In a time when crossing guards are posted to prevent high schoolers from jumping in front of trains and parents shelling out $100K for packaged college applications, education has become a mad race to grab the Ivy ring. Based on experience in admissions with the Ivy League and other highly competitive universities, emerging scientific evidence on the impact of emotional intelligence and mindfulness, and discussions with admissions officers, students, families, and high school counselors, this book is a guide on how to go through the existing, however brutish, college applications process with less stress and anxiety, and more joy and mindfulness. Equipped with the powerful tools of emotional intelligence and mindfulness, this work acknowledges the reality of what the process is, and challenges young people to reach for a more meaningful ideal for themselves. This book shares a look at the holistic admissions process and offers an alternative one to the current climate of untenable stress. This updated model aims to shift mindsets from treating the admissions process as a ruthless competition with one externally-prescribed definition of success, to a step in a lifelong journey of curiosity and wonder. By building self-awareness, compassion, resilience, it's possible to navigate the process with greater authenticity, balance, and joy.
Belinda Chiu, EdD, is on the forefront of the movement to democratize emotional intelligence as head of educational innovation for Goleman EI and faculty for the Daniel Goleman Emotional Intelligence Coaching Certification Program. Working with Ignition Coaching LLC and Hummingbirdrcc, her efforts go toward cultivating resilience and leveraging the power of play for a happier, healthier planet. She has worked in undergraduate and graduate university admissions, and published a book on yoga meditations for children and a women's guide to the Camino de Santiago. A member of Valley Improv, Belinda currently lives in Hanover, New Hampshire with Bandit, the pink-nosed pup.
Introduction: You're Going to Make It I: From Anxiety to Awareness: The Case for Emotional Intelligence 1 Will Meditating Help Me Levitate? 2 The Brain Behind the Brain 3 Educating My Emotions 4 It's Not Just About You 5 A New Education II: Inside the Ivy Tower: The Myth, the Legend, the Truth 6 It's Only Getting Worse 7 The Rumor Mill and the Gossip 8 Rolling the Dice and Betting on the House 9 Worrywarts and Worry-Nots 10 We're Only Human III: Coloring Inside the Lines: What Has Been Still Is 11 Academics: Are You Ready to Take It Up a Notch? 12 Testing: Everyone's Favorite Saturday Pastime 13 Leadership: Queen Bees, Worker Bees, and Busy Bees 14 Accolades: Someone Thinks You're Special 15 Spirit: Showcase You, Don't Tell IV: Charting a New Course: Whole-Being Well-Being 16 Awareness: What You Feel Is Not Who You Are 17 Thinking: Like a Jedi, Be 18 Listening: Teamwork Makes the Dream Work 19 Alignment: Peak Performance at the Optimal Time 20 Self-Compassion: You're Pretty Darn Awesome V: Go For It: Embracing Peaks and Valleys 21 College 101: What Your Prereqs Won't Teach You 22 A Preference for Manual Driving Notes About the Author
[Chiu] covers the basics, debunks myths, offers insider knowledge, and suggests useful emotional intelligence tools to reduce stress. Chiu discusses what happens to each file as applications are screened, the elements that applicants can control, and what is out of their hands. The author cites current and emerging brain science research and draws from her coaching work at Fortune 500 companies, providing mindfulness practices and "brain hacks." VERDICT High school students applying to selective colleges and universities will appreciate this holistic approach steeped in emotional intelligence, compassion, and mindfulness. * School Library Journal * The Mindful College Applicant offers a reassuring insider's view of admissions realities at the most sought-after colleges. Even more useful, Belinda Chiu proffers practical wisdom for managing your emotions as you navigate these rapids. -- Daniel Goleman, Author, "Emotional Intelligence" The book helps one think more clearly through the admission process and positions one to lead a meaningful life. A must read for all college applicants, parents and educators. Belinda is a unique person to pull this off due to her decade plus years in the college admission process, training in emotional intelligence and love for humanity. -- Tsewang Namgyal, The Tibet Fund Board member; Reimagining Doeguling Tibetan Settlement Advisory Board Chair I am completing my 18th year as Head of a hard-charging international school in Asia, where it seems as though every third parent in Kindergarten has eyes on the prize of Harvard and where the pressure and stress on students, families, teachers and counselors ratchets up yet another notch as each year passes. Thank goodness for a book that seeks to demystify the college application process, debunk the notion that an A- on a report card equals a lifetime of regret, and discredit the all-pervading folklore that the most important month of one's youth is April in Senior year when college admissions results are posted. Belinda Chiu hasn't just revealed some compelling facts about the process of applying to college; she has also told young people and their parents some home truths about what really matters in education, growth and development. Hurry up and get this book published. My high schoolers need to read it. -- David Toze, Superintendent, International School Manila Parents and counselors everywhere can be grateful for this compassionate book that invites driven and accomplished students to transcend the college admissions frenzy by cultivating mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and self-care. Incidentally, these practices will, in fact, make students stronger applicants-but this is the least valuable aspect of this helpful book. Without talking down to the adolescent reader or resorting to self-help platitudes, THE MINDFUL COLLEGE APPLICANT: CULTIVATING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE FOR THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS guides students toward the confidence and resilience that will help them flourish as adults. Worth a hundred tutoring sessions, may it lead scores of young people to new perspective on their educations, their choices, and the possibilities of their lives. -- Lacy Crawford, Author of "Early Decision: A Novel" In today's hurried world, it is no wonder many students are on autopilot, going through robotic motions of what they mistakenly believe is a magic formula that defines high school success. With her insider knowledge of college admissions, Dr. Chiu courageously reminds us that selective colleges are deliberately choosing emotionally intelligent, resilient, and sociable students who genuinely know how and why they love learning. This book will make you think twice about the skills students should learn throughout their K-12 education, and what traits that define success are increasingly valued in a college community, as well as in adulthood. -- Grace Cheng Dodge, Deputy Head of School, Taipei American School; Former Director of Admission, Wellesley College Chiu achieves something unique, in that she dispels the myths of college admissions from the perspective of a former college admissions counselor and also provides insight through the lens of an executive coach about the types of attributes these highly accomplished and successful individuals have in common. The Mindful College Applicant elaborates on how to cultivate these very skills, which are collectively referred to as emotional intelligence, and which have been proven to be more predictive of success beyond the college years than even academic achievement. -- Debby Fogelman, M.A, Psy.D Dr. Chiu's book provides exactly what students and their parents need to know about the pressures of the college application process. Her honest perspective on the harmful influence of stress and anxiety is vital to creating a strategy for success, as are her insights into working with neuroscience and mindfulness. -- Matthew Lippincott, Vice President of Research & Business Solutions, Daniel Goleman Emotional Intelligence Training Programs This book is a must-read for every high school student applying to college--and every parent, too. It gives the student and the parent the best chance of going through the application process without turning stark raving mad. The wisdom in this book offers a pathway to long term happiness for the student, as well as better results in the application process. Read it, students and parents, because it is essential to the survival and joy of your entire family. It gives you hope of going this process without being damaged by it. If you want to go through the college application process without getting depressed and anxious, read this book. -- Geeta Anand, Pulitzer Prize-winning Journalist; Professor of Journalism, UC Berkeley School of Journalism; Author of "The Cure: How a Father Raised $100 Million and Bucked the Medical Establishment in a Quest to Save his Children"
