Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Wissner-Gross has managed, in one slim volume, to put forth every college admissions "trick" ever invented for "packaging" an applicant. If you use these ideas, not only will college admissions committees be on to you in a heartbeat, but you risk sending a child out into the world who believes that being clever and deceptive is a substitute for being genuine. Just some examples of the kinds of advice this book provides: **Manipulate your child's class rank by having him take non-challenging, outside courses where a good grade is guaranteed. **Remember, nice guys finish last. If your child is not named editor in chief of the school newspaper, don't let him settle for a lesser job. **Fake interest in an unpopular major in order to tip the admission scales in your favor. (Geology, anyone?) **If your child is not athletic, least have him express interest in the Crew team and contact the coach. **Parents should be prepared to contest all grades, and question any teacher whose grading policy is less than desirable. **Get a pro to edit that all-important college essay. **Secretly organize your child, and make sure you keep track of all his classroom test dates and paper deadlines. Parents must read all homework assignments thoroughly. I could go on, but this is typical of the advice offered by this book. Follow these instructions, and your parental manipulation will be patently clear to college admissions professionals, who have seen it all and can sniff out an overpackaged applicant a mile away. Even worse, your child will arrive at college feeling inadequate and totally unprepared to fend for himself. After all, your actions have shown that he couldn't even be trusted to remember when his own term papers were due! There are many wise and thoughtful college admissions books out there, but this isn't one of them.