Getting Into College Starts With Visiting Your High School’s College Office
Almost every accredited high school in America should have an active college, or guidance counselor’s office to help students with the college admissions process and related items. When was the last time you or your child visited theirs? On average, the rates at which students seek and obtain help from their college counselor can vary by socioeconomic status, race, and several other factors.
In well funded high schools with large student populations, more than one college advisor or guidance counselor can exist. In addition to helping students with the college admissions process, guidance counselors can wear several different hats.
According to the American School Counselor Association, guidance counselors are essential in providing proactive programs that engage students and include leadership, advocacy and collaboration with school staff, administration and community/family members in the delivery of programs and activities to help students achieve success.
As a parent of two younger children, my wife and I can periodically find ourselves having check-ins with elementary school counselors and teachers to identify any special learning needs that either of my children may have. From there, we collaborate on interventions based on our children’s academic and social/emotional needs. As a lifelong educator, I believe that nothing can stop a child from thriving once their emotional and social needs are met, both at home and at school.
While school counselors must develop comprehensive & ongoing college preparation interventions for all students throughout high school, they must concentrate efforts during the ninth- and 10th-grade years on building student aspirations and augmenting students’ and parents’ knowledge about colleges and financial aid. In essence, a wide range of college-related variables influence the college application process (Cabrera & La Nasa, 2000.2001; McDonough. 2005a. 2005b; Perna. 2000; Perna ct al., 2008; Perna & Titus, 2005 ).
Many studies have found a strong link between visiting your college office and an increase in the number of colleges students apply to. For instance, in a study by Bryan, Holcomb, McCoy, Moore-Thomas and Day-Vines (2009) it was found that school counselors’ post-secondary expectations was a strong predictor of student- counselor contact.
High school students were less likely to see school counselors for college information when they believed school counselors did not expect them to attend college. In a city like New York, with countless minority & immigrant students, it’s critical that more counselors from similar ethnic and SES backgrounds are trained & brought into high need schools to ensure this positive trend continues. If the bar is set high for a child, students will respond and thrive accordingly.
The findings in the study also showed that lower middle socioeconomic status (SES) students & low SES students who had NO counselor contact had lower odds of applying to two or more schools compared with students from those from the same SES groups that DID visit the high school/college counselor.
In essence, students from lower SES families depend far more heavily on college office counselors than high income counterparts do. Black or African American students are consistently more likely to see the school counselor for college information than their White peers (Bryan et al., 2009). Higher income groups can rely on parents that both attended college, their friends, and private counselors. This makes the role of high school counselors & college office leaders indispensable for low income and minority families. (Cabrera & La Nasa, 2000, 2001; Stanton-Salazar, 2001).
Overall many factors including: Race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, students’ post-secondary education aspirations and mothers post-secondary education expectations significantly predicted students’ application to two or more schools.
At Khan’s, I spend my Tuesday to Thursday office hours having college counseling sessions with parents & students. Oftentimes, it takes just a few minutes for me to figure out the extra level of support that students get when their mother’s post-secondary education is completed, whether here or in a different country. I was a very fortunate child to not only have my mother complete her Master’s (at New School University) while I was a fourth-fifth grader, but have countless aunts and my grandmother in education leadership. While my father was known as being a pioneer educator to the NYC South Asian community, it was my mom that took charge of ensuring I was keeping up academically, healthy and happy as any teenager can realistically be.
In summary, student-counselor contact for college information is a significant positive predictor
when applying to college, and these effects appear stronger for earlier student — counselor contact. The earlier your child is meeting regularly with their school counselor, the more likely they are to succeed.
For any parents please ensure that your child is regularly meeting their high school guidance counselor. They should start in the 9th grade and aim to meet with their high school counselor at least twice a year. This can help them discuss their areas of strength, concerns around their classes, and a trusted educator to help with emotional/social needs at an important stage like high school. By sophomore year, conversations with your high school counselor should revolve around Advanced Placement class selection, SAT test dates, summer internships, and early chats about college or fields of interest.
Securing an appointment with your counselor is never easy, but emailing a request and including the parent and student in the email request can go a long way. If your counselor is unresponsive, or says that they are too busy, you may need to try again by email, leave messages with the school counselor’s office, or even copy the Principal and your parents in your email request.
With college admissions offers coming out this March, high school families will once again be reminded of the need to start that counseling process early and regularly. Best wishes & good luck meeting your college counselor!
Dr. Ivan Khan is the CEO of Khan’s Tutorial, a tutoring company serving families since 1994. Khan’s Tutorial’s work around the Specialized High Schools, SAT, AP, & State Standards prep has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, BBC News, NBC Asian America, Al-Jazeera English, & several other outlets. Dr. Khan is a proud alumnus of Bronx Science, SUNY Downstate College of Medicine, SUNY Downstate School of Public Health, & Columbia Business School. In Spring 2020, Dr. Khan earned a College Advising Certificate from Columbia University’s Teachers College.
