 | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com | Plenty of college admission guides promise to help students crack the Ivy League, but few of these have detailed knowledge to back up their advice. Michele Hernandez, on the other hand, is the ultimate insider. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Dartmouth College, she also worked as Dartmouth's assistant director of admissions for four years. In A Is for Admissions, Hernandez describes the step-by-step process Ivy League schools use to evaluate an application. Along the way she settles some ancient debates, including the comparative importance of SATs versus high-school grades, public versus private high schools, and extracurricular activities versus part-time employment. She evaluates every possible factor affecting chances for admission, including special categories of students such as recruited athletes, minority applicants, and legacies. Most dramatically, Hernandez reveals the precise mathematical formula used by admissions officers to rank applicants. Using her guidelines, readers can calculate their own AI (Academic Index) and--should their scores come up short--learn ways to compensate in other areas. Refreshingly, Hernandez helps would-be Ivy Leaguers keep their goals in perspective. She strongly advises against "grade grubbing" or "working for the grade." If you think attending a top college is the key to success, Hernandez cautions that the Ivies may not be for you. "If your goal is to make money, but you don't enjoy studying or reading, don't waste your time by trying to get into an Ivy League or highly selective college.... The beauty of an Ivy League/highly selective education lies in the intellectual atmosphere.... It does not lie in the prestige of having a diploma from Princeton or Dartmouth on your wall." Levelheaded and clearly written, A Is for Admission is the perfect guide for the student (or parent) who has his eyes set on the stars. |
Average Customer Rating:   Reality Check for Ivy League Wanna-Be's! As an independent college consultant, I meet many first-time clients whose Dream School is among the Ivies or other elite institutions. Based on experience, I have a pretty good sense, right off the bat, whether the student has a shot at these most competitive schools. Dr. Hernandez's book spells out specifics that can help such a student know "what it will take" to get into an Ivy, and can also help families gauge whether or not their aspirations for the student are at all realistic.
The author's sober, straightforward explanation of the "AI" (Academic Index), a formula Ivies and other elite schools use for quantifying applicants' qualifications, facilitates taking an objective look at one's credentials rather than running on hope, adrenalin, ego, or parental adulation. I also appreciated the author's frank discussion of "tipping points" such as athletics, special talents, legacy, development or minority status.
Much of Dr. Hernandez's advice is applicable beyond the Ivies to many highly selective colleges. Even schools who do not use a formula like the "A1" use some kind of admissions criteria that incorporates similar elements (test scores, GPA or class rank). However, I think the tonality of the book may be intimidating to families whose college-bound children are most likely not geared to the most competitive colleges. Other gentler, common sense "how-to" books may be more appropriate and easier to swallow for the majority of families of college-bound teens. Truly the Insider's Guide Every child that wants to go to college should have the opportunity to read this book, or one like it, before high school. It lucidly demonstrates criteria and requirements by which students are likely to be judged upon applying to the most selective of institutions. The depth of information that this book offered was, I felt, truly illuminating, and I say this as a member of a family whose progeny have passed through the gauntlet of these experiences to graduate from such institutions. Here's how...
Upon finishing this book, the reader unacquainted with the Ivy League and all that it represents should have a better idea of the "competition," for lack of a better word. Every young student that enjoys learning or is at least engrossed in it, either by their own volition or the encouragement (hopefully healthy encouragement) of some other figure, has likely thought of entering some great institution of higher learning. This book delineates in no uncertain terms the caliber and quality of person that is valued by such institutions, as well as providing some understanding of the less righteous side of college admissions.
For young students I believe this will shatter the hazy images of admissions lords on high and make the process less nerve-wrecking. Others will be faced with an entirely new reality to come to terms with. In some cases readers may find the information contained therein comforting. They will likely find other examples that they do not agree with. This book is written with the purpose of telling it like it is, not filling your head with hopes and dreams without substance. By replacing the guesswork of so many educational aspirations with real information, students can A)Divine what qualities are most desirable in the best students, B)Make more informed decisions about how badly they want to work to enter that prestigious institution, and C)Make an assessment of what really matters to them and how much they want for their education. I don't feel as though this book was written to baby-sit those who haven't already made up their minds about taking their education into their own hands, but I do believe that for many people it is a lack of knowledge about the nuance of such things that enables them to harbor illusions about the future of their education.
Those ideas can be further layed to rest by reading this book. Informative but Very OUTDATED!!! I've purchased few college admission related books in preparation for my daughter (Junior). This book will be decently informative if you are not so updated on the latest college admission process & requirement. I am sure this book was a sensational hit back in 10-12 years ago!
BUT, this is 2009!!!
Book cover said "Updated and Revised" but I can't tell when it was updated and what was updated. Many details are from 1995 and the latest data is from 2000.
It doesn't even cover SAT 1's Writing part. Acceptable SAT score used is way too low and an acceptance rates are too higher for 2009-2010 since data was from before 2000. There has been many new changes since 1995-2000 that this book will not help much (book will give you some "general" idea).
Right on Target A is for Admission may be dated but not in any important ways. This book was perfect for what I was looking for, and so interesting and on target that I literally couldn't put it down and read it straight through, making up pages as I went! Good, but dated I found the book to be informative, but dated (12 years old as of this review). I have to believe that many of the admissions office "lifers" that the author occasionally describes in not-so-admiring terms have either moved on or had their eyes opened to the need to attract the best of the best. The information on the Common Application may have been accurate 12 years ago, but is wrong now: all of the highly selective schools now accept them, along with a school-specific supplement. An earlier reviewer mentioned that the acceptance rates shown are way too high. I also suspect that admissions evaluation procedures may have changed somewhat since the advent of online applications and ubiquitous computerization.
I guess the bottom line is: there are gems to be mined in this book, but don't use it as your only source of information. |  |
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