking outside on the quad in shorts (even if that college is located...