🎓 Welcome

I’m Rich Thornett, a long-time software developer and founder now serving as an independent college advisor to public school students in Salem, MA. I also share resources and write about college admissions and financing. Welcome to my home in higher education.

What I Do

Provide free college advising to public high school students in Salem, MA who are preparing for, exploring, and applying to college
Collaborate with the Salem High School College & Career Center to help them improve and expand their capabilities
Create and curate college resources to share with students, families, counselors, and high school counseling departments
Collect and analyze higher ed institutional data
Write about what I see, learn, do, and build along the way

College Advising in Salem

I provide free college advising to students at public schools in Salem, Massachusetts. I have the capacity to guide up to five students on a comprehensive basis throughout the college process, and I do my best to assist any Salem public school student or family who has questions or wants support.

Areas where I can help include:

Academic planning. Making sure you’re on track for colleges and degree programs of interest.
Finding fit. Identifying colleges that fit your academic profile, social interests, and financial constraints.
Admissions odds. Understanding your chances of admission to build a balanced college list.
College applications. Guidance and feedback on personal statements, supplemental essays, activities lists, and additional information sections.
College costs. Estimating what schools of interest will cost your family.
Financial aid. Understanding federal aid, institutional need-based aid, merit scholarships, etc.
Financial forms. Assisting families with financial aid applications (FAFSA and CSS Profile).
Financial awards. Reviewing financial aid award letters to calculate the net price—cost to you—of each school where you’re accepted.
Choosing a college. Talking through tradeoffs to make your decision.

Public school counselors work hard to support their students, but large caseloads and broad responsibilities mean they can’t always provide deep, individualized guidance. I strive to complement their efforts by advising students who seek additional support. I’ve also had two children graduate from Salem public schools and have strong relationships with the principal, College & Career Center staff, and teachers at Salem High School built through years of involvement and volunteering; I know how the system works.

As for my own education, I attended the oldest public college (undergrad) and the first public college (grad school) in the United States. (Somehow, they’re different schools!) And I’ve taken college advising coursework with UC Berkeley Extension. You can learn more about my background and qualifications on the About page.

If you’re a public high school student or family member in Salem and would like help with your college planning, I’d love to hear from you: hello@higheredward.com

Schools

Students I’ve worked with have been accepted to the following schools:

Campus Tours & Visits

I love to travel and have been fortunate to visit a number of colleges over the years. The following is a list of colleges where I’ve spent time on campus. Most of these visits have taken place in the last five years.

Maine

Bates (tour)
Bowdoin (tour)
Colby (tour)

Massachusetts

Amherst (visit)
Brandeis (visit)
Boston College (self-guided tour)
Boston University (tour, admitted student day with daughter)
Clark (tour, admitted student day with son, son attended)
Emmanuel (tour)
Endicott (visit)
Harvard (visit, took classes)
Holy Cross (self-guided tour)
University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) (tour, admitted student with son and daughter, son attends)
MIT (visit)
Northeastern (visit)
Salem State (visit)
Tufts (tour, admitted student day with daughter)
Wheaton (tour)
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) (tour)