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20 Questions to ask your school counselor

by myd at 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008
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Your school counselor is one of your best resources as you plan for college. Your counselor has information about admissions tests, college preparation, and your education and career options. Here are some basic questions to help get your conversation started:

   1. What are the required and recommended courses—for graduation and for college prep?
   2. How should I plan my schedule so I'll complete them?
   3. Which elective courses do you recommend?
   4. Which AP® courses are available?
   5. When is the PSAT/NMSQT® going to be given here?
   6. Is this school a testing center for the SAT®, or will I need to go somewhere nearby?
   7. Do you have any after-school or evening sessions available for college planning, or the SAT?
   8. Do you have college handbooks or other guides that I can browse or borrow? Do you have a copy of the free SAT Preparation Booklet™, which has a practice test in it?
   9. What activities can I do at home and over the summer to get ready for college?
  10. What kinds of grades do different colleges require?
  11. Are there any college fairs at this school, or nearby?
  12. Where do other kids from this school attend college?
  13. What are the requirements or standards for the honor society?
  14. Can you put me in touch with recent grads who are going to the colleges on my wish list?
  15. Do you have any information to help me start exploring my interests and related careers?
  16. If my colleges need a recommendation from you, how can I help you know me better, so it can be more personal?
  17. Are there any special scholarships or awards that I should know about now, so I can work toward them?
  18. Can I see my transcript as it stands now, to see if everything is as I think it should be?
  19. Do you have any forms I need to apply for financial aid?
  20. How does our school compare to others, in terms of test scores and reputation?

6 Comment

These are great questions and they should be asked by 9th graders, I remember when I was in 9th grade I wasn't even thinking about all of that, I wasn't really introduced into honors or AP classes I had to find out about them from my brother, which I think is sad to say, that should of been my counselors job.
Goddess1720
Posted 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008
These are excellent questions and our students must get answers to them but the only problem is that the counselor's will not be ale to answer them without the help of the parents, teachers and others that will be involved in that students academic life. most high schools in urban areas have around 1500 students and 5 counselors so only a handful of students will get these qustions answered. and the shame is only a few parents or students know about this website. As a teacher odf seniors for the
bmw1
Posted 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008
In order for us to avoid from getting scam we must look for information that could help us. Asking question is not bad for we can learn it. We are facing economic crisis we must know how to survive from it. More people are struggling hard to meet their ends and businesses today are greatly affected. GM automakers also undergone massive layoff. Today GM PUMA may need personal loans.
Jaylee
Posted 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008
Love the list of questions to ask. It really narows down alot of hard work that would've been done.
prover1
Posted 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008
These are very good questions to ask middle school counselors also. I preregister my 8th grade students for 9th grade with the high school counselors. Middle school counselors are instrumental in making the transition to high school easier. Normally, I have a career day scheduled for my middle school students (6-8 graders) so they can become familiar with different careers. I invite about 15 different professionals to come out to the school and share information about their careers with the
Sunshine
Posted 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008
Excellent questions!! These questions definitely should be given to middle school graduates (entering 9th grade) as soon as they enter high school. 
nngwala
Posted 08:35 AM on October 18, 2008