McNeal Sams Blog
At McNeal Sams College Consulting, our college consultants have more than 150 years of experience combined. We have seen a lot of changes and developments within the college admission profession over that time. From going digital to testing trends to rising costs, and now, the introduction of Artificial Intelligence, understanding what is relevant or what is even real can be daunting for a student or a parent.
In this space, we couple our wealth of knowledge with today’s trends and concerns. Whether you are a student embarking on your college choice journey, or a parent assisting students on their journeys, or simply someone interested in learning about higher education, this is a space for insights, conversations and support.
Susan Lutz, College Consultant Each summer, the Common App hits reset. This year, the first-year application will close on July 28 for its annual refresh [...]
Elizabeth Schnell, College Consultant We often recommend that students’ summer plans include some investigation of careers. Activities like jobs by internships by or camps present [...]
Recently I made a decision: this year, I’ll run every student essay draft through an AI detector. Yes, every single one. I didn’t make this [...]
Jeanie Grimm, College Consultant In this season of Independence Day, we have been thinking about what it means to be independent. For a country, revolution [...]
Barbara Sams, Managing Partner As students begin the college search, it's easy to get caught up in rankings, acceptance rates, and lists of "best" schools. [...]
Susan Lutz, College Consultant When students begin building a college list, it's easy to focus on the most well-known universities, national rankings, or large schools [...]
Jeanie Grimm, College Consultant When I was in high school, a very popular bumper sticker and t-shirt logo read, “Think globally, act locally.” I think [...]
Nelie McNeal, Founder and Managing Partner “When we take the ACT…” “We have to get our applications submitted by…” As a college consultant, I always [...]
Jeanie Grimm, College Consultant Spring has sprung here in Western New York! It’s glorious, most of the time, and the season brings out the (very [...]
Jeanie Grimm, College Consultant I am a checklist person. I have been for decades. All days, my list includes tasks to accomplish. It also includes [...]