Columbus Suburban College Fair

The Columbus Suburban College Fair is one week from today - Sunday, September 20th from 1:00 - 3:30pm at Otterbein University in the Clements Center (180 Center St., Westerville, OH 43081).  This is the largest, local fall college fair and a great opportunity for our students.

There are several other college fairs coming up which may interest you due to their special focus or if you are unable to make it to the Columbus Suburban College Fair.  These include:
- Christian College Fair: Tuesday, September 15th from 6:30 - 8:30pm at the Church at Polaris
- Columbus Kiwanis Club College Fair: Monday, September 21st from 6:00 - 8:00pm at the Aladdin Center
- Performing & Visual Arts National College Fair: Monday, September 21st from 7:00 - 9:00pm at Xavier University's Cintas Center
- Learning Disabilities College Fair: Wednesday, October 7th from 6:30 - 8:00pm at Gahanna Lincoln High School

If you have never been to a college fair before, I admit that it often feels like mass chaos.  But it is also the opportunity for you to gain a lot of useful information from a large number of schools in a short period of time.  Here is some information that can hopefully help you when attending the college fair. Take a deep breath, relax, and try not to get too overwhelmed.

The good news is that college fairs give you a chance to meet with admissions representatives in person. They are all gathered together in one place in order to meet you and to answer your questions. Many schools also keep track of the number of interactions/ meetings you have with their admissions representatives during your search and application process so that they can gauge your interest level in their school. As a component of this, and also a way to expand their mailing database, a large number of the college fair booths will have cards for you to fill out with your contact information and interests. If you want to save time you can create and print out address labels that include your name, address, phone number, e-mail, high school name, and year of graduation.  If you know your intended major(s) and extra-curricular activities of interest for college, this is also information that you might want to include on your label.  You can then just put the label on the card instead of re-writing the exact same information at table after table for each college.

Be prepared before you get to the college fair. Know that there will be far more schools than you are interested in or can even truly take in during one afternoon, so it is useful to come up with a list of colleges that you would be interested in learning more about by doing a search that looks for different criteria that seems to be a good fit for you. With that list in hand you now have a starting point for the colleges that you would like to talk to during the fair.

It can be useful to ask the same questions of each college so that you can compare them and their responses appropriately. The National Association of College Admissions Counseling (NACAC) has a handout that you can use to help with questions and I encourage you to also consider thinking about the things you most want to know about the school and can’t find in a brochure or website. Everyone is different so your questions are going to be different depending upon your interests, but if you are really interested in playing a club sport in college, you might want to ask about their club/ intramural program and the numbers of students that participate. You may want to ask what the top 2 or 3 majors are on campus as that will give you an idea of what most of the students are interested in studying. If you are undecided about what you would like to study, it would be a great idea to ask them what support and services are available to help students in exploring different majors.

Take something with you to be able to jot some notes on and also a pen or pencil. It is a crazy event with so much happening that if you don’t write it down as you go you won’t remember much after the fact. The admissions representatives are giving you a small look of the college – what do you think following each glimpse?

When you are walking through the college fair with the list of schools that you want to talk to don’t forget to leave some time for browsing – you may realize that a school you had not previously considered has just what you are looking for in a college. It can be easy for us to get caught in the cycle of only looking at specific schools because that is what “everyone” else is considering.

Ideally, you will be able to avoid getting caught up in the crowds and confusion so that you don’t walk away from the college fair with a lot of brochures, but no real ideas or impressions about which colleges most interest you. At the end of the college fair you will likely have a bag filled with information about colleges. As the “Faring Well at College Fairs” article says, “Don’t succumb to the temptation of just piling all those brochures in some obscure corner of your bedroom. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, take a day or two away from the college search. Then get out all of those brochures, along with the notes you took at the fair, and read through them. You may find that some colleges aren’t as interesting as you first thought. Others only look better the more you research them.”

Good luck and happy college searching… I can’t wait to hear about the schools that spark your interest!

Stay Informed

Did you know that you can receive these blog posts to your e-mail automatically?  Perhaps that is how you are viewing them already, but in case you aren't I thought it might help to know that you don't have to try to remember the lengthy website address for my blog.  (Sadly, I know that it is not an easy address to find but back in 2007 when I started the blog I didn't realize how much of a problem it would become.)

The way I have it set up is that the title of the blog post will be the subject line of the e-mail so you can always delete the post without reading it if you realize it is not applicable to you.  To sign up for the updates, scroll part way down the page on the right hand side to the area that says, "Follow By E-mail" (it is below the Blog Archive & Contributor sections).  Type in your e-mail address and click "Submit."  This will pop up another box with some funky random letters/ numbers to make sure that you are a real person and then you will click on "Complete Subscription Request."  After you do that you will have an email in your in-box that you need to click on the link to confirm that this is a list you want to join and follow.  You do have to follow all of those steps to make sure that the posts will come to you directly.

So, if you want to make sure you never miss out on a blog post, sign up for automatic updates.

The other key way that the counseling center is trying to keep you informed is through "Remind."  Through this service you can receive short text messages with important reminders.  If you would like to subscribe, send a text message to 81010 with the appropriate code below:
For the class of 2016, text @wkhs2016
For the class of 2017, text @wkhs2017
For the class of 2018, text @wkhs2018
For the class of 2018, text @wkhs2019

You probably already know this, but this is NOT an actual phone number and the texts we send are from a website and not a cell phone so we can't receive phone calls or messages from you to the number which appears.  It is only for us to send messages.  It is free for you to sign up, but regular text messaging rates apply through your phone company.

It isn't necessarily hard work to keep up with all of the upcoming dates, deadlines and opportunities if you are staying organized, writing down key dates and maintaining your planner, but I want to make it as easy as possible so that you are never caught off guard.  By following my blog and receiving Remind texts plus following @wkhswolves on Twitter, I believe you won't have any difficulty staying informed.

Get Organized!

The time to get organized is NOW! Yes, I realize that we are still at the very beginning of the year, but trust me, it is better to start off organized and just maintain it rather than to let things get completely out of control and then work on cleaning everything up in order to find that *one* item that you needed.

For some students, being organized comes easier than it does to others and the reality is that one system of staying organized doesn't always work for everyone else so you really need to think about what does or does not work for you. Sometimes the best way to figure out an organization strategy that will work for you is to stop and reflect back on what has NOT worked for you in the past. For example, if you are a person who always tries to keep things in binders, but then ends up with the little pocket areas in the front and the back of the binder stuffed to the breaking point with very little clipped into the actual three-prong binding, then this system of organization really isn't working very well for you so it is probably time to try something different.

Stress is usually the outcome of not being organized. You forgot a homework assignment, can't find a paper that you need, or didn't realize that you were supposed to study for a test. By being organized you can help eliminate (or at least cut back a great deal on) stress. Let's be honest... you don't always like writing down all of your assignments in your planner, but there are so many other things going on in your day and such a wide variety of activities and events competing for your attention that it is hard to remember exactly which questions you were supposed to answer for homework for a particular class. Having one place where you keep track of the information that you are going to need to know and the deadlines are essential for good organization skills.

And, staying organized isn't just an important task when you are doing school work - this is also vital for your entire college application process and it will be important to you for the rest of your life.

As far as the college application process is concerned - most of you should be moving through the "getting organized" phase and into the action phase. Figure out and write down in one place all of the schools where you plan on applying. List out the other key pieces of information that you need to keep track of for that school - deadlines, recommendation letter needs, essays required, etc. Having one page with all of this information is not meant to stress you out - it is meant to be a way to help you look easily at all of the things you need to do and by when and then you will be able to break it down into more manageable pieces in order to meet your goals/ deadlines.

As always, feel free to come by and talk if you need some help with organization strategies.

Follow the Directions

I have to say that today’s blog post is a lesson that can apply to lots of different circumstances throughout your life. From the time you were little you probably learned that there are always rules and consequences of not following those rules. Sometimes we don’t have any problem following the rules and sometimes… well, it isn’t always quite so easy to do *exactly* what we are supposed to do.

I can think of countless examples of this in my everyday life and many of them cross over into your life too – be at work/ school on time, don’t text or check cell phones in the middle of class or meetings, drive the speed limit, etc. Some times these are easy and sometimes we may struggle even though the reality is – they really aren’t that difficult to obey.

OK, I am rambling – the basic point is that I’d like to remind you to follow the directions! In everything and in every way – there are consequences of not following directions. This applies to your school work and – for those of you who are seniors – your college and scholarship applications.

When teachers or applications ask you to write an essay of 250 words or less – keep your essay to that length. If they ask for a list – give them a list. If they ask a question – answer the question completely. The difference is often in the details! Please pay attention and do what they are asking you– you never want someone to have a reason to eliminate your hard work on a technicality. This can be frustrating if you think your format is better, but I'd suggest you just suck it up and do it their way. Remember, in class not following your teacher’s directions might result in a bad grade, but as you get out into the real world the consequences can be much more severe and have a lasting impact.

I recognize that this all seems very obvious, but at some point we all get tired and think, “oh well, this is good enough…”  So remember I’m here if you need me to encourage you to push through and take it that one extra step. :-)

Senior College Application Basics

There are some basic questions that are frequently asked in college applications and yet many times students and parents don't know the answers.  Since I have had quite a few individuals asking me these questions, I figured it would be helpful if I covered a few of those basic answers in case you come across them too when you are completing your applications.

- Your graduation date is May 29, 2016

-  Your class has 307 students

-  WKHS offers 17 AP courses, 16 IB classes, and 16 honors classes

-  If your grade point average is a 4.0 or higher you have a rank of 1.  If your gpa is less than a 4.0 then we do not rank and that is what you should write instead ("Does Not Rank").  

- Common App will ask you about me.  My name is Brianna Abbott.  My title is School Counselor.  My e-mail is babbott@wscloud.org and my phone number is 614-450-6490.  

-  Our school's CEEB code is 365507.  (Most applications if they ask you this will give you a look-up option, but you can just type it in as well.)

I hope that helps.  If you come across any other questions don't hesitate to let me know.

Also, I wanted to let you know that I will be out of the building tomorrow and Friday for meetings all day.  Tomorrow I will be attending a meeting where all of the public and private 2 and 4 year colleges come together to update school counselors about their latest news and application requirements and Friday I am attending a suicide prevention conference.  So, if you need me this week, please plan to stop in and see me on Thursday!

Colleges Visiting Kilbourne

Did you know that many college admissions representatives come to WKHS in order to visit with you? Stop for a moment and think about that – the schools are paying someone to come to Kilbourne in order to meet with you and showcase the opportunities available at their college. The visits begin this week and nearly 50 colleges are already slated to spend time in the building visiting with our students.

While meeting with a representative cannot replace the actual experience of walking on campus, seeing the people, and experiencing the classes, it can be a very important piece of your information gathering process. Possibly even more importantly, you are expressing your interest and desire to attend their college! The admissions representatives who are traveling to the schools keep track of who they see. Many colleges can go back and tell you exactly how many times a student has come to tour campus, contacted the admissions office, or had an official interaction with a representative of the school. You never really know what can make a difference in an admissions decision, so if you are able to attend a meeting with a representative, it can only help you.

We have a list of the upcoming college visits posted on the Counselor website so that you can see which schools are coming to WKHS. You can then stop into the Counseling and Career Center to sign up for any of the visits that interest you.

Juniors and Seniors have unlimited opportunities to attend these sessions. Please be reasonable though. If a visit is scheduled during a time when you have class, you MUST get your teacher’s approval in advance of attending the information session. You are responsible for all missed work and teachers are not supposed to excuse you from tests, quizzes, or labs. (Pick up a pass to have your teacher of the class you will miss when you are in the Counseling and Career Center sign it to register for the visit.)

Sophomores are also invited to attend the sessions with the college representatives, but are limited to participating in the visits during your lunch or Academic Prep periods. If you have academic prep, you will need to secure a pass just as the upperclassmen are required.

These are great opportunities to talk directly with the college admissions representatives so please take advantage of their visits!

College Application Deadline Terms

As you start through the college application process you will be exposed to a variety of new terms. One area that can be confusing is what all of the different application deadlines such as Early Decision, Early Action, Regular Decision and Rolling Admissions mean.

Early Decision

The key to remember with Early Decision is that it is a final decision and a COMMITMENT! Applying to a school in this program is considered a contract between the student and the college. You can apply to only one school as an Early Decision school. If you are accepted, you are promising to withdraw all other applications. Few students will ultimately apply to a school Early Decision because you are promising to attend the school - without seeing their financial aid package - and most students are not 100% certain that they want to attend one particular school. If you are considering applying to a school under the Early Decision program, please stop in and talk to me.

Early Action
This is a non-binding option and significantly more students will apply to schools using this option. Early Action has an earlier application deadline and students will learn if they have been accepted to the school much earlier than regular decision dates. (Some schools will defer an admissions decision to the Regular Decision deadline if the student is on the bubble and they want to wait to see how the rest of the applications will look.) Early Action is not a contract and, as a student, you are not obligated to attend school at that institution.

Regular Decision

This is the deadline that you will generally see publicized from colleges as it is the most common. This means you are applying and will hear your decision on their regular time schedule. There are no commitments or early notifications. It is important to note that the Regular Admissions deadlines are often AFTER the deadline for scholarship consideration – which adds in a whole additional set of deadlines to watch, but that is a different story for another day.

Rolling Admissions

This means that the colleges look at each application as they arrive and they make a decision as they go. So, if you apply quickly to a school with rolling admissions you are generally going to receive your admissions decision quickly. Schools that function with a rolling admissions policy of evaluating applications will still generally have a regular decision deadline which is the final date that the college is willing to accept any applications for the fall class.

It is really important to be watching your deadlines carefully – I can’t stress that enough! If you are struggling to find the deadlines for different schools, please stop in to see me next week.  For now, enjoy the long weekend!