Rating: 
Summary: From The Journal of College Admission:
Review: "Eminently readable, this publication can be set alongside Bill Paul's GETTING IN for thoughtfulness, bright prose and brisk pace. Bill Mayher is a former private school counselor who clearly has been through the wars . . . Both a "how to" book and a penetrating analysis of emotional issues surrounding the process, THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS MYSTIQUE is an encouragingly humane book. Bill Mayher's wisdom will inform students and parents with an interest in . . .competitive colleges and universities. I recommend it with enthusiasm to the high school counselor as well as to families in the college search process. " --Richard J. Morey, The Journal of College Admission
Rating: 
Summary: Great book for new admission and high school counselors
Review: As an admissions professional, I highly recommend this book will as required reading for all new admission officers. It gives the reader a great perspective on what is happening on the other side of the coin. Mayher does an excellent job of reminding us of the panic and worry that goes through a young person's head while waiting for the acceptance letter.Some of the information is more relelvant to the hyper-competitive East Coast market, but even parents students in the Midwest, South and West will be able to glean helpful hints from this fine work. Mayher promotes a very pro-active search (which is the best way to find the best college for you) and while it is not a glorified advertisement like Loren Pope's Colleges that Change Lives, it does present some ideas for what constitutes "quality" in an institution.
Rating:
Summary: Great book for new admission and high school counselors
Review: As an admissions professional, I highly recommend this book will as required reading for all new admission officers. It gives the reader a great perspective on what is happening on the other side of the coin. Mayher does an excellent job of reminding us of the panic and worry that goes through a young person's head while waiting for the acceptance letter. Some of the information is more relelvant to the hyper-competitive East Coast market, but even parents students in the Midwest, South and West will be able to glean helpful hints from this fine work. Mayher promotes a very pro-active search (which is the best way to find the best college for you) and while it is not a glorified advertisement like Loren Pope's Colleges that Change Lives, it does present some ideas for what constitutes "quality" in an institution.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely the Best!
Review: As an educator, former college counselor, and parent, I urge those gearing up for the college process to put this book at the top of the pile. In short, the author understands what parents and their children truly need to know in order to get through this often mind-numbing process. Well-written, smart, and spiced with enough anecdotes to make it a truly enjoyable read, this book succeeds where others fall short. Do your family a favor and read this book---you'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: Will save parents of college bound kids $$, grief & fights.
Review: Bill Mayher's entertaining, easy to read book exposes the nonsense surrounding the often traumatic college admissions process. He can help your family work through the tedium, tension, and tangles that the process usually entails, as he puts the kabosh on the mistaken notion that the hardest school to get into, is the best one for your child to attend.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction to the inside process of admissions.
Review: Getting your kid into a good college is a nerve-racking process for most parents. It certainly has been for us. We have found the customer reviews in Amazon very helpful. That prompts us to distill our ratings of the various guidebooks. The best short reference on each college is the Princeton Review of The Best (311) Colleges. It gives ratings of academic quality, difficulty of admission, percentage admitted, etc. There is also a brief summary of college life and what each place might be looking for. Peterson Guide is comprehensive, and has long write-ups for each school. There is a front section for each school, listed alphabetically within each state, and a back section with detailed profiles of selected institutions. Fiske's guide is interesting, but he basically has something good to say for each school, so careful reading between the lines and for "damning with faint praise" is called for. The Yale Insider's Guide is extremely subjective, with different students writing various reviews. We did not find it too reliable, except in conjunction with other books. Likewise for Barrron's Guide to the Most Competitive Colleges. Recent alumni write of their (invariably positive) experiences. Take it with a grain of salt, or read carefully between the lines. Choosing the Right College by ISN was extremely helpful. Some readers criticized it for being allegedly right wing. We did not find it so. Rather, knowing the point of view of the authors helped us evaluate their observations. Other books do not make their biases explicit. A feature of the book we found particularly helpful was the naming of excellent professors and departments in each college. Antonoff's College Finder was interesting only in conjunction with other books. Three books written from the perspective of college admissions officers were very interesting and helpful. They are The College Admissions Mystique, by Mayher, Getting In, by Bill Paul, and most of all A is for Admission by Michelle Hernandez. We strongly recommend that parents and the kids who are the applicants read at least one of these. Another very helpful book was You're Gonna Love This College Guide, by Marty Nemko. It takes the student through the decision process of big vs. small, urban vs. country, elite vs. the level just below, geography, and so forth. That really got our daughter unstuck in her thinking process. Loren Pope is another helpful author for those who think that not getting into Harvard is the end of the world. Three books we did not find to be particularly helpful are Getting Into Any College, by Jim Good and Lisa Lee, The National Review College Guide, by Charles Sykes and Brad Miner (too out of date), and The Real Freshman Handbook, by Jennifer Hanson. One book we found to be unexpectedly useful was Getting Into Medical School Today, by Scott Plantz, et. al. Even if your child is not interested in medical school, this book puts college in perspective for any post-college program. We hope readers find our review helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction to the inside process of admissions.
Review: Getting your kid into a good college is a nerve-racking process for most parents. It certainly has been for us. We have found the customer reviews in Amazon very helpful. That prompts us to distill our ratings of the various guidebooks. The best short reference on each college is the Princeton Review of The Best (311) Colleges. It gives ratings of academic quality, difficulty of admission, percentage admitted, etc. There is also a brief summary of college life and what each place might be looking for. Peterson Guide is comprehensive, and has long write-ups for each school. There is a front section for each school, listed alphabetically within each state, and a back section with detailed profiles of selected institutions. Fiske's guide is interesting, but he basically has something good to say for each school, so careful reading between the lines and for "damning with faint praise" is called for. The Yale Insider's Guide is extremely subjective, with different students writing various reviews. We did not find it too reliable, except in conjunction with other books. Likewise for Barrron's Guide to the Most Competitive Colleges. Recent alumni write of their (invariably positive) experiences. Take it with a grain of salt, or read carefully between the lines. Choosing the Right College by ISN was extremely helpful. Some readers criticized it for being allegedly right wing. We did not find it so. Rather, knowing the point of view of the authors helped us evaluate their observations. Other books do not make their biases explicit. A feature of the book we found particularly helpful was the naming of excellent professors and departments in each college. Antonoff's College Finder was interesting only in conjunction with other books. Three books written from the perspective of college admissions officers were very interesting and helpful. They are The College Admissions Mystique, by Mayher, Getting In, by Bill Paul, and most of all A is for Admission by Michelle Hernandez. We strongly recommend that parents and the kids who are the applicants read at least one of these. Another very helpful book was You're Gonna Love This College Guide, by Marty Nemko. It takes the student through the decision process of big vs. small, urban vs. country, elite vs. the level just below, geography, and so forth. That really got our daughter unstuck in her thinking process. Loren Pope is another helpful author for those who think that not getting into Harvard is the end of the world. Three books we did not find to be particularly helpful are Getting Into Any College, by Jim Good and Lisa Lee, The National Review College Guide, by Charles Sykes and Brad Miner (too out of date), and The Real Freshman Handbook, by Jennifer Hanson. One book we found to be unexpectedly useful was Getting Into Medical School Today, by Scott Plantz, et. al. Even if your child is not interested in medical school, this book puts college in perspective for any post-college program. We hope readers find our review helpful.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Book For Understanding The Process
Review: Having just finished the admissions process with my son I think I must have read nearly every book on the subject. The College Admissions Mystique is very good at giving you an insider's look at what happens behind the closed doors of the admissions office. It's an excellent resource for those who want to know how admissions decisions are (and aren't) made. I asked my son which books he found most helpful and here is his response: For figuring out which colleges to apply to and what each college is all about nothing beats the Petersons Guide To Colleges. For a real how-to guide book on completing the application and writing the college essay nothing beats Get Into Any College: Secrets Of Harvard Students by Jim Good and Lisa Lee. For preparing for the SAT and other tests the best was the Cracking The System series by the Princeton Review. I too read all of the above books and found them extremely helpful and would highly recommend them to both parents and students who are facing this challenge. Good luck! Gabe Truman, CA
Rating:
Summary: Parents of College Bound Students: This one's for you
Review: I am a high school student, currently in the midst of the college process. A friend of mine gave me this book about a month ago. After reading no more than five pages I was overcome with the compulsion to send it to my parents. The book is readable, well written and Mayher says the things that students want their parents to know. It is hard to get in to college, and the pressure to get into the "right" college can be overwhelming. More importantly, the average person doesn't really know much about that "right" college they want their son or daughter to go to, just that it's "good."
His experience as an educator and college counselor have given him extremely valuable information about the college process. Mayher suggests a pro-active search for the right college for each individual. He makes light of the myth of college selectivity, and covers topics that can take you through the entire process. I would suggest reading this book well before your child begins the college search, it can help you understand how to attack the problem and open lines of communication.
Rating:
Summary: Parents of College Bound Students: This one's for you
Review: I am a high school student, currently in the midst of the college process. A friend of mine gave me this book about a month ago. After reading no more than five pages I was overcome with the compulsion to send it to my parents. The book is readable, well written and Mayher says the things that students want their parents to know. It is hard to get in to college, and the pressure to get into the "right" college can be overwhelming. More importantly, the average person doesn't really know much about that "right" college they want their son or daughter to go to, just that it's "good."
His experience as an educator and college counselor have given him extremely valuable information about the college process. Mayher suggests a pro-active search for the right college for each individual. He makes light of the myth of college selectivity, and covers topics that can take you through the entire process. I would suggest reading this book well before your child begins the college search, it can help you understand how to attack the problem and open lines of communication.
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