Posts by Dave Bergman:

Short Hills’ Hidden Curriculum: The Programs and Local Resources That Build a Competitive College Application

Posted on: 24 Oct 2025

Short Hills is a section of Millburn Township, a New Jersey suburb of roughly 21,000 residents. It sits 20 minutes from Manhattan by train. Students here already know the neighborhood advantages: strong schools, engaged families, and a direct line into a resource-rich city. Turning that geography into a genuinely competitive application, however, takes more than […]

Case Study: How One Tampa Student Used Sports Marketing Strategy to Earn Acceptance to Elite Colleges

Posted on: 23 Oct 2025

Tampa Bay’s combination of powerhouse publics, elite private schools, and nationally recognized magnet programs creates a dynamic but highly competitive admissions environment, especially for students aiming at business and marketing programs. Today, we spotlight Ethan, a student from Steinbrenner High School, whose passion for marketing and the business of sports evolved into a compelling admissions […]

Sailing Toward Selective Colleges: How Annapolis, Maryland Students Can Stand Out in the Admissions Process

Posted on: 23 Oct 2025

Annapolis is a city with a specific, layered identity. It is the capital of Maryland, the home of the United States Naval Academy, and the undisputed sailing capital of the East Coast. The Chesapeake Bay is at its doorstep. Washington, D.C. sits 30 miles to the west; Baltimore is 30 miles to the north. For […]

Case Study: How One Jacksonville Student Earned Admission to Selective Colleges

Posted on: 22 Oct 2025

The Competitive Landscape in Jacksonville, FL Jacksonville sends a distinctive mix of students to selective colleges each year. Much of that strength comes from Duval County’s magnet system. Stanton College Preparatory School sits at the top. It draws applicants countywide through a competitive admissions process, not a home address. Additionally, Paxon School for Advanced Studies, […]

Second City, First Choice: How to Get into Top Colleges from Chicago, Illinois

Posted on: 21 Oct 2025

Chicago high schoolers apply to selective colleges from inside one of the largest and most research-rich cities in the country. That scale cuts both ways. A student in a small town might struggle to find even one relevant internship nearby. Chicago students, by contrast, have to sort through hundreds of possibilities. Doing that sorting well, […]

Case Study: How One Short Hills, NJ Student Turned Suburban Planning History into a College Admissions Edge

Posted on: 21 Oct 2025

The Short Hills College Admissions Landscape Short Hills sits inside Millburn Township, and its public options begin and end with Millburn High School, the community’s only comprehensive public high school. Millburn ranks 12th in New Jersey and 244th nationally, per U.S. News & World Report, with 79% of students participating in AP coursework. Families weighing […]

Case Study: How One Northview High School Student Earned Acceptances to UGA, Georgia Tech, and Columbia University

Posted on: 20 Oct 2025

Families across Metro Atlanta know that selective college admissions, especially for engineering majors, have become increasingly demanding. At powerhouse public schools like Northview, Lambert, Milton, Alpharetta, Chattahoochee, and Walton, strong STEM students are plentiful, and many target the exact same universities and majors. This creates a real challenge. How does a motivated student stand out […]

Online Education Degrees: What to Know About Licensure

Posted on: 20 Oct 2025

If you are evaluating online education degrees, the most consequential variable is not cost, format, or program length. It is licensure. Whether you plan to become a classroom teacher, school counselor, instructional coordinator, or principal, your ability to work in a public school setting depends entirely on meeting state certification requirements that operate independently of […]