Menu Sidebar
Menu

New Scholarship Resource for your Students

Access Scholarships has launched a new free platform for scholarships that your students may want to check out. Their database currently offers more than 10,000 scholarships. Here are some links to scholarships tailored for Juniors, Seniors, International students and full-ride offerings:

They also offer 2 $1,000 Scholarships which for students of all ages which can be found on their site.

How Soft Skills Shape Successful Social Workers and Ways to Spark Interest in a Career as a Social Worker Among Youth

Most kids don’t think about social workers unless they are forced to interact with one. Those in that situation rarely view them aspirationally. Social workers are important but criminally under-recognized.

As a school guidance counselor, you are uniquely well-positioned to point this career opportunity out to the next generation of workers. But how do identify what students are going to be a good fit? Soft skills are an enormous component of social work.

In this article, we take a look at how soft skills influence the profession. We will also examine how you can present social work as a compelling option to your students.

Should a Lack of Soft Skills Exclude Certain Students?

The premise this article is emphasizing, of course, is that you might be able to identify students with a high aptitude for social work based on their soft skills. Still, it’s certainly possible that you will find students who do not neatly meet any of the criteria we are about to get into, who will still strike you as a good fit for the job.

That’s valid. While the mythology behind soft skills is that they can’t be taught, they can at the very least be nurtured and built upon.

You don’t need to wrangle up your school’s biggest extroverts to begin your social work recruitment initiative. If you think someone is a good fit for the job, put it out there. It’s their choice what they do with the recommendation.

Now, let’s get into it. What soft skills are a good fit for the job?

Communication

The ability to listen actively and communicate information in a way that is efficient and effective. Personality needn’t necessarily factor into how well a person communicates. Your shy students may be just as good at this skill as the talkative ones.

Social workers are constantly interacting with other people. Their job is often to communicate complicated processes to people who may have a wide range of different educational backgrounds. The ability to communicate clearly is very important.

Organization

Social workers also have large caseloads. Every person they work with will have a completely unique set of circumstances that bear consideration and attention. Students who can balance multiple responsibilities at once could potentially be good candidates.

Time management

When social workers are late, it could influence an entire family’s future. Timeliness, as they say, is next to godliness. Students who can’t quite figure out your school’s four-minute passing period protocols might not be a good fit.

Compassion

This is probably the most important ingredient. Social workers need to care, both about the people on their caseload, and about the general concept of social work itself. They need to be passionate about the idea of social services that lift people up while they are down.

The job is so difficult that, without that compassion, bad-fit job candidates will inevitably churn out.

Academic Aptitude

Finally, it’s a good idea to identify students with some academic ability. You needn’t necessarily limit your search to the honor roll but do keep in mind that most social workers go on to graduate school. You’ll want to find students who are up for that.

Why Social Work?

So that’s what it takes to be good at the job. Why do these kids care? Right now, they don’t. Rare is the child who weighs their pillow down with dreams of social work each night. You can change that by pointing out what makes the profession special.

For example:

  • Compensation- No, social workers aren’t out there getting rich. Their salaries rarely break into the six-figure range. Still, they pay their bills. They don’t worry about their debit card balance as they stand in line at the grocery store. Social workers in many states are also on pension plans which means they get strong retirement benefits. Retirement plans are extremely abstract for 17-year-olds, but try to bring the point home. They’ll appreciate it one day.
  • Variety- So many jobs become dull over time. You go in. You do your work. Tomorrow, you do the exact same thing again. Social workers, at the very least, do not live a life that feels like one interminable day. Their caseload could see them balancing numerous complex situations every single day. This is both a challenge and a reward of the job.
  • It’s meaningful work- So common is the story of the thirty-five-year-old [insert soulless business career here] who, after ten-plus years of successful employment, pivots dramatically into something new. Healthcare. Education. Social work. A job that actually makes a difference in the world. For many high school-aged students, the concept of meaningful work is as abstract as retirement. Still, as someone with an impactful job yourself, you are well-positioned to emphasize the rewards of doing work that makes a difference.

You should be honest, of course. Social work can be brutally hard emotionally. Terribly frustrating—as someone who works with high schoolers, frustration is another professional experience you should be well equipped to explain.

As with anything, it is important to paint a complete picture. The ideal social work candidate will be as prepared for the challenges as they are excited about the rewards of the profession.

Conclusion

One other thing to emphasize: Your students may find that there are lots of good scholarship opportunities out there for people who are willing to consider a career in social work. Like healthcare and education, there are major social work shortages.

These shortages, though bad for the communities experiencing them, are an opportunity as well. As you make your pitch, consider having resources handy that will explain potential scholarship opportunities. There is a reasonably high chance that your state has programs in place to usher in a new generation of social workers.

Collaboration and cooperation are keys to a successful college search

American transportation systems, infrastructure and community amenities have all benefitted from public-private partnerships, which are contractual agreements between a governmental entity and a commercial one.

But there’s something much simpler and easier to initiate that benefits college-bound students and their families: an informal public-private collaboration.

Whether a student is in a public or private high school, the college search journey requires time, patience, homework and lots and lots of knowledge. High school counselors, who may have responsibility for as many as 500 students, can’t possibly keep up with changes in financial aid, coach every student through their SAT or provide feedback on admission essays.

Even home-school parents, who only have their child’s best interests at heart, may not be equipped for the intricacies of merit aid, need-based aid, scholarships, choosing a college or a major, or any of the million other decisions that have to be made.

It’s worth it, therefore, for a high school or community organization to collaborate with those who have expertise.

Before entering into a collaboration with a private company, a public school needs to be sure that families won’t be subjected to a sales pitch.

 Workshops should simply be about sharing resources, information and knowledge, to the benefit of the students, their families and the high schools themselves.

These partnership workshops help high school counselors offer their students additional assistance with college selection, essays, application support, and other areas in preparing them for college.  

Students are especially eager for one-on-one help.  They often need the special attention that a school counselor simply doesn’t have time to provide. 

Nonprofits, high schools and community organizations are right to be wary of partnerships with for-profit firms, and they should do their due diligence to ensure a good experience for their constituents. A company should be able to provide references and reviews from previous partners, as well as demonstrate the expertise of its staff.

Erin Hack, a high school counselor in the Chicago area, has more than 15 years’ experience in high school and college career counseling. She is also an advisor with www.MyCollegePlanningTeam.com  For a list of workshop offerings for your school, visit MCPT’s workshop page. You can also email info@collegeplanningteam.com

Recognizing and Addressing Anxiety in College Applicants: Strategies for Counselors

For many students, the college application process is a stressful experience filled with high expectations and overwhelming pressure. As a counselor, you may notice even the most capable students struggle with common anxiety-related behaviors like stumbling through test prep, freezing up while taking exams, or having difficulty conveying their true selves in essays or interviews. These experiences are more than nervous quirks; they’re often rooted in the broader issue of performance anxiety, which affects a student’s ability to thrive and succeed. The good news is no matter how severe, it can be a quick and long-lasting fix!

Identifying signs of anxiety in students is the first step in supporting them effectively. Common symptoms include procrastination and avoidance, where students delay tasks or avoid discussions around applications due to underlying fears. Perfectionism is also prevalent, leading some students to burn out as they strive to get everything “just right.” Listen for self-doubt and negative self-talk—comments like “I’ll never get in,” “I’m not a good test taker” reveal insecurities that could stem from high expectations or earlier unresolved experiences. Physical symptoms such as sleep or digestive issues, headaches, and fatigue may be linked to stress, and even rushed or slowed-down thinking can be triggered in high-pressure situations. All these symptoms can negatively impact focus and performance.

The statistics also support this growing concern: nearly 60% of high school students report feeling stressed about college admissions, and 30% experience symptoms of anxiety, with college-bound students particularly affected. And it’s only gotten worse since the pandemic! Excessive anxiety, unlike excitement-driven motivation, usually undermines performance by impairing memory recall, cognitive function, and focus—all essential for success in test-taking and the application process.

As counselors, you can help students manage their anxiety by suggesting practical strategies:

  • Encourage Self-Care: Emphasize the importance of sleep, nutrition, exercise, downtime, and socializing with friends. Even small adjustments can help students maintain a balanced mindset.
  • Teach Grounding Techniques: Breathing exercises like the “4-7-8” technique (inhale for four counts, hold for seven, exhale for eight) or Heart Math’s ‘heart breathing’ offer quick in the moment relief.
  • Incorporate Mindfulness Practices: Apps like Calm or Headspace introduce students to meditation and mindfulness for stress management over time.
  • Leverage Visualization and Sound Therapy: Visualization exercises can help students imagine successful outcomes while calming music or binaural beats can provide relaxation.

Whether a student has light grade jitters or full-blown panic attacks, by working with an experienced coach can empower students with tools to refocus on positive outcomes. Holistic and mindful methods like EFT/Tapping, Neuro-linguistic programming, hypnosis, EMDR, growth mindset, and other cognitive behavioral therapy tools provide effective and enduring results, quickly getting the student out of their own way. By proactively addressing these issues, students become better equipped to face the application and test-taking process with confidence, resilience, focus, and gain tools for life.

___

Bara Sapir, MA, Cht, CNLP is CEO of City Test Prep and MindFlow Speed Reading. She is a master coach helping students achieve peak performance in school, on tests, and in life.  Send questions to:bara@citytestprep.com or call the office at 646-290-7440.

Live Coaching Model for Your Students

Signet Education is doing something innovative on their podcast, “Don’t Force It!” in the new year – a live coaching model.

They will help students, parents, and counselors navigate academic challenges, questions about standardized testing, milestones of the college process, and more.

They are looking for people outside their team to help work their particular magic with students and families as well. That means you, if you have an interest in participating.

If you or someone you know would like to be considered for a live coaching session on the podcast, please fill out the forms linked below:

Student: forms.gle/cRyBSFP9tSEJnsVN6

Parent/Other Adult: forms.gle/v6Nppxix6HPKrRfdA

Free Deadline Hotline – Have your Students Questions Answered

Back by popular demand is a free Deadline Hotline for students and their supporters to Zoom in for last minute questions before submitting early college applications. Thanks to a collaboration between Coalition for College, Scoir, and College Guidance Network (CGN), on Wednesday, October 30th from 6:00-9:00 pm ET, kind volunteers from high school counseling offices, and admission representatives from UPenn, NC State, University of Vermont, and Arizona State University will answer questions like:

  • Does taking care of my grandmother qualify as an activity?
  • Is this statement the proper use of the “additional information” section?
  • How do I complete the self-reported grade section?
  • When should I submit test scores?

Students and their supporters can register here on or before the 30th: https://tinyurl.com/CGN24DLHL

Why High School Students with Strong Soft Skills Should Consider Different Nursing Careers

Nursing is a mentally strenuous profession. You need to be smart. Able to memorize dense materials and adapt to complicated situations. Every working nurse on the planet will tell you that critical thinking is a life-saving skill in the hospital setting.

They will also tell you that, most of the time, the job requires a much subtler set of skills. Yes, you need to be smart and hardworking. You also need to understand people. Patients who feel comfortable do better than those who do not.

If you have ever had a prolonged interaction with the healthcare system, you know how much your nurse’s social skills influence the experience.

As a school counselor, you are uniquely positioned to influence future generations of nurses in your community. Healthcare recruitment can— and should— start early. In this article, we take a look at why you should point students with strong soft skills in the direction of nursing careers.

First: Why Nursing?

Yeah, that job everyone seems to be leaving? Why tell a kid they’d have a fun time doing that? For one thing, a frequent reason that people leave nursing careers in the first place is because they weren’t a good fit for the work.

The goal here, of course, is to select students who would be a good fit. We read in the news about people who didn’t like nursing. No one reports on people who do like it. “Headline, headline, nurse likes job,” isn’t a story. It’s a fact of life for hundreds of thousands of people all over the world.

So, yes. The goal is to find people who will be a good fit. Those potential future nursing candidates will benefit from:

  • A competitive salary. Nurses aren’t out there getting rich but they do earn higher than the national average, in many cases coming in at upper five figures as they advance.
  • Rewarding work. Nurses also just do a job they can be proud of. Most careers don’t give a person the opportunity to save a life. That’s a responsibility that can make the right person excited to go to work.
  • TONS of opportunities. Though often unknown to outsiders, a BSN holder has many career options that extend beyond hospital work. There are dozens of ways to use a degree in nursing.

As a high school counselor, you could do a lot worse than calling a kid’s attention to a lucrative career they will love.
 
It’s also worth keeping in mind that there is room for advancement that often is not highlighted sufficiently. Nurses can go to graduate school where they can become licensed as nurse practitioners.

Family nurse practitioners function almost exactly as a general practitioner might. In fact, many people see them for general care appointments.

In other cases, NPs can specialize. For example, a nurse who likes to work with babies can become a neonatal nurse practitioner. Professionals who are passionate about mental healthcare can become psychiatric nurse practitioners.

Nursing is an incredibly flexible career path, with almost endless options for people who are willing to continue their education beyond a four-year degree.

What are Soft Skills, and Why Do They Matter for Nurses?

Soft skills are often framed as abilities that can’t be taught. Communication. Organization. Your ability to relate to other people. In reality, a person can take steps to develop their soft skills, but native ability is certainly beneficial.

In healthcare, soft skills can have demonstrable benefits. As a patient, you want a nurse who can manage their time effectively, right? You want someone who communicates in a way that you can understand—because so often the patient knows next to nothing about what is going on.

You also just want someone you like. That’s the more complicated aspect of “soft,” ability. You don’t necessarily need to seek out the most charismatic people in the school as good nursing candidates.

Nurses are often more introverted and thoughtful. You instead want someone who can leverage empathy effectively in everyday communications. Patients benefit enormously from care providers who can demonstrate that they care, even during short interactions. When you go to the doctor’s office, the exchanges you have are often very brief.

A healthcare provider who can demonstrate that they care even during a very short exchange will help produce better overall patient outcomes.

Other Considerations

Soft skills are great, but they aren’t the only thing you should look for when calling healthcare careers to your students’ attention. As you nudge people toward nursing, make sure you are thinking beyond the stereotypes.

We all have our internalized biases. Usually, they come to us not by conscious effort but simply because our brains are naturally inclined toward shortcuts. We see so many middle-aged, white female nurses that these are the people we imagine when we think about the profession.

Unfortunately, the lack of minority representation in healthcare has come at a steep price. Black patients in particular experience disproportionately poor healthcare outcomes relative to the rest of the population.

This anomaly is seen often as a communication problem. Majority group nurses and doctors, despite good intentions, simply are not as effective at relating to and understanding patients who come from different backgrounds than them.

As a guidance counselor, you have a uniquely powerful influence over that dynamic. Think about directing male and minority students toward healthcare when you come across students who could be a good fit.

Conclusion

The solution to healthcare shortages is neither easy nor quick. While hospitals are working on improving working conditions and developing other retention strategies, the ultimate fix will be to introduce a new wave of good-fit nurses to the profession.

As a school counselor, you can play an important role in this process. And as a community member, you have every motivation to do it. The kids sitting across the other side of your desk represent the future of healthcare in the town where you live.

What bigger motivation could you have? Start making a point of directing ambitious students with strong soft skills toward healthcare. It’s as good for them as it is for you.

Tips and Strategies for answering the “Why This College?” Question

When responding to the “Why this college?” question, it is important to convey that you are not just applying for the sake of applying – they want students that want them.

Colleges care about “yield,” which is the percentage of students that actually choose to attend the college, out of the total number who are offered admission. Yields vary greatly between colleges. So, when admission officers are evaluating your application, they look for signs of interest. They want an indication that you will accept the offer if you get admitted.

  • Explain why the college is a good fit for you; primarily regarding their academic offerings and secondarily about the campus culture, clubs and opportunities
  • Be specific. Show your knowledge of the college. Talk about quirky college rituals and traditions, name college courses and professors. Show them you’ve done your homework and know a lot about the college; courses, activities, study abroad, majors, internships, etc.
  • Reference your campus visit if you’ve made one. Describe how you felt, who you met and what you learned, again, specifically about what you learned that helped you determine that this school is a good fit for you and your interests.
  • Show how you can contribute to the college campus and the student body. So instead of saying, “I want to join X club,” write, “I hope to contribute my experience on the debate team to X club.”
  • Focus on why the college stands out to you and how you can stand out in their college community.
  • After identifying courses that pique your interest, jot down some words as to why you would be excited to take them. Find out the names of the professors and see if they’ve written any books or articles of interest. I suggest that my students research the faculty in the major of interest and then go to the LinkedIn profiles of a few professors to find out about their backgrounds, books and articles written.
  • Write a little about what you do in your spare time; i.e., what clubs and organizations would you plan to join. How are these clubs related to what you did in high school?
  • Talk about your involvement in community service. Research service opportunities at the college and discuss what you’d like to continue doing or get involved in.
  • Incorporate the “Why Me?” into your essay: what will you bring to their college campus? How will you enrich the college community?
  • Focus on what experiences, interests, talents, skills and enthusiasm you bring with you.
  • In essence, explain why selecting YOU will help them.

“Why this college?” Worksheet

Name of college:

Academic Fit

What subjects are you interested in? Why?

Identify two majors/minors and an upper-level course in each major. Write why you are interested in taking these courses. Do a little digging on the professor to see if he/she has written any interesting articles, spoken at any conferences, etc.

Identify one minor and an upper-level course. Write why you are interested in taking this course.

Check and see if the college has any certificate programs, Centers, or interdisciplinary programs that are appealing to you.

Research the study abroad options that interest you and write where you’d like to go and why?

Social Fit

What will you do with your free time?

Check out the list of Student Activities/Clubs/Organizations – pick two or three that interest you, why?

Do you plan on continuing any of the activities you’ve done in high school in college? If so, which ones and why?

Research the community service opportunities. What activities would you do? Why?

How will you enrich the college community? What will you contribute?

What excites you the most about attending this college?

Lee Bierer is an independent college adviser based in Charlotte. Send questions to: lee@bierercollegeconsulting.comwww.bierercollegeconsulting.com

3 Tips for Navigating Your College Major – Free Webinar

The College Spy is offering a new webinar on October 17th. It’s called, 3 Tips for Navigating Your College Major.

There are so many benefits to knowing your major before you enter college! Making the decision early can save you time and money. Additionally, teens who know what they want to study in college have an easier time finding a college that suits them well, are less likely to drop out, and feel more confident with the entire college process. In this webinar, you will learn how to help your teen choose a college major.

Topics include:

• How to bring new ideas to the table

• Specific tools and strategies to narrow the options

• How to build confidence in making the right decision

• Identifying relevant skills to assist in making the right decision

Here’s the link to register. It’s completely free. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/8717284913723/WN_Rh5nAlOeQS2r9hR8nBmA2Q

College List Worksheet

Are any of your students trying to organize their thoughts on which College they would like to attend? Going Merry has created a nice worksheet your students can use to include information about each College on their target list and make quick comparisons. It’s a nice templated they can use to store all the information they gather in one place. Here is a link and it is available free to download: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BKmnpGS0-w2_SivV7ikUsGqkOR1c7z_DDOGb-h7BX78/edit?gid=0#gid=0

Older Posts

Link for Counselors

Current Publication

View Current Publication

Advertisements

LINK Newsletter for Counselors

Sign up to receive our bi-weekly e-newsletter.