This post is part of a series of monthly posts intended to assist a number of categories of educators with interest in college counseling. These monthly posts will provide a summary of the typical or recommended work of a college counselor, including providing a link to our monthly Cheatsheet, a daily task of 30-minutes or so for college counselors. In addition to these ideas and suggestions for those in the college counseling realm, they will also include some suggestions for those ancillary to this world, such as administrators, board members, etc.

February: Wrapping Up & Kicking Off

The month of February is an extension of January during which college counselors are typically straddling the worlds of their seniors and their juniors. On the one hand, the seniors are wrapping up applications and mostly waiting for results, while, on the other, the juniors are typically kicking off the most intense phase of their college counseling programming. And the college counselor is there for both constituencies. Add to the mix that February is often a time of increased parental involvement for both groups — the seniors as results begin to trickle in, and juniors as the process really kicks in — the life of the college counselor can be chaotic. Finally, while so much of the process for the seniors thus far has included outreach by the college counselor to universities, the roles reverse somewhat as universities reach out to solicit counselors for missing documents, additional explanations, and the like.

What follows are some of the topics and concepts that are (or ought to be) on the to-do list of college counselors this month:

• Finalize Senior Plans. With the exception of places like Australia, Singapore, and a handful of other destinations around the world, most current, final-year students will be wrapping up their application submissions while simultaneously receiving the first large wave of admissions decisions. College Counselors, as such, are busy at work guiding these students through all of this.

• Combat Inertia. We included this last month, but the battle wages on. At many schools, the time after the holiday break (often second semester for northern hemisphere academic calendars) begins a steady decline in motivation for seniors. Whether they have been admitted to university or not, students often suffer with maintaining their momentum, and, consequently, college counselors are called upon to assist teachers, advisors, admin, parents, and others in keeping seniors working hard so as to finish the year strong. 

• Junior Attention. The grade 11 students are likely beginning more regular, formal programming — often the form of college counseling classes — during this period of time. With the additional attention comes additional questions, concerns, and anxieties by students and parents alike. College counselors are focused on initiating this stage of the college process with firm footing. 

• College Counseling Cheatsheet. The Cheatsheet provides roughly 30-minute or less tasks that appear on your calendar each weekday and that are designed to improve your counseling practice. From tips to strategies to reminders, this can help you stay organized.

• Seek help. Consider the ways that we here at Lamplighter might be able to assist. Take a look at what we might be able to offer. 

Suggestions for Admin:

• Understand Student Perspectives. Between the differentiated situations of the seniors and the juniors — not to mention the sophomores and freshmen — February is a great time for administrators to connect with college counselors to understand the specific pressures and challenges and advantages encountered by each class of students. Possessing a firm understanding of all that is going on in the lives of these students during this time of the year typically leads to a more engaged understanding later on.

• Anticipate the Road Ahead. While understanding the current status of each grade is a great opportunity for February, this is also an important time for administrators to get a sense of what might be coming down the pike in terms of admissions results and establishing proactively plans to support students and parents. With some results coming in and some sense of the admissions landscape, college counselors can often be frighteningly accurate in predicting potential outcomes. Preparing to circle the wagons during February is time well-spent.

• Feedback and Planning. In this interstitial time in programming — as college counselors move between finishing up a process and beginning it over again — there is an opportunity for administration to provide feedback and suggestions for programming moving forward into the new cycle. Personally, I have always appreciated the perspective of administrators who have access to some anecdotal feedback — often in the form of related conversations — despite not necessarily being experts in the content. I remember hearing once from an administrator that he felt a particular office I worked in needed to do more parent programming just to increase familiarity. We did, and it worked like a charm, although it was a solution we had not considered. Regardless, February is a great time for this sort of conversation and feedback.

• Express Appreciation. Let your counselors know how much you appreciate their work!

Be sure to let us know if you have any questions or suggestions. We are always happy to incorporate and share others’ feedback.