Advice on choosing a college

Robert Franek, an expert on all matters “college” and author of Princeton Review’s Best 377 Colleges, will conduct a strategy seminar and pep talk for teens applying to colleges and their parents at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13 at the Vernon Hills High School Auditorium, 145 Lakeview Parkway, Vernon Hills. Registration is required and highly recommended. Call (847) 362-2330 or visit webres.cooklib.org. Franek will give teens and parents the inside scoop on colleges, including Princeton Review’s survey findings on what colleges are really looking for in applicants, how local colleges fared in the book’s ranking lists, school ratings, and the top “Best Value Colleges” for 2012. He also will give advice for successful applications, proven strategies to improve test scores, and ways to boost one’s prospects of getting into and getting aid from a college.