What Parents Should Ask High School Counselors
Tips for helping high school students get ready for college
Director of college counseling for the California Academy of Mathematics and Science, Barry Baker begins working with students as early as ninth grade. Of the 610 students at the regional magnet school, 95 percent go on to four-year college institutions, and the rest attend two-year community colleges. CAMS, just 13 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, enrolls students with a desire to study in the disciplines of math and science: Eighty-five percent are students of color, with almost half enrolled in the federal lunch program. Baker, a magnet high school counselor for 18 years, offers these questions for parents:
What should my child be doing now? Ninth, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade?
There are two important ninth- and 10th-grade skills students should learn: They need to get good grades and learn how to study. Colleges look for a proven track record in college-prep classes. For the long term, schools want to see continuity with good grades but also well-rounded students. A balance between academics and something outside the classroom is important. Students should focus on two to three activities. If they join 10 clubs, that just isn't going to work. Progressive leadership and developing a long-term commitment are preferred, so that by the time students are in 12th grade, they've reached the highest leadership position in that activity. Whether it's president of a club or captain of a sports team, it's about balance and quality versus quantity.
What resources for college admissions does the school provide for students?
This leads to questions like—Does the school have personnel with experience? Is there one person assigned to help with the college process? Is there a program to move students on to college? A set curriculum to be covered? At CAMS, all of the 11th graders take a college-planning course. They put together a college-planning notebook including campus reports, articles, and a list of dream, target, and safety schools. What's great is that parents are required to sign off on their student's notebook. And during the school year, students use college-planning software to post test scores, GPAs, and research colleges of interest, which can send E-mail alerts to both students and parents about application deadlines and college-visit reminders.
What resources are there for parents?
Many schools host parents' nights or workshops about the college application process. I host a three-hour Saturday event for parents every October. Parents of ninth through 11th graders often come back every year because they hear something different each time. Each grade they are in a different spot in the college process, so it helps to get support from school and other parents. A financial aid night for the senior parents helps complete that process.
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