For much of the month of September, Cammie Bertram, President and Founder of Bertram Educational Consultants; and Audrey Ludemann, one of the area’s leading educational consultants for day and boarding schools serving children with a wide range of abilities and learning styles, travelled to Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai to... Continue reading

Fall has come early this year in the Northeast. Hurricane Irene swept through without regard for beaches, baseball games or biking trips, leaving a wake of power outages and debris that we weren’t ready for. As the dust settles and we pick up the pieces, one constant that keeps us... Continue reading

Most teenagers go through some of the symptoms mentioned below, which may or may not be a sign of trouble in your child’s life at that moment. It is perfectly normal for your teen to experiment and test parental limits. However, parents need to be sensitive to the degree and... Continue reading

Even in the first few weeks of June, there are a range of summer programs that are still enrolling students. In fact, this is a very busy month for summer school admission personnel as they field phone calls from parents of students who are coming up short for graduation credits... Continue reading

This article was recently posted on AdmissionsQuest a blog devoted to Boarding Schools and directed to students, parents, teachers, administrators and others interested in private school education. It is reprinted here with the permission of Peter Baron, Partner at edSocialMedia and CEO at AdmissionsQuest, Inc. Washington Post, writer Jay Matthews... Continue reading

Applications for first round candidates are in. Admission committees spend long, arduous hours reading files. March 10 looms. Candidates and their families will be assessing choices and making decisions affecting the next two to four years or more of a student’s life. Many lists will include at least one single... Continue reading

During the past month, the documentary film, Race to Nowhere (http://www.racetonowhere.com/), has ignited a national debate about the experience of students in America. During the past few decades, students have become more results driven and are missing the greater purpose of learning. Critical thinking and real world problem solving has... Continue reading

Bertram Educational Consultants is pleased to announce that Holly Treat is a recipient of this year's Irvin W. Katz Award provided by the IECA Foundation in “recognition of volunteer service and ongoing commitment to children and education." This award was established to “recognize extraordinary community service contributions by IECA (Independent... Continue reading

When economic or demographic downturns effect enrollment, your moral compass may be challenged in a variety of ways. For numerous reasons, you may have to consider enrolling students you may not feel are qualified. The fact is, enrollment and tuition dollars are vital to the budgets of most independent schools.... Continue reading

My seven-year-old daughter asked me tonight at dinner what a hamburger tasted like, and I told her it was impossible for me to tell her how it would taste to her, because I am a different person with different tastes. “I like them; you might too. Why don’t you try... Continue reading

With many dads and moms facing a new world order in a few weeks with their daughters and sons leaving for college or boarding school, many are beginning to create a deep emotional confrontation by internally asking themselves, "Oh my God, what am I going to do?" Sending our kids... Continue reading

In a recent estimate, the U.S. Coast Guard reported that the Gulf of Mexico spill is spreading at 5 times the rate of what had initially been projected. See New York Times Article: Size of Spill in Gulf of Mexico is Larger than Thought. Fortunately, it appears a final solution... Continue reading

In the traditional admission cycle, families and students spend the fall and early winter researching schools, taking standardized testing, visiting and applying to schools. What happens if a family decides to apply to a boarding school after that time period? Have they lost an opportunity? Absolutely not! Many families apply... Continue reading

Forbes Magazine recently reported a list of “America’s 20 Best Prep Schools” (http://www.forbes.com/2010/04/29/best-prep-schools-2010-opinions-private-education.html). For many years, independent schools have shied away from and even boycotted lists and rankings because a school experience or appropriateness for an individual student cannot be quantified so simplistically. First and foremost, consider the methodology. In... Continue reading

I sat down to my mail the other day and was reading the spring magazine from my old alma mater. Up front was a short article from the new president and the title was ‘Cost vs. Value’. The opening statement addressed that, for much of its history, my much-beloved alma... Continue reading

The Cellar Room at Martin Hammer’s “4580” in North Boulder was the perfect venue for a festive Sunday evening gathering of Bertram family, friends and colleagues on April 11th. Diane Arnold, Linda Cain and Rob Meltzer represented IECA, and professionals joined us from AIM House, High Frontier, Living Well Transitions,... Continue reading

Student athletes have a unique edge in the college application process – and they should. While some students volunteer a few hours a week doing community service or volunteering, most student athletes dedicate as many hours daily to their sport. As a tier one varsity coach once told me, "The... Continue reading

Juniors, it’s that time of year….time to really start thinking about what comes after high school. For some of you this means a four year liberal arts college. For others, it may mean attending a college that has a strong focus in business or music or art. While some of... Continue reading

“So what’s your Major????” is a phrase that for decades was a friendly college freshman's introduction. With unemployment for college graduates at levels unseen since the 1980’s this same phrase can cause a great deal of anxiety. Upon graduating, former students face the bleak reality that individuals with college degrees... Continue reading

The March 10th notification date for boarding (and most day schools) has come and gone… phew! Now you must take stock and consider your options. Perhaps your son or daughter got in the school of his or her choice, and you are done. If so, congratulations! Perhaps you have a... Continue reading

As Alfred Hitchcock once noted..."the terror and fear is not in the 'bang'...it's in the anticipation of it!" So many of my client families and students find the first ten days of March terrifying, waiting for the March 10 Decision Day. It feels hard to idle your motor when you... Continue reading

When a teen "launches," it can be one of the most exciting and fulfilling experiences that a family can have. However, more often than not, it is a time of stress, anxiety, despair, and doubt...and that's just for the parents! The "family life cycle phase" of launching is a pivotal... Continue reading

Welcome to ‘reading season’... when boarding school admission committees sequester themselves to read files and meet to discuss each candidate. Schools weigh aspects of the file (interview, application and essays, teacher recommendations, standardized scores, extra-curricular pursuits) differently, and predicting admission outcomes can be difficult. Keep in mind that only the... Continue reading

What exactly is "The Bertram Hug?" We love kids, we believe in kids, we are all about helping them blossom into the best, most self aware, empowered versions of themselves. We do the job, but it is the reason BEHIND why we do our jobs that matters. We do a... Continue reading