FAFSA Foul Ups? Enough—Someone Needs to Go
Counselors' Corner
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21h ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. I can’t think of a single school counselor who wouldn’t be disciplined, even fired, if they prevented half of their seniors from applying to college. These students want to go to college, and they’ve navigated many hoops and hurdles to build academic and extracurricular records that not only show their ability to be successful in college, but give them the skills, knowledge, and attitudes to be successful once they arrive on campus. Some take tests, some give up summers for additional learning experiences, some beg their parents to let them at least try college, an ..read more
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Working With Disappointed Students
Counselors' Corner
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1w ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. The slow trickle of college decisions builds to a rushing stream this week and gains tsunami proportions by the end of the month. Predictions are for a record number of college applicants, which most likely means a record number of students going to college in the fall… … but students don't always see this bigger, better picture if one of their top colleges turns down their application. Not every student who was waitlisted or turned away asks for advice, but these three concepts can help you support and encourage those who do: Your first job as a counselor is to ..read more
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When a College Says No
Counselors' Corner
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2w ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. The real madness of March has nothing to do with basketball—it begins when colleges announce their admissions decisions, starting around March 20. As a pre-game warmup, let’s review what we already know: Most selective colleges report an increase in applicants every year; Since these schools don’t admit more students than they did last year, that means they end up saying no to more students… …and wait-listing more students. This increase means fewer students are likely to be admitted from the waitlist come May—and if they are admitted, financial aid will be scarc ..read more
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A Chance to Make a Difference
Counselors' Corner
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3w ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. This time of year leads to lots of second guessing, especially if you live somewhere that sees snow. Lawns are this interesting shade of yellow, there’s a film of salt on the roads, gardens look like vast voids of brown. Given the visual cues, it’s fair to wonder—is there really anything pretty out there? The same can be said for being a school counselor this time of year. Despite winter break, there’s a sense of cabin fever to all these gray days. Most winter sports seasons are over, and spring sports haven’t started—and in our offices, most of the conversation i ..read more
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A New Approach to College Admissions Testing Policies
Counselors' Corner
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1M ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. Dear Junior: You’ve probably heard many colleges are updating their admissions policies regarding the submission of test scores. Since you’ve expressed an interest in applying to Everold College, we thought we’d reach out and let you know we’ve updated our policy as well. Everold had long required SAT or ACT test scores, feeling these scores give us a clearer understanding of where students stood nationally. Our ability to use those scores ran into significant challenges when COVID broke in 2020, leading us to go to a test optional policy. Our reason was simple ..read more
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Choosing a College by Major?
Counselors' Corner
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1M ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. On the face of it, it seems like a simple enough question—what will you major in when you go to college? Most colleges use majors as the building blocks for departments, degrees, and even housing, so they must be pretty important.  But there’s a dark side to all this majoring business. Ask the average 17-year-old what they’d like to do with their life, and the honest answer would likely have something to do with eating cereal for dinner, and staying in their pajamas til noon. Yet, these same juniors and seniors step through the counseling office door, and fee ..read more
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The Four Attitudes of Learning—and Living, and Parenting, and Counseling
Counselors' Corner
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1M ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. People continue to be baffled by the idea that school counseling has a curriculum. More than just the epicenter of solving problems, the counseling center is the place where students get information and skills to build and pursue goals, work through challenges, and live life to the fullest. Just like the Math curriculum and the English curriculum, the counseling curriculum is a learning experience—and the classroom to apply these counseling lessons is life. Since the idea of a counseling curriculum seems to be just a little too abstract, it might be wise to introd ..read more
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An Open Letter to Education Secretary Cardona
Counselors' Corner
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1M ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. Mr. Secretary: I don’t often speak on behalf of the school counselor profession, even though I’ve been president of the National Association for College Admission Counseling, and inaugural School Counselor Ambassador Fellow at the Department of Education (ED). But, circumstances being what they are, and emboldened by this being National School Counseling Week, I’m going to roll the dice of drawing the ire of some colleagues and speak for the team. Mr. Secretary, you owe us. We have been moving heaven and earth to get students to consider college—not because it h ..read more
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A Note to Your Principal About National School Counseling Week
Counselors' Corner
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2M ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. Dear Principal: This was a little awkward for me at first. I’ve never been crazy about telling people when my birthday is—even if I’m filling it out online—since it seems like I’m saying “Hey, look at me, it’s time to make my day special”. That was my first thought for next week, which is National School Counseling Week. But then I took a closer look, and realized next week isn’t about me, the counselor. It’s about counseling, the work done here in the office. With that in mind, it’s easy for me to ask if we could promote this week with some activities desi ..read more
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Making the Most of Scheduling Season
Counselors' Corner
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2M ago
by Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D. Most high school counselors have a love/hate relationship to scheduling. If building schedules is part of your duties, you get to actually see all of your students, and that’s good. On the other hand, if all you do with this time is put together a list of classes, that’s more a matter of logistics, and less a matter of counseling. What are the best ways to make this time rich with counseling interactions? Here are some tried-and-true approaches to consider: Advanced communication Giving students a heads up that scheduling is coming is a good way to prepare them f ..read more
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