Are more parents and students seeking private college counseling this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic? Well, we can only speak for our own business but if our business is any indication of a trend in college counseling, the answer is a definitive yes. By our arithmetic, form completions are up by nearly 50% from last year month over month. And of the folks who do inquire about Ivy Coach’s services, 33% more are converting to clients from last year by that same month over month comparison. Because we are never seeking to work with the masses and we can only work with so many students each admissions cycle, it’s led us to raise our fees.

It Will Be The Toughest Year in Admissions

So why are so many more students and parents inquiring about private college counseling? We can only conjecture here but, hey, that’s never stopped us before. First, more people are at home in front of their computers, perusing the Internet. Second, students aren’t getting as much face time with their school counselors. Third, as we’ve suggested on the pages of our college admissions blog, we expect this to be the toughest year in the history of highly selective college admissions.

Why It Will Be The Toughest Year in Admissions

And why do we anticipate it will be the toughest year in admissions in our memory? Because with so many admits to the Class of 2024 deferring their admission, these schools are not going to all increase their class size for the Class of 2025. They just can’t build dormitories that quickly. So those students who opted for gap years from the Class of 2024 are going to eat up slots in the Class of 2025. With about 20% of students at schools like Harvard and Yale going the gap year route, that spells trouble for this next admissions cycle.

Have a question about this coming admissions cycle? Wondering if you should submit test scores if you can? Wish you were born a different year? Write a Comment below and we’ll be sure to jump in on the conversation.