High School Counselor Week

Weekly stories, facts, trends, and other information from around the country

 

May 16, 2019

Big Picture

Securing the U.S. middle class may depend on college. Does a degree still pay off?
Reuters – May 10, 2019
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Even at the worst of the 2007 to 2009 recession the unemployment rate for college degree holders barely reached 5 percent, half of what the less educated faced and proof of the value of higher education.

College is almost always worth the cost, says wealth manager—here’s why
CNBC – May 10, 2019
Earning a college degree is more expensive than ever: After factoring in room and board, the average total cost comes out to about $21,000 a year for in-state students and about $37,000 for out-of-state students.

Students find ‘free college’ often doesn’t live up to the lofty promises
PBS NewsHour-May 10, 2019
Everywhere Samuel Tretjakov turned, it seemed like he kept hearing about free college tuition. His friends discussed it. Presidential candidates kept calling for it.

Columns and Blogs

Gordon Ramsay, Master Chef—and Master Counselor?
Post – May 15, 2019
Counselors’ Corner with Patrick O’Connor Ph.D

Great grad gift ideas… Tis the season
Tribune News Service – May 14, 2019
College Admissions Strategies with Lee Bierer 

College Decision Day is an Illusion
Post – May 6, 2019
The College Solution Blog with Lynn O’Shaughnessy

NACAC reports nearly 500 fabulous colleges still admitting students for fall 2019
Post – May 15, 2019
The Explorations Blog with Nancy Griesemer

Counselors

Arizona’s Counselor-To-Student Ratio Is The Worst In The Country; What Counselors Want Lawmakers To Do About It
KJZZ-May 13, 2019 (LISTEN)
Education funding remains at the center of the budget debate at the Arizona Capitol, and whether or not funding for more school counselors will be included in it is yet to be seen.

Requirement for more school counselors not fully funded in state budget
WDBJ7-May 12, 2019
(NBC12/Virginia Mercury)– For the first time in decades, Virginia lawmakers have agreed to increase the minimum number of counselors required in schools.

What role do counselors and social workers play in schools?
ABC 4-May 13, 2019
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4 News) – Salt Lake City School District announced they would be doubling the number of school counselors in their elementary schools

Parents

The latest victims of the student debt crisis — parents
CNBC-May 11, 2019
There’s no doubt that college is expensive. Tuition and fees for a four-year private college averaged $35,830 in 2018-19; at four-year in-state public colleges,

Unpopular Advice People Are Too Afraid To Give To New College Graduates And Their Parents
Forbes – May 10, 2019
It’s that time of year when young adults excitedly graduate college, start their careers and begin living independent lives. My fellow Forbes contributors have offered sage advice to the graduating class of 2019, including

Some parents turn to insurance to protect the cost of their kids’ education
CNBC – May 9, 2019
The cost of college has been pinching family budgets and causing student loan debt to skyrocket — both among students and their parents.

Adult Kids’ Expenses: Which Should Parents Pay For?
Forbes – May 12, 2019
Now that college graduation season is here, parents and their young adult kids are coming face-to-face with the key post-graduation financial question that will

Video

Many college students struggle to pass remedial math. Do they need to?
PBS Newshour – May 14, 2019
Colleges created remedial education classes to ensure students were sufficiently prepared for more advanced material. But increasingly, there’s a sense that remedial courses are hurting the prospects of the students they are intended to help

Admissions Process & Strategy

What to Do Before High School Graduation Day
U.S. News & World Report – May 13, 2019
APRIL SHOWERS BRING MAY flowers – and the first round of high school graduations in the U.S. Whether you will be graduating in one week or in one month,

What to Know as a First-Generation College Student
U.S. News & World Report – May 15, 2019
First-generation students tend to graduate at lower rates than their peers with parents who earned a four-year college degree, according to National Center

With all eyes on elite university admissions, community college stories go unheard
PRI – May 2, 2019

The day news broke of the college admissions scandal, where dozens of people were accused of paying millions to ensure their children’s acceptance at top US colleges through bribery, fraud and conspiracy,

Interested in attending a private college? Your chances of getting a discount on tuition are higher than ever
MarketWatch – May 9, 2019

For families considering a private college, the odds are extremely likely they’ll get some kind of discount. That’s one takeaway from a survey released Thursday by the National Association of College and University Business Officers

Survey: Teens ponder how to pay for college, but not much
Houston Chronicle – May 10, 2019

When it comes to paying for college, most teens like the idea of not taking on debt, according to a new survey by Junior Achievement.

How to find a college that fits
Capital Press – May 9, 2019

Some students want to find the perfect college. The truth is, there’s no such thing. You can find many colleges at which you’ll be happy and get a great education.

Career & Technical Education

College isn’t for everyone: Schools, parents celebrate grads with other plans
NBC News Today Show – May 9, 2019
Although he thrived in Advanced Placement (AP) and dual enrollment classes and was a leader in his high school marching band’s drumline, Brendan Adair, 18, is not attending college.

Fewer Kids Are Choosing College
Bloomberg – May 14, 2019
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the share of high school graduates going directly to college fell from an all-time high of 70.1% in 2009

What Adults With Certificates But No College Degree Say About Their Job Experiences
EdSurge – May 14, 2019
American adults who never completed college but who’ve earned a professional certificate are more likely to be employed and earn more than those without such certifications, according to a new analysis of Gallup polling data

Financial Aid/Scholarships

Accepted to college? How to compare and decipher financial aid offers
MarketWatch – May 15, 2019
With college acceptances in hand, now comes the hard part: understanding your financial aid offers. These letters are notorious for being laden with jargon that differs from offer to offer, making comparison difficult

How to decipher those college financial aid offers
Los Angeles Times – May 12, 2019
The cost of attendance is usually an average, said Brenda Hicks, director of financial aid at Southwestern College in Winfield, Kan. Things such as room and

Colleges Scramble to Report Financial Risks
Inside Higher Ed – May 14, 2019
Obama-era rule requires colleges to disclose litigation and other possible indicators of financial instability to feds, with some college leaders complaining

Borrowing for College Just Got a Little Less Expensive
ConsumerReports.org – May 9, 2019

There’s good news for college students and parents who plan to take out loans to help pay for school. Interest rates on federal student loans are dropping for the

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Inside The Admissions Office

I Wish I Knew…
Georgia Tech Admission Blog
May 9, 2019

Back when I was in high school I remember having lots of questions and no one to answer them but Jeeves. Some of you may be too young to remember Jeeves, but he served as a guru to countless lost souls

4 Reasons to Visit Colleges Early
University of Illinois Admissions Blog 
Apr 26, 2019
When it comes to college, one size does not fit all. Why? Because everyone has a different vision of what the perfect college experience actually looks like.

Teen Health

When Was the Last Time American Children Were So Afraid?
The Atlantic – May 9, 2019
This week, America got another reminder of the fear that its schoolchildren must make sense of every day. On Tuesday afternoon, nine students were shot—one of them fatally—at STEM School Highlands Ranch, near Denver.

Anxiety in teens: Advice from the pediatrician
Chicago Daily Herald – May 12, 2019
According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly one in three of all … steadily; between 2007 and 2012, anxiety disorders in children and teens went up 20%. 

SAT, ACT & AP

What’s Sup: The real cost of the College Board
The Piedmont Highlander – May 14, 2019
When signing up for the SAT, a student answers hundreds of questions. Name? Birthplace? Interests? Religious affiliation? These questions are quite personal. Students often assume the College Board will keep their data private, but that is not the case. 

Disabilities

U.S. college admissions scandal means more skepticism of genuine invisible disabilities
The Conversation CA – May 13, 2019
Abuses of disability diagnoses like these cheat students with genuine disabilities who may now be more likely to face skepticism about their diagnoses or be forced to revisit struggles they faced regarding accommodations

Empowering Students with Learning Differences: During the College Tranistion
NACAC – May 14, 2019
How to promote self-advocacy and self-determination with this group of students

College Visits

College Visits 101: Maximizing Your Time On Each Campus
ACCIS AdmitAll Blog – May 14, 2019
Although many juniors will be busy over the summer working, attending programs, traveling, and relaxing, it is important to continue your exploration of schools. Consider visiting colleges as part of your summer travel plans or seek out college visits as a reason for travel. 

Student Athletes

How young is too young to recruit kids for college teams?
The Boston Globe – May 15, 2019
Still, under NCAA rules, she waited until that fall to take her five official college visits and decide where to spend the next four years. She ultimately accepted an …