As October comes to a close, it also marks the end of College Application Month. During this month counselors offered themselves to students to assist in their applications. While students are always allowed to go to their counselor for college application help, this was also used to encourage students to apply. However, many students do not know the role of counselors in the college application process.
“My primary role is to help students seek out different opportunities, to determine what interests they have. I can help them understand and work through the application process, the financial aid process. Kind of help connect the dots,” counselor Dana Gordon said.
Gordon alters her college application to cater to each grade. For freshmen and sophomores she focuses on their interests and the track they are on. For juniors and seniors, she pushes the idea of finalizing their choices and making moves to begin applying. Gordon finds that the best resource for students in all grades beginning to think about/apply to college is Naviance.
“The little hidden secret of Newton is Naviance. Which everyone kind of rolls their eyes at, but what they don’t understand is how much of a resource it can be. You can do things like write a resume, look at colleges and see how many people have gotten admitted. You can manage your transcripts, recommendation letters are really handy too,” Gordon said.