This week, Lee Academia's team gathered data from 2002-2013 and created this graph on the left. We can see the increased interest in U.S Colleges/Universities as more and more International students apply and seek LAEC's High School/College/Graduate School Counseling.

Lee Academia limits the number of students we work with, as we dedicate our expertise and professionalism in helping each and every one of our clients. In 2012-2013, we see a tremendous increase in our International Students (especially from China) applying to U.S. Colleges seeking our help during the Spring and early Summer term, thus limiting our availability for American students.

Here are sample services that we helped our International Students with:

• Choosing U.S. Boarding, Colleges & Graduate Schools
• College List - Selection 
• College Research
• College Tours & Visits
• ART & Visual Schools
• Art Portfolios
• Interview Training
• Building Resume / Brag Sheet
  
• Applying to High Schools/Colleges/Graduate Schools
• TOEFL / IELTS Preparation
• SAT / ACT Preparation
• MCAT/GRE/GMAT/LSAT and more
• Finding Interests / Extracurricular
• College Application Essays
• Transitions / Adapting to U.S. Colleges
• Scholarship Searches for International Students
• GAP Year / Conditional Year / Transfer Admissions
  

So don't hesitate and enroll now! LAEC is a first-come, first-serve based Educational Consulting center. We will do our best to accommodate all our interested students and parents from both the U.S and International countries. Contact us now.

Now that you have your grades, test scores, activity lists and interests, where should you consider applying?  We will help you find a set of schools that meet your needs.  We are problem solvers and can find great options for any student, no matter what the circumstance.  

Think you can’t afford college? Worried that test scores or grades don’t reflect actual abilities?  Want to apply to the most elite institutions?  Interested in special career paths? We can find the solution that works for you.

Call us now to schedule a consultation and let us help you find best-fit colleges for you!

By 2018, 63% of all job openings will require a post-secondary education.

In other words, almost 2 in every 3 jobs will be COMPLETELY CLOSED to you if you don’t have a college degree.

And considering that those with a college education make an average of 64% more than those who don’t...This fact should really freak you out.

If you haven’t started earning college degree, or if you took classes but never finished, the time to take action is NOW.

Lee Academia experts can guide you through choosing degree programs available, and help you qualify for government grants or scholarships.

Contributed by Joyce Mei, Hunter College HS (Class of 2015)  

    We’ve heard countless times that the early bird catches the worm, but what happened to slow and steady wins the race? So in terms of applying for college, is it better to rush to submit our applications early? Despite the common belief among teens and their parents, there is no need to submit an application in mid-August when the deadline is in early November or December. It is better to have a more thorough and complete application that handing in an early, rushed application.

    In addition, college admissions officers have admitted that they do not look at applications until they are “complete” with transcripts and recommendation letters from high school. Therefore, an application submitted in August will not be looked at for weeks until all the necessary paperwork is handed in as well.

    Submitting in applications early also gives more time for students to worry about if they will be accepted into the college of their choice. Students now also have to stress out about if they filled out the applications correctly, if they wrote their personal statements to express who they are in the best way, and if they change their minds about anything in the upcoming months.

    Once we hit “submit,” there is no going back. Therefore, take your time and make sure your applications are done right. For more information, contact Lee Academia experts.

Why engage the services of a private college consultant?

Independent college consultants are

• Available. Consultants aren’t tied to a school, a school district, or a school calendar. They work with students in the immediate neighborhood or across the world thanks to readily available technology. Not surprisingly, consultants do much of their most important work over the summer months getting seniors ready for the admissions process, and many work long weekend and evening hours. Lee Academia's experts worked 24-7 for the past 10 years, and have never complained about their hours, as their dedication to work with students always comes first.
  

• Responsive. It’s part of the business model. Consultants have to respond promptly to emails, phone calls and other forms of inquiry or they’re quickly out of business. Deadlines are everything in the world of college admissions and no one is more aware of time constraints and the need for immediacy than independent educational consultants.

• Knowledgeable. Consultants spend significant time visiting college campuses and attending professional workshops or conferences. It’s no secret that colleges have different personalities and management practices. But it’s virtually impossible to get a feel for these personalities or keep up with changes in programs and facilities without visiting on a regular basis. Lee Academia's experts visit over 80 schools each year to update their knowledge about campuses firsthand, despite the availability o
  

• Credentialed. Reputable independent educational consultants maintain memberships in organizations such as the National Association of College Admissions Counselors (NACAC) or local NACAC affiliates—each of which sets individual membership requirements demanding years of specialized experience, education and training, and a firm commitment to continuing education.

• Ethical. As members of the above-mentioned organizations, consultants subscribe to specific Principles of Good Practice governing the actions of consultants in their relationships with students and families, schools and colleges, and with colleagues.

• Parent-recommended. Anyone in the consulting business will tell you no amount of marketing will ever bring in as many clients as simple word-of-mouth. Informal surveys of educational consultants suggest that as many as 90 percent of families seeking college consulting services are referred by other families. The best consultants are well-known in the community and are respected for the service they provide. It’s as simple as that. So ask to speak with our satisfied clients and former students or check out the Testimonials.
  

Rising High school Seniors...You're running out of time. Avoid the time crunch in the fall.

Here's what you should start to do:

1. Check deadlines: Get a calendar and start keeping track of deadlines for applications and financial aid. You'll to decide whether to apply early decision, early action or regular decision, if given those choices. When you apply early, the school might require that you submit your financial aid application far in advance, so check deadlines.

2. Get started on the essay: Writing the college essay is nerve-wracking. If you start now, you're more likely to be able to devote the time to do a great job.

If you are applying to a school that uses the Common Application, you can obtain a list of the new essay questions that was released in February.

While you can often use the same essay for multiple schools, be prepared to answer a college's supplemental questions.

3. Don't forget the supplemental materials: If you are an artist, musician, or actor, applying to colleges can be even more time consuming. You typically will have to send a résumé noting your artistic background and accomplishments, as well as a portfolio that can be captured on a CD or DVD. Start and finish your portfolio now.

4. Research: If you haven't begun researching schools, get started now. Start requesting admission materials from school websites. In addition, spend time on the college's admission website. You can find academic profiles of the freshmen class, notable facts about the school, information on financial aid and scholarships. There are many schools that will offer virtual tours and opportunities for online chats, so why not check it out?

Also, start looking online at a school's relevant academic departments.

5. Get Help: Whether you know it or not, most collegebound students are getting help from private educational consultants. Why? Getting into college has become more and more fierce, with thousands of students applying each year. Ask an Educational Consultant for help. Lee Academia's expert consultants are affordable and are certified in College counseling with over 10 years of experience and a successful track record of getting their students into their top choice matching colleges. So get guidance and help early.

Contributed by Douglas Lee, Case Western Reserve (Class of 2016)

• Get a job

This piece of advice may sound tired and you’ve probably heard it too many times, but there is really no better way of learning financial independence than through this experience. It helps keep you accountable for your spending and also helps you develop professional skills.


Finding a job is easier than you may think. Across the campus, there are many departments, labs, and other outlets looking for students for work. Try to find a job that suits you and one you can work up to 10-12 hours a week. It is awfully grueling to work 20+ hours a week while also handling a full course load.

Also, remember to be a good employee. Work hard in your position, and especially in internships/research jobs. These first experiences may lead to full time jobs after graduation. Later on, it’s often who you know, not what you know.

• Open a banking account

Now, with all your hard earned money from your campus job, what are you going to do with it? You should open a banking account with a debit card to store all that money so you don’t have those Benjamins just lying around! Having a debit card may help curb your temptations and impulses because you can only spend what’s in your account.

Try opening a bank that is local to your college town. You may have already opened a bank account back home, but if there aren’t many branches or ATMs around your campus, that account won’t do you much good. 

• Learn to work with a budget

Great, with a well-paying campus job and a bank account to store those $9.50/hour wages, the next step is to set up a monthly budget for yourself. Set up a monthly and weekly budget and keep track of your spending. It is very easy to lose track of your spending, with weekend outings with friends, local concerts, and great restaurants tempting you to empty your wallet.

You don’t necessarily have to spend money to have fun in college. Be on the lookout for campus activities / economical outings that your school provides.

• Make sure your financial aid is in check

Remember to keep track of deadlines and paperwork to hand in. Your financial aid may decrease substantially if you miss those important due dates. You don’t want to lose your chance at those tens of thousands of dollars that you have already been awarded just because you forgot about a deadline. Also, you may not get to register for classes in time, which only leads to disaster.

You never want to be in a rush for these financial aid matters because mistakes can be made in these situations, so make sure to be prepared.

• Apply for scholarships

This last tip may seem the most intimidating for students who have never applied for scholarships before. There are thousands of scholarships out there and they can range from a couple hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars. Don’t disregard the scholarships with smaller awards, as those will be easier to attain since they have a smaller applicant pool.

Hey, getting $500 for writing an essay about a random topic, or spending a little time to fill out an application and including a resume to earn a thousand big ones sounds

*For any Financial Aid Assistance, contact [email protected].

Contributed by Douglas Lee, Case Western Reserve (Class of 2016)

College visits are an essential part of the important college decision process. By visiting a college campus for an afternoon, you can attain much more information about that school than by spending endless hours researching it online on sites like College Prowler. You can never fully grasp the unique environment each college provides behind a computer screen! In addition, online student submitted reviews are often biased, unreliable, or outdated. The dynamic of a college campus is constantly changing, and these changes may not be reflected online.

Sure, a top ranked school may have all the qualities you are looking for: a strong program in the academic field you are interested in, numerous research opportunities, smart and ambitious students, and even a critically acclaimed dining hall! What’s not to like? However, without visiting this school, you miss out on many facets of student life; the qualities that determine whether or not you will enjoy your next four years at the school.

College fit is an underrated aspect of the college decision process. When visiting a college, we recommend that you take a quick drive around the nearby city or town, interact with actual students, talk to faculty, sit in on a class, and tour main buildings such as the dining hall, recreational facilities, and library. Current students, professors, and admissions officers may provide much more valuable and insightful information that you may not be able to find elsewhere.

By visiting a college, you may learn to appreciate a school that you had not even considered to be a top choice, or, you may learn that a previous top choice was just not the right fit for you.

While sites like College Prowler, Unigo, USNews, and even Reddit may provide plenty of useful information, we only recommend that you use these sights as a starting point, and not the only sources you have to base your college decision on.

Additional Tips:

• Be prepared – Look online to see if the college you are visiting provides campus tours, or even better, overnight stays with current students. Some schools require reservations.

• Also, email a professor beforehand to see if sitting in on a class is a possibility.

• Take notes – Notes will help you remember unique characteristics or points when comparing between colleges. Also, these notes may become very useful when writing supplemental essays later.
  
• Check out popular student hangout spots on and off campus. These are the places where you see what the student body is really like.

For more college visit consultations, contact Lee Academia.

Here are some things incoming college freshmen should know about college.

You Have Control Over Your Courses
You do not have to confine yourself to the standard program. As you select your courses, be sure that each one is on the right level for you. Once you have picked your program, you should attend each of the classes and decide whether the professor is someone from whom you can really learn.  By using the drop/add process, you may be able to get a much better teacher. Every class counts, so devote yourself to them.

You Are Expected to Do a Lot of the Work on Your Own
You need to be your own boss. Figure out when things need to be done and do them, week by week. No one will contact you when you have missed the test or have not handed in the paper.

You will also need to get yourself to study — even when there is no graded work that week.

You Don’t Have to Pick a Major in Your First Year
Many colleges now encourage students to declare a major at orientation. This actually forces students to get started on some directed course of study, and it helps colleges manage course offerings. In some cases it may be a good idea to declare your major right away, especially if yours is a four-year program like pre-med, or music, however, it is better to wait until you’ve taken a few courses — especially upper-division or advanced courses in a given field — before you commit to a major.

And keep in mind that even if you do declare a major at the outset, it is very easy to change your major if you find you don’t like the courses or you aren’t doing well in them. It is much better to get out of something you don’t like than to go through 10 or 12 required courses.

International students can prepare for the TOEFL in 3 ways.

Students should make an effort to speak English every day and prepare for the TOEFL well in advance of your test date.

1. Don't try to cram. It's not easy memorizing a language in one night. The TOEFL test involves all aspects of the language - speaking, reading, writing and listening - definitely too much to cover in a few hours.

2. Turn study into something more pleasant. Crouching over a stack of books is no fun. Learn by speaking English every day. Write a story in English or a daily journal. Meet new English-speaking friends and speak to them in English.

When it comes to reading, the Internet is your best friend. Browse websites you usually do not spend time on and read about things you normally would not pay attention to. Time magazines or New York Times are excellent starting points.

To practice listening, watch movies and TV shows without subtitles, or download and listen to podcasts.

Ask your English teacher to correct your essay – he or she will most likely be more than happy to help.

3. Get familiar with the exam: Uncertainty about the format of the test could make you anxious on test day. There are lots of online practice tests that will give you a taste of what to expect on the test day, at no cost.

The Internet-based test (iBT) begins with a reading section that lasts about 60-80 minutes, and then jumps straight into a listening section that lasts 60-90 minutes.

After that, you get a 10-minute breather and have a chance to go to the bathroom or grab a snack.

Next comes the speaking section, which takes 20 minutes, followed by 50 minutes set aside for writing. At that point you'll probably feel rather exhausted, but try to keep it together. It will be worth it.

4. Get some rest: Finally, make sure to stay in and get some rest the night before. It's a long exam and the more stressed you are, the more it will drain you.

So, for the International students, come prepared, stay calm during the exam and get to go home feeling content about your effort. If you do that, you could be one big step further on your path toward studying in the U.S.

Lee Academia's expert consultant, Stephenie, is certified in TESOL/TEFL. She has worked with many International students on English skills and on their TOEFL test prep. For assistance, contact her at [email protected].



*TOEFL is a registered trademark of Educational Testing Service (ETS).