The October 2015 lightningboltonline.com
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Volume 16, Issue 3 www.facebook.com/sagehillschool
The College Crunch Navigating the âDelightfulâ College Admission Process By Claire Dwyer
16dwyerc.publications@gmail.com For seniors, the pain is familiar. We want more than anything to know that weâre in to college, and we want the litany of exams, essays, applications and interviews to come to an end. But unfortunately, weâre not there
quite yet. So for those seniors who still feel like theyâre lost in the quagmire of college uncertainty, the college counseling team is there to help. Thatâs the key word: counseling. A word usually associated with reducing adolescent stress, counseling can come in many different forms, including advice about admissions, essays, and how to stay sane during October and November. College counselors are there to help
and even to listen to our fears and problemsâabout college of course. Frank Smith, director of college counseling, notes that there have been some changes to the program this year. âThe vast majority [of college visits] are repeat visits,â Smith said. âA few new visitors include the University of Georgia, the University of Tennessee Knoxville, Quest University Canada and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.â
Sahar Emtiaz
A Glimpse into the Future. One of more than 100 college admission representatives make small group presentation for Sage Hill School juniors and seniors the first three months of the school year in the college counseling office and in the MMLH auditorium.
Now, at this point if youâre wondering âwhatâs a college visit?â and youâre a senior, youâre not âdone forâ quite yet. âWeâve had 94 college visits so far and another 40 or so in the rest of October and November. We could still get a few more, but the vast majority have been scheduled,â Smith said. College visits are an important part of the program for Sage seniors to get to know the colleges they are potentially applying to. âStudents visit with the college reps for various reasons,â Smith said. âSome hope to get answers to questions they may have about the topics in my number four answer above. They also come to demonstrate interest and let the college rep know that theyâre serious about that institution. Iâm happy to report that we donât have a problem with students coming to visits simply to get out of class,â Smith said. âOur students are very thoughtful about when they can and/or should miss class. If we see a student at a college meeting, we naturally assume he/she is there for the right reasons.â And as an extra incentive to come to visits, college reps often view Sage as an exceptional school near the top of their list of schools in Southern California to visit, he said. âI met with a college rep from a highly selective university after she visited with students last week and she said, âI love visiting Sage! Your students always ask the best questions.â Itâs not unusual for us to hear such comments. College reps know our students are well prepared for the rigors of the collegiate classroom when they leave Sage,â Smith said. âThey also value our emphasis on service learning and believe our students will continue to improve the world around them when they enroll at their schools. Since our students are willing to leave California to attend college, college reps from around the country know itâs not a waste of time coming here because thereâs always a chance one student or more could attend their school. In general, weâre a must-stop for many college reps.â So do not despair, Sage seniors. In the world of the meat market of college admissions, weâre the choice cut, so they say. âWe often hear students ask questions about the admissions process in addition to student life, academics with a focus on potential majors, athletics, fine arts, residence life, research opportunities and scholarships. Our students do an amazing job of engaging the college reps and asking them pertinent questions,â Smith said. So the senior class can, with a momentâs hesitation beforehand to check if weâve done all our homeworkâŠbreath. In the midst of the quagmire, the meat market, or maybe for the select few one of the most exciting times in their life so far, itâs looking like weâre going to come out alive.