HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELORS- ROLE IN COLLEGE ADMISSION PROCESS

Role of stakeholders in College Admission Process

High school counselors - Role in College Admission Process

High school advisors can help parents understand aspects of the college admissions process. Some high schools have one or more teachers experienced in offering counseling to college-bound juniors and seniors. They usually work in conjunction with the guidance department who assist students in planning their high school academic path. Counselors handle many students and schools and generally do not have a role of overseeing or managing a student's college applications. Advisors recommend that students get to know their school counselor. Counselors do not complete interviews or write essays or arrange college visits. Parents often meet with the school counselor during the junior year (equivalent to Class XI of the Indian schooling system). Most counselors have responsibility for helping many students and, as a result, it is difficult for them to provide individual help to a particular student; one estimate is that the average ratio for all high schools of counselors to students was 460 to 1. Only about a quarter of high schools have a counselor devoted to college counseling issues full-time, while almost three quarters of private schools have a dedicated college counselor. A report suggested that private school counselors have substantially more contact with university admissions people than public school counselors.