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Applying to Colleges: How Many is too Many? | College Coach Blog

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Elizabeth Heaton

Written by Elizabeth Heatonon October 26th, 2014

Elizabeth Heaton comes to College Coach from the University of Pennsylvania, where she counseled applicants and parents from New England and other parts of the country. As a senior member of the admissions staff, she traveled throughout the United States to present the university to potential candidates, read thousands of applications, oversaw Penn’s portfolio of admissions publications, and chaired selection committee, working with admissions counselors and university representatives to make final admit decisions. She also evaluated potential recruits as athletics department liaison and served as second chair in selection committee for the Jerome Fisher Program in Management & Technology, one of two flagship interdisciplinary programs at Penn. A graduate of Cornell University, Elizabeth brings exceptional skills to the craft of essay writing, with a Bachelor of Arts in English with a focus on creative writing, paired with experience reading and evaluation thousands of University of Pennsylvania admissions essays. Prior to joining the University of Pennsylvania, she worked in public relations and served as a Cornell Alumni Admissions Ambassador for 10 years.

Learn More About Elizabeth
Have you ever wondered why students shouldn’t apply to too many colleges? Or how many is too many? College Coach admissions expert Elizabeth Heaton recently spoke with Peter Howe of NECN’s Money Saving Mondays to answer these questions. What does this have to do with saving money? It’s no secret that college is expensive, but one frequently overlooked financial factor is application fees, which can go as high as $100 each. With many students submitting 10, 12 or more applications, these fees add up. One way to cut those costs is to avoid mass-applying to dozens of colleges. Watch the video to hear Beth’s thoughts on:
  • How many schools a student should target
  • The additional benefits of creating a more balanced list of schools
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