Step One Of The College Process: Planning

With the start of a new calendar year, high school seniors are either mostly finished with college decisions or playing the waiting game. While seniors breathe a sigh of relief, college application anxiety becomes a reality for juniors and even for sophomores, and of course their parents. According to Linda Ortwein, Director of College Counseling for Greenwich Education Group, “parents are usually ahead of students in understanding the need for planning, but certainly for juniors, it is time to get started.  Advance planning usually pays huge dividends later in reducing stress.  That said, parents, it’s time to switch gears from your old ‘command and control’ style to a consultative parenting style.  Remember that this is your son or daughter’s process, and your job is to help them own it.” 

Get Organized

Some basic steps can result in a more controlled and manageable process.

• Create a separate, professional email address for your college correspondence.
• Set up folders, whether virtual or real, for your college materials.
• Find or create a college calendar with monthly tasks, test dates and registration deadlines.
• Start doing some research and building a college list.
• Make a plan to do college visits (parents – this is a good place for you to help.)
• If your school uses Naviance, set up your account and get familiar with the tools and information available.

Get Cleaned Up

It is important to clean up your social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  What you may believe to be funny, may be considered inappropriate by an admissions office, potential recommendation writer, scholarship provider or employer. A recent TIME Magazine article refers to social media as the “unspoken admissions test” revealing that in a survey “of 350 admissions officers, more than 25% of school officials said they had looked up applicants on Facebook or Google.” In November, The Huffington Post offered some advice on How To Clean Up Your Social Media For College Applications suggesting that students check and change their privacy settings to control what their profile looks like to others.  In addition, be sure to review pictures and even “likes” to ensure that they are appropriate.

College Research

Students should be the ones who take the lead on college research, with some parental guidance.  There are numerous sources of information for college research, including:

• Fiske Guide to Colleges
• Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges
• Peterson’s Complete Guide To Colleges
• The Insider’s Guide to Colleges
• Online search engines through the Collegeboard and Naviance,
• Online resources such as Unigo and College Prowler
• Virtual video tours through YOUniversityTV and YouVisit
• Individual college websites.

It is easy to get information, but sometimes more difficult to delve more deeply and understand what makes each college unique. 

School visits

Juniors need to start their college research so they can decide where to visit.  There are very few opportunities to visit colleges when they are in session, including winter and spring breaks so it is sometimes a good idea even for sophomores to do some casual visits.  For sophomores and juniors just starting this process, it is often helpful to pick a location and visit schools that represent a “type:” large university, small liberal arts college, urban/suburban/rural.  Make these visits productive:  eat in the cafeteria, visit classes, talk to people, read the student newspaper.  In the early stages it is important to be open-minded, but this step of the process needn’t be drudgery. Have fun on a road trip and build in some time for other activities.

Grades

It seems obvious, but stay focused on academics.  While not the sole criterion, your high school transcript will become the centerpiece of your application.  Find some courses that really excite you and make sure to challenge yourself; admissions officers will take notice of the rigor of your course selection, not just your GPA, as well as improvement in grades overall.

Testing

Testing has become a complicated process with a number of choices to consider:  SAT vs. ACT, what subject tests to take when, how much time to invest in test prep, score choice, superscoring and more.  Learn about the differences between the SAT and ACT and choose the one that you believe better aligns with your capabilities. Students should also consider taking a prep class as not everyone is a natural test taker. A well-taught course or individual tutoring can raise one’s confidence level and focus preparation efforts.

Click here to access SAT registration information. The next available test is March 8 with a registration deadline of February 7.

Click here to access ACT registration information. The next available test date in our area will be April 12 with a registration deadline of March 7.

In addition to offering prep in all testing areas, Greenwich Education Group (GEG) offers the SAT/ACT Diagnostic Test for students who do not yet know if the SAT or the ACT is the right test for them. After completion of the diagnostic test, each student is provided with their own 9-page score summary that analyzes the student’s answers to all units and subunits of the SAT and ACT tests and compares them cross-sectionally. The SAT/ACT Diagnostic Test is an extremely useful tool that determines if a student is predisposed to score higher on one test versus the other. For more information, contact Erika Svecova at esvecova@greenwichedgroup.com or 203-661-1609 ext. 111.

GEG also offers college counseling services to help with every step of the process, including advice on course selection, summer experiences, testing plans, building a balanced college list, completing applications, writing essays, deciding on early application strategies, interview preparation, financial aid and more.  These services are offered on either a full-service or a la carte basis. For more information, contact Linda Ortwein at Lortwein@greenwichedgroup.com or 203-661-1609 ext. 110.