Customer Reviews

The New Rules of College Admissions: Ten Former Admissions Officers Reveal What It Takes to Get into College Today, Library Edition

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"The New Rules of College Admissions" covers it all - from essay writing techniques to how to fill out FAFSA and scholarship forms. In my opinion, every parent who has a college bound student should own a copy.

My story:

My wife had no problem finding helpful books that gave pointers on essay writing but when it came to finding books on financial aid that actually made sense to me I kept coming up empty handed. One day my wife handed me "The New Rules of College Admissions" and told me that there was an easy to read section that focused on Paying for College. After reading it and taking lots of notes, things started clicking. All the advice I was looking for was encapsulated in this one book.

The best thing about this book is that it tells you what colleges NOT to apply to. It shows you how to match your GPA/SAT scores with colleges that are looking for students in that range. If your GPA is 3.2 and you want to go to Stanford, you are not going to get accepted so don't waste your time, emotions and money applying there. Look for colleges who take 3.2 GPA students. It also cautions you against applying to schools whose GPA range is way lower than yours. The authors suggest that you will be bored in such a school.

It's no secret that the college admissions process has changed since the 70's when I was applying to school. It's more competitive, more stressful and more frustrating than ever. Although I wanted to help my son through the process, I quickly realized I didn't know where to begin. I needed some advice and decided to read "The New Rules of College Admissions."

The book, which is written by 10 former senior admissions counselors, provided me with excellent insight. After reading it, I was able to help my son devise a marketing plan that will make him stand out to admissions committees and give him a competitive edge.

His early decision applications have been sent and we probably won't hear back from the schools until December, but we both feel confident - and that's huge. Confidence is a feeling that definitely wouldn't have been accomplished if I hadn't read this book. I highly recommend "The New Rules of College Admissions" to parents and students alike who are overwhelmed by the college admissions process like I once was.

Although this book has some valuable insights - how to interview with colleges, how to set up a timetable for your college admission work( which other books have covered quite competently ),it also has some glaring inaccuracies - its section on SAT Is and ACTs is uninformed and inaccurate. It presents SAT I's as offering a 1600 score when the current SAT I is scored on the basis of 2400. Consequently, the SAT I and ACT tables are completely irrelevant. The differences between the ACT and the SAT I are inadequately and erroneously described and so are not helpful to students who are considering which test to take. This book could not be "new" rules of college admission.

I first reviewed The New Rules of College Admissions when I was working as a high school counselor. At the time, I was looking for helpful college planning resources for students and parents. I have often referred to this resource. Over the years, it has become one of my favorite books on preparing for college admissions.

When I first read this book I was skeptical because a private educational consulting firm called, College Coach, developed it. My fear was that the book would end up being an advertisement for the firm and instead of providing useful information it would attempt to persuade parents and students to seek their consulting services. To my delight, I was wrong. The book provides a wealth of useful information for prospective college students and their parents.

The book is written in a straightforward, easy-to-read manner. It is also divided into to chapters that focus on specific aspects of the application process. This allows readers to easily locate relevant information as they move through college application process.

Each chapter is written by an expert coach from College Coach who was a former educational professional at prestigious college. The writing flows together in a cohesive manner despite being authored by different writers.

The titles of the chapters are as follows:

Chapter One: The High School Experience
Chapter Two: Standardized Tests
Chapter Three: College Selection
Chapter Four: The Application
Chapter Five: The Application Theme
Chapter Six: Essays and Personal Statements
Chapter Seven: Activities
Chapter Eight: Letters of Recommendation
Chapter Nine: Interviews
Chapter Ten: Paying for College
Conclusion: What Next?


This book is targeted to parents of traditional aged, college bound students applying to competitive colleges. Although the authors are speaking to their parents, high school students can also easily glean helpful information from reading this book. However, this book is not written for nontraditional students or transfer students. Although students in these groups will still be able to gain useful information from reading this book they may wish to find a source written for them specifically.

Although I was initially skeptical of The New Rules of College Admissions because it was written by an educational consulting firm, I now see the advantage of having a book such as this being written by various coaches from an educational consulting firm: The experts bring their varied backgrounds from working at colleges throughout the country together for a perspective that would be applicable to seeking admission at any college.

The book is well written and packed with helpful information for prospective college students and their parents. I recommend this book to college bound high school students and their parents who would like help with the college application process.

This book is written for parents, which assumes the traditional role will be filled. I read it as a part of my work preparing low-income & 1st generation college students whose parents do not participate like middle-class parents. Still, the information contained is useful, no mtter the intended audience. I used it as a part of a presentation to students that was well received.

Get out the highlighter and post its if you have a college bound child is high school. This is the best book I've read on the grueling process of college admission. It is specific in it's suggestions for every type of student.

Great book. We learned a number of admissions tips and strategies that helped our son get into college.

We will certainly hold on to the book and reference it when our sophomore starts filling out her applications.

This book is right up the alley for all those helicopter parental micromanagers out there in cyberspace. If you are one then great, this is the book for you. If you are a student, pass on it as it speaks to only the parent. There are much better student guides out there than this. The book speaks to what active role(s) the parent should take to help get their child into the right college. I bought it thinking it would be a great guide for students and parents alike. It is not. It is a guide for omnipresent, low hovering, fueled up Moms and Dads. Good luck kids! May you find out who you truly are at the campus of your dreams - hopefully far away from your "life coaches".

Bravo to the authors of "The New Rules of College Admissions" for writing such an enlightening book. Most of our admissions questions were answered in just a few short chapters. My daughter is now well on her way to getting into her dream school.