“If [colleges] didn’t care about financial needs, or whether or not you can afford tuition, they wouldn’t ask that,” says Rim, who attended Yale and maintains that his alma mater does a superior job of separating financial aid and admissions decisions.

Rim advises clients to apply to 15 to 18 institutions, including a near-split of safety, target and reach schools. Applying to too many is a waste of time and resources on top of schoolwork and extracurriculars, he said.

Covid is making it harder to get into a top college Jessica Dickler | Dec 29 2020 Getting into college has always been a numbers game. This year the math is trickier. With early admissions largely decided, high school seniors face a grim reality: The Covid pandemic is...

Applicants may have a slight edge by applying early where they can, according to Christopher Rim, the CEO and founder of Command Education, whether it’s early decision, which is binding, or early action, which is non-binding.

“This has proven to be a boom for students wanting to change schools,” said Christopher Rim, founder and CEO of Command Education.

“If they don’t tack on these fees, they are going to be in trouble,” said Christopher Rim, president and CEO of Command Education. “But, it’s not fair, students don’t really get a choice to opt out.”

“Everyone is freaking out a little bit,” added Christopher Rim, president and CEO of Command Education in New York.