Estrela Consulting Blog

UPDATED: August 5,2021 In a valiant effort to streamline information for our families we've compiled a comprehensive list of resources that will be updated as needed during this crisis. If our college planning team can support your family during this trying time, please don't hesitate to reach out.

We’ve been here before, I think as I sit down to reflect on the current state of the world. Okay, maybe we’ve not been exactly here before - hunkered down, sheltering in place, fearful of the invisible coronavirus - but we have faced adversity before. Maybe not all together as a collective global society, but certainly in small samples sizes.

The Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) released this month its 2020 ranking of What Colleges Look for in High School Students, based on a nationwide survey of IECA members. While grades and standardized test scores are near the top of these annual rankings, a number of significant changes and surprises are challenging the assumptions about college admissions. Number 1 on the ...

They're here! They're here! If you're like us you've been patiently waiting for the 2020-21 Common App Essay Prompts to be announced. Spoiler Alert: the folks at the Common App have actually decided to keep the same prompts that were used during the 2019-20 application cycle.

Let’s just be honest here, most people don’t love being interviewed. Nevertheless, when given the chance to interview with a prospective college, I always encourage my students to go for it. Interestingly, there are only a handful of schools out there that explicitly require interviewing as part of the admissions process. However, many colleges do offer interviews as optional opportunities for ...