College Planning for School Counselors

When I became a high school counselor 13 years ago, I didn’t know how much I would learn and grow in the profession. I had previously been in the counseling profession doing clinical work in child welfare. Never could I have expected to fall in love with being a high school counselor. I feel grateful for my past clinical experiences, which have been invaluable in the high school setting working with students and their social/emotional needs, but I have learned many facets of school counseling along the way. Following the ASCA National Model, as school counselors, we must incorporate practices that support the social/emotional, academic and post-high school needs of our students. Early on, I realized how important it was to have a deeper knowledge of the college process.

My first summer after I became a high school counselor, I attended “College 101: The Academy of College Admission Counseling.” It brought me great insight to the topic of college counseling and sparked my interest to start visiting colleges. For a couple of years, I attended college visits through the programming that IACAC provides. It was an amazing experience that prompted me to plan my own visits to colleges, and I have been doing it ever since. I have been all over the country visiting private schools, public schools, small schools, big schools – you name it. As many college conferences and lunches I have attended, there is no better way to really learn about a college than actually being on the campus. I encourage this because I can say that my successful practice as a high school counselor has been affected greatly by these experiences. Because we know our students, being on campuses and learning more detail about programming and scholarship opportunities can guide us better in advising our students. Understanding the admission process and what colleges are truly looking for also benefits our students greatly. Now more than ever, getting into college has become increasingly competitive, but being knowledgeable in this area of counseling will surely better support your students.

This is the perfect time of year to meet with junior students about their plans for after high school. For those students wanting to attend college, this is the time to start discussing the application process and what they want to major in, and creating a list of schools that could potentially be the right fit for them. As the school year is coming to an end, take the opportunity to encourage students to go visit colleges, help them to navigate college websites and help them to set up campus visits. I always tell families that it is never too early to step foot onto a college campus.

As a school counselor, I challenge you all to start visiting colleges. This is as easy as being on vacation and visiting whatever campus may be nearby. Admission reps love talking to school counselors and highlighting what is special about their school. I wholeheartedly believe that as a school counselor, the more that we experience things firsthand, the greater buy-in we will get from the students we serve. Start one college at a time and I promise it will enhance your practice!

Contact Allyson Adams, ISCA Board member, at allysonadams24@gmail.com.