As I was going through some papers recently, I came across a list of goals I had written when I was thirteen years old.  Reviewing these was like peering into a time capsule – offering a sense of my dreams and aspirations at the beginning of my teenage years.  While I still haven’t achieved some of these loftier goals, such as winning a Nobel Prize (they say to dream big, right?), as I peered through the pages of this yellow notebook, I was taken aback to see just how many of these goals had become reality.

Back in the mid-1990s, our son, Ben, was a teenager attending South Eugene High School in Eugene, Oregon.  As he was still a few years away from becoming Scholarship Coach Ben Kaplan, seeking out college funding was something totally new to all of us.

I spoke with a group of new admission counselors last week while they were participating in state wide training.  I thought of how students and families may under utilize this valuable resource.

Every college hires admission staff who will be excellent representatives of their college and work toward the collective goals of the college.  Yet you may not realize that they also hire individuals who are advocates for students and are willing to abide by a code of conduct.

One of my friends recently got in touch with me to ask an urgent question:  how do I motivate myself to study molecular biology?  A fellow pre-medical student, my friend is passionate about medicine because of the potential personal impact she’ll be able to make … but significantly less enthusiastic about learning the minute details of RNA synthesis.

As you make the most of your summer through internships, service projects, jobs, and let’s not forget a little bit of fun and relaxation; the thought of driving more deeply into the college search hangs over you. Up to this point you have been inundated with brochures in the mail, e-mails with exciting college offers and probably even some calls from colleges across the country. In the near future you will have to move from the passenger seat to the driver’s seat in this process. Instead of colleges contacting you, you will need to contact them by completing applications.