“It’s an extra expense.”

“I don’t have time for that.”

“There’s already a guidance counselor at school.”

“With older siblings around, we know all the rules of the game already.”

These are all valid points, but only to a point.

Let’s look at each of these issues to find what is faulty with that particular line of thinking.

After all, in preparing for college admissions, your child’s future is on the line.

1. “IT’S AN EXTRA EXPENSE.”

True. Hiring a professional college consultant is an extra outlay for your budget to accommodate.

However, a year’s lost tuition due to an error in expectations is a far bigger expense. A professional consultant has the experience to point out issues previously overlooked, as well as to map out priorities and expectations in order to allow you to aim as well as possible toward your goals.

2. “I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THAT.”

Business meetings are move-able, most of your home projects can wait. Time management is big these days.

Find whichever tips work for you and make the time, because time wasted, after the fact, in correcting an error or compensating for an impossible situation, will be far less flexible than planned meetings with a consultant at the before-college stage of the game.

3. “THERE’S ALREADY A GUIDANCE COUNSELOR AT SCHOOL.”

Of course there is! What is the average caseload per counselor at your child’s high school? If you’re lucky, it will be even as low as 100 students within a limited number of available hours on his or her schedule. Does this counselor specialize in the specific issues your child faces?

Even if you’re lucky on these counts, chances are extremely low that the guidance counselor has the experience of a professional consultant in applying to schools in order to maximize your child’s chances of acceptance to the very best schools for him or her.

4. “WITH OLDER SIBLINGS AROUND, WE KNOW ALL THE RULES OF THE GAME ALREADY.”

There’s a good reason that we, as parents, have been trained over and over not to compare our children – their needs are very different. What Child Number One was looking for and researched could well have no relation whatsoever to the needs of Child Number Two or Three. At Learning Lab, we keep our finger on the pulse of developments across the nation to meet the needs of every type of student.
Gambling generally isn’t considered an admirable habit, so why gamble with your child’s future?