Valedictorians at the Gate: Standing Out, Getting In, and Staying Sane While Applying to College
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-27 06:51:25
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Becky Munsterer Sabky
- ISBN：1250619033
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Summary
An inspiring battle cry for sanity in the college application process that looks beyond the rankings to successfully determine what’s truly the best school for you or your child
After spending years as an admissions director at Dartmouth， Becky Sabky had seen it all。 The perfect grades， the perfect scores， and the perfect extracurriculars。 Valedictorians were knocking at the gate， but Becky realized that in their quest for admission many of these students were missing something。 Their transcripts were golden， their interviews polished， but they weren’t applying for college， they were competing for it—and in the end they didn’t know what prize they were really striving for。
In Valedictorians at the Gate， Sabky looks beyond the smoke and mirrors of the intimidating admissions gauntlet and places the power firmly where it should be: in the hands of the students themselves。 Offering prescriptive， actionable advice for students and their （hopefully not helicoptering） parents， Sabky illuminates the pathway to finding the school that is the ideal match。 Witty and warm， informative and inspiring， Valedictorians at the Gate is the needed tonic for overstressed， overworked， and overwhelmed students on their way to the perfect college for them。
After spending years as an admissions director at Dartmouth， Becky Sabky had seen it all。 The perfect grades， the perfect scores， and the perfect extracurriculars。 Valedictorians were knocking at the gate， but Becky realized that in their quest for admission many of these students were missing something。 Their transcripts were golden， their interviews polished， but they weren’t applying for college， they were competing for it—and in the end they didn’t know what prize they were really striving for。
In Valedictorians at the Gate， Sabky looks beyond the smoke and mirrors of the intimidating admissions gauntlet and places the power firmly where it should be: in the hands of the students themselves。 Offering prescriptive， actionable advice for students and their （hopefully not helicoptering） parents， Sabky illuminates the pathway to finding the school that is the ideal match。 Witty and warm， informative and inspiring， Valedictorians at the Gate is the needed tonic for overstressed， overworked， and overwhelmed students on their way to the perfect college for them。
Reviews
Mal
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Nothing that I didn't know already。 Nothing that I didn't know already。 。。。more
joyce w。 laudon
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We are now entering the stressful season for rising junior and seniors in high school。 These teens often believe that their worth is intimately bound up in where they will go to college。 They also often face （way too much） pressure from parents about where they ought to go and what they ought to do there。 It can be a very difficult rite of passage。The author of this guide to admissions has a good sense of what is involved on many levels of this process。 About twenty years after her applications We are now entering the stressful season for rising junior and seniors in high school。 These teens often believe that their worth is intimately bound up in where they will go to college。 They also often face （way too much） pressure from parents about where they ought to go and what they ought to do there。 It can be a very difficult rite of passage。The author of this guide to admissions has a good sense of what is involved on many levels of this process。 About twenty years after her applications were submitted， she still remembers what it was like not to be admitted to Dartmouth。 She tells readers that she ultimately went to her fifth choice school， Colby College。 At the time， Ms。 Sabky took this to mean that there was something wrong with her。 But…guess what， she still managed to thrive in college。 This is what she wants for her readers。Ms。 Sabky has also worked in college admissions and brings that perspective to this guide。 And guess what （again）， after working at St。 Lawrence， she went on to work in admissions at Dartmouth。The book opens with a description of a meeting to review student applications。 Many may find the way it was run to be somewhere between horrid and ridiculous。 It does show， however， that admissions officers make decisions in a way that can be a bit capricious。 To me this means that， if a student does not get into a given school， it can and will hurt but that trying to find a meaningful reason of the decision may just lead to unnecessary soul searching。 I take from this that the same student will be admitted to one school only to be deferred from another equally “good” school。 The process is to serve the school’s needs; if they can serve the student as well， that is good but that is not their motivation。This book has a lot of practical information about applying to college。 It also includes a plethora of anecdotes about students and the work of admissions officers。This book will be valued by those who are looking for a personal account from admissions and are willing to accept the process can be flawed。 Some may feel discouraged however。 The author’s intended takeaway is that there is a good school for a student even if it was not their first choice school。 It is clear that she felt good about Colby and feels that， for her， things worked out well。 She wants this for others。So， read this book if you are brave enough。 It is helpful。Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Scout College Consulting
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I was thrilled to have the opportunity to review the book this past spring。 Sabky's experience in the Dartmouth admissions office adds credibility to what other authors have been telling us for years。 At that is: You can't control what goes on inside the admissions office。 Priorities change year to year， and even within the same admissions cycle。 Admissions representatives are trying to build a cohort to complement the existing classes already in place。 It's impossible to guess what that looks l I was thrilled to have the opportunity to review the book this past spring。 Sabky's experience in the Dartmouth admissions office adds credibility to what other authors have been telling us for years。 At that is: You can't control what goes on inside the admissions office。 Priorities change year to year， and even within the same admissions cycle。 Admissions representatives are trying to build a cohort to complement the existing classes already in place。 It's impossible to guess what that looks like from year to year。 Your best bet is to look beyond the college rankings and find the college that is truly the best fit for your child。 。。。more
PL
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Entertaining and informative。 Very helpful if you have kids in high school and have college applications ahead。 Clear， concise， and readable。4。5 stars
Tina Panik
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Helpful， practical， and well organized。 This was an ARC
Stacie Moore
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I was thrilled to receive this one， as the mother of a 16-year-old。 It was so incredibly informative， while never dragging。 I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who wants a behind-the-scenes look into the admission process。 It’s so interesting to see what things truly set applicants apart。 Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co。 for the arc in exchange for my honest review。
Molly Gentine
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The best advice I've ever read。 Thank you Becky Sabky for sharing this with the world！ The best advice I've ever read。 Thank you Becky Sabky for sharing this with the world！ 。。。more
Deborah Munsterer
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This book should be in the hands of every high school student。。。their parents。。。guidance counselors。。and everyone involved in the process of applying to college！！ It is a great insight as to what really matters in the college admission process！ It is also a really enjoyable read！！！
Diane O'Brien
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A perfect combination of entertaining and informative！ As a development officer at a #20 private school， I found this book to be a peak behind the Admissions curtain。 I would recommend this book to any new development officer working with parents or to any student applying to university。 A great book that I would recommend！ Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review。
Tameka Fleming
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Thank you to Henry Holt and Co。 and NetGalley for an ARC for this review。 This is a great story about the US college admissions process。 The story is told from the perspective of an admissions director （not sure if she is former or not）。 Becky Munsterer Sabky is engaging and provides anecdotes to hold your interest along the way。 The main message I got from the book， is to focus on the person and not the college。 I do see how competitive college admissions can cause some to forget that fact。 Thi Thank you to Henry Holt and Co。 and NetGalley for an ARC for this review。 This is a great story about the US college admissions process。 The story is told from the perspective of an admissions director （not sure if she is former or not）。 Becky Munsterer Sabky is engaging and provides anecdotes to hold your interest along the way。 The main message I got from the book， is to focus on the person and not the college。 I do see how competitive college admissions can cause some to forget that fact。 This is a great source for students and parents alike， to provide insight on how a potential student is seen by prospective colleges and universities。 Sabky used care and compassion to discuss how and why not every student will be chosen and sometimes it does not mean they are less qualified。 I like the stories she told about the young students she met。 How they had personalities and were good humans to be around。 Overall， I would recommend this book to everyone about to embark on choosing a college。 I also think this is a good book for young people in general， to read。 It teaches you that it is the person who matters--not their statistics。 A young teenager， about to start their first job， could also learn something from the messages in this book。 Great read。 。。。more
Ron Frampton
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A book on how to for the prefect college search。
Pat
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As a writing coach for students applying to college， I often find myself wishing I could help my clients bypass the stress associated with the process。 Sabky’s comprehensive guide demystifies a great deal of what goes on， particularly on the college side of the application dance， delivering candid advice and rooting for aspiring college students to find their best selves as they navigate the search。 Sabky， who was an admissions director at Dartmouth College for 13 years， is a gifted storyteller， As a writing coach for students applying to college， I often find myself wishing I could help my clients bypass the stress associated with the process。 Sabky’s comprehensive guide demystifies a great deal of what goes on， particularly on the college side of the application dance， delivering candid advice and rooting for aspiring college students to find their best selves as they navigate the search。 Sabky， who was an admissions director at Dartmouth College for 13 years， is a gifted storyteller， and she weaves colorful anecdotes with her tips in several categories， including making the most of college visits， writing a genuine personal statement， and deciding what school to attend。 I suspect anyone who has been through or supported someone else through the college admissions process will recognize some aspect of themselves in these pages—I know I did—and I highly recommend Sabky’s book to both applicants and their parents。 。。。more
Bridgette
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As a parent of two high school students， I found this book the most helpful tool in preparing my children for college。 It calmed a lot of my worries about whether I am pushing my kids too hard or too little。 It provided a lot of insight in what the kids need to focus on and help prepare them for college admission。 This book is a must have for all parents of high schoolers！ Highly recommend！
Terry Cowdrey
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