I've always heard the cliche', "penny wise-pound foolish" and never thought much of it until the last few years. I think of it when a parent asks me if I will work "hourly" with their child. I don't do that because it does not serve the student or parents well.

Early in my educational consulting career I did work on an hourly basis. That meant that the client was deciding how many hours to work with a professional on college admissions. The problem with that was that parents did not know the process and would skip important activity with me and leave it up to their student who also did not understand the process.

Students who did not gain acceptance to their first choice colleges as a freshman last year sometimes contemplate trying to transfer into those colleges as a sophomore for next fall. That can be tough unless the student has taken the right courses and done well in them.

Looking at it from the standpoint of the prospective transfer school that did not offer admission to them last year, the things most likely to convince them to make an offer this year is whether the student took a normal full time load of freshman courses and did well in them.

The aroma of hot chocolate, the smell of  blue spruce and anticipation of the taste of that first Christmas cookie are all pleasant thoughts of the upcoming holiday season. Another thought for some is the anticipation of college decisions on admission applications filed this fall for next year.

While the outcome of applications is foremost in the minds of seniors, they should also be gearing up for scholarship season if they have not already begun filing scholarship applications for schools to which they have applied. Most colleges award some scholarships based on applications. Additionally, sometimes there is a scholarship application to file as well. Encourage the high school seniors in your life not to miss out on scholarships to help pay for college. In addition to scholarship applications to colleges, students can apply to national and local scholarships. 'Tis the season!

You would not abandon your teenager to choose and purchase a car-right? There are consumer, safety, quality and cost issues to oversee. Imagine what could happen if you turned your teen loose on a car lot with no supervision, direction or guidelines to purchase an item that could cost $30,000 or more?

My question to parents is: If you would not let your child drive a lemon-why would you let your child attend one? For this discussion, a lemon is a car or a college that is not a good fit, over-budget and may not deliver what is needed.