The UCPS Advantage
In an increasingly competitive market, it’s important to get the best information available about college planning and the college admissions process. The firms that are most effective in meeting this need not only provide reliable information, but offer something more: the expertise necessary to assist you in making informed judgments.
What makes Upstate College Planning Services (UCPS) different from most other firms in this field –and what will improve your chances of success in the college application process – is our competitive edge: UCPS knows colleges and universities. Our President, Dr. Lynne Wiley, holds a Ph.D. from the top-rated graduate institution in the country, and has spent a long and productive career in higher education, rising to the level of Vice President (see “About Us”).
Dr. Wiley knows what’s behind the admissions information that gets communicated to high school guidance offices and independent consultants. She knows how those admissions priorities were developed, whether they really hold when tough decisions need to be made, and who makes those decisions and why.
UCPS can tell you whether institutions juggle competing goals when admitting students, and how that juggling can affect your application; whether it’s likely that a college will modify its stated admissions policies; how you can effectively tap into a college’s current priorities; what alternatives you have if your grades and experience are not initially competitive; what otherwise unremarkable aspects of your background might appeal to college executives, and much more.
Specifically, Upstate College Planning Services knows:
- What colleges look for in applicants
- Colleges’ priorities when reviewing applications
- What makes one applicant stand out over another
- The factors driving college admissions today
- What “selectivity” really means, and how it can affect your chances of admission
- Whether attending one college over another really will improve your chances of success/employment
- How US News & World Report rankings are relevant to your chances of admission
- How you can best prepare to make a successful college application
- The importance of grades, test scores, rank in class, jobs, extracurricular activities, interviews, financial resources, and other factors in the application process
- How to make the most of your campus visit
- How to finance your college education
- How to select the best college for you
- What options are available to you if you’re not admitted to the college of your first choice
- How to set the stage for developing productive relationships with faculty
- What to look for in social and extracurricular activities on campus
- How to evaluate where to live on or off campus
- The pros and cons of professional versus liberal arts education
In short, what you get from UCPS is the view from the top on what it takes to get into college – and to find success once you get there. Contact us now to find out what UCPS can do for you!
