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About Keith Berman
Expertise
I can answer questions regarding any part of the college and graduate school application process, such as: 1.) What are colleges looking for in an essay? If I wrote on [a given topic], would that help or hurt me? 2.) Should I include a portfolio of music in an application? How should I do it? 3.) Does applying for financial aid affect my chances of admission? 4.) Should I get a recommendation from a sophomore year teacher as opposed to a junior year teacher? Why? 5.) How much does the SAT/ACT matter in the admissions process at [a given school]? 6.) What are my chances at [a given school]?

Experience
2005 - Present, President, Options for College, Inc. (www.optionsforcollege.com), New York, NY - Have worked with approximately 500 families and students on the college and graduate school admissions process - Have trained over 200 guidance counselors in NY, California, and India - Quoted in US News and World Report's America's Best Colleges: 2009, Boston Magazine, Boston Globe, Yale Daily News, Harvard Crimson, Columbia Spectator, and others - Have published various articles on topics related to college admissions 2004-5, Interviewer, Harvard Undergraduate Admissions Office 2001-3, New York City Teaching Fellow 2001, American Institutes for Research - worked on issues related to developing the Voluntary National Test 2000, Interviewer, Yale Undergraduate Admissions Office

Organizations
AICEP, NACAC, IECA

Publications
Publication list available upon request. Most common sources are US Department of Education and Education Update.

Education/Credentials
2007 - Present, Certified Educational Planner, AICEP 2006 - Present, NACAC, Voting Member 2006 - Present, IECA, Voting Member 2006, C.A.S., Harvard Graduate School of Education 2005, Ed.M., Harvard Graduate School of Education 2003, M.S.Ed., Bank Street College of 2000, B.A., Yale University

Awards and Honors
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Grant (2006-7) Received award/stipend for project entitled An Experimental Intervention: Assessing the Value of Personalized College Counseling for Low Income, High Merit Students. Award covers tuition. Project also received Mellon Foundation support. Roy E. Larsen Award (2003-2004) Received award that provides full tuition and fees plus a stipend to first-year doctoral students at Harvard Graduate School of Education in the field of research. Also received identical HGSE grant of same amount for the 2004-2005 school year. New York City Teaching Fellowship (June 2001 - May 2003) Selected participant in alternative certification and teacher recruitment program. Awarded $3,000 stipend and full tuition for an M.S.Ed. at Bank Street College of Education. AmeriCorps (2002 and 2003) Received two annual $4,725 educational awards for completing national service in education.

Past/Present Clients
Yeshiva University HS for Boys, Rudolf Steiner School, Christian Unified Schools of San Diego, Merrill Lynch, NYU Family Life Center, Princeton Review ACS - India

You are here: Experts > Education > Graduate School > Help with College & Grad School Applications > College in General

Help with College & Grad School Applications - College in General

Expert: Keith Berman - 10/26/2009

Question
Hello.
So my sophomore year(Im a junior now) I took every honors and AP class offered at my school for that specific grade level, while playing very actively a varsity sport. So I got extremely stressed out for that whole year, but wouldnt allow myself be taken out of the class. So my sophomore GPA was, unfortunately not as high as my freshman year, but my junior year is turning out a lot better and Im trying to bring it up greatly. But I want to have options for if I don't play sports in college. Im an artist and am entering/have entered many art contests, do I put that on my application? Im going to also put together a huge cultural festive at my school, I active in many causes, am part of the peta2 street team, a vegan, entering a big art contest at my school, active in film making, play sports, was part of my school newspaper, but because of schedule conflicts had to give it up, however I want to pursue writing or journalism, my mom had breast cancer so Im becoming involved in that cause. Im also really interested in spoken word, so I want to start off small in that then perhaps move to a bigger spoken word competition. I want to take the act in December, and whenever the next sat is at my school take that for the first time. Also, Im of mixed heritage, dad white, mom black and I wanted to know when applying to college should I put that Im "other" or "African-American" or specify? I`ve been raised by a single parent. I would love to go to a college like Berkeley, northwestern, usc, nyu, u of Chicago, Stanford, UCLA, Michigan, etc. etc. maybe an ivy league. Do you think I could be appealing to these schools. I`ve been studying for my sat and act and I will get as high of a score as possible for me. Do schools do live interviews? If so, how can I get one? What else do you think I should do in order that I have a chance to be admitted into one of these schools?
Thanks

Answer
Dear Rikki,

It sounds like you are doing some wonderful things in school and beyond, Rikki. Based on the description above, it sounds like colleges have many reasons to be interested in you -- the one thing you might want to spend your junior year doing is going to local receptions and doing some reading and college visits to find out what colleges actually interest you!

My suggestion in terms of putting together a your application are:

1.) Save all of your art work, especially your sketchbook. There is something called an art supplement found at https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/Art_Supplement.pdf, and it can be included in an application. I recommend creating a website for your artwork as well, so you don't have to carry your portfolio everywhere. You should definitely talk to your art teacher about which of your pieces merits inclusion in a portfolio, he or she is a local source of expertise on that.

2.) Keep a resume of your activities so you can succinctly state all this wonderful stuff on interviews and when meeting professors and college representatives.

3.) Yes, some schools have live interviews, but all the ones you stated above travel the world recruiting students. Give the admissions office a call, politely introduce yourself, and ask when they will be in your area. Make sure to attend interviews with a pad of paper and a pen (a personal pet peeve as an interviewer was students who asked great questions and didn't write down the answer!) -- have questions written ahead of time, it can quell nerves and shows preparation (bring your resume as well -- many schools unofficially require one).

4.) If your sophomore year was far lower than the other years (e.g., half a GPA point), you should write an essay that gets right to the point on what happened, and put it in the "Additional Information" section of the application.

Rikki, it sounds like with a few organizing tools, like a website for your art and film (only put film on if you make art films), and a resume, you can succinctly communicate your story. Get ready for the SAT and ACT to the best of your ability. You are on the right track, Rikki.

Sincerely,
Keith Berman, CEP

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