Monthly College Counseling Update: March 2023
As we approach Spring Break, we reach the end of the process for seniors, an exciting time of exploration for juniors, and the commencing of interest for a certain percentage of our sophomores. Really a wonderful time of year full of celebration, glimpses into futures, and growth. While the idiom Hope Springs Eternal means that something is unlikely - in this case it’s incorrect. We see it as a turning of the calendar, a time of rightful optimism!
Enrollment Decisions
Final application decisions have been released this week. All students should be fully moving toward enrollment decisions. We assume many students have, and will continue, to travel to visit campuses for the last time. Spring Break is an excellent time to see schools, discuss final options, and celebrate decisions. The College Counseling Office will gather with students on Wednesday during work period for a College Coffee to discuss all decisions, plans to make final matriculation decisions, and provide advice if needed. Good luck, safe travels, and we’ll be checking emails over break to answer end-of-process questions. Please remember, we commit (deposit) to only one school - and that decision is generally required by May 1st.
Junior Career Day and College Seminar
The Class of 2024 participated in Junior Career Day this week. Each student attended four sessions presented by an Archmere alumni, parent, or friend. Students had a wide variety of career options to learn more about and heard constant messages of: being curious, asking questions, learning from experiences, plans are good but can be adapted, not every career has a linear path, and there’s plenty that a student can do post Career Day to build upon the experience. Big “thank you” to Suzyn-Elayne Soler for coordinating this year’s effort. Terrific job!
In this cycle’s College Seminar class we discussed college list balance, categorizing admission opportunities, and understanding different things that schools use to make decisions. Students were given an exercise to categorize schools for fictitious students for the purposes of better understanding their own future admissibility. After we return from Spring Break we will register students with the Common Application and begin their application process.
Programs for the Class of 2024, ’25, and ’26
There are three local programs that we will be sharing with students and families via email. The DAIS College Fair with over 100 colleges attending is April 17th from 6:30 to 8:30 at St. Marks HS. We will share a College Fair guide to assist you in navigating the program and also a list of schools that will be in attendance. A slightly larger fair will be sponsored by PACAC (Pennsylvania Association for College Admission Counseling) on May 24th at Villanova University from 6 pm to 8:30. A list of attending colleges can be found here. Finally the DAIS Case Study program will be at Salesianum on May 15th. During this program admission professionals will go through a mock application case study exercise with students and parents - the program concludes with a condensed college fair. Registration information for the Case Study program will be shared after Spring Break.
Back
Final application decisions have been released this week. All students should be fully moving toward enrollment decisions. We assume many students have, and will continue, to travel to visit campuses for the last time. Spring Break is an excellent time to see schools, discuss final options, and celebrate decisions. The College Counseling Office will gather with students on Wednesday during work period for a College Coffee to discuss all decisions, plans to make final matriculation decisions, and provide advice if needed. Good luck, safe travels, and we’ll be checking emails over break to answer end-of-process questions. Please remember, we commit (deposit) to only one school - and that decision is generally required by May 1st.
Junior Career Day and College Seminar
The Class of 2024 participated in Junior Career Day this week. Each student attended four sessions presented by an Archmere alumni, parent, or friend. Students had a wide variety of career options to learn more about and heard constant messages of: being curious, asking questions, learning from experiences, plans are good but can be adapted, not every career has a linear path, and there’s plenty that a student can do post Career Day to build upon the experience. Big “thank you” to Suzyn-Elayne Soler for coordinating this year’s effort. Terrific job!
In this cycle’s College Seminar class we discussed college list balance, categorizing admission opportunities, and understanding different things that schools use to make decisions. Students were given an exercise to categorize schools for fictitious students for the purposes of better understanding their own future admissibility. After we return from Spring Break we will register students with the Common Application and begin their application process.
Programs for the Class of 2024, ’25, and ’26
There are three local programs that we will be sharing with students and families via email. The DAIS College Fair with over 100 colleges attending is April 17th from 6:30 to 8:30 at St. Marks HS. We will share a College Fair guide to assist you in navigating the program and also a list of schools that will be in attendance. A slightly larger fair will be sponsored by PACAC (Pennsylvania Association for College Admission Counseling) on May 24th at Villanova University from 6 pm to 8:30. A list of attending colleges can be found here. Finally the DAIS Case Study program will be at Salesianum on May 15th. During this program admission professionals will go through a mock application case study exercise with students and parents - the program concludes with a condensed college fair. Registration information for the Case Study program will be shared after Spring Break.
Other College Counseling News
- Mrs. Soler represented Archmere at the PCACAC (Potomac Chesapeake Association for College Admission Counseling) Conference this past weekend. She presented two sessions, one on Mental Health and Well-Being for Students and Professionals and another entitled - Disability, Accessibility, and Inclusive Admission Practices. Mrs. Soler was also invited to participate in the BEANS College Tour in Massachusetts. She will be visiting Simmons, Holy Cross, WPI, Wentworth, and Brandeis University in mid-April.
- Mr. Boehm assisted NACAC (National Association for College Admission Counseling) in creating a virtual training module for new college and school counselors. As a co-director he designed sessions, recruited presenters, and had final approval for the project. Like Mrs. Soler, Mr. Boehm will be traveling to Massachusetts this spring as one of nine members of Northeastern University's inaugural Advisory Board. He will be traveling to Boston in mid-May to meet with the group in person.
Archmere Academy is a private, Catholic, college preparatory co-educational academy,
grades 9-12 founded in 1932 by the Norbertine Fathers.
grades 9-12 founded in 1932 by the Norbertine Fathers.
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