""You Got Into Where?"" is the first college admissions guide written by a student who is fresh out of the college admissions process. Learn how I was admitted to schools like the University of Southern California and New York University with full tuition scholarships. The guide features copies of my admissions essay, writing supplement, and activities resume that I used to apply to college the fall of my senior year. Get advice on all the secrets of the admissions process from start to finish. ""I can't believe that a 17 year-old has written a college admissions books that is so well-written, clear and accurate. No wonder USC jumped at the chance to have her become their student. My sense of things is that mostly parents read college admissions books; high school students just don't want to take the time. Given what she says and how she says it, I truly believe that teens will rush to read "You Got Into Where?" It is well worth their time."" -Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz Author, adMISSION POSSIBLE

From award-winning higher education journalist and New York Times bestselling author Jeffrey Selingo comes a revealing look from inside the admissions office—one that identifies surprising strategies that will aid in the college search. Getting into a top-ranked college has never seemed more impossible, with acceptance rates at some elite universities dipping into the single digits. In Who Gets In and Why, journalist and higher education expert Jeffrey Selingo dispels entrenched notions of how to compete and win at the admissions game, and reveals that teenagers and parents have much to gain by broadening their notion of what qualifies as a “good college.” Hint: it’s not all about the sticker on the car window. Selingo, who was embedded in three different admissions offices—a selective private university, a leading liberal arts college, and a flagship public campus—closely observed gatekeepers as they made their often agonizing and sometimes life-changing decisions. He also followed select students and their parents, and he traveled around the country meeting with high school counselors, marketers, behind-the-scenes consultants, and college rankers. While many have long believed that admissions is merit-based, rewarding the best students, Who Gets In and Why presents a more complicated truth, showing that “who gets in” is frequently more about the college’s agenda than the applicant. In a world where thousands of equally qualified students vie for a fixed number of spots at elite institutions, admissions officers often make split-second decisions based on a variety of factors—like diversity, money, and, ultimately, whether a student will enroll if accepted. One of the most insightful books ever about “getting in” and what higher education has become, Who Gets In and Why not only provides an unusually intimate look at how admissions decisions get made, but guides prospective students on how to honestly assess their strengths and match with the schools that will best serve their interests.

Describes the individual admissions process of fifty students accepted to the prestigious university, sharing strategies for identifying key talents, submitting the perfect application package, and improving networking skills.

Forget the 10,000 hour rule— what if it’s possible to learn the basics of any new skill in 20 hours or less? Take a moment to consider how many things you want to learn to do. What’s on your list? What’s holding you back from getting started? Are you worried about the time and effort it takes to acquire new skills—time you don’t have and effort you can’t spare? Research suggests it takes 10,000 hours to develop a new skill. In this nonstop world when will you ever find that much time and energy? To make matters worse, the early hours of prac­ticing something new are always the most frustrating. That’s why it’s difficult to learn how to speak a new language, play an instrument, hit a golf ball, or shoot great photos. It’s so much easier to watch TV or surf the web . . . In The First 20 Hours, Josh Kaufman offers a systematic approach to rapid skill acquisition— how to learn any new skill as quickly as possible. His method shows you how to deconstruct com­plex skills, maximize productive practice, and remove common learning barriers. By complet­ing just 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice you’ll go from knowing absolutely nothing to performing noticeably well. Kaufman personally field-tested the meth­ods in this book. You’ll have a front row seat as he develops a personal yoga practice, writes his own web-based computer programs, teaches himself to touch type on a nonstandard key­board, explores the oldest and most complex board game in history, picks up the ukulele, and learns how to windsurf. Here are a few of the sim­ple techniques he teaches: Define your target performance level: Fig­ure out what your desired level of skill looks like, what you’re trying to achieve, and what you’ll be able to do when you’re done. The more specific, the better. Deconstruct the skill: Most of the things we think of as skills are actually bundles of smaller subskills. If you break down the subcompo­nents, it’s easier to figure out which ones are most important and practice those first. Eliminate barriers to practice: Removing common distractions and unnecessary effort makes it much easier to sit down and focus on deliberate practice. Create fast feedback loops: Getting accu­rate, real-time information about how well you’re performing during practice makes it much easier to improve. Whether you want to paint a portrait, launch a start-up, fly an airplane, or juggle flaming chain­saws, The First 20 Hours will help you pick up the basics of any skill in record time . . . and have more fun along the way.

It was so quiet, so dark, and so cold yet I sensed myself sweating, A loud bang went off from close by, someone called out in pain! Things fell onto me so I brushed them off, tried my best to focus but my vison was very blurred, things didn’t make sense, where was I, I couldn’t think for some reason, felt a little dizzy for some reason like I was drunk, My legs and arms felt heavy when I tried to move them, I wiped my eyes and they stung hard, stuff ran down my face that didn’t feel like rain and didn’t taste like rain, Foreign voices I could hear, more loud bangs went off from close by, Another call from someone in pain was heard, I tried to pull myself up but slipped and slipped again, The dark sky lit up and I wiped my eyes the best I could, 2 The rain I thought was falling on me wasn’t rain, it was black and thick, it smelled of oil, It went into my mouth so I spat it out, How was it raining oil, dreaming I thought I was, just in a bad dream and would wake up I was waiting for, I wasn’t dreaming, I was awake, lying in a ditch soaked in oil in the night somewhere but where somewhere was I didn’t know, “Shift over mate” I heard someone announce and felt someone push up against me with force, I swung round with the rifle I was holding, “Easy with that thing pal, it’s only me, we got big problems out there, Charlie team took a battering, minor casualties, the gun team are getting low on ammo, hey, where’s Sid bro” the same person asked after nudging me hard in the side, Without thinking I brought the end of the rifle up and hit whoever was talking too me across the jaw and scrambled out of the hole I was in, Losing my grip I slipped into another hole and bumped into another person, The rifle I had was not with me anymore, I looked about anxiously for something to defend myself, The person next to me didn’t move, 3 Someone called out from somewhere! The noise of shooting carried on followed by heavier shooting like from a machine gun, the black rain still fell down on me obscuring my vision, Bullets hit the sides of the hole I was in, the person who was next to me took a load of bullets or something else that pushed him hard against me, We both slipped further into the slipper mud and oil filled hole we were in, He was heavy and pushed me further into the bottom of the hole, The dark sky lit up followed by a very loud explosive sound, The ground around us shook, the person who was half on top of me took the impact from whatever was flying around, I went into the oily muddy water at the bottom of the hole, The weight of whoever was on top of me pushed me further down, Oil, water and mud went into my mouth and everywhere else, I couldn’t move this person off me and gasped for air, Strange thoughts went through my mind, was this the end I thought to myself? 4 With all my strength I pushed hard on the body that was on top and drowning me, I managed to get my head up out of the oily mud and gasped for air, More bullets bounced around the walls of the hole, someone called out in pain, another explosion went off close by that shook the ground hard, I went back under the mud again and fought hard to push the weight off me, With one last effort of strength I pushed my arm out of the mud in an attempt to grab hold of anything, Someone grabbed my hand and pulled hard, “Got you brother, we got you know mate” I heard someone called out! I woke and opened my eyes to see a pretty lady leaning over me, “It’s ok darling, you safe with me, another bad dream my darling, just a bad dream, I am here with you” I heard her say softly as she held my hand and pulled me from the floor back into bed, I looked hard at her and realized this lady was my wife and it was just another bad dream, She comforted me as I led shaking and covered in sweat, The dreams continue, they never go away.

Now an original movie on Prime Video starring Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine! When Solène Marchand, the thirty-nine-year-old owner of a prestigious art gallery in Los Angeles, takes her daughter, Isabelle, to meet her favorite boy band, she does so reluctantly and at her ex-husband’s request. The last thing she expects is to make a connection with one of the members of the world-famous August Moon. But Hayes Campbell is clever, winning, confident, and posh, and the attraction is immediate. That he is all of twenty years old further complicates things. What begins as a series of clandestine trysts quickly evolves into a passionate relationship. It is a journey that spans continents as Solène and Hayes navigate each other’s disparate worlds: from stadium tours to international art fairs to secluded hideaways in Paris and Miami. And for Solène, it is as much a reclaiming of self, as it is a rediscovery of happiness and love. When their romance becomes a viral sensation, and both she and her daughter become the target of rabid fans and an insatiable media, Solène must face how her new status has impacted not only her life, but the lives of those closest to her.