We're very pleased with the admissions outcomes we achieved for our clients in the 2008-2009 admissions season. Now we're gearing up for 2009-2010. The feedback we're getting from our clients, consultants, and university and college contacts, plus news from the educational sector, suggests we'll face another challenging year.

Almost all of the top b-schools reported increases in application volumes last year and seem likely to see continued growth this year.

College admissions are likely to be as least as competitive for Fall 2010 as they were last year. One trend that we feel is not getting enough recognition is the rise in application volume and the consequent drop in acceptance rates at many large public universities and small private colleges – the institutions once regarded as 'safety schools' for accomplished high school graduates. This year's applicants are well advised to take this trend into account as they plan their college applications. Even excellent students should not assume that admission to their state school or local college is theirs for the asking any more.

Additionally, several top schools highly inflated their waitlists this season and many decision weren't made until deep into May. With the larger number of schools students are applying to, many universities are being more cautious in offering admissions and trying to focus on students who seem the most interested in attending the college.

Medical and law school admissions remain as competitive as ever, due to a gradual increase in medical school class sizes and a continuing increase in law school applications. There has been a sharp increase in applicants to osteopathic programs as the AMA continues to call for more medical practitioners by 2015. We respect the tenacity of people who are dedicated enough to these fields to run the gauntlet of the application process, and are committed to providing them with the insight and advice that can make a difference in their admissions success.

The changes we've seen in admissions over the past year leave us more convinced than ever that the key to successful applications lies in understanding what schools and programs are the best match for your ambitions, abilities, and preferences, and understanding what your 'wow' factors are and how to present those to admission committees effectively. We're looking forward to putting that philosophy to work for our clients over the coming months – and are confident that this time next year we'll again be able to say we're very pleased with our results!

Our consultants can help you understand these and other aspects of college and graduate school admissions. They have served on admissions committees themselves, making accept/reject/waitlist decisions at highly selective colleges, b-schools, and law, grad, and medical schools. Their understanding of the admission process can give you the edge you need to prepare effective applications and maximize your admissions chances at your top-choice schools. Call us at 703.242.5885, email us, or visit our website to learn about our consultants' various fields of expertise and how they can help you position yourself for admissions next fall.

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A number of the top b-schools have released their applications for Fall 2009 over the past few weeks. Click on the following links to see this year's applications, essays and deadlines for these schools:

• Chicago GSB
• Harvard Business School
• Stanford GSB

Check out our blog for other schools that have released essays including:

• NYU Stern
• Wharton UPenn
• Kellogg
• MIT Sloan

Every one of these schools asks applicants to write about their leadership qualities at some point in their essays.

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MBA applicants sometimes ask whether holding an undergraduate degree from a lesser-known college or university might affect their chances of winning admission to a top U.S. business school. The honest answer to that question is that it can – but not by much, and not in any way that couldn't be offset by following an appropriate application strategy. For more information, see "Undergraduate Institutions and B-School Admissions," which I contributed to MBAAdmission.com as this month's David's Corner.

The College Board has always been reluctant to admit that any part of the SAT can be 'coached' – in other words, that someone who follows a test prep course can get a higher score than they would have without the coaching.

However, the College Board itself has admitted that the writing section it added to the revised version of the SAT is coachable. In fact, some outside observers are saying the writing test may be the most coachable part of the exam.

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If you are a high school junior and college bound, chances are that you've begun to think — and possibly stress — about taking either the SAT or ACT, as almost all undergraduate colleges and universities require applicants to take one of the two tests. Many students take both. The stakes are high and in the competitive environment of college admissions, many high school students and their families are willing to go to great lengths to achieve top scores on their college entrance exams.

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"Every part of a graduate school application is important," says Senior Consultant Heather MacNeill. That said, she feels that letters of recommendation are one application component that many applicants should pay more attention to.

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Will Your Application Succeed in Setting You Apart from the Rest of the Applicant Pool? That question can be harder to answer than you might think – and a wrong answer might make the difference between getting into your target schools and being dinged. Our consultants can help you avoid making that mistake. Call us at 703.242.5885, email us, or visit our website to learn more about our graduate school admissions consulting services.

A recent article in The Chicago Tribune reported that the Educational Testing Service (ETS) will soon offer a "supplemental assessment of graduate school applicants on those personal characteristics that could help students tackle advanced studies."

The test is called the "Personal Potential Index" and allows GRE test-takers to submit names and emails of professors for evaluation. ETS will then send these professors online evaluation forms as well as the opportunity to provide written comments. The new program is scheduled to be offered starting next month.

The test has been developed as an attempt to resolve the issue of low doctorate program graduation rates. According to the article, nearly half of all students who start doctorate programs don't finish them.

ETS Research Official Patrick Kyllonen is quoted in the article explaining why the GRE is not sufficient enough for predicting graduation. He states, "Every faculty member can tell you about students with very high GRE scores who never finish their degree and some who get barely admitted based on their scores and go on to become academic stars. We are hoping this will go a long way to capture some of those qualities."

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"I'm often asked how many applications someone should submit to law schools," says Senior Consultant Heike Spahn. "Last year, the number of schools my clients applied to ranged from 1 to 27. For most applicants, I think the ideal number falls somewhere in the middle of that range.

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Starting July 1, 2009, Robert C. Post will become Dean of Yale Law School. Post is succeeding Harold Hongju Koh, who is currently awaiting Senate confirmation as Legal Adviser to the U.S. State Department. As reported in a previous blog, Kati Stith has been acting dean since March. Post has been a Yale faculty member since 2003, specializing in constitutional law.

Post has been a professor for 26 years, first at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law where he spent 20 years and then moved to Yale. Post is also a Yale Law School graduate, earning his J.D. and receiving the Michael Egger Prize in addition to being note editor for The Yale Law Journal. He also holds an A.B., summa cum laude, and a Ph.D. in the History of American Civilization from Harvard.

Yale's President, Richard C. Levin, is quoted in a Yale press release stating, "As a leading constitutional scholar and a respected citizen of the legal profession, Robert Post is ideally positioned to move the Yale Law School forward. He is greatly admired by his colleagues for his wisdom and judgment, and his commitment to sustaining the excellence of the Law School is unwavering."

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Get a Head Start on Your 2010 Applications! You'll need to work hard this summer if you want to submit polished applications early in the admissions cycle. We can help you do that. Sign up today for a highly customized 'pre admissions' consultation. That first hour of personalized guidance from a consultant with law school admissions committee experience may be all you need to settle any questions you have about how to proceed with your law school applications. Call us at 703.242.5885, email us, or visit our website to learn more.

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• Saturday, September 26, 2009 (or Tuesday, September 29, for Saturday Sabbath observers)
• Saturday, December 5, 2009 (or Monday, December 7, for Saturday Sabbath observers)
• Saturday, February 6, 2010 (or Monday, February 8, for Saturday Sabbath observers)

Whenever you plan to take the test, make sure you give yourself enough time for test preparation "Proper preparation is the key to success on the LSAT," says Jeff Glazer, president of Griffon Preparation Services.

He advises against using non-LSAC practice tests. "Study books published by companies that use fake questions should be avoided at all costs," he says. "Such questions rarely mimic the real thing and can cause confusion on test day."

If you choose to prepare for the exam on your own, some of the best self-study material available for the LSAT is distributed by LSAC themselves, says Glazer. "They have multiple publications that include real LSAT questions from previous test administrations. In particular, LSAC's SuperPrep contains three exams plus wonderful explanations of correct answers from the test writers."

He also encourages law school applicants to begin their test preparation well ahead of time. "Since the LSAT is weighted so heavily in the law school admissions process, it is crucial to spend as much time studying for the LSAT as possible," he says.

Focused preparation is the key to doing well on the LSAT, says Jeff. "The LSAT isn't like other tests," he says. "The exam is designed to test a pattern of critical reading and thinking. That means that studying for the LSAT must be approached differently than other tests. Simply taking many timed tests will not usually improve one's score. You'll need to sit down with a few real LSAT tests and work out how to derive the correct answer from the information you are given."

Were You Denied for 2009 Admissions? Our consultants can help you understand why your applications failed the first time around and advise you on how to secure a better outcome for 2008. Our special, fixed-fee ding analysis package may be just what you need to get your educational and career plans back on track. Call us at 703.242.5885, email us, or visit our website to find out more about our services.

The majority of medical schools will automatically send requests for secondary applications to any qualified applicant. The same early submission strategy that you followed for your primary application also applies to your secondary applications. Also, remember that committees review applications on a rolling basis. Therefore, the sooner you return your secondary applications, the sooner your file will be reviewed by the admissions committee and the better your chances will be of securing a seat in next fall's first-year class.

Here are some helpful tips to consider for the secondary applications:

• Check the medical schools to which you are applying to identify their secondary application process and requirements.
• Focus on writing effective cohesive essays.
• Identify your strengths and your passion for medicine to create a well rounded profile along with a winning story theme.
• Check carefully your grammar and spelling and most importantly pay attention to deadlines.
• Follow up with each school in order to confirm that they have received your information and that a review has begun.

If you need any assistance in getting your secondaries in order, don't hesitate to call us at 703.242.5885 or drop us an email.

Enrollment is Expanding - But Admissions Are Still Competitive! Our consultants can give you the insight and advice you need to make informed choices about your medical school options and how to best position yourself for admissions success. Call us at 703.242.5885, email us, or visit our website to find out more about our services.

This year's grade is actually a significant improvement from last year, in which the medical school failed to submit any paperwork regarding conflict of interest and therefore flunked. The article noted that the school received negative publicity last year from Senator Charles Grassley who claimed that psychiatrist Joseph Biederman of Harvard- affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital "received $1.6 million in consulting and speaking fees from the makers of drugs he had used to treat children for bipolar disorder."

Due to these allegations, the school created a review committee that assessed the current policy and attempted to revamp regulations for disclosing financial interests and industry affiliations. Allan Coukell, director of the Pew Prescription Project, which co-created the Scorecard, is quoted in the article stating, "I do think that there are some medical school deans who realize the image of the profession has been tarnished. There's a trend in the right direction, but there are still a lot of schools that have not addressed this issue."