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[quote=Anonymous]We have been through the college admissions process 3X (one more to go -- woo-hoo) and have never used a private counselor.  Our kids attend/ed a DC independent school starting in middle school, but our kids went to MCPS for elementary school, so we know lots of families with kids in MCPS high schools.  Some of those families have hired private counselors, and I can understand why they chose to do this given the caseload of the MCPS counselors.  However, I don't really know what they got for all the money they paid.  The private counselor will give you more attention, sure, but he/she lacks critical information about your child's school and peers.  More important, no counselor -- not even at our vaunted private school -- knows your kid like you do.  In the end, no matter where your child is in school, it's up to you and your kid to navigate this process.  I know it seems daunting, but you can do it.

As far as process, the PPs are correct that most schools in this area will have parent meetings that will provide all the info you need.  Beyond that, I would suggest that you cultivate some friends or neighbors who have been through the process and can give you the inside story.  Ask them, "what did you learn that you wish you had known earlier?"  Then sit back and listen.  College admissions is like labor -- everybody wants to tell their story; believe me, you'll get all the info you need.  Another good source is the NYT blog, "The Choice", which includes lots of interviews with counselors and admissions staffers.

As far as making a list of colleges, get a copy of the Fiske Guide and start reading.  More important, start talking to your child about what he/she is looking for in a college.  What's important to him/her?  What are his/her hopes and dreams?  Ask the basic questions -- big school or small school?  city or rural?  preppy or rah-rah sports or crunchy granola or all of the above?  Just don't get too locked into one school or even one type of school -- kids can change a lot, and once you start visiting schools you'll see that there is such a thing as chemistry even for those English major types :)).

As far as tests, we had our kids take the PSAT cold, so we could get a baseline, then did tutoring specifically tailored to improve their scores in the areas where they needed it.  This was more cost- and time-effective than a class. Your kid should take both the ACT and PSAT at school; colleges accept either one, so just go with the one he/she does best in.

As far as figuring out where your kid can get in (the $64,000,000 . . . .question), yuo won't have a lot of the info you need until after junior year.  In the meantime, be sure to look at a range of schools in terms of selectivity.  I believe most MCPS high schools use the Naviance site to access data about where grads from prior years got in.  This is helpful, but keep in mind that Naviance doesn't provide a lot of info about variables that enter into the admissions process beyond grades and scores.   This is the toughest part of the college process in my view, and the one where private counselors would be least helpful, I think, since they don't know your child's peers.  Again, my advice would be not to lock-in on a particular school or even a particular level of selectivity.  Keep an open mind and don't think about  what the neighbors will think when you put that college decal on the window of your car.

As far as the applications themselves: have your child start on his/her essay during the summer before senior year, but don't make it a Bataan death march.   You don't want to burn them -- or yourself -- out.   I know there are counselors who will help with this, but if you have a family friend who is writer and who knows your chid well, ask that person to take a look at your child's draft.  This was the single smartest thing we did with our kids, and we will be forever grateful to the friend who helped us out.  He never took pen to paper, but was able to give our kids very helpful and encouraging advice.

Finally, try to see this process as a way to get to know your child as he/she steps into adulthood.  Support and encourage them in this process, and let them know you love them and are in their corner.  We learned a lot about each of our kids, and though it was always a wild ride, we were confident in the end that he/she made a great choice.  Believe it or not, I'm actually looking forward to doing it again with the youngest.  (And, this time, darnit, we are not going to click on the common app button at 11:59 p.m. on deadline night!)    [/quote]

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