Olivia Pittman

Olivia Pittman is a Research and Content specialist at College Raptor. All of those questions you've been thinking about while looking for a college? Olivia digs in and finds answers.
Charts showing that more than 50% of college students receive some form of gift aid, including federal and institutional grants and scholarships, to make college more in your price range
myths

College Myth: Most Colleges Are Way Out of My Price Range

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
If you’ve just started your college search, you may be shocked to discover that the cost of attendance at your dream school is tens of thousands of dollars per year outside of your price range. How does anyone afford college at this price? Very few students pay the sticker price to attend college Nearly all …
Photograph of college mail sent to prospective students. If you're on a college mailing list, they're more likely to accept you, right?
myths

Myth: Colleges That Send Me Mail Are Likely to Accept Me

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
Many students assume the colleges which send them marketing materials in the mail are their best options. This isn’t necessarily true. In fact, some colleges send out millions of pieces of mail each year (not very targeted). Other schools only send out very little. Bottom line: being on a college mailing list does not necessarily …
Charts showing that more than 50% of college students receive some form of gift aid, including federal and institutional grants and scholarships, to make college more in your price range
myths

College Myth: Financial Aid is Only for Poor Students

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
Many students from middle class and upper middle class families assume they won’t receive any need-based financial aid. This isn’t necessarily the case. Need-based financial aid Colleges and the government decide how much need-based financial aid you’re eligible for by subtracting your expected family contribution (EFC) from your college’s cost of attendance. If there’s a …
Comparison showing that Cornell University and Northeastern University have similar academic profiles but much different selectivity or admissions rate
myths

Myth: I Should Go to the Most Selective College that Accepts Me

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
It’s easy to convince yourself as a college applicant that the most important characteristic of a college is its selectivity or prestige. No matter how envious your friends may be if you’re accepted into selective colleges, it doesn’t mean you’ll ultimately be happy there. Here are some of the problems with judging colleges only by …
Chart showing the distribution of student loan debt by what percentage of students have what amount of debt at graduation. College is for rich kids -- not.
myths

College Myth: College is for Rich Kids

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
You’ve probably heard horror stories about students who pay $60,000 plus every year to attend college. If you’re an average middle-class college hopeful, this can be disheartening. It seems like college is for rich kids only, and not as accessible to other students. The good news is that the most-often quoted price–the sticker price–is paid …
Students think that they can never afford an Ivy League college, but they actually can
myths

College Myth: I Could Never Afford to Pay for an Ivy League College

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
Most students who consider attending an Ivy League college, like Harvard and Stanford, think of them as dream schools. Even some well-qualified students shy away from applying. They think they could never afford an Ivy League college. The good news is that, for most students, Ivy League colleges and other elite, selective universities are often actually …
It's a myth that you should wait until you're accepted to apply for financial aid
myths

College Myth: I Should Wait Until I’m Accepted to Apply for Financial Aid

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
Applying for financial aid can be tough. Beyond the complicated jargon and long forms, financial aid is tricky. Not only that, there’s a lot of conflicting and misguided advice. For example, most people think that they should apply for financial aid after they get accepted. However, this isn’t usually the right approach. We broke down …
You can reach out to a college whenever you want!
myths

College Myth: I Shouldn’t Reach out to a College Until I’m Ready to Apply

By Olivia PittmanLast updated on December 22, 2022
Many students assume they’ll reach out to a college during the application process, but this shouldn’t necessarily be the case. In fact, contacting a college before you apply can have advantages. Contacting a college before applying could actually improve your admissions chances Reaching out to a college as a prospective student shows you’re actively interested. …

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