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2019 School Counselor of the year named by the American School Counselor Association

Brian Coleman, a school counselor and counseling department chair at Jones College Prep in Chicago, Ill., has been named the 2019 School Counselor of the Yearby the American School Counselor Association(ASCA). Coleman is a graduate of Northwestern University and DePaul University. He has served as a school counselor at Jones College Prep since 2014.

The School Counselor of the Year award honors professionals who devote their careers to advocating for the nation’s students and addressing their academic and social/emotional development and college and career readiness needs.

Coleman, a former actor, found his love for education and students while performing with About Face Theatre company and its youth talk-back program. These programs encouraged him to earn his master’s degree in education and pivot into the school counseling field. Coleman recognized that serving as a school counselor would afford him with daily opportunities to “support, validate and affirm the next generation of leaders and change agents.” David Gilmer, English teacher at Jones College Prep (and co-Advisor to the school mentorship program Coleman oversees), said Coleman’s dedication and diversity is exactly what sets him apart. “Brian is a school counselor who not only currently represents the best the profession has to offer but also who will continue to set the bar high, even if it means moving in new directions,”Gilmer said.

Therese Plunkett, Jones College Prep vice principal, states that Coleman works diligently to differentiate the delivery of services to meet the needs of the school’s diverse student population. As the faculty sponsor to Jones Pride,the school’s LGBTQA+ student organization, Coleman became aware of students’ frustration about the lack of resources, relationship support and inclusive language for gender and sexual minorities in the freshman sexual health curriculum. In response,Coleman collaborated with the Student Government Association to spearhead a revised sexual health education program for 377 sophomore students.“ With Mr. Coleman’s help, we were able to take the necessary actions that have allowed our school to include more hours of sex education into our health curriculum,” said Sheryl Ordonez, senior at Jones College Prep. The program’s success is leading to potential expansion opportunities to freshman, junior and senior students.

Coleman’s holistic approach to school counseling at Jones College Prep includes advocating for expanded education and knowledge for students as well as school staff. According to vice principal Plunkett, in addition to postsecondary planning and academic planning, Coleman has a strong commitment to ensuring the school provides interdisciplinary social/emotional learning supports for all students.

“As a school with college in our name, there tends to be a great deal of focus and energy placed exclusively on students’ college and postsecondary planning processes,” Coleman said. “However, we have worked to create a broader awareness that students’ holistic well-being is just as important to their current and future successes.” Coleman, who earned his Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor(LCPC)designation in 2017, collaborated with the school team to create extensive social/emotional programming at the freshman level as well as enhanced the school community’s awareness of social/emotional learning as an important facet of the high school experience. “Brian is truly talented and deeply committed to building a more just society through education,” said LaToya Hudson-Spells, former colleague and school counseling department co-chair at Jones College Prep. “He has done so much for our school community in his short tenure as a school counselor.”

“In back-to-back years, Chicago Public Schools counselors have earned the title of School Counselor of the Year for the incredible support they have provided Chicago’s children,”said Chicago Public School CEO Dr. Janice K. Jackson. “On behalf of Chicago Public Schools, I want to congratulate Brian Coleman, who represents not only the best in the state but the best this nation has to offer when it comes to supporting our students and helping make their dreams become a reality.”

Six finalists were selected for School Counselor of the Year based on their ability to create systemic change within the profession through leadership, collaboration and advocacy. All six finalists achieved increased student success through their comprehensive school counseling programs.

Coleman and the other School Counselor of the Year finalists, will be in Washington, D.C., Jan. 30–Feb. 1, 2019 where they will be honored and formally recognized at a black‐tie gala.

NACAC’s top 10 read blogs of 2018

NACAC is a great resource for Counselors. They just put together a list of their top 10 read blogs of 2018. We wanted to share them with you in case you missed them.

Saving High School Admission Visits
Plagued by low attendance when college reps visit your school? Specialized College Topics could be the saving grace for the traditional high school admission visit, writes NACAC member Barbara Tragakis Conner.

Stanford Report: College Rankings are Deeply Flawed
Researchers at Challenge Success — a nonprofit organization based at the Stanford University Graduate School of Education — released a white paper this fall that calls into question the value of university rankings.

By the Numbers: Student Scholarship Chances
Though movies and television make it seem like a full-ride scholarship will be readily available for nearly every student, reality is starkly different.

6 Ways Colleges and Universities Award Financial Aid
Help the families you serve by familiarizing yourself with the most common methods used by colleges to award financial aid.

Why I Love Being a School Counselor
Despite the difficult tasks and topics, it is a gift to be a part of a community that works to create engaged, confident, balanced, happy, bright, creative, and proactive young men and women, writes NACAC member Kelly Herrington.

Student-to-Counselor Ratios: See How Your State Stacks Up
Counselors in US public schools serve an average of 482 students, a caseload nearly twice the recommended maximum of 250.

Op-Ed: Life Skills Key to College Success
It takes more than good grades to make it in college. Life skills also play a role in determining whether a student succeeds or struggles away from home.

Achievement Pressure Linked to Anxiety, Depression
In response to the trend, a growing number of communities are working to address the sometimes-harmful effects of achievement culture.

Study: In-Class Use of Cell Phones, Laptops Lowers Test Scores
In the age of laptops, tablets, and smartphones, we’ve mastered the art of multitasking — right? Unfortunately, a new study suggests otherwise and includes some sobering findings for students.

Study: Perfectionism Rising Among College Students
A blessing? A curse? No matter how you view perfectionism, a new study shows that today’s college students are more likely to exhibit its traits than past generations.

Checklist your students can use 1 week prior to taking or re-taking the SAT test

Peterson’s put together a quick checklist your students can use 1 week out from taking the SAT test:

  • 1 Week Out – Step 1 :Take a full practice test. There are many available online.
  • 3-5 Days Out – Step 2 :Final Review – Now that you’ve taken a full practice test, go over any areas you aren’t completely confident in. This may mean looking over the material from your textbooks or study guides, or going over practice questions that focus on the subject you’re looking to get a bit more review in.
  • 2 Days Out – Step 3: Handle any Logistics – Plan the trip to the testing location. Make sure you have plenty of time to get their 15 minutes prior to the appointed time. Make sure you have reliable transportation locked up. Print your registration ticket and have a photo ID. If you feel the need for a last minute review, limit it to two hours so you remain fresh.
  • 1 Day Out – Step 4: Last Minute Details – Now is the time to let your brain take a breather before the test—don’t overload yourself with more studying!  Be confident in the work you have done. Pack your bag for the next day. Bring No. 2 pencils, your registration ticket, photo ID, approved calculator with batteries, a watch to time yourself, a sweater if you think you might want it, water, and snacks. Now relax, set an alarm (or alarms), and get a good night’s sleep.
  • Test Day – Step 5: A Few Reminders – Now comes the time to put all your hard work—both from your studying and from your schooling to date—to the test. Remember to pace yourself. And, be confident in your efforts to learn the material.

Buckle Up! It’s Time to Prep the Next Class for Writing Essays

This is the time of year many high school juniors (and even sophomores!) start to get nervous about the journey to college. Seniors are either done, or at the end of the college admissions process; some have been admitted to their dream schools, while others were deferred or rejected. Parents are starting to ask questions, too.

College talk is all the rage.

You already know the journey to college can be overwhelming. Confusing. Distressing. But there’s no need for your students and their parents to panic. We want to help you guide your students you through this process with minimal stress.

Here’s our No. 1 tip to help you get your juniors (and even sophomores and freshmen!) prepped a little earlier than you might normally consider for this exciting  journey to college: Writing a college essay is all about reflection. Your need to learn how to reflect! And now is a perfect time to start teaching them how to do that.

How to Reflect

Despite what you might believe, writing is not the most challenging part of the college essay. The tough part comes at the beginning: asking students what matters to them and why. We suggest helping them explore how they exhibit their most significant traits or characteristics. That’s the first step toward reflection.

We know that most high school students spend a lot of time thinking and talking about friends, moving out of the house, figuring out life, choosing a career and deciding which college to attend.

But, if you can help them slow down, make the case for taking time to reflect on their life experiences before the next admission cycle starts in late spring, your students  will be better prepared for the last phase of this journey to college.

The good news: You are more than ready for this challenge.

When we help our students reflect and focus up front, the rest of the process moves much more smoothly. Too many students start in the wrong place. They come to us full of ideas about topics, with little consideration of the essay’s purpose.

Students look for activities that might lead to stories, and they waste a lot of time talking about their experiences and their accomplishments. When they do this, they do not answer the prompt, which, no matter how it’s worded, is really asking students to show some insight into those experiences or accomplishments. That’s reflection.

No matter what you do, please make sure your students start at the beginning of the process – a conversation with you – or a parent, friend, favorite teacher.

You’ll be pleased to see that starting at the beginning of the process will save time, reduce stress and improve your own essay process.

Want to learn more? Get FREE resources from Wow!

Join Wow CEO Susan Knoppow for a FREE 30-minute phone call, just for counselors and consultants. She will answer your questions and share tips to help you support your students and their families through the college essay-writing process. We get together one Wednesday a month, 1-1:30 p.m. Eastern. Choose the session you prefer, then join us live or listen to the recording.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kim Lifton, named one of 10 LinkedIn’s Top Voices in Education, 2018 , is President of Wow Writing Workshop, a strategic communication company staffed by experts who understand the writing process inside and out. Since 2009, Wow has been leading the industry with our unique approach to communicating any message effectively. Click the Wow Method to find out how we help students write college application essays, grad school personal statements and resumes that get results. We also help business and nonprofit leaders create better blogs, manage social media, develop websites and create other communication materials.  If it involves words, Wow can help.

College: Things to Think about in the New Year

New Year’s is a time for resolutions and reorganization. If you’re the parent of a high school freshman or sophomore, but particularly if you’re the parent of a junior; now is the time to understand and start implementing the college timeline.

There is no need to be intimidated, with proper planning and execution, you have plenty of time to research and visit colleges and complete the applications.

If you anticipate that your child will be applying to any of the more selective colleges and universities, the earlier you initiate the process, the better.

College preparation in high school varies widely; private schools tend to start earlier and offer families much more direct contact with their guidance staff. According to research conducted by the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA – www.iecaonline.com) public school students in the United States, on average, receive a total of 38 minutes of personal college counseling with their guidance counselor over four years and six out of 10 students reported receiving no college counseling whatsoever. Nationally the current student to counselor ratios are 476 to one and in California they are 1016 to one; which might explain the burgeoning college consultant market.

The two most important factors for any college application are:

  1. the rigor of a student’s coursework, i.e., just how competitive are the classes a student has chosen to take and
  2. the student’s performance in each of the selected classes.

So, this means that course selection for all four years is critical; especially if a student has lofty goals of attending a selective college or university. It means that families need to plan out not just the next year, but the following year(s).

It’s also important to understand the point values in your school system for different courses: standard college prep, honors classes and AP (Advanced Placement) and IB (International Baccalaureate). North Carolina changed their point value system a few years ago. The old point value awarded 6.0 points for an A in an IB/AP course, 5.0 points for an A in an honors course and 4.0 points for an A in a standard college prep/elective course. The new point values have been in place for current juniors and all classes thereafter for the last two years. Now an A in an AP/IB course is worth 5 points, an A in an honors class receives 4.5 points and an A in a standard level college prep course or elective receives the same 4 points. Yearly and cumulative GPAs will be lower. The change in point values will impact how current juniors compare their GPAs to current seniors, since some of the strongest students will be graduating this June with over a 5.0 GPA and that will no longer be possible.

Check out prerequisite courses for the most advanced courses that interest you. Ask your guidance counselor about doubling up in foreign language, math or science courses so that your student is prepared to take them.

It is also important to check on course expectations at each of the colleges on your list. In the Princeton Review, Best 384 Colleges,2019 Edition, (www.princetonreview.com) this information is published on the right side of every college description and it is frequently a surprise to many families. It is not shocking that the more selective schools have more rigid requirements. As an example, Wake Forest, Emory, University of Richmond and Davidson all recommend four years (of the same) foreign language. That means that even if you don’t like Spanish 3 as a junior, you will still probably need to enroll in Spanish 4 as a senior, if those schools are on your list.  Look closely because some colleges, like the University of South Carolina, have particular requirements such as a “Visual/Performing Arts” class. That means it must be on the transcript, so you can take it in your senior year.

Lee Bierer is an independent college adviser based in Charlotte. Send questions to: lee@collegeadmissionsstrategies.com; www.collegeadmissionsstrategies.com

5 People Your Students Can Turn to for Financial Aid Advice when they have Questions

Lets face it financial aid/student loan information can be intimidating and very complicated for your students. A lot of information is available on the web but it can be hard to decipher what is good advice and what is not. There are a few resources available your students can seek out if they have specific questions they want answered. Student Loan Hero put together this quick list of 5 resources they can tap for information:

  1. Family:

Yes, Mom, Dad or someone else inside their household will have pearls of wisdom about paying for college. They might also motivate them to save up money or help them raise more among relatives.

Most importantly, however, their family member is also their ticket to grants and scholarships. If they are a dependent student, they will need a parent’s income tax return and other financial information to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA spits out their EFC — or Expected Family Contribution, the amount they and their family could anticipate putting toward the school’s cost of attendance.

They and their parents could estimate their EFC in advance using the College Board’s handy calculator. Going through an exercise like this one allows them to start receiving help from their loved one. Who knows, they might need them to cosign a student loan down the road.

2. High School Counselor

Yep, you can be a great go to resource for your students. It is important you become knowledgeable about financial aid and scholarships so you can answer your students questions. It is also helpful to get some go to resources you can send your students to when you don’t have the answers to their questions.

3. College Financial Aid Representative

Whether your student has applied, been admitted or enrolled, it’s never too early to pester the college’s financial aid office — every college has one.

School aid representatives can walk them through their financial aid options. If they have been offered admission, for example, they can explain the college award letter. They will even hear appeals for a better aid package.

The aid office can also review additional financial aid opportunities on campus, including scholarships, vouchers and emergency loans.

They may also help students plan their next step. For example, the aid office might connect them with a federal financial aid administrator if they have yet to exhaust their funding options.

4. A Certified Financial Professional

If they are still confused after consulting the above resources, they might consider spending a couple hundred dollars or more on a private scholarship consultant. Similarly, they might be tempted to plop down a flat rate for the services of a student loan counselor who can explain the ins and outs of borrowing.

Instead of opening their wallet for help, however, consider these free alternatives:

  • Contact a nonprofit credit counseling agency like American Consumer Credit Counseling that offers college financial advice.
  • Attend a “Financial Planning Day” hosted by certified financial planners working on a pro-bono basis in their area.
  • If they work, ask their employer’s human resources department if they can help, too.

Just ensure they are receiving advice from professionals who are certified and have a background in college financial planning.

5. Student Loan Lender

If scholarships and other gift aid aren’t enough to cover their college costs, they might eventually have to resort to student loans. Before borrowing, it’s worth at least getting a non-automated voice on the other end of the line.

Top-rated private student loan companies typically have dedicated customer service departments. For federal student aid, there are a couple of different ways to find the right person to chat with, including:

  • Federal Student Aid Information Center: For questions about the FAFSA or your FSA ID, call 1-800-433-3243.
  • Student Loan Support Center: For questions about their loan agreement, PLUS loan applications and entrance counseling, call 1-800-557-7394.

Once they have taken out a federal student loan, meanwhile, they might need to address their questions to one of the nine federal loan servicers that actually manage their loan. Each servicer has a customer service department and, while some of them are the subject of customer complaints, it’s worth phoning them to get on the same page. They can find their servicer via the National Student Loan Data System.

For federal loans, if they are unable to resolve a dispute with their lender or servicer, it’s time to talk to an ombudsman. They could help with a few in-school scenarios, including troubleshooting grant awards and demystifying federal loan intricacies.

Figuring out how to pay for college isn’t a one-person job, so there’s no shame in asking for help. They might start their search online, but it helps to talk it through with someone, too

15 Important Life Skills Your Students Should Learn

There are several things every teen should learn before they head off to college. Here is a list of 15 key things that Youth Workin’ It put together that every teen should learn about. Also note each of the 15 items has a link to a page with specific things you can share with your students about each one.

1. Communication Skills – This session idea contains many different activities to explore how people communicate, looking at both non-verbal and verbal methods of communication.

2. Financial Awareness – No matter how old your young people are, it’s never too early to start teaching them financial life skills. This post contains some ideas for how to help teenagers set a budget based on income and expenses.

3. Job Interview Techniques – Given the problem with youth unemployment around the world, it’s important for teens to know how to conduct themselves in job interviews. This post has a free and downloadable “Retweetable Interview” resource to use with your youth to help them be concise in interviews.

4. Vicious Cycle Aggression Management Technique – This activity is a creative way to get youth looking at the choices they make and the consequences of their actions. Although we suggested using the Vicious Cycle to address the issue of aggression management, it can be used in any circumstance where you want teenagers to consider the choices that they make.

5. Natural And Logical Consequences – This session plan is another way to help youth explore the consequences of their actions. It lists more than 20 common situations that teens may find themselves in, then gets them to consider what kind of natural and logical consequences would result from their choices.

6. SODAS Problem Solving – Not sodas as in beverages, SODAS as in Situation, Options, Disadvantages, Advantages and Solutions. This is great technique to give your teenagers the life skill of problem solving.

7. Meal Planning – Part 1 – This session idea actually contains enough suggested activities to last several sessions. These will help teach your youth how to plan meals, covering topics like food hygiene, food preparation, nutrition and cooking.

8. Meal Planning – Part 2 – This session idea goes beyond the basics to help teens learn how to make a weekly meal plan. This includes choosing meals, finding recipes, making shopping lists, food shopping on a budget and more.

9. Food Shopping – As you might have guessed, we think teaching young people all about food, nutrition and meal planning is an extremely important life skill to have. This session plan contains 15 different tips for when they go food shopping, then gets them to explore why these tips are important.

10. Grocery Store Scavenger Hunt – Last food-related skill for now, I promise! This scavenger hunt gets youth to find out how much branded products cost and how to identify cheaper alternatives.

11. Media Literacy Activities – Young people are bombarded with all kinds of messages in the media. This activity helps your teenagers gain the life skill of media literacy – identifying messages in different types of media and how bias and ulterior motives can affect the messages they hear.

12. Goal Setting For Teenagers – This session idea contains an activity that helps youth learn the steps to setting a goal and how to identify obstacles that they might face.

13. Stress Management – Family, friends, relationships, school, work – you name it, young people will stress over it. Help them learn to manage their stress with this relaxation technique.

14. Teaching Respect To Teenagers – This extensive session idea gets young people to consider issues surrounding the respect of other people and ways that they can develop this skill.

15. 7 Steps To Teaching Table Etiquette – It may sound strange, but many young people don’t know how to behave at a dinner table, simply because they’ve grown up in a family that doesn’t sit down and eat together there. Use these steps to help your youth learn the life skill of table etiquette.

Summer internships for High School Students

While colleges increasingly emphasize the value of “experiential” or “hands-on”learning within their own communities, high school students are discovering real benefits in setting aside time during their high school careers for internships or other out-of-classroom experiences. In fact, they are finding that internships provide amazing opportunities to gain significant work experience while exploring long-term career options.
But these opportunities don’t magically appear. You have to plan ahead and do a little networking.

And now is a good time to begin nailing-down plans for next summer.
Although college students usually stand at the head of the line for internships,businesses and nonprofit organizations are increasingly holding positions open for students currently in high school or those transitioning to college. But make no mistake—these positions are getting increasingly competitive.  And many application deadlines are coming significantly earlier than in past years.


It may take advance planning and persistence, but opportunities are out there.


Why intern?
Going through the internship application process teaches much-needed job search and employment skills. Preparing a résumé, asking for recommendations, landing an interview, and understanding what it means to be a responsible employee are all skills that give high school students an edge in college and beyond.
And it’s no secret that internships strengthen college applications, as these opportunities introduce students to career fields or potential majors and reinforce valuable research or lab skills.
An internship helps students understand how professional organizations function in the real world. While learning and working, interns have the opportunity to refine career goals. In fact, a summer internship can serve as a “trial period” to test ideas about professions and industries without making any long-term commitments.
If you’re especially lucky, these kinds of opportunities can also lead to award-winning science fair projects, journal articles, or patents.


Where are the internships?
Local businesses and organizations sometimes have formal internship programs designed specifically for high school students. But for the most part, these programs do not offer housing and are usually limited to students able to commute or living in the immediate area.
For example, here is a sample of the many organizations making internships available to high school students:

Fora great list of opportunities outside of the DC area, check the webpages maintained by the Rochester Institute of Technology (https://people.rit.edu/gtfsbi/Symp/highschool.htm ).  Scroll down for high school students and note that while the dates may not be updated the links are). 
Be aware that some internship opportunities are “salaried” positions, some have stipends, and some are strictly volunteer.  Again, they are generally highly competitive, and some deadlines may already be past. So make note for next year.
Also, many organizations don’t advertise the availability of summer internships. This is when you have to do a little investigative work on the internet and through other kinds of public job listings. Use your networks—parents, relatives,family friends, teachers—anyone who may have contacts in businesses or organizations of interest to you. At the end of the day, internships are great ways to get to know yourself a little better while building skills that will make you competitive for the future.

This blog was written by Nancy Griesemer. She is an independent college consultant practicing in Oakton, Virginia. I have two children who survived the college admissions process and a very large tabby cat who sits in on many of my counseling sessions. My credentials include degrees from Penn and Harvard, professional membership in the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) as well as the Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA), and a Certificate in College Counseling from UCLA. As a professional college consultant, I support students and families navigating their own personal college explorations. Check out her blog here: http://collegeexplorations.blogspot.com/2018/12/summer-internships-for-high-school.html

Don’t let your students be fooled by the College’s sticker price

No one will question that the price of a college education seems out of control. Sticker prices have risen faster than inflation, and according to US News and World Report, over the last 20 years, “the average tuition and fees at private National Universities have jumped 157 percent while out-of-state tuition and fees at public National Universities have risen 194 percent.”

The logical response to these price hikes has been to choose to stay in-state. However, the same research has shown that in-state tuition and fees at public universities have grown the most, increasing a shocking 237 percent.

According to the US News and World Report research, tuition and fees for public in-state schools more than tripled from $3,168 in 1997 to $10,691 in 2017. Similarly, tuition and fees at out-of-state public schools almost tripled from $8,840 in 1997 to $26,010 in 2017.

Costs at private schools started much higher at $16,233 in 1997 and climbed to $32,107 in 2010 and then jumped to $41,727 in 2017, the research showed.

After recovering from sticker-shock, there is some good news: 80 percent of students attending college receive a discount through a combination of federal, state and institutional grants; private scholarships; federal student loans; and guaranteed student employment (work-study).

It’s slightly counter-intuitive to wrap your head around the fact that sometimes the most expensive schools on paper can be the most affordable. The best way to find out just how generous a school might be is to explore its “net price calculator,” which is on the website for every college.

I wish I could tell you that the net price calculator is spot-on, and you’ll know exactly how much the college will provide in aid, but unfortunately that isn’t true. You will receive a fairly likely indicator of the amount of merit aid and how much need-based aid your student is likely to receive, but the colleges aren’t bound to provide those discounts.

It is most helpful to complete the net price calculator on multiple college websites so you can get a better approximation of financial expectations.

The other “trick” I recommend is to adjust the test scores and the reported GPA on the net price calculator to see how those changes impact the amount of aid that can be received.

I worked with a family a year ago who plugged in their current stats and received a dollar figure that was more than they felt they could afford. Then they bumped up the SAT test scores from the low 600’s on the Math and Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section to the mid-to-high 600’s and were generously rewarded with more than $20,000 more in grants. There is no question that at many colleges, higher test scores will mean more money.

Bierer is an independent college adviser based in Charlotte. Send questions to: lee@collegeadmissionsstrategies.com; www.collegeadmissionsstrategies.com

How to Plan a College Visit Over Spring Break

Spring Break will be here before you know it and there are some things that your students can do to plan for their college visits over their holiday. Here are some tips published by Her Campus: 

Schedule your visit

When you’re scheduling your college visits, check out each school’s admissions page on their website. You can usually sign up for tours and info sessions online. Call the admissions office to ask for more information on fun things to do on the campus during your visit, such as local restaurants, attractions and more. If you’re not able to sign up for tours online, call the admissions office to talk about scheduling options.

Decide when to visit

Most high schools have different spring breaks than colleges do, so high school spring break is a great opportunity to see what the school’s environment is like while the campuses are filled with students. In addition, make sure you don’t visit during the college’s finals or midterms week, because students will be stressed and that could easily skew your perspective. Don’t forget to check the spring break dates of the colleges you plan on visiting so you don’t accidentally schedule your tour for a day when no one is on campus. You can find college spring breaks through the school’s academic calendar on their website.

Stick to one region

It’s important to stick to schools in one region so you can use your time wisely. You don’t want to waste too much time traveling, so visit a cluster of schools that are near each other every time you take a college visit road trip. If there’s a school nearby that you aren’t in love with but you think you might be interested in, visit and have an open mind! You never know how you will feel about a school until you’ve visited and taken a tour. Take a long weekend or another school vacation to visit schools that are not in that region, but are still high on your list.

Plan out the length of the trip

When it comes to actually visiting the school, you should give yourself about a day and a half or two days per region. Doing so will give you the chance to not only visit the campus, but to check out the surrounding town as well. Definitely spend a decent amount of time in the city or town surrounding the campus because it could be the town you live in for the next four years! Check out the restaurant scene and shopping scene, and even pay attention to the locals. You want to be surrounded by people who are happy to be there, even if they aren’t college students.

What to do on your visit

There are so many things to do and so little time to do them when it comes to visiting colleges! Garber is a major proponent of sitting in on the initial info session, especially because it provides opportunities to hear questions from other parents and students. Taking the official tour and sitting in on a class if you can is also important because it lets you see the school from a wider perspective. It’s also a great idea to pick up the school newspaper so you get an idea of what’s going on around campus.

Who to visit with

Stephanie, a collegiette at Indiana University, recommends going with your parents to get a better feel for the school without being too distracted by having fun with your friends. Garber feels strongly about students making the initial college visit with just their parents, because in the long run, they are going to be paying for the education and looking out for your best interests. It’s important to realize that your parents are likely to be the ones who will ask your tour guide about safety, financial aid and other important things that you may be afraid to ask. It’s a great opportunity for parents and students to learn more about what the students like and don’t like in a college. You can always have the conversation when you get home but it’s not the same as being there and experiencing it with your family.

Talk to students you know

Michaela from Framingham High School says, “If you know someone at the school, ask them to show you around because they can show you the school in a way that a tour guide couldn’t.” You’ll get an entirely new perspective by speaking to someone who knows the ins and outs of the school. Not only will talking to a student and asking questions help you get a fresh perspective, but it will also make you feel more at home at an unfamiliar campus. 

Connect with the students you know

If you know any students who attend the school you’re visiting, kindly ask them if you can stay with them for a night while you are visiting the campus. Staying in a dorm or in an apartment or house near campus will give you a more hands-on experience of what it is like to be a student at that school. Also, it will give you a chance to meet other students and ask them any questions you may have. If you don’t know anyone on campus, stay in a hotel with your parents, but try to make a connection with someone on the tour. If you connect with another prospective student, you guys can bounce questions and answers off of each other and find out things you may not have otherwise.

What to do if you don’t know anyone

If you don’t know anyone on campus, approach a student who looks like they have a few minutes to spare and explain that you’re looking at the campus. Make sure to ask students on campus about what the typical social life and nightlife looks like at the school. By looking into what the typical social scene is on campus, Leila, a student from Atlanta International School, got a better feel for student life at each campus.

Get organized after the visit

When you are finished with your trip, get organized and categorize the schools in terms of how you feel about them. Leila is visiting schools in DC during her spring break. “I made a spreadsheet on Excel to fill out for each school so I could ask myself questions that I couldn’t find on the website,” she says. For example, Leila looked into whether the classes were taught by TAs or professors, whether or not Greek life was big on campus and the competitiveness of academic life. She found this information by visiting the school and speaking with students on the campuses. To help keep track of everything, take notes during your info and sessions and tours.

This  blog was written by Alexis Benveniste on Her Campus. Here is the link: https://www.hercampus.com/high-school/how-plan-college-visit-road-trip-over-spring-break

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