I am ready to get started with my college planning, but where do I begin?
Before doing a deep dive into research, posing prompts in the Google search bar, such as “best colleges for budding entrepreneurs” or “colleges with the highest/lowest acceptance rates,” I suggest that students begin by taking inventory about who they are, who they want to become, the values they hold, environments they tend to excel in, and how they want to feel as they move through their college years and beyond.
To support students in exploring what makes them uniquely them, I draw upon a database of hundreds of prompts I have designed through research and experience, offering a collaborative, holistic, intentional, and meaningful approach to the college planning process.
Some common questions that I ask students when we begin working together include:
What are the things that make you, you?
When do you feel most like yourself?
Who and/or what brings out your true self?
Who and/or what is most important to you in your life in this moment?
What has your experience in high school been like thus far?
In what types of classes or spaces do you learn the most?
How would you describe yourself as a student? In what ways might that be similar to or different from how you would describe yourself as a teenager?
What do you want to learn, feel, and experience while at college?
When you envision yourself on a college campus, what do you see, hear, feel, and sense?
What do you want admissions officers to feel when they review your application materials?
Based on how students respond, whether by way of writing responses or engaging in conversation, I am able to better understand who a student is beyond what their academic plans and goals are. Taking this approach allows me to work with students to curate a college list and develop an essay writing plan that considers the multidimensional aspects of their personalities and the types of institutions where they will thrive.
Knowing that choosing a best-fit college is one of the biggest decisions students and families will make, it is imperative to know who students are beyond what they hope to study and the type of career they are striving to attain.
So yes, the trusted Google search bar might help folks better understand a university’s ranking or reputation. However, what Google can’t do is provide insight into who a student is, and how who they are can be leveraged and celebrated at select institutions.