Where Do I Go From Here?
April 21, 2010
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In this podcast, the very enormous task of creating a college list is tackled by Mike Rivera, co-founder, college counselor and tutor at Top-Tier Tutoring.
When faced 
with answering the question about where they are going to apply to college, many high school sophomores and juniors feel at a loss. The process of creating a comprehensive and appropriate list can be daunting. Crafting a list based upon name recognition or where friends are attending will not yield the best results for the individual student. The podcast takes aim at this topic and offers concrete guidelines to help you on your quest.
Mike first asks you to look inward. What are your general areas of interest? Do you want to be close to home? Are you interested in a city or a rural setting? How important are job placement and internships to you? Mike identifies many more factors in the podcast. Mike’s advice: take a self-assessment before jumping into books, the web and college fairs!
Once you have a master list, so to speak, now it’s time to refine it. In order to narrow your list down to the 8 to 12 colleges to which you will actually apply, you should look for reach, match and safety schools, with the highest number being in the “match” category. Then, time and budget permitting, try to visit each of these campuses and take great notes – you may need them to help you decide among your acceptances!
As always, we welcome your feedback and ideas. Please submit a comment below, send us an email or give us a call at 973-243-1212.
Free Seminar Gives You The Complete College Planning Edge!
April 18, 2010
On May 4, 2010, Mike and Rhonda Rivera of Top-Tier Tutoring and A1 College Funding will present a free seminar, “Get the Complete College Planning Edge” at West Orange High School.
Parents and students in high school are welcome to come and learn insider tips and strategies to being accepted into the college of their dreams - and how to pay for it!
The workshop will take place at West Orange High School, 51 Conforti Avenue in West Orange, NJ, starting at 7 pm. While the workshop is free, registration is a must – call 973.243.1212 to reserve your seat today!
Ear on Careers – Amy Gideon, Internet Professional
April 14, 2010
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In this episode of “Ear on Careers, we are pleased to welcome Amy Gideon, co-owner of Tag Online, Inc., based in Clifton, New Jersey.
Amy Gideon, Internet Professional.
Amy discusses how she didn’t really apply herself in high school and, as a result, attended Hofstra University for one year before transferring to the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business. Knowing that she wanted to transfer, she worked diligently at Hofstra, achieving a 4.0 GPA. At the University of Pennsylvania, Amy double majored in Decision Science (now called Information Science) and Finance. It was at the University of Pennsylvania that she met her future husband and business partner at Tag Online, Andrew. Both she and Andrew earned their Masters Degrees in Computer Science from New York University.
In the podcast, Amy discusses how she was involved with the internet well before it was available for mass consumption. She also outlines her progression from programmer to sales and marketing at TAG Online. In her current role, she also manages client and staff. Listen as Amy shares her surprises in her industry as well as some potentially horrifying war stories. Amy offers advice for those thinking about a career as an internet professional: do what you love and learn it inside and out.
We hope this podcast provides you with food for thought if you are interested in a career as an internet professional – a truly dynamic and evolving field!
Top-Tier Tutoring is very excited to bring you the web’s premiere career day podcast series – what we call “Ear on Careers.” This series of podcasts is designed to introduce our listeners to successful leaders in a variety of different fields, including business, industry, medicine, the arts, and so much more.
We welcome your feedback and ideas. Please submit a comment below, send us an email or give us a call at 973-243-1212.
A Reply To Recent Article About College Prep Advisors
April 7, 2010
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Mike Rivera recording this podcast
In this podcast, Mike Rivera – co-founder, tutor and college counselor with Top-Tier Tutoring – responds to a recent article published on SmartMoney.com, which has been picked up and disseminated on the web in various forms. The article, entitled “10 Things College-Prep Advisors Won’t Tell You” identifies ten allegedly deceptive practices of the college counseling industry. To read the full article, click here.
In his rebuttal, Mike debunks each of the ten topics brought up in the article. For example, in responding to the “your high school guidance counselor can do this for free” argument, he references the study by Dr. Patricia McDonough that determined a high school student will spend approximately 38 minutes per year with his or her guidance counselor for college advising. Click here to read Dr. McDonough’s comprehensive study. He also points to the recent Public Agenda report, “Can I Get A Little Advice Here?” This report finds that six in ten young adults who had gone on to further education gave their high school counseling poor grades for college advice. To go to the Public Agenda report, click here. Clearly, you get what you pay for.
This podcast is not a rant, but rather a thoughtful reply to a superficial article. Mike points out when the article is correct, but wants our listeners to understand the limitations of the guidance department – and those of independent counselors as well.
As always, we welcome your feedback and ideas. Please submit a comment below, send us an email or give us a call at 973-243-1212.
