Ivy League Admissions Advisors helps students get accepted to Ivy League and highly selective colleges and universities and BS/MD programs.
“We are not for everyone,” says Dr. Lowe. “Only parents who want their children to have expert advice and a competitive advantage in the college admission process hire us.”
Being different and understanding differences allows us to advise our clients to stand out and get ACCEPTED
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. For colleges and universities that recommend or require videos: College Admissions Video Productions.
With record number of students applying to Ivy League schools you may wish to ask WHY the Ivies?
The annual cost to attend (tuition, fees, housing, food, books, misc.) gives pause to many potential applicants: Harvard: $76,479; Brown: $78,688; Princeton: $75,210; Dartmouth: $79,967. So, what’s really happening here? Tuition is rising, yet U.S. as well as international students are competitively applying to these schools. What do these institutions have that others may not? This is a question I hear, year after year, and from several parents in my recent webinar.
Let’s start with the seemingly intangibles:
The institutions have prestigious brands
They have global alumni networks
They maintain international connections on every continent.
And then there is more – money! Or in the non-profit lexicon, endowments (in 2020) for example: Harvard $41.9 billion; Yale $31.2 billion, Princeton $25.9 billion, UPenn: $14.9 billion, Columbia: 41.0 billion, Cornell: $7.2 billion, Dartmouth: $6.0 billion, Brown: $4.7 billion. The Ivies have the financial assets to weather the COVID-19 tsunami and provide top-rate education without any drastic financial cuts.
You might ask why this even matters. Far fewer than 1 percent of undergraduate students at American colleges and universities attend the Ivy League or similarly selective schools. But who gets into these institutions makes a difference for the United States, because their graduates are so overrepresented in our country’s Judicial Branch. Every current Supreme Court justice, save one, attended an Ivy League law school: Justice Alito (Yale), Justice Barrett (Notre Dame), Justice Breyer (Harvard), Justice Gorsuch (Harvard), Justice Kavanaugh (Yale), Justice Kagan (Harvard), Chief Justice Roberts (Harvard), Sotomayor (Yale) and Justice Thomas (Yale).
Several recent U.S. presidents including Donald Trump have been educated, at some point, at an Ivy League school — including Yale double legacy George W. Bush, Bill Clinton (Yale) and Barack Obama (Columbia and Harvard). More than 40 Harvard alumni — either undergrad or graduate — won seats in Congress in 2016. Newly appoint and current Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen Brown (Economics/AB) Yale Economics/PhD).
So why attend an Ivy League university? When you imagine the possibilities, the question should be…”Why not?“
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejectedand student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. For colleges and universities that recommend or require videos: College Admissions Video Productions.
Based on our research and discussions with directors/deans of admissions and admissions officers, regular decision applicants will be receiving their decision notifications in March and early April. It will be another highly competitive year!
Ivy League and highly selective colleges are already reporting a surge in regular decision applications. The reason for this dramatic increase is likely multifactorial. Perhaps, this is primarily because many students who took gap years and are now applying. Additionally, more international students are applying and the prestige and brand of elite colleges is more coveted in a market of uncertainty. Add to these facts many colleges have accelerated planned changes their standardized testing requirements since the start of the pandemic, which has encouraged more high school seniors to apply.
WHAT HAS BEEN THE RESULT? Harvard surged by 42% to 57,000 applicants, Brown surged by 26% to 46,469 applicants and Princeton surged by 15% to 37,000 applicants. The increase in applications has affected the highly competitive schools as well as the institutions that top students usually considered “safety schools”. NYU surged by 20% to 100,000 applicants, UCLA surged by 28% to 139,000 applicants and Colgate surged by 102% to 17,392 applicants (last year Colgate had 8,582 applicants).
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?Within a month or so high school seniors will begin to discover, after all their hard work that they will be accepted, wait-listed or rejected. In this case, many will be rejected! Specifically, based on our projections, over 95% of students who applied to the Ivies will be rejected!
Here are regular decision notification dates (and approximate times) for Ivy League and highly selective colleges and universities:
Barnard College: Late March 2021
Boston College: April 1, 2021
Boston University: Late March 2021
Brown University: April 6, 2021
Bucknell University: April 1, 2021
California Institute of Technology: Mid-March 2021
Carnegie Mellon University: April 1, 2021
Colgate University: Mid-March
Columbia University: April 6, 2021
Cornell University: April 6, 2021
Dartmouth University: April 6, 2021
Duke University: Late March, 2021
Georgetown University: April 1, 2021
Georgia Institute of Technology: Late March 2021
Hamilton College: Late March 2021
Harvard University: April 6, 2021
Johns Hopkins University: April 1, 2021
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Mid-March 2021
New York University: April 1, 2021
Northwestern University: Late March 2021
Princeton University: April 6, 2021
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: March 6, 2021
Stanford University: April 9, 2021
Swarthmore College: Mid-March 2021
Tufts University: Mid-March 2021
University of Chicago: Late March 2021
University of Michigan: Early April 2021
University of Notre Dame: Late March
University of Pennsylvania: April 6, 2021
University of Virginia: April 1, 2021
Vanderbilt University: April 1, 2021
Vassar College: Late March 2021
Villanova University: Late March 2021
Wesleyan University: Late March 2021
Yale University: April 6, 2021
WHAT CAN YOU DO? For seniors, if you are rejected, you may want to begin to consider transferring (College Transfer Admissions Advisors). For current juniors, you may need to consider hiring an admissions expert who specializes in Ivy League admissions (Ivy League Admissions Advisors). Year after year, our clients are accepted to Ivy League and highly selective colleges and universities and BS/MD programs because they recognize the importance and the value that we add to their student profile… We are DIFFERENT and that makes us the BEST!
Hire the best admissions expert who is different! Don’t take chances!
Please bookmark this blog. We will update decision dates as soon as we hear from schools!
“Being different and understanding differences allow me to help our clients stand out and be accepted!”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Parents hire us because they choose to pay an admissions expert who will help them avoid making mistakes.”– Dr. Paul Lowe
Happy New Year! Welcome to Dr. Paul Lowe Admissions Expert Blog – 2021
The past year has been full of uncertainty. As a consequence of the myriad of transitions, changes, adjustments and adaptations, now there’s a whole new admissions world. Education has moved from in-person to online learning and there has been an increase in the number of applications to top private day and boarding schools, Ivy League and highly selective colleges and universities and BS/MD programs! The College Board recently announced that it is eliminating the SAT subject tests and optional essay-writing section!
The one constant we have observed last year and the beginning of this year, is that parents want the best education for their children whether it’s K-12, college or graduate school.
As families navigate through these extraordinary and unparalleled admissions times, having an expert who can help make objective decisions is invaluable. As experts, we understand the fluctuating landscape and degrees of complexity in the current admissions scenarios so that students can avoid mistakes, stay focused and attain successful admissions decisions. Our knowledge-intelligence that results in our admissions success involves our ability to plan, to know how to adjust and when to change effectively.
Following last year’s admissions season, we heard from many parents and school counselors whose students applied ED to the Ivies and were rejected, yet we have clients who were accepted ED to Harvard, Yale, Brown, UPenn, Columbia and Cornell. And our Brown PLME acceptance rate was just amazing! Brown PLME: Early Decision Results
Year after year, parents and fellow consultants ask us, what’s your secret? How do you provide stellar admissions results? It’s actually quite simple and conspicuously obvious….We are DIFFERENT!
Dr. Lowe and his team collectively, through their insight, foresight, proprietary- knowledge, wisdom and confidence, choose the best admissions strategies to be applied prudently for the best decision results – That’s our secret!
This year, many parents will be extremely happy because they will use our SECRET!
Each year, admissions policies and strategies change, so stay tuned for my upcoming, informative, helpful and thought-provoking admissions blogs!
“Being different and understanding differences allow me to help our clients stand out and be accepted!” – Dr. Paul Lowe
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?” – Dr. Paul Lowe
“Parents hire us because they choose to pay an admissions expert who will help them avoid making mistakes.” – Dr. Paul Lowe
This year, we have had an increased number of clients applying to direct BS/MD programs. Few of our clients, by their choice, decided to apply to Brown Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME) because they felt that ED may be too restrictive. We respect our clients’ choices!
We are happy to report Dr. Lowe and his team’s results. Here are the results of our 8 clients who applied to Brown PLME Early Decision:
5 were admitted to the College and PLME
1 was rejected from PLME, but admitted to the College
1 deferred from PLME to regular decision
1 rejected from PLME (College and PLME), but was accepted Early Action to MIT
Brown University: “PLME applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a video portfolio as part of the application process. The video portfolio provides a wonderful opportunity for us to learn more about you.”
This year, Dr. Lowe and his admissions team partnered with the affiliate website: College Admissions Video Productions and successfully advised their clients in developing amazing video portfolios!
“Valuable and expert advice is never free or cheap” – Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. For colleges and universities that recommend or require videos: College Admissions Video Productions.
This week seniors received their application decisions! What was discovered is that the the number of early applications had soared as compared to last year.
I recall at one of my webinars that several parents surmised that the numbers would decrease as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the expected decrease in international applicants. I disagreed! Based on our analysis, we know that the Ivies’ brands soar in tough times.
Let’s take colleges that just released their early admissions results. Harvard had 10,086 application and accepted 747; last year 6,424 applicants and admitted 895. Brown University‘s early application rose by 22%, 23% at UPenn, 29% at Dartmouth and 49% at Columbia. From, time to time I have heard parents, high school counselors and even fellow educational consultants state that “it doesn’t really matter where you attend college as long as it’s a good fit“. Really! These numbers or increase percentages speak otherwise!
What does this mean for students who were deferred? They are now in the regular application pool and it’s going to be even more competitive! Since you are in the larger pool, you will need to continue to attempt to standout and distinguish yourself from other applicants who were deferred and regular decision applicants. Our firm we provides “Post-Application Submission Deferred Strategies”.
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?”– Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. For colleges and universities that recommend or require videos: College Admissions Video Productions.
It’s that important time of the year for high school seniors as many students are beginning to receive their application decisions. Let’s describe each.
ACCEPTED/ADMITTED: You’re in! You did it! You have been offered a spot in the incoming freshman class of one or more of the schools on your list. If it’s one of your top-choice schools and you have been accepted EA or RD it’s great! In terms of ED, the admissions process is technically over! “Technically”, because although you are accepted, schools can rescind your acceptance based on numerous reasons. Don’t forget the Common Application Affirmation Statement. According to the Common Application: “These affirmations are intended to make sure the applicant certifies the authenticity of the application, agrees to provide updated information to the college, and will commit only to one college once accepted”.
DEFERRED: This means that the college is not prepared to either accept or deny you at this juncture, so they defer making a decision on your candidacy until they can consider you in the larger pool of regular decision applicants. Since you are the larger pool, you will need to continue to attempt to standout and distinguish yourself from other applicants who were deferred and regular decision applicants. Our firm provides “Post-Application Submission Deferred Strategies”.
WAITLISTED: Being placed on the waitlist at a school means that you are not currently being offered a spot in their incoming class, but that you might be if enough spots open up as admitted students select other schools. How likely this is to occur (and it does happen) and in what volume, varies from school to school and even year to year. Our firm provides “Post-Application Submission Off-Waitlist Strategies”.
DENIED/REJECTED: Unfortunately, this outcome requires no explanation. However, what you may choose to do is to transfer to schools that initially denied you a spot after the freshman year of the school you eventually end up. We provide transfer services through: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. We have successfully helped students transfer to schools that had initially denied them admissions.
“Being different and understanding differences allow me to help our clients stand out and be accepted!”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Parents hire us because they choose to pay an admissions expert who will help them avoid making mistakes.”– Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected. and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. For colleges and universities that recommend or require videos: College Admissions Video Productions.
As college and university enrollment overall has dropped this fall because of the COVID-19 pandemic, research and reports have demonstrated that there is a record number of applicants to medical schools.
The number of applicants to medical schools has increased by 18% this year over last year, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC); and this is driven by the example of medical workers and public health figures such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Increase in BS/MD Applications translates to HYPERCOMPETITION – It’s going to HARDER to get in!
Our research and knowledge of the BS/MD programs has seen an increase in interest in BS/MD programs. More parents are encouraging their children to become doctors because of the uncertainty in the future of non-healthcare careers and the fact that there is a shortage of U.S. doctors. AAMC reports that United States will be short 54,000 to 139,000 physicians by 2033, the AAMC estimates and that more than two out of every five doctors now practicing will reach retirement age over the next 10 years.
In our practice, we are seeing more parents calling us seeking BS/MD admissions help. In fact, we are seeing a trend in high school students switching to BS/MD program admissions from traditional college admissions who are currently juniors. More international high school students and H-4 visas students are also requesting BS/MD assistance.
What does this mean for BS/MD programs? More high school students will be applying and there will be even more HYPERCOMPETITION!
Our BS/MD Admissions practice is specialized: Dr. Lowe and his team only work with parents who understand that the BS/MD admissions process is competitive, who desire help from an admissions expert and who see the value and investment in paying for expert advice through a detailed and ongoing comprehensive admissions advisory service for their child’s dream of becoming a doctor. He also specializes in helping international students in the BS/MD process. BS/MD Admissions Advisors – 2020 Acceptances. Parents who chose to use our services want to call their son or daughter – “Doctor” when they are seniors in high school.
After all that hard work, don’t you want want your child to be a BS/MD student?
It’s the 2020-2021 Early Decision and Early Action season! We are in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applicants have already submitted their applications! Some applicants are having their alumni interviews and some have submitted their college videos! Competition to Ivy League and highly selective college remain high as these schools maintain their global educational brand. Therefore, expect many applicants with high SAT/ACT scores, high grades and seemly perfect applications, personal statements and the perfect story to be rejected or deferred to the regular decision pool!
Here are some early decision and early action notification dates for Ivy League and highly selective colleges and universities:
Barnard College: December 14
Boston College: December 3 (ED I)
Boston University: December 15
Brown University: Mid-December
Cal Tech: Mid-December
Carnegie Mellon University: December 12
Columbia University: December 15
Cornell University: December 17
Dartmouth College: Mid-December
Duke University: Mid-December
Georgetown University: December 15
Hamilton College: December 15
Harvard University: Mid-December
Johns Hopkins University: December 11
MIT: Mid-December
New York University: December 15
Northwestern University: December 15
Princeton University: April 1 2021
Stanford University: December 11
Swarthmore College: Mid-December
Tufts University: Mid-December
University of Chicago: Mid-December
University of Michigan: January 2021 TBD
University of Notre Dame: December 16
University of Pennsylvania: Mid-December
Villanova University: December 15
Yale University: December 16
“Being different and understanding differences allow me to help our clients stand out and be accepted!”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Parents hire us because they choose to pay an admissions expert who will help them avoid making mistakes.”– Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected. and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors. For colleges and universities that recommend or require videos: College Admissions Video Productions.
Parents always ask me: What do admissions officers look for?
We tend to think that college admissions officer/committees focus primarily on the tangible factors that are measurable and quantifiable: grades, standardized test scores, (SAT and ACT) and subject tests (AP and IB) and extracurricular activities: “saving the world”, tutoring and volunteering to help the underprivileged.
The reality is that their emotions, feelings (and biases) and value judgement play a significant role in admissions decision.
Based on my professional experience and continually visiting colleges, and discussions with directors of admissions, there are other factors (and their interrelationships) which we have identified and understand that are just as important to help our clients gain admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges and universities and direct BS/MD programs:
College application presentation
Personal Statement
Supplemental essays
Collective interrelationship of all essays
WOW Factor
Attitude
Likability
Etiquette
Character
Grit/Challenge
Confidence
Charisma
Sense of self
Sense of others
Sense of surroundings
Interactions
Engagement
Unsaid
Conversational Intelligence
Cadence
Transparency
Civic Engagement
Cultural Intelligence
Cultural Agility
Emotional Intelligence
Originality
Uniqueness
Diversity/Inclusion
Family background
Comparative Student Profile Analysis
Year after year, I hear the horror stories from parents whose kids got in nowhere because they thought the college admissions race was just about grades, SAT scores, their perceived ‘unique’ applications, generic essays and perfect connections.”
Ivy League and highly selective colleges use a holistic approach and review process and a committee review approach process when evaluating applicants for admission. That means admission to these colleges is not based on a simple formula of grades and test scores and what may parents may believe. Instead, admissions officers/committees (with diverse backgrounds, cultures, ethnicities and perceptions) consider a variety of factors: the student’s academic record, extracurricular interests, intellectual achievements and personal background and what I call “PERSONAL VIBE” to decide who will be rejected or accepted.
“Being different and understanding differences allow me to help our clients stand out and be accepted!”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Admissions is a competitive sport! Why gamble with uncertainty?”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“Parents hire us because they chose to pay an admissions expert who will help them avoid making mistakes.”– Dr. Paul Lowe
“We provide our clients access to our specialized knowledge!”– Dr. Paul Lowe
Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs; graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs. The admissions affiliate: Ivy League Admissions Advisors specializes in admissions to Ivy League and highly selective colleges, Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected. and student who wish to transfer to another college: College Transfer Admissions Advisors.
Dr. Paul Lowe - Admissions Expert 