Shellee Howard, founder of College Ready, breaks down 2021 admissions: UC schools saw a 15% application surge while California State dropped 5%. Harvard, Brown, and Yale all faced massive increases in applicants, making elite schools tougher to enter. Many public schools have fewer applications, creating openings for students.
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Hello and thank you for joining me. My name is Shellee Howard and I am the founder and CEO of College Ready, where we help students not only get into the best fit college but to graduate debt-free. Today I wanted to give you an update. I think there's so much news and stuff going on right now, you just don't even know where to begin. So I think it's going to be very worth your time to just sit back, relax, and enjoy the update. I want to start with a few statistics. So far this year, for the class of 2021, College Ready has gotten our students $3.7 million of free money. That is stuff they will not have to pay back. Then you might be asking, How do I get that? And that's truly up to you. We are currently offering a free strategy session. If you go to college-ready-plan.com and set up a time there, you are welcome to have an hour of my time where I answer your specific questions. Let's go ahead and dive into what's been happening during COVID because these are some interesting times. So in California, 23 of the California state schools who have a reputation for educating low-income and minority students have extended their deadlines, and they have had a decrease in applications. You may be going, why is that? A lot of these students are afraid they can't afford it, or they're staying at home and helping care for their youngers. So if you haven't applied, please look into the schools that still have acceptances to give. California State Schools received 538,279 applications for first first-time students and $256,543 for transfer students. Both numbers are down 5%. So you may be asking yourself, then why is it so expensive and so competitive if the numbers are down? Because that's just our California State schools. Let's take a look at the University of California schools. 19 campuses are— have been accepting applications for upper division and transfer students. 5 Cal States are still accepting lower transfer students. So if you know a transfer student, this is the year to apply. This is their best time to get into a UC school. The University of California system, um, the data shows roughly 250,000 freshmen and transfer students submitted applications so far. That's approximate increase of 15% over the past year. Bad news for those applying to the UC schools, and it just makes it more competitive. So how will your student stand out? Now consider this: early decision and early action figures are starting to come in. Harvard admitted 747 students early out of an early pool of 10,086 students. The pool increased 6,424 from last year. That's a 57% increase. So if you applied to Harvard early and you got deferred, please know it's not over yet. We can help you if you got deferred. There are things you can do. So if you know somebody applying to a top-tier school and they didn't get in, in early, and they're ready to fight for the deferral, please have them call us. We can help. Then you look at Brown University. They admitted 885 prospective students who applied early decision, and they admit— their admissions was the largest to date. Applications through the program increased 22% this year. So if you're applying to Brown, it was a competitive year. How about Yale? So these are just the top-tier schools, and I, I don't tell you to, um, frustrate you or disappoint you. I want you to know it's competitive and you really need to stand out. So Yale admitted 837 early action applicants from a pool of $7,939, an increase of 38%. That is insane. So when you look at some public universities, what's going on there? Uh, as we look at, uh, Georgia Tech offers for early admission for only for Georgia residents. The University of Virginia saw a 38% increase in early decision. Many institutions are down, but the top tier is not. So look at the opportunities. Look where you can still apply and make a difference. The anxiety over paying for college is is the number one reason why applications are down. And we are one of the only college consulting firms that looks at return on investment. We help you know what it would cost before your student applies. I had a phone call this week that really made me sad. A friend of one of my clients called and said, "I'm so proud of my son." This was not our student. He got into SMU early decision and I can't afford it. What nobody told her is that it was binding. And so now this student has been accepted, they've turned down all the other applications, and then on top of it, this mom has to say we can't afford it. This is the worst case scenario. If you find yourself in this situation with child number 1, please let us help you with child number 2. Our students are not only getting into the best colleges, we're doing it for a reduced or free tuition. My son attended Harvard 4 years for free. My daughter attended the University of Alabama and Cal Baptist and no debt. It doesn't have to be a noose around their neck for a very long time. Please know, college admission has never been more difficult. The students are online going to school, most of them. When is the last time they've heard from their high school counselor? If left up to a 17-year-old they will believe that they don't need to test prep or take a test. They will believe whatever the media is telling them. So I want you to know I want to simplify this process for you. I want to answer your questions. I want to remove your stress. It doesn't have to be stressful. Our students are thriving. They are doing community service passion projects while social distancing. I have over 100 of them I would love to share with you. Our students are doing internships online. They're doing research projects and writing research papers. Our students are thriving, and I want that for you and your family. So please know I'm here to serve you, and I am grateful for this opportunity. So if you need anything, feel free to email or check the website, college-ready-plan.com, and we are happy to support you. Thank you so much, and we look forward to talking to you.
