The journal
Here you will find everything I write: boots-on-the-ground campus visits that capture the vibe of each place and its students, step-by-step guides to essays, financial aid, and private school choice, and letters to parents on raising an independent thinker. One notebook, covering the whole journey from first campus tour to final college list.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 7 · 50 Colleges Series
October 8, 2026 · University of Minnesota Twin Cities · Minneapolis, Minnesota
Visit number seven of fifty. I live in Minneapolis, and this visit made me reconsider some of my own decisions as a parent. Right here in my backyard is a world-class research institution I never seriously considered for my own children.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
September 27, 2026 · International · Third Culture Kids
Long before I knew the term Third Culture Kid, I was one. I was born in Mexico City, the child of American diplomats, and grew up with different countries, cultures and histories as part of my life. At the time, none of this seemed particularly unusual to me. It was simply how my family lived.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
September 15, 2026 · A Guide for Parents
Before hiring a college essay coach, ask what they actually know about college admissions. A good coach does more than polish prose. They understand what admissions officers are looking for, help a student find the story only they can tell, and keep the student's voice on the page. Here is how to tell the difference.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
September 15, 2026 · Twin Cities · Private School Placement
After thirty years in the Twin Cities, I have come to believe the most important question in any school search is not which one ranks highest, but which one suits your child. From Montessori to Waldorf to Blake to St. Paul Academy, here is how to think about fit, pedagogy, and the questions that matter when you are deciding where your child will thrive.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 6 · 50 Colleges Series
June 25, 2026 · St. Catherine University · St. Paul, Minnesota
Visit number six of fifty. St. Kate's in St. Paul was the pleasant surprise of the whole project. A small Catholic women's college in one of the prettiest neighborhoods in the Twin Cities, with a diverse student body and a nursing program that runs through the culture of the place.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 5 · 50 Colleges Series
May 30, 2026 · St. Olaf College · Northfield, Minnesota
Visit number five of fifty. St. Olaf in Northfield, Minnesota. A hilltop campus that really does feel like Hogwarts, a music program that will reset your expectations, and the kind of community that quietly produces some of the most thoughtful people I know.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 4 · 50 Colleges Series
May 28, 2025 · Carleton College · Northfield, Minnesota
Sometimes called the Harvard of the Midwest, and I do not use that phrase lightly. Carleton's intellectual energy is constant, ambient, and unmistakable from the first walk across campus.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 3 · 50 Colleges Series
May 21, 2025 · University of St. Thomas · St. Paul, Minnesota
St. Thomas carries a reputation as the safe, local option. What I found was something more interesting: a school where students clearly enjoy being, in a way that reads as real.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 2 · 50 Colleges Series
May 14, 2025 · Hamline University · St. Paul, Minnesota
Founded in 1854 as Minnesota's first co-ed university, Hamline is a school I want every family to hear about. Stunning campus, serious academics, and a financial picture worth a second look.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
Campus Visit No. 1 · 50 Colleges Series
May 7, 2025 · Macalester College · St. Paul, Minnesota
My mission is simple: I visit colleges across the country and give families my honest, unfiltered, boots-on-the-ground take. This is visit number one, and Macalester is where it all started.
Zelda Thomas
Zelda Thomas College Consulting
January 15, 2025 · Financial Aid · For Families Applying 2026-2027
I have filed the FAFSA and the CSS Profile every year for two kids of my own. Here is what I wish someone had told me the first time, written for the parent who is about to sit down at the kitchen table and open the form.
Want my honest take on a school your student is considering?