When it comes to choosing a consultant for your child’s education, there are many factors that are important to consider. It is important to look past any of the glitz that might be presented by advertising (though this is true for any investment), and instead get to the substance of the individual or firm with whom you are meeting. While you may be willing to be a guinea pig for your nephew who is starting his own business, when meeting with an educational consultant it is better to opt for someone who has the experience that such an important decision demands. Sarphatie Education and its founder and president, Jacque Trama, provides her vast experience to all its clients, enabling them […]

Last week admissions decisions for early applicants started making their way into mailboxes and inboxes across the country. For some students, an acceptance to a first-choice school marks a sigh of relief. For many, many others, however, an unfavorable decision on an application is a disappointment. If you’re one of the applicants that didn’t receive the acceptance you hoped for, it’s ok to be disappointed. But it’s more important to not dwell on the rejection, and instead develop a game plan for how you’re going to move forward with the college application process. Here are some things to keep in mind while you do just that: 1.    Understand the Letter You may have stopped reading the letter you received once […]

Dear Families, The horrific events that took place in Newtown, CT on Friday have had an impact on each of us – our families, our students and our teachers. As school begins again today, our students may feel unsure or have questions about their safety at school or in other public places.  It is always difficult for parents and teachers to talk about this type of violence with our children.  Attached you will find some resources that we hope you will find helpful. Our thoughts continue to be with the families of Newtown during this very difficult time.  We are here for you as well.  Please reach out to us if we can be of any assistance or support. Warmly, The Sarphatie […]

The fact that it is easier for children to learn a second language (or third, or fourth, etc.) earlier in life is well known at this point. Only 25% of elementary schools even OFFERED foreign language instruction in 2008, but there is increasing support for more comprehensive foreign language instruction and education in K-12 schools. “People who speak a foreign language tend to make more money. Something like 3 percent on average regardless of the field…” If you knew you could have essentially a three percent raise regardless of what career path you took, would you have signed up for it? Would you sign your children up for it? In a society that is increasingly diverse, and with the economy […]

There’s a growing new method in the fight against climate change: college students demanding that their schools divest themselves from their stock holdings in fossil fuel companies. The current movement hearkens back to the late 1970’s and 80’s, when there were protests on campuses around the country asking that their schools divest themselves of stock owned in companies that were doing business in South Africa, which was under apartheid rule at the time. So far, the students’ success has been limited, and no school with an endowment over $1 billion has agreed to the request, despite the fact that many administrators agree with their students’ climate change fears. Certainly, shedding stock in energy companies could be costly for colleges, and […]

As mobile technology continues its expansion into the lives of everyone around us – you, me, your grandmother – businesses are starting to bring higher education to our collective pockets. Heather Huhman has four companies that you should be keeping your eye on. But here’s the telling line, and it’s in the introduction: …when the Class of 2016 graduates, nearly 90 percent of college students in the U.S. will own a smartphone. That’s a statistic that’s impossible for anyone to ignore in any market – not just in business or in education. Not only are businesses becoming more aware of this potential market, but campuses around the country are going to need to be in on, and ahead of, this […]

Sum up your life in 500 words?  Many students feel that this is the impossible mission of the college application essay.  If the subject of your admissions essay had to be the entirety of your life and/or character, they’d give you more than 500 words.  The truth about admissions essays is that colleges want to get a sense of your personality in order to see how you’ll fit into the academic community they’re building.  Since you are yourself in everything you think and do, you can pretty much write about anything. I just made the problem worse, didn’t I?  Anything?! Not surprisingly, there are many theories about picking the right topic for your essay.  I’ll outline a few common theories, […]

With the new school year getting underway this week, it’s important, if you’re starting 12th grade, that you get to work on your college applications. The earlier you start work on your applications, the better – as procrastination can lead to missed deadlines. (We’re going to assume that you’ve worked up a list of colleges to apply to at this point. If you haven’t done that, start there. Here’s our post with tips on how to narrow your list down from the thousands of colleges available to you.) Now that you have your list, it’s imperative that you come up with a list of deadlines of the applications. Many schools will have different deadlines, so if you have a calendar […]

With the start of another school year upon us, it’s time to think about college applications. But where to start? There are literally thousands of options available to you. How do you narrow your list down? Here are some of the ways that we’ve found to be helpful when you’re figuring out where to apply. 1. What Type Of School Do You Want? This might seem like an obvious statement, but it’s an important one. By “type” we don’t mean “party school” or “non-party school;” instead, there are certain demographics that can be used to find schools that will be a good fit. First, are you looking for a four-year school, or a community college? Are you looking for a […]

Volunteer work. If you’re a high school student, or the parent of a high school student, you already know the importance of consistent, relevant volunteer work when it comes to the college application process. But beyond the “necessity” of volunteering in order to present yourself as a well rounded individual to the colleges to which you are applying, volunteer work is an important enrichment tool for both teenagers and their families. While many students volunteer in areas they are already interested in, students who are unsure about what they might want to study when in college can have interests sparked through their volunteer work. Volunteer work is a good way for families to spend additional time with one another. With […]