18 Questions to Ask Your Counselor

They’re There to Answer Them

Your counselor is one of your best resources as you plan for college. She or he has information about admission tests, college preparation, and your education and career options. Here are some basic questions to help get your conversation started:

1. What are the required and recommended courses — for graduation and for college prep?
2. How should I plan my schedule so I’ll complete them?
3. Which elective courses do you recommend?
4. Which AP® courses are available?
5. When is the PSAT/NMSQT® going to be given here?
6. Is this school a testing center for the SAT®, or will I need to go somewhere nearby?
7. Do you have any after-school or evening sessions available for college planning, or the SAT?
8. Do you have college handbooks or other guides that I can browse or borrow? Do you have a copy of the free Taking the SAT booklet, which has a practice test in it?
9. What activities can I do at home and over the summer to get ready for college?
10. What kinds of grades do different colleges require?
11. Are there any college fairs at this school, or nearby?
12. Where do other kids from this school attend college?
13. What are the requirements or standards for the honor society?
14. Can you put me in touch with recent grads that are going to the colleges on my wish list?
15. Do you have any information to help me start exploring my interests and related careers?
16. If my colleges need a recommendation from you, how can I help you know me better, so it can be more personal?
17. Can I see my transcript as it stands now, to see if everything is as I think it should be?
18. How does our school compare to others, in terms of test scores and reputation?

Reality Check

Your guidance counselor may be the most wonderful and accessible person on the planet, or she or he may be juggling a thousand students and barely know your name. So remember that the person who has the biggest stake in your academics is you. It’s up to you to stay on top of opportunities and deadlines, to take control of your future.

What to Do about “Senioritis”

Help Your Child Make Senior Year Count

High school seniors have worked hard for three years, taking tests, completing projects, and preparing for college admission. When senior year rolls around some students just want to get through college applications and relax before they head off to the college of their choice.

Also known as “senioritis,” taking it easy senior year may be a nice break for your child, but is likely to do more harm than good. According to recent reports, incomplete high school preparation can contribute to academic problems in college.

• “As many as half of all college students do not have adequate academic preparation, and are required to take remedial courses.”
• “More than one quarter of the freshmen at 4-year colleges and nearly half of those at 2-year colleges do not even make it to their sophomore year.”

Not only does “senioritis” jeopardize your child’s chances for success later on in college, it can also affect her grades — and college admission officers pay close attention to her performance senior year.

College Admission

Many students mistakenly believe that prepping for college ends after the eleventh grade. However, the senior year — the entire senior year — is actually of particular interest to colleges.

Applying

Many college applications (including the Common Application) require your child to list his senior courses, including information about course levels and credit hours. It will be very obvious to the admission officers if he has decided to “take the year off.”

Many colleges also include as part of the application a form called the mid-year grade report. Your child’s counselor completes this form with first-half grades and sends it to the colleges. It then becomes a crucial part of the application folder.

If Your Child Is Accepted

Many college acceptance letters include warnings to students such as “Your admission is contingent on your continued successful performance.” This means colleges reserve the right to deny your child admission should her senior year grades drop.

Mary Lee Hoganson, College Counselor for Homewood-Flossmor Community High School, Flossmor, Illinois writes: “It is not at all rare for a college to withdraw an offer of admission when grades drop significantly over the course of the senior year. (I have a folder full of copies of these letters.)”

Helping Your Child Through Senior Year

Senior year is your child’s opportunity to strengthen his skills and broaden his/her experiences, in school and out, to prepare for all of the challenges ahead. With your encouragement and support, and the help of his teachers, your child’s senior year will help launch him/her on the path to a successful future.

A Challenging Course Load

Your child should take the most rigorous courses available, and be sure to continue taking college-track subjects. He/She should consider AP^®courses, which can also earn him/her credit at many colleges.

Pursuing Activities

Your child’s continued involvement in activities, sports, volunteer work, etc. will help him/her stay active and focused throughout his final year. In addition, a great internship or career-focused job opportunity can help motivate your child to start considering his career options. Meaningful and significant experiences will help prepare him/her to make informed decisions about his education and career goals.

Try out College Early

If your child is interested in pursuing a subject further, and has excelled at his/her high school classes so far, she should consider taking a class at a local college. This challenge can help him/her avoid sliding into an academic slump, and stimulate her interest in the possibilities of college.

Another option in many areas is “middle college” or “early college” high schools. These schools, normally located on community and four-year college campuses, allow students to spend their last two years taking classes in both college and high school. Early exposure to college classes introduces students to the rigor of college work while easing their transition from high school.

Explore All the Options

Your child’s continued commitment to challenge himself and grow will help him/her to maintain his momentum, and make smart decisions about his/her future. Your child should discuss all his education options with his/her counselor to create a plan that puts him/her on the right track for success — throughout his/her high school years and beyond.