College Counseling at Sidwell - One Year Later

[Anonymous]

I guess I aver been under a rock. What happened last year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess I aver been under a rock. What happened last year?

Yes, you were under a rock. Google is your friend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A dispassionate counselor is a good thing. Do you mean uninterested?

And a literate counselor is good also. That was a big problem before.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parent of Sidwell 10th grader. Despite all the drama of last year, how did college admissions actually turn out in the final analysis? Were results materially different vs. prior years? My sense is that despite a really awful experience process-wise, results were actually fairly good. Is this correct? What specific steps does Sidwell need to take to achieve excellence in college counseling? How can the school become a paragon of excellence in this area? This is a serious question.

The results reflected the abilities of the Class of 2019. There is no magic formula, though it would probably be nice for the office to have one more counselor on staff.

Not to mention that pretty much all of the parents whose students were assigned to the weak-link counselor learned from the experience of the seniors the year before. They immediately went out and hired private counselors for their kids. This certainly was a financial stretch for some, but no one wanted to take a chance if their kids were stuck with the problem counselor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How about hiring counselors who love to advise students. They still havent nailed that...

Also, I would expect for you to advocate.

Advocacy is part of the job, including in standard written English.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Strange. We have one of the new counselors and find her to be engaged and enthusistic and has been more than on top of things as it relates to our senior. Bonus: her writing is grammatically correct!

This is certainly a huge improvement over her predecessor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How about hiring counselors who love to advise students. They still havent nailed that...

Also, I would expect for you to advocate.

Advocacy is part of the job, including in standard written English.

Please define this 'advocacy' thing please.

[Anonymous]

I hear things are going really well with the new counselor at Gonzaga.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hear things are going really well with the new counselor at Gonzaga.

That is because he didn't have to take the weak link with him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hear things are going really well with the new counselor at Gonzaga.

Let’s check back in April, when decisions are released...

[Anonymous]

Help your child instead. That's what most parents do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parent of Sidwell 10th grader. Despite all the drama of last year, how did college admissions actually turn out in the final analysis? Were results materially different vs. prior years? My sense is that despite a really awful experience process-wise, results were actually fairly good. Is this correct? What specific steps does Sidwell need to take to achieve excellence in college counseling? How can the school become a paragon of excellence in this area? This is a serious question.

The results reflected the abilities of the Class of 2019. There is no magic formula, though it would probably be nice for the office to have one more counselor on staff.

Not to mention that pretty much all of the parents whose students were assigned to the weak-link counselor learned from the experience of the seniors the year before. They immediately went out and hired private counselors for their kids. This certainly was a financial stretch for some, but no one wanted to take a chance if their kids were stuck with the problem counselor.

In the scheme of a Sidwell education, the cost of a private counselor is negligible for the vast majority of families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hear things are going really well with the new counselor at Gonzaga.

Let’s check back in April, when decisions are released...

It isn't the job of the counselor to "ensure" your kid is in a top school. The counselor can advise options based on record, go through Naviance with the student, provide feedback on essays and ensure all of the admin stuff (recs, transcripts etc) are in on time. They are not there to browbeat an admissions director to "get" your kid in. Sure if the school is down to a handful of spots and your kid is among the options, they may call to suggest that their school is the top choice or is otherwise a good fit or some such, but you cannot guarantee anything and it isn't 1975 where "top" kids just "go" to "top" schools in a vacuum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How about hiring counselors who love to advise students. They still havent nailed that...

Also, I would expect for you to advocate.

Advocacy is part of the job, including in standard written English.

Please define this 'advocacy' thing please.

Someone to help parents pull a Lori Louglin or a Felicity Huffman to ensure their offspring’s success.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How about hiring counselors who love to advise students. They still havent nailed that...

Also, I would expect for you to advocate.

Advocacy is part of the job, including in standard written English.

Please define this 'advocacy' thing please.

A figment of parent's imagination, fueled by marketing, that leads certain parents to believe that their $500,000 investment in their child's PK-12 education will guarantee them the very best college admission of their choice handed to them on a gold platter by the College Counselor, who knows the secret handshake required to turn the heart and head of the HYPS Admissions Director.