Last week, I gave a presentation to parents of rising seniors, and one question came up more than any other: how do we actually build a good college list? Here are the five things I check for in every list I help build, regardless of the student, from an honest read on where they stand to a real reason for every school that makes the cut.

Three days at IECA's 50th annual conference in Baltimore left me with a lot to think about: on AI in admissions, what the research says about purpose-driven students, and why international universities deserve a real conversation.