Parents and students wanting to cast a wide net and conduct a national college search are often inundated with stress. With so much information to sort through, it is difficult to decipher how the data relates to the on-campus experience.
“It’s a real eye-opener for those who are confusing the prestige and selectivity of a college with the experience a student will have there. Those things are not aligned,” said Mark Moody, a college admissions counselor since 1998.
As the founder of MSquared College Counseling, Mark is using his more than 20 years of experience at premier independent college preparatory schools to help simplify the process for students (beginning as early as the eighth grade) with services that go beyond what overburdened school guidance counselors can offer.
He personally guides students’ selection of meaningful summer activities; and provides a strategic approach to standardized testing, assembling fine arts portfolios, and preparing for athletic recruitment. Mark walks 11th and 12th graders through the college selection and application process, offers essay-writing advice, feedback, and ensures submissions adhere to deadlines.
New to the area, Mark plans to add independent and boarding school advising for Capital District families to his services soon.
Exchanging Stress for Joyous Confidence
The biggest mistake parents and students make is boxing themselves into a preconceived set of assumptions. High school students are still changing at a rapid rate, said Mark. Allowing room for discovery and inspiration is vital. There is no universal definition of “merit,” and bending your high school experience, or padding your narrative, to fit into an ill-informed notion will sound flat and inauthentic in your college essays.
“People suffer from what I call a ‘misdirection of mindset.’ They approach the process with a very narrow definition of what success means, said Mark. “There is not a recipe or formula for success in college admissions.”
Instead of unnecessarily limiting your search based on reputation or cost, learn about yourself, and discover other possible pathways, advises Mark.
“There’s no reason not to find out what’s out there. Let honesty and authenticity carry the day.”
By checking in with clients at least once a month (or as many times as they require) Mark gives students room to begin looking forward to the future with the knowledge they’ve gained about themselves. Most of all, he reinforces the fact that a child’s self-worth is not measured by their college admission outcomes.
For more information, follow MSquared College Counseling on Facebook, Instagram, and at msquaredcounseling.com
