Post It Flags Can Change your Life

 by Katherine O'Brien, Certified College Planning Specialist, Senior College Consultant, Celtic College Consultants

A friend recently shared:

About a year ago, I decided that before I read the words of anyone else, I wanted to first hear what my Father had to say to me.

I'd been reading the daily Mass readings for a while, but decided I'd shift to reading them first thing in the morning.

There was a problem though.

I got the readings emailed to me, which meant that they were sitting in my inbox each morning...

...along with a whole bunch of emails from other people that had come in overnight. 

I'd try to force myself to read the readings first...but invariably there'd be another "really important" email I had to read so I "didn't forget"...and I'd end up reading other people's words first.

(And 9 times out of 10, they did not inspire me like God's word would.)

I was about to give up on the idea that I could even do something like this when it suddenly came to me:

Why didn't I just mark the readings in my Bible the night before and eliminate my phone from the process altogether?

I bought these little Post-It flags, and now each night, I mark off the readings for the next morning in my Bible.

 

Now, instead of reaching for my phone "to read the readings," I grab my Bible and truly do have God's word be the first thing I read.

(It's made it so that most mornings, I don't even need to look at my phone until after I've been up for at least an hour. )

The solution to my distraction problem was really simple — $5 Post-It flags — but it took me months to figure it out.

Because I was trying to make a system — emailed readings — work for me that just. plain. wasn't.

 -snip-

 

** Breaking down a problem and really noticing what’s not working is key to achieving your goals more effectively. **

 

Have you tried figuring out the way that works for you to help your teen (and your wallet) prep for college? That matches your goals?

 

If your teen is in 9th, 10th, or 11th grade it’s time for us to chat. Time to check in, clarify your college goals, and discuss what's working and what isn't. It's time for you to get your questions answered, fears allayed, and start to develop a strategy to effectively accomplish your goals

 

 

Doing college prep by yourself seems like it’s better, easier, cheaper, but it’s not. I save my families time, money, stress, and help them get better results.

 

I’ve helped countless teens find their voice, build their confidence, try something new, dive into what they love without fear of “what admissions will think,” craft powerful essays and effective applications, and get into colleges where they thrive, not just graduate.

 

Over the past decade, year after year, my College Success Program students have been offered nearly $250k each in merit scholarships, on average.

 

Let's explore the difference it would make to bring me onto your team to help guide your teen during these crucial years. Email kob@CelticCollegeConsultants.com, mention this blog article, and receive $100 off your personal college prep consultation with Katherine.

 

(Pro tip: Having a seasoned guide makes the journey to college a joy, not a burden.)

What to Do After Your Applications are Submitted

by Katherine O'Brien, Certified College Planning Specialist 

Founder, Senior Private College Consultant, Celtic College Consultants

 

 1. Mark the Accomplishment! 

Keep a pdf of each application, for your records, and to document the accomplishment. It took a lot of time and effort to craft that application. Mark that. You also might want to look at it later, as you decide which college to attend. 

 2. Check your email! 

Colleges send announcements, links to their portal, messages about missing materials, invitations to apply and compete for top scholarships, to apply to their honors program or college, etc. Check DAILY. You never know when a significant, potentially life changing email will come in!  

3. Check your portals

Many colleges have a portal that they use to communicate and to take you through the next steps of choosing housing, getting your aid package, etc. Be sure to set up your portal right away and check it regularly. Keep track of your login information. This takes effort – there can be many new logins to keep track of!  

4. Take time to reconsider your top college priorities

What are the key opportunities you are looking for at college? How do the colleges you’ve applied for stack up, now that you’ve learned more about them through the application process? Are there additional colleges you want to apply to? There are colleges with later deadlines; it’s not too late to add a college! 

 5. Apply for Scholarships, 

both at your schools and private. Have you combed through their private database yet? Have you paid attention to scholarship emails your high school counselor has sent? What about at your church, bank, parent’s workplaces, clubs, etc.? Have you taken the time to explore using online search engines? Look at groups related to your ethnicity, career interests, personal traits, etc.  

6. Midyear Grade Reports 

Verify that your midyear grades have been sent to your schools, no matter whether you’ve applied early action or regular decision.  

7. Update admissions 

with any important additional accomplishments, awards, leadership roles, improved test scores, or competitive (especially prestigious) scholarships you’ve won. Email to the admissions office AND to your regional admissions representative. Be sure to include your applicant or college ID (if they’ve assigned one to you) in your email. This is particularly important if you have been deferred or waitlisted. Your letter of continued interest is vital in those situations.  

8. Evaluate your colleges more deeply 

As you are admitted, attending those colleges become real possibilities. Re-examine them, look more deeply at student life, campus ministry, clubs, academic offerings, paying particular attention to your “must haves”. Follow their social media, attend events in your area, read the online version of the student newspaper, etc. Keep up to date on your colleges as part of your deep evaluation of them. 

 9. Withdraw or decline any offers of admission that you want to reject

Doing so frees up a spot for another student and releases any scholarship money you’ve been offered. This is courteous and respectful. Just send a polite email to the admissions office, again including your applicant or student ID. 

 10. Thank those who helped you prepare your application

Give thoughtful handwritten thank you notes to your recommenders and counselor as well as anyone else who helped you along the way. Thank those people who have been invaluable in helping you become the person you are today. And take time to savor the experiences of this final semester of high school. Enjoy those last games and dances and classes….  

11. Finish well

Stay in the present. While the prospect of going to a beloved college is exciting, today is still today; today is the day you have been given. Live it well. Pay attention in class, do well on exams, projects, and papers. What you learn this semester continues to build the foundation for your future. If you change your courses this term, you need to let the colleges (both those that have admitted you and those still evaluating your application) know, which could negatively impact your situation. Finish strong, continue to build effective study skills. Prep for your AP exams as they can still turn into college credits, but only if you do well. 

For help with the college process, from 8th - 12th grades, from leadership skill development, career exploration, college funding planning, college budgeting, to scholarships, college selection, applications, essays, visit CelticCollegeConsultants.com or email Katherine: KOB@CelticCollegeConsultants.com

Who's on Your College Success Team?

Parents are key members of teens' support team. School counselors and teachers are also important. College Consultants like myself wear many hats. These are some of the hats I've been wearing for the past 20 years as I have worked with teens and their families.

Teen Life Coach

Goal Setting. Encouragement. Accountability Partner. Mentor. Coach through Failures and Difficulties. Teach Interpersonal Skills. Encourage Development of Strong Character Traits & Virtues

Academic Coach

Study Skills. Time Management. Task Prioritization. Organization. Foster Healthy Habit Formation.

Leadership Mentor

Identify Opportunities. Teach and Foster Leadership Skills. Troubleshoot Problems. Celebrate Growth.

College Admissions Specialist

Guide Life & College Goal Determination Process. Clarify & Guide College Selection Process. College Essay Writing Coaching & Editing. Application Preparation Management

College Funding Specialist

Identify Opportunities to Lower Costs. Advise on Saving Strategies. Scholarship Strategist. Financial Aid Maximization Coaching

Parent Coach

Stress Management. Effective Communication Facilitator. Subject Matter Expert. Sanity Stabilizer. Prayer Partner.

Want to explore bringing me onto your teen's college success team? Email me, Katherine O'Brien, at KOB@CelticCollegeConsultants.com and request a college prep consultation for your family.

Katherine O'Brien is a Certified College Planning Specialist and the Founder of Celtic College Consultants, an independent education consultancy serving families across the US since 2004. Her Class of 2015 - Class of 2024 College Success Program Clients have averaged nearly $250,000 each in scholarship offers and have headed to campus with goals, skills, and confidence.

What is the biggest difference between high school and college?

 

Dear teen,

 

In high school, you are told where to be, what to do. You are reminded, over and over, about big assignments, upcoming tests and trips, everything. The vast majority of every day is scripted. When to be places, what sorts of clothes are acceptable to wear, how to wear your hair, which shoes are cool, which clubs to join, sports to play, to be part of the "in crowd," or one of the" in crowds" if your school boasts more than one - maybe there are cool athletes, cool theatre geeks, and cool tech wizards in your world.

 

Then you apply to college, to the same colleges as the other kids you know, whether or not their favorite school is a good fit for you, whether you have a clue what you want to study or not. Just getting pushed along down a stream of expectations, hemmed in on every side.

 

Then, one day, after a summer of feeling lost, no longer in high school but not really anywhere else in life yet, one hot day in August (or September for a few of you), you arrive on campus with a car full of stuff and two parents who are acting weird, trying not to show that they are excited for you and terrified at the same time. Two parents who will miss you and who are also thrilled to see you start to fly out of the nest. Parents who fuss over your room and take you shopping for all the things you forgot or didn’t know you absolutely had to have for your teeny tiny little dorm room.

 

When they drive away, reality sets in. Life is completely different now. Somehow you figure out where to go to get food, ‘cause that’s really important. You float along into some orientation meetings. A few days in it hits you. Everything is different now.

 

Now you have to lead your own life.

 

No one will tell you when to awaken, whether to brush your teeth or put your clothes in the laundry bag/hamper thing or onto the floor under your bed. No one will bother you if you stay up really late, eat four helpings of ice cream instead of supper, or skip meals altogether.

 

Somehow, magically, you are expected to know how to run your own life. Ridiculous isn’t it? Even if you were homeschooled, you’ve been being told where to be and what to do and how to live your life every day, until now. Now you are at college. Now you are “on your own.” Those words sounded sweet, freeing, even captivating. Being on your own, making your own rules, doing your own thing.

 

FREEDOM!

 

This is the real test. It wasn’t the ACT or SAT or the crazy college application essays. It wasn’t the nail biting wait for admissions decisions, scholarship offers, financial packages.  This, now, is the test.

 

Who will you choose to be? How will you lead your own life. THAT is the question. THAT is what is different. Now that you are here, it’s ALL up to you. To register for classes, show up to class, do the reading, the problem sets, or not. To sleep or eat, have fun, make friends, or not. To get involved, be curious, stay in your room all the time, go off campus and wander, or not. EVERYTHING is up to you. Will you ask for help when you need it? Will you lie about your past, creating a perfect home life or parents with interesting histories? Will you be true to yourself? Now that’s a tough one. Who are you anyway? It’s time to sort that out. You don’t have to do things the way your parents did. You can try different ideas. You can do so many things. Too many, really. It’s incredibly difficult to sort out what to do.

 

Right, It’s time to LEAD YOURSELF.

 

“Wait a second, how am I supposed to do that????” you say, panicked.

 

Right, I hear you. No one taught us how to do this either. Back in the day, when we parents went to college, we also had to sort this out. We had some advantages; you have different ones.

 

While in high school, there are a number of ways you can begin to develop the attitudes and skills that will help you successfully navigate this transition.

 

“Ummm, what do you mean successfully?” Well, unfortunately, many college freshmen go home during first semester or home for Christmas and never return. So, yeah, not everyone is successful when they go off to college. SHOCKER, I know. No one ever tells you this!

 

Here are my top tips to get yourself ready for college:

 

1.     Get a job. You’ll learn to get yourself somewhere on a schedule different from the rest of your family, just like college kids who all have different schedules and each must manage his or her own.

2.     Figure out why YOU want to go to college. What’s the point? What do you want to get out of it? Why do you want that? These might sound flippant, but they aren’t. Take serious time to think about these things. Dig deep. Get real answers, the answers that resonate in your core.

3.     Start to think about who you are and who you want to be. When you get to campus, you get to choose which of your strengths to highlight, which of your weaknesses to work on improving, etc. You get to choose to do things the way your parents taught you to do them, or a new way. You will choose to be a woman or man of good character, or not, you get to choose….

4.     Explore your interests now. Academic, social, career possibilities, hobbies. If you’re interested in something, get curious, start to explore. Read up on the topic, watch videos, try things out, join groups, take classes in and out of school, etc. Once you find yourself deeply interested in something, then start to research what sorts of careers there are in that area. Have a solid, realistic idea of your interests and career prospects before you get to campus. That will help guide you once you get there and have to sort through myriad options.

5.     Learn how to advocate for yourself. Check in to doctor’s appointments by yourself. Schedule your own appointments. Organize your tasks and projects and household responsibilities. Manage your time. Ask for help every time you need it. Learn how to do everything your mom does for you. Cook. Clean. Organize. Schedule. Launder. Prepare. Clean up after. Communicate. Coordinate people’s tasks. Set limits. Get help with the ones you struggle with.

6.     Develop solid self-care habits and routines. Get enough sleep and exercise and eat well, because you want to do that for yourself in order to feel good and be able to be active, etc. College will give you the opportunity to gain or lose lots of weight, be fit, or not, pull all nighters doing subpar work, or not, etc. Good self-care habits will help you succeed on campus. Good self-care habits will help you make the most of the opportunities you’ll find on campus.

College is a gold mine. There are a zillion chances to meet people, learn things, try new things, go places, explore concepts, …. Be ready to make the most of this special time in your life.

 

Sound like a tall order? Need some help working your way through all that? No problem. I’ve been walking teens through all of this for years and years. I know you’re special. I look forward to helping you discover that and become amazing. Have your parents drop me an email and set up a consultation (pretty fancy word for a zoom meeting!) Let’s talk! I'm Katherine O’Brien (KOB@CelticCollegeConsultants.com) Want to know more about me and what I do? Check out my website: CelticCollegeConsultants.com 

What Kind of Person Does Your Teen Want to Be?

by Katherine O'Brien, ThD Candidate

Character is not a word heard around college admissions very often. How can I impress admissions? Is the top question in many students’ minds. Sadly, it is the wrong question. This is life, not a game. What matters is becoming a man or woman of good character, with defined goals, humility, and strength, strength that comes from reliance on God’s strength.

"Do not desire to be other than you are, but desire to be very well what you are."
- St. Francis de Sales

St. Francis de Sales was a bishop with a particular gift for guiding lay people on their journeys to holiness, to intimacy with God. Part of that journey is becoming yourself.

Teens are just starting this journey. This period of our lives, from 13-23, is so formative. NOW is the time to set goals, to define our character, to lay the foundation to become fully alive. It takes time to come to know one’s strengths and traits. As I work with underclassmen, this is my focus, to help each come to know themselves well, and to begin to take steps to develop their strengths, overcome their weaknesses, explore their interests, and come alive as the particular person he or she is.

"Good character is not formed in a week or a month. It is created little by little, day by day. Protracted and patient effort is needed to develop good character." Heraclitus of Ephesus

For a man who lived over 3,000 years ago, Heraclitus certainly hit the nail on the head. Neuroscientific research has confirmed this. The more we repeat thoughts and patterns, the more deeply they are ingrained in our brains. This is also true of our thoughts. What we hear, listen to, repeat to ourselves over and over and over is what we believe. That's why changing one's mind, creating a new habit, learning something new all take time and consistent effort. We are creating new pathways in our brains.

Here's an example of how this can be done. The Boy Scouts does an amazing, powerful thing and most Scouts have no idea that it's happening. Every single Scout learns the Scout law at the beginning of his or her Scouting journey.

A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.

The Scout law is repeated at the beginning of every single meeting. Repetition doesn’t make the change happen. It does, however, plant the seeds, that these are traits worth having, that each Scout is there to develop.

There are many ways to inculcate character in teens. It’s worth being intentional about. I am, and have been for my entire career as a college consultant, with every single teen I’ve worked with. To learn more about my College Success Program, click here. To inquire about having me work with your teen, email me and request a consultation. KOB@CelticCollegeConsultants.com

Grant me, O Lord my God, a mind to know you, a heart to seek you, wisdom to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in waiting for you, and a hope of finally embracing you. 
- Saint Thomas Aquinas

Fact v. Fiction: Is Community College to College a Good Path?

by Katherine O'Brien, ThD Cand., Certified College Planning Specialist, founder Celtic College Consultants

Save money by taking the general education requirements at a local community college, then transfer for the last two years of college. Sounds great, doesn't it?

If only it really worked that way. Here are the facts:

 

This chart show the completion of a bachelor's degree within SIX years by students who began at community college. You can see that only 3% of South Dakota's students were successful. The highest rate of completion is only 21%, in New Jersey. 

 

AN AVERAGE OF 84% OF US STUDENTS 

STILL DID NOT 

HAVE A BACHELORS DEGREE

AFTER SIX YEARS!!!

 

How sad! SO MANY people are using this path, thinking they can save money and still complete their degree in four years, but find it IS NOT REALISTIC.

There are many reasons for this failure, none of them documented. The fact that MOST 4 year college students change their majors 2-3 times would be a significant factor. It's not clear whether this data includes the non-degree seeking community college students. Either way, I've seen that data over the years and it's not much difference. 

COMMUNITY COLLEGES DON'T WANT YOU TO KNOW THIS!

Community colleges often offer very helpful certificate programs in everything from nurse assistant to heavy truck mechanics. Those programs typically reflect the need in the local job market and have been helpful to many people over the years. Some community colleges offer very little in the way of college transfer courses; they specialize in job training programs.

I've worked with students over the years who came to me while they were in community college. It has been pretty common for them to have to wait a month or more to sit down with a transfer counselor (the person who helps connect the community college courses with the classes your target university (and major) will accept and/or requires.

Students don't realize that universities are very particular about which classes you must complete in order to transfer, which they will accept for your degree program (remember that bachelor's degree requirements are set by major; they are not universal). They assume that whatever they take will be accepted; that is not at all the case. In fact, of those few students who do graduate with a bachelors degree after six years, nearly all of them have numerous, often many, courses that they took and paid for, that do not count toward their degree. They are "extra." That's a HUGE amount of extra time, effort, and money. Once our time is gone, it's gone.

The COSTS ARE HIGH. In addition to the wasted time, effort, and money, these students tend to feel like failures because it took so long to complete a four year degree. That is not a helpful burden for anyone to carry. If they have loans on top of that, it's a recipe for depression.

I WANT YOU TO BE SUCCESSFUL, NO MATTER YOUR GOALS

As a college consultant, my focus has always been on helping each student become him or herself, do what suits their interests, temperament, skills, aptitude, and will leave them ready to enter the workforce or start a business. It's critically important to have clear goals BEFORE you start college. That's where my conversations with each young person start. That's also where they end. I'm an empowerment agent. My only agenda with each student is to help him or her be him or herself. I help them identify and "own" their gifts, abilities, talents, inclinations, personalities, and the like.  Then I help them develop their own voices, articulating themselves, not parroting others. From that point we explore majors, programs, and schools. We explore net costs, scholarships, and the like, to make sure the plan is feasible.

Ready to discuss your situation? Whether you are in community college, 8th grade, or high school, we can meet and talk through your goals, preparations, and accomplishments so far. I will apply my 20 years' experience and countless hours of training and research to guide you to confirm and refine your goals and plans.

To schedule a one hour consultation with Katherine, email her: KOB@CelticCollegeConsultants.com