Am I a College Consultant?

No.  “College Consulting” can mean a wide variety of things, but I do not have a business in college consulting — that is charging for my advice on college information (mainly college admissions).  This can be a long and more detailed discussion, but in short and generally speaking, some of my thoughts and opinions conflict with the philosophy and structure of being a private college consultant.  The idea of me going into this business came up again today when my friend Chip told me about an article in this month’s Entrepreneur Magazine.  It rated college planning and consulting on the 2008 hot list for opportunities for entrepreneurs because more than 17 million students apply for college each year and are in need of guidance through the college process.  Further, the excerpt on college planning says,
When we say college students are hot, we don’t mean the girls of Delta Gamma or the guys of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. We mean that the more than 17 million students who apply to college every year are a hot market for entrepreneurs.Thanks to the complex application process, more students applying to multiple schools, skyrocketing tuition fees and parents in desperate need of information, there aren’t enough high school counselors to keep up–the National Association for College Admission Counseling reports a 315 to 1 student to counselor ratio. “Given the challenges families face, there’s tremendous growth potential for advising college-bound students,” says Monisha Perkash, 33, co-founder with Paul Wrubel of San Mateo, California, TuitionCoach.com, which provides college-planning consulting services.

That demand has prompted an entire industry of college-planning consultants, specialized tutors, application experts, financial planners, publications and networking sites “all geared toward helping incoming students find the college of their choice and succeed once there,” says Justin Baer, creator of college-prep DVD Cracking College. He points out that today’s parents are willing to pay top dollar to help their children succeed.

Although Perkash agrees–families spend $5 billion annually researching and applying to colleges–she sees affordable college admissions and funding advice as an untapped area. Sites like hers–which expects six-figure sales this year–can tap that market at no cost to the customer. Now if only college were free. –L.H.  Click here for entire article. 

I’m less inclined to charge high hourly rates for consulting and more interested in providing information through my book and other ways to share my info through the blog, a website and a newsletter.  Chip and I talked about subscription based websites which gives helpful information, still gives the student the responsibility of doing their own research and yet can be a good business without charging outrageous fees.  Given the load (overload) of students that high school counselors work with, it’s understandable that families would be looking for additional advise and counsel on college admissions and financial aid.  I just think the ethics and business of college consulting need to be handled carefully and professionally.  I’m encouraged though by new thoughts and practices in the college consulting business.