Your Biggest Investment: Your Child's Education

Outside of buying a home, your child's college education will be the second biggest investment you will make. Applying to and selecting the "right" college is difficult; throw in a $30,000 a year price tag, and it all becomes very daunting. The advice of an educational consultant generally increases the likelihood that an investment in your child's future will be well made. According to a July 2005 article in the Wall Street Journal, tuition at private colleges across the nation is expected to rise 5.7% with the average cost at $31,051.

According to a 2005 IECA survey, students using a consultant were three times more likely to enroll in a private college. Nationally, only 22% of undergraduates attend private four-year colleges, while 70% of those who work with college consultants like Ms. Murphy attend private four-year colleges.

This is almost double the cost of tuition from 1990. Have your sights set on the Ivy League? The cost of attending Harvard next year will be $41,675, including room and board, a 4.5% increase over last year.

Guidance Counselors are Spread Too Thin at Schools

As guidance counselors wear many hats, it is difficult for them to maintain expertise in any one area, or to give substantial time or individual attention to your child's college search. According to a 2004 survey conducted by the National Association of College Admissions Counselors, only 39% of counselors spend their time on college advising. In extreme cases, where high school student-to-counselor ratios surpass 500:1, counselors may have less than one hour per year to devote to college counseling for each student.

According to 2003 statistics, the national student-counselor ratio is 478-to-1. In California, the average is an astounding 951-to-1, in Washington 515-to-1 and in Oregon 473-to-1. The National Association of College Admissions Counselors and the American School Counselors Association both recommend a ratio of 250-to-1. By contrast, most private college consultants work with about 20-50 students a year. This allows consultants like Ms. Murphy to spend enough time with each student to be able to personalize a program to best suit his or her needs.

Why not hire an expert?

Consider this: If you were selling your biggest investment, your home, you would probably hire a real estate agent. You do this because that person is an expert in selling homes. So when faced with investing in your child's education, why not hire an individual who is an expert? Yes, of course, information on schools is readily available on the web and in guidebooks. Yet, unlike a guidebook, Ms. Murphy can provide a highly personalized experience for your child. Your son or daughter will receive one-on-one interactions, guidance, and options that they cannot receive anywhere else.