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About Independent College Counselors, and About Me
How my 25 years of experience distinguish me in an unregulated profession.
Mark Moody
Feb 27 min read
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For seniors and families as decisions arrive...
"The data are in: we are not good at predicting what will make us happy. This is known and documented. So as we watch another class of...
Mark Moody
Mar 28, 20242 min read
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Class of 2028 Admission Statistics
College Kickstart is compiling 2024 application cycle admission rates and links to full reports as colleges make them available. Follow...
Mark Moody
Mar 19, 20241 min read
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Keep up with 2024 early admission stats
The good folks at College Kickstart maintain and update a blog listing each year's admission cycle notification dates and statistics. If...
Mark Moody
Jan 26, 20241 min read
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How to Start Visiting Colleges: Mindset College Collective
My good friend and former colleague Sara Purviance of Mindset College Collective shares some good advice on making a low-stress entry...
Mark Moody
Jan 24, 20241 min read
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Class of 2025: Digital SAT or Paper ACT?
Our friends at Compass Prep have provided a helpful new guide to making sense of the new digital SAT that replaces paper tests starting...
Mark Moody
Jan 18, 20243 min read
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New Year Admission Revolutions
I couldn't agree more with Brennan Barnard's latest blog post suggesting good habits for those in the college admission cycle this year--...
Mark Moody
Jan 10, 20241 min read
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"Writing an Effective College Admissions Essay: Honesty is the Best Policy." Guest Blog Part 3
Post 3 of 3 (Read Pt 1 & Pt 2) Writing an Effective College Admissions Essay: Honesty is the Best Policy Anne Elrod Whitney, Ph.D. My...
Mark Moody
Nov 4, 20235 min read
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"Writing College Admissions Essays: Who Cares? You Do." Guest Blog Part 2
Post 2 of 3 (Read Part 1) Writing College Admissions Essays: Who Cares? You Do Anne Elrod Whitney, Ph.D. When you let your emotions tell...
Mark Moody
Nov 2, 20236 min read
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"Mission Impossible: Why College Essays Are So Hard to Write and What to Do About It" Guest Blog
Anne Elrod Whitney is a brilliant teacher of teachers of writing at Penn State. Anne and I were elementary school classmates from grades...
Mark Moody
Nov 1, 20235 min read
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College Admission 2023: What matters to admission offices now
The National Association for College Admission Counseling routinely conducts member surveys to determine what factors are most important...
Mark Moody
Oct 23, 20232 min read
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What to know about awareness of race in admission after SCOTUS
One of the central conversations in college admission in the US for the last year has been the pending Supreme Court decision on the SFFA...
Mark Moody
Oct 23, 20233 min read
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Looking Back on the Future of College Admission
Two years ago, I was invited to speak on issues in the world of college admission post-pandemic, along with Femi Ogundele, Associate Vice...
Mark Moody
Oct 17, 20231 min read
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Local News: Cutting through college prep stress
The friendly folks behind Saratoga Today weekly and the seasonal Simply Saratoga magazine were kind enough to feature me in a profile in...
Mark Moody
Sep 26, 20231 min read
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May 1
30 days hath September... That means Monday is May 1, aka May Day, aka National Candidate Reply Date for US college admission. If ...
Mark Moody
Apr 28, 20231 min read
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"Teens ask for a kinder college admissions process:" Can we listen and help them find a better way?
There is a genuine mental health crisis among our teens. This article from the LA Times points out some of the source of anxiety in their...
Mark Moody
Apr 19, 20233 min read
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Embrace your inner quirkmeister
Just a thought for this April weekend/ Passover/ Easter inspired by this quote I ran across. The best person to be is yourself. Follow...
Mark Moody
Apr 7, 20231 min read
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Independent College Counseling in the Upstate NY Capital District
I have some exciting news to share! As of July 2023, MSquared Counseling's home base will be in Saratoga Springs, New York. One of the...
Mark Moody
Apr 3, 20232 min read
228 views
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Joseph Campbell on following your own path
“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it's not your path. Your own path you make with every step you...
Mark Moody
Mar 27, 20231 min read
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