Notes in the Margins: Drop outs, spring break and the Common App word limit

Billions spent in U.S. on community college students who drop out California expenditures on such students over five years totaled $480 million, report says. Many students are ill-prepared for college, get too little support and aren't helped by remediation, the study notes. (Los Angeles Times)

M.B.A.s Seek to Occupy Wall Street Trimming the existing work force doesn't preclude companies from hiring new talent, but some schools say they're seeing at least the beginnings of a pullback. (The Wall Street Journal)

What happens if Common App essays exceed 500-word limit? Officials for the Common App, which is accepted by 415 college and universities, say that it ended their four-year experiment with unlimited essay lengths because colleges and counselors complained that many essays were too long and sloppily written. The 500-word limit had been used for 31 years previously, and they felt it would help students to set it again. (The Washington Post)

Fewer College Students Fall For Traditional Winter and Spring Breaks More college students are choosing to go on alternative breaks, rather than traditional ones. (U.S. News & World Report)

Privacy and Press Freedom Collide in University Case It was bad enough for the University of Illinois when The Chicago Tribune’s 2009 series “Clout Goes to College” exposed the existence of a “clout list” that over five years gave hundreds of well-connected students an edge in admissions. But two years later, the university is still fighting the release of more documents a newspaper has asked for, including the names and addresses of the parents on the clout list. (The New York Times)

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