Only 15 days until the deposits are due! Families are weighing the options: Do we pay full-price for College A with the better name recognition or take the great discount at the sweet SLAC up the road? Families are also wondering what went wrong: Why didn’t we get into the college that had the better odds for us? And, most commonly, families are freaking out about the cost of the 4-year college adventure, no matter which college the student attends.

Some head-shaking, top peeves re-emerging this admissions cycle--including 'Real World' examples from my client base:

The illogical: Test-optional colleges trolling for students

The unbelievable: Waivers of app fees to students who then blast-send dozens of apps thereby boosting the pool of applicants at colleges participating in the rankings game.

The capricious: One student gets a certain amount of aid in their admissions packet but another must work ass off in an appeals process to get same amount of aid with equivalent test scores and grades.

The absurd:  Colleges boast about their admits with great test scores but bemoan the existence of the test prep industry.

The political: Student from out-of-country with B average gets accepted to UCSD whereas stellar in-state and local resident does not.

The  psychotic: Non-dischargeable loans offered to 18-year olds and low-income families.