Growing Ivy

Book excerpt: The value of exceptional higher education can be powerful, tangible and transformational. With the admission stakes set so high at elite schools, some overzealous parents went as far as committing criminal acts to secure their kids a spot in prestigious institutions. In Growing Ivy, John M. Morganelli Jr., former Director of Admissions at Cornell University College of Arts & Sciences, helps bright high school students and their families navigate the admissions process for roughly 80 highly selective colleges and universities. Morganelli does that by providing meaningful insight into the difference between students who are qualified to attend Ivy League or Ivy-like universities and those who are actually admitted. He also predicts seismic changes in the way colleges operate and the prices they charge post-pandemic, and suggests ways to reform the U.S. educational system. Morganelli is one of the only independent admissions consultants in the United States who has been an undergraduate Ivy League Admissions Director. His decade of experience reviewing tens of thousands of college-admissions applications at some of the nation's most selective institutions makes him uniquely qualified to help families crack the code on elite college admissions. When promising young minds aim for the stars on higher education, he explains that they reap lifelong dividends.