Summers: Recharge v. Opportunities

Summer break (June-August) is a crucial time for high school students to rest and recharge in preparation for the upcoming academic year. With college applications and the increasing pressure to excel, students often feel compelled to fill their summers with various activities to boost their resumes. However, prioritizing rest and relaxation during this time may lead to better overall performance during the school year. In this blog post, we'll explore the importance of recharging during summer break, how to balance it with the wide range of summer opportunities available, and provide guidance on how to choose the right program for your interests.

The Misconception of "Momentum"

At the beginning of each school year, especially for seniors, it's common to see some students who appear to be thriving, having seemingly made the most out of their summer break. They seem to have a great deal of momentum and are often perceived as being well-prepared for the year ahead. However, this may not always be the case.

Some students who start the year strong are able to do so because they remained academically engaged throughout the summer. While this may seem like a positive attribute, it often leads to burnout. Many of these students are unable to sustain their momentum, especially when faced with the challenges of rigorous curriculums like the International Baccalaureate (IB). By the end of August, these students may be on the verge of a breakdown, having not allowed themselves sufficient time to rest and recharge during the summer.

The Power of Recharging

In contrast, students who take the time to relax during their summer break may appear a bit sluggish when they return to school. They may struggle to get back into "school mode" initially. However, these students tend to be better equipped to handle the demands and expectations of senior year. By giving themselves time to rest and recharge, they can maintain their energy and focus throughout the academic year.

This is not a one-size-fits-all observation, and each student's experience will differ. However, it is important to recognize the value of recharging during summer break and to encourage students to prioritize their well-being.

Finding the Right Summer Opportunity

While rest and relaxation should be a priority during the summer break, it is still possible to participate in summer programs that align with your interests and passions without compromising your need to recharge. There are countless summer opportunities available, and finding the right one involves reflecting on your academic interests, extracurricular activities, and personal passions. Here are some questions to consider when narrowing down your options:

1. Do you have a skill, passion, or interest that you want to learn more about? (e.g., biology, genetics, gardening, game theory, knitting, scuba diving, women's rights, anything!)

2. Do you want to try something new that you haven't had an opportunity to try yet? (e.g., theater, film, coding, Mandarin, horseback riding, creative writing, etc.)

3. Where do you want to be for the summer? Where can you go to explore multiple interests? (e.g., improving your Italian and visiting college in Europe while attending a summer program in Florence)

4. What kind of setting appeals to you? (e.g., learning inside a classroom, hiking through mountains, doing community service, working with younger students)

Remember that enjoying your summer should be a top priority, no matter which opportunity you choose to pursue. If you are doing what you love, you will find enjoyment in it. Consider programs that push you outside of your comfort zone by interacting with others different from your closest social circles, engaging with material that challenges you, or situating you in an unfamiliar environment. There is much to learn from these experiences! Also, pay special attention to age requirements, as many programs require students to be 16 years old or older to attend residential programs.

In conclusion, high school students should prioritize rest and relaxation during their summer breaks while also considering opportunities that align with their interests and passions. By striking a balance between recharging and engaging in meaningful summer experiences, students can return to school refreshed, energized, and ready to tackle the challenges of the new academic year.

Unlock College Admissions Potential with an AI-Powered Letter of Continued Interest Creator

A Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI) is a note a prospective student sends to a college to show that they are still excited about attending even if they haven't been offered acceptance yet. These letters can be sent, for legitimate purposes, before receiving any application feedback or results or after having been deferred or waitlisted. They are important because they can help the college see how much the student cares, and they might improve the student’s chances of earning admission. However, these letters, while essential and important, do not require the same amount of energy and effort as they once did. Generative Artificial Intelligence can help produce an amazing first draft in seconds!

While students can write a LOCI by hand, there are now AI-powered tools that can help them create a more effective letter. Again, these tools are excellent for producing drafts ideally to be edited before sending. These tools can help to customize such a letter to each school and make sure that students are using the most persuasive language possible.

An AI-powered letter of continued interest (LOCI) creator can be an especially helpful tool for college applicants who have been deferred or waitlisted, although there is great use for these letters when a student has something noteworthy to report to a college after they have submitted their application. The AI-LOCI creator can generate customized letters that increase the chances of being accepted by drawing attention to their strengths and positive attributes. That being said, these tools are excellent at producing high quality drafts of letters. The quality of the drafts is only as good as the input the student enters, which is reflection of their research and efforts. And these drafts, even when the maximum effort is provided, often require students to edit and tweak the resulting note. As such, it is essential advice that students use these tools only to produce first drafts that they will then edit and amend!

While there are many tools on the market that can suit the needs of a student requiring a draft of a LOCI, we have used brancher.ai to produce a LOCI generator. Try it out here: https://app.brancher.ai/f1ec3068-1ef9-48f2-9d90-097c55ccf321

Artificial Intelligence & Effective Prompting

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has recently become a buzzword in household conversation as human-computer interactions have become more efficient and personalized thanks to the emergence of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Bing, and Bard. One critical aspect of this type of AI is effective prompting. 

What follows are seven principles for effective prompt-writing, followed by good and bad examples:

1. Be clear and specific. Clearly state your question or request to ensure that the AI understands what you're looking for. Providing context or background information can also help improve the quality of the response.

   1. Good example:  "What are some engaging activities I can use to teach middle school students about the water cycle?"

   2. Poor example: "How do I teach the water cycle?"

2. Keep it concise. While it's essential to provide relevant information, avoid making your prompts overly lengthy or complex. A concise and focused question will generally yield better results.

   1. Good example: "Suggest three strategies for improving reading comprehension in high school students."

   2. Poor example: "I need help coming up with ideas for teaching reading comprehension to students because I've been struggling to find methods that work well, and I'm not sure what to do."

3. Define the format. If you have a specific format in mind for the answer, such as a list or a paragraph, mention it in your prompt. This will help guide the AI in providing a response that meets your expectations.

   1. Good example: "Please provide a brief paragraph on the importance of teaching critical thinking skills in the classroom." or “Please act as a university literature professor and suggest several ways a student who loves to read can explore new genres of literature.

   2. Poor example: "Why is it important to teach critical thinking skills?"

4. Request Step-by-Step or Point-by-Point Answers. For complex questions or topics, asking the AI to provide a step-by-step guide or a list of key points can help you get a more structured and comprehensive response. 

   1. Good example: "List the steps to create a lesson plan for teaching elementary students about photosynthesis.

   2. Poor example: "How do I make a lesson plan for photosynthesis?

5. Be Explicit about the Perspective or Tone. If you want the AI to adopt a particular perspective or tone (e.g., formal, informal, humorous), mention it in your prompt to guide the response.

   1. Good example: "Write a humorous and engaging introduction to a lesson on Shakespeare for high school students."

   2. Poor example: "Write an introduction to a lesson on Shakespeare."

6. Limit Answer Length, if Necessary. If you need a concise response, you can specify a word or sentence limit in your prompt to encourage the AI to provide a brief and focused answer.

   1. Good example: "In two sentences, explain the main goal of teaching phonics to young learners." or “Give me 10 examples of activities to teach phonic to young learners.” 

   2. Poor example: "What's the goal of teaching phonics?" or “How do I teach phonics?”

7. Iterate. Don't be afraid to rephrase or tweak your prompt if the AI doesn't provide the desired response on the first try. Experimenting with different approaches can help you discover the most effective way to communicate your query.

   1. Poor initial prompt: "What's the best way to teach math?"

   2. Improved prompt: "What are some effective methods for teaching algebra to high school students?"

Please see here for the above in a PDF handout.

High school college counselors play a crucial role in preparing students for higher education and career opportunities. As generative AI tools become more prevalent in various aspects of education and professional life, it is increasingly important for college counselors to teach students how to effectively use and communicate with these tools. As is the case with so much within the domain of college counseling, while it may be argued that teaching effective prompting may not clearly be the role of college counselors, it seems that, at the very least, it is probably our role to make sure this essential skill is being taught. We think that we bear some of the burden of teaching these skills!

That said, by incorporating the teaching of effective prompting techniques into our programs, college counselors can help students make better use of AI tools in their academic and professional lives. This skill will be particularly beneficial when it comes to research, collaborative projects, and the development of critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.

Moreover, teaching students how to effectively prompt AI tools will also enable them to become more responsible users of these technologies. With the power of AI comes the responsibility to use it ethically and thoughtfully. By helping students develop their prompting skills, college counselors can promote a greater understanding of the potential benefits and pitfalls of AI use in various contexts.

As generative AI tools become more integrated into our daily lives, it is essential to understand and apply best practices for writing prompts to make the most of these technologies. High school college counselors have a unique opportunity to teach students the skills necessary to effectively communicate with AI, preparing them for success in higher education and beyond. By focusing on the principles highlighted above, students can effectively engage with AI tools and responsibly harness their power in their academic and professional pursuits.

The Impact of Social Media on College Admissions

In our modern, connected society, social media platforms have become important ways to communicate, express ourselves, and meet new people. As the competition to get into college gets tougher, a student's digital footprint may have a big impact on their chances of getting in. As college counselors, it's our job to help students figure out how to use social media responsibly, since a bad online presence can have a lot of effects.

Admissions officers at colleges are more and more likely to look at applicants' social media accounts to learn more about them. Some schools even have staff members whose sole job is to do this. A student's social media activity can impact their application positively or negatively. For example, a positive post might show off a student's extracurricular activities, while a negative post might use bad language or show behavior that is questionable. Recent news stories about students losing scholarships or admissions offers because of offensive or controversial posts on social media show how important it is to keep a good online reputation.

If you want to help students keep a good online reputation, you could give them the following tips in bullet points:

• Regularly review and clean up social media profiles, removing or hiding any content that could be viewed negatively by admissions officers

• Manage privacy settings carefully, and share personal information only with trusted friends and family

• Create and share content that emphasizes achievements, interests, and positive experiences, showcasing unique qualities and values

• Avoid controversial or inappropriate content, such as political, religious, or offensive material, which may alienate admissions officers

• Monitor tagged content and manage friend/follower lists to maintain control over their online presence

As counselors, we play a pivotal role in guiding students through the digital age. It is important to teach them about how their social media presence could affect their chances of getting into college and about the bigger safety risks that come with sharing personal information online. Students will be able to build a positive online presence if they are shown how to manage their social media profiles well, including privacy settings and content curation. Talk about possible red flags and stress how important it is to manage your online reputation. This will help students make smart decisions about how they use social media. Students can learn important skills for success in today's connected world by getting help and resources for navigating the digital landscape.

For students to do well in college and beyond, it is important to help them find a good balance between online and offline activities. It's important for students to develop strong interpersonal skills, and counselors should remind them that face-to-face communication and building relationships are important for both personal and professional growth. Students can stand out when applying to college and learn valuable life skills by taking part in meaningful extracurricular activities and volunteering in their communities. Promoting a well-rounded student experience that extends beyond social media can help students lay a solid foundation for success in college and their future careers.

Social media has a big effect on getting into college, and keeping a good online reputation is becoming more and more important for students who want to get into competitive schools. Students need to make sure they have a good online reputation because posting inappropriate or controversial content can have long-lasting effects. College counselors play an important role in helping students navigate the digital age by giving them support and tools for managing their social media presences well. Students learn the skills they need to do well in college and beyond by getting a good mix of online and offline experiences.

Presentation: Student Wellbeing for the Application Season

Last week, several university colleagues and I had the distinct honor of having been asked to present to a consortium of 5 schools in Mongolia as part of their college application “kick off” event. My presentation was entitled “Student Wellbeing for the Application Season - Timelines & To Do Lists along with staying sane.” For the presentation, I pulled together a host of different tips, tricks, and hacks that have worked for me as a counselor and that have worked for my students. Here is the PDF of the slide deck! Hopefully you might find something worthwhile to borrow!

My Time Management Strategy

Last week I had the privilege of helping to run the College Board’s 2021 Summer Institute for International Counselors, a virtual reboot of what has previously been an on-campus, in-person event. While disclosure agreements prevent my sharing the slide decks, recordings, and the like, I do hope to share some takeaways from my end. 

A colleague and I led a session that shared a thematic approach to establishing a college counseling curriculum and then what an annual timeline might look like for a college counseling office/program. At the end, in the final few minutes of the session, I shared a few thoughts about how I personally go about managing all of these competing pieces of the puzzle, the workload of the college counselling life. The number of emails I received about this little bit was surprising, and so in response to the many requests, I wanted to flesh out a little bit more of what works for me to manage the demands of the job. 

I want to begin by sharing a few guiding principles that have helped me shape my approach. However, first, I think it is essential to start with the fact that what works for me might not work for you! Of course, we all go about our jobs in our own ways. I’ve come to my current practice through years of trial and error, but hopefully there might be a tip or trick here or there that might work for you! That said, it makes sense to think of what parameters, objectives, and goals are most important to you as you do your work. Here are some of mine that guide my approach:

1. I prioritize keeping my work within the work day. I don’t want to bring work home when I can help it. Time management at work has become such an important part of my ability to be present for my family. Of course, I do sometimes need to break this commitment, but the occasions are more the exceptions than the rule for me. As such, I do try to cram as much into my work days as possible.

2. I prioritize face time with students. Ultimately, the best way I can spend my time at work is by being present for my students and their families. By managing my time effectively, I feel that I am able to be there for them whether through planned meetings or for last-minute, more urgent needs. 

3. I prioritize calmness. The college process can elicit stress in my students and their parents, of course, and so by managing my time effectively, I feel that I am able to maintain a sense of calm and not contribute to their anxiety and, if anything, counterbalance some of the chaos. My being on top of my work affords me a great deal of composure, especially when things don’t go as planned. 

So, in light of these fundamental premises, I have cobbled together over the years a time management strategy that works for me. What follows are a few of the salient points that I think others might find beneficial… and certainly the ones that I heard from colleagues through the CB presentation about!

1. Pomodoro Technique. Learn more about this approach here. Long story short, this is an approach to productivity where you set a timer and focus intently on one task for 25 minutes, followed by a 5-minute break before starting another 25-minute “pomodoro,” so named allegedly after an old fashioned tomato timer. (I use this online timer to keep me honest.) I find that this scaffolding works incredibly well for almost every task and can be adjusted as needed to fit between the various immovable meetings and appointments of the college counselor’s day and week. Seldom am I able to string together more than 2 or 3 rotations in a row, but I am able to book my days accordingly, and I feel the boost in productivity.

2. Timeboxing. Again, read more about this one here. Essentially, this is an alternative to the to-do list. As such, instead of maintaining lists and trying to squeeze in the time to do things in between meetings throughout your days and weeks (which, for me, inevitably resulted in lots of evening work), this is a practice whereby if I need to get something done, I put it on my calendar. For me, I block off 25-minute, Pomodoro-length appointments with myself for every task that needs to be done. When I know something will take longer than 25 minutes, I will book more than one time slot in advance, but most of the time, when a 25-minute span is done and I am not completed with the task, I merely just create a new appointment with myself later in the day or week. One thing that I have found is that as a result of this practice, I am able to more accurately judge how long something will take me to complete. For example, I know that — when I am in possession of all the accoutrements such as transcripts, questionnaires, essays, etc — I can write a near-final draft of a counselor letter of recommendation in 2-3 Pomodoros. 

3. FedEx Days. This is a real game-changer. I’ve been doing this for probably 15 years after first encountering the idea in Jim Collins’ book From Good to Great, I think, but here is a summary of the concept from Dan Pink, of whom I am a huge fan. Essentially the idea is to devote 20% of your time for unstructured work with the research showing that productivity and creativity are boosted. Throughout the months of August through December, I have religiously blocked off one day per week to be free of meetings and other engagements (as best as possible) in order to focus on writing those letters of recommendation. So aside from unanticipated or relatively urgent unplanned interruptions and pre-scheduled periodic meetings, I select one day per week to chunk up into Pomodoros to write letters of recommendation (and do various other tasks). Throughout the rest of the year (January through June), I find that I am able to use these days more for that essential creative and productivity work that the concept is so well-known for, from writing to preparing presentations to innovating programming and curriculum. One huge benefit that I have found is that when I do not take FedEx days and I am trying to squeeze writing (and everything else) in between meetings with students or other commitments, I have a hard time meeting with more than 5 or maybe 6 students in a day. I am just too frazzled, and I get really exhausted. However, when I have this one day per week to really focus on writing recs (or to do other work), I am able to meet with 12 or more students on those other days without a problem. As such, by sacrificing one day per week in one sense, I am able to be more attentive to my students. In this way, though I have been transparent with this approach with each boss/supervisor I’ve had, I have never faced any pushback at the outset or negative feedback later on.

4. Calendly. There are a number of other applications out there, but I have long been using Calendly to allow people to book directly into my calendar. Of course, this requires some careful maintenance of your calendar, but the various features of Calendly allows me to send a link to people (and to include the link in my email signature) to allow people to see common availability and to book directly. I found that it is an enormous drain of time on email to go back-and-forth with students, colleagues, college reps, parents, etc trying to book meetings. Especially when navigating time zone differences, sending off a link and inviting people to book directly saves a ton of time. I tend to offer 15-minute and 30-minute meetings open to the public, but I have hidden meetings for college reps and parents that I can modify to be outside of office hours, if need be, and the number of which I can limit per day. (For example, when scheduling hour-long family meetings, I limit them to just 3 per day so as to maintain time for the other things I need to do.) There is also functionality to choose where a meeting takes place, either in person or through Zoom, Google Hangouts, etc. And I love the features that automatically send reminders and follow-up emails. Each time I use it, I seem to learn of new bells and whistles. Again, others have recommended other software, but I’ve never explored any others because of how satisfied I’ve been with Calendly.

5. Calendar Grooming. This is perhaps the biggest lesson I’ve learned with this approach: while it makes me servant to my calendar, I am willing to make that sacrifice to commit to the guiding principles above, especially affording me more time with my family; however, it requires constant vigilance in maintaining and grooming my calendar. Additionally, it requires that everything gets booked, including calendar grooming time and more menial tasks like checking emails. Still, it has become a habit. For me, what works is that at the beginning of the week, I go through and map out my week, placing in my Google Calendar everything I need to do for the week in 25-minute appointments. (For more pressing items, I list them as “busy” so I cannot be double-booked by Calendly, while others are marked as “available” so students can still book meetings. Additionally, I mark most everything as private so my daily to-dos are not for public review.) I have a handful of tasks that I do on a weekly basis that I set as repeat calendar events, all at 7pm on Sunday nights, so when I get to work on Monday morning and it is time to plan and evaluate my calendar for the week, I just drag them to wherever in the week works best. I do this again for the following day as the last thing before I head home each day; this way I have a concrete plan for what needs to be done the following day, especially if things that I had planned to do didn’t get done and in light of any new meetings that have been scheduled in the interim through Calendly or otherwise. 

One thing that this plan has given me a new appreciation of is how I spend my time. For example, I color-code my work, and it allows me to see generally what I’m putting time into. I use orange for meetings with adults and yellow for student meetings; I also use green for work-related tasks. In looking through a given week, I can see pretty clearly whether I am remaining committed to my goal of prioritizing student attention. This sort of focus is more consistent with social-emotional counseling, which tends to track minutes spent. This can be helpful when articulating needs to supervisors, such as perhaps when making an argument for additional counselors, etc. 

I mentioned this previously, but this approach gives me a great sense of how long different activities take me. In really focusing in on one task at a time, I’ve found that I don’t need 25 minutes for everything I do, so I’ve taken to grouping things together. For example, first thing every morning is sometime like “Groom Calendar, Check Email, and Prepare for Meetings,” a time during which I get myself situated for the day and handle emails. These began as three separate 25-minute duties, but over time they merged as I realized I didn’t need all that time.

One final word about this approach for me is that commitment to calmness from the guiding principles shared at the outset. It is certainly possible to become too zealous in keeping to the planned schedule for the day, and it can result in a sense of inaccessibility to students who sometimes have immediate needs, not to mention colleagues, etc. What I have found is that this approach actually allows a great deal of flexibility for me; when sometime comes up, since I know what is essential to get accomplished in the current day, I can move things around easily and bump to later in the week those things that are less urgent. 

Again, hopefully there is a pointer or two here or there that might help you with your work or that you might try out. In chatting with a friend about this, he pointed out that all of these tips would work for people not in college counseling or even education as they apply well to other industries and domains. That said, he also reminded me that these are also effective tactics to teach our students! And, of course, I have tried to find ways to teach these approaches in my work with kids, lest that point be missed.

Finally, as I shared at the outset, what works for me is not guaranteed to work for you! I don’t claim to be providing the end-all, be-all of time management for college counseling, but maybe something works for you!

If you have thoughts or feedback on these or other tips that work for you, I’d love to hear them!

Regarding Gap Years

Although the pandemic has certainly accelerated things, the number of students inquiring about and then pursuing gap years after high school graduation has gradually been increasing over the last decade or so, in my experience. That said, I have long been a proponent of gap years. In fact, a few years back, I changed my essential questions -- those questions I expect every student I work with to be able to answer -- to be as follows:

1. Why are you going to college?

2. Why are you choosing to apply to the colleges on your list? (Eventually, with their final list, why are you applying to each school on your list?)

3. Why do you need to go to university next year (if not already pursuing a gap year)?

This final question is, of course, particularly germane to gap years. Frankly, some students have good reasons to head to university right away, but most do not. (This is not to say that they are not ready to go to university! Instead, it is more that most students don’t spend a great deal of time, in my experience, reflecting on why they feel compelled to head to college right away.) Additionally, there is something powerful in terms of motivation when a student has a clear reason in mind at the outset. I think it is therefore important to try to get all students to engage in thought about the gap year. 

That said, there are a lot of myths and misconceptions out there about gap years. In recently speaking with a colleague involved in the college admissions process in the US, I gleaned one interesting perspective on the situation for students who are undecided and their consideration of gap years. Essentially, what he shared with me was that 20 years ago, when a student was genuinely undecided, it was common practice to encourage students toward liberal arts colleges where they might develop a host of competencies in support of any one of a variety of career opportunities. (Of course, there were other tactics, but this colleague asserted that this was a very common one, for him at least.) However, things were different when costs were so much cheaper. In essence, he argued, a family could justify paying $20K per year for college even if the student were undecided, but now when those same schools are in the neighborhood of $80K per year, parents and students alike are more inclined to take a year to explore their options. Parents, in particular, are far more cost conscious and often want their child to have more direction. On the surface, this makes some sense: wait a year and try to get a better plan together.

However, I see the need to offer a few words of caution to this lens as well as to dispel some of the other myths here:

• In regards to the college application process (at least in the US), a gap year is not fully reflected in the application: students taking a gap year still qualify as first-year applicants and are still beholden to the same application process, including the same timeline. As such, if a student hopes to use the year to explore possible majors, they really only have an additional summer and likely a few months in the autumn before applications are due. It is possible to make good use of this time, but it needs to be approached strategically.

• A gap year is not recommended for students who didn’t “do well” in the college admissions process. It works best when done deliberately, in my opinion, and not when used as a last resort because things didn’t work out. 

• Relatedly, a gap year is not a way to get into “better” colleges, which is a question I face each year when typically parents are disappointed in their child’s results. The transcript, arguably the most important piece of the application, is locked in after graduation. The student could take new tests (SAT, ACT), but universities will see when they took the tests. And, similar to the previous point, there is not a huge runway for a transformative experience. Typically, in my experience, the gap year allows students to find better fits, not more selective acceptances.

• A gap year does not mean that a student enrolls in a program. The term “gap year” does not connote anything other than a year off between high school and university. How it is spent is up to the imagination. That said, the common fodder for this year includes, but is not limited to: travel, jobs, internships, community service, independent study, and foreign language immersion. None of this necessitates paying for a program. While I have seen students take advantage of programs such as Where There Be Dragons, Outward Bound, and Rustic Pathways or the like for more glamorous experiences, I have more often seen students cobble together thoughtful and meaningful series of internships or jobs or service. Additionally, I’ve seen highly successful gap years spent on particular projects or duties: finishing an art portfolio, learning an instrument, writing a book, etc. The key point is the intentionality! 

Here are some other resources most of which I borrow from Julia Rogers at EnRoute Consulting for families looking for high-quality gap year information:

• Gap Year Association

• How to Write a Deferral Letter 

• GoOverseas 

• TeenLife

• The Gap Year Radio Podcast

• Julia’s TEDx Talk 

Be thoughtful about considering a gap year! It can make a huge difference!

Let us know if you have any additional resources or ideas! We would love to share them!

Verb Mood in Student Essays

As a trained English teacher who has continued to keep a foot in the classroom throughout my career, I’ve long struggled with verb forms in student essays. In particular, when providing guidance to students on supplemental essays -- especially those of the “why us?” variety that so many universities request -- there seem to be two major schools of thought: first, there are those who employ the future tense (indicative mood), and, second, there are those who use the subjunctive mood. 

Consider the following sentence from a recent essay I reviewed with a student. She presented it as such:

Studying under a world class faculty will give me the opportunity to engage with the leading minds in the field. 

This sentence is one that employs the future tense, indicative mood whereas it would seem that it should employ the subjunctive mood because it is considering the hypothetical situation of his being admitted and enrolling at this university. In that case then, it could be argued that the sentence should be:

Studying under a world class faculty would give me the opportunity to engage with the leading minds in the field. 

Of course, I would love for all of my students to know when and how to apply the appropriate grammatical structures, but I wonder whether some of these choices students are making in these regards have to do with more intentional or responsive considerations. 

It might be argued that the indicative mood sounds more confident, almost as if it is inevitable that they will be admitted, which is what my student argued, so is this a potential tactic of argumentation or style rather than merely grammatical accuracy? While not technically correct as students write about futures in which they enroll at a particular university (a hypothetical), employing the indicative mood could convey a greater sense of confidence to an envisioned admissions reader. For example, the sentence opener “When I enroll at Bowdoin, I will…” (future) could be seen to reflect a greater amount of faith that this future will happen than the more grammatically appropriate, “If I were to enroll at Bowdoin, I would…” 

Additionally, in line with one criticism of some admissions writing, it also might be considered that word count could help make this decision? The subjunctive can often contain more words. 

In any case, deep, grammatical thoughts on a Thursday!

The LID of Extracurriculars

A couple weeks back, I shared some thoughts on passion and a model for how it might be seen to factor into healthy development (as well as the university search process) that initiated quite a few conversations with various folks. To build on that, I wanted to share an additional point on extracurricular activities. In a follow up conversation about the passion post, a colleague reminded me of a handy tool for evaluating extracurricular involvement that came from some training as an outside reader for UCLA. Their perspective is to look at three attributes of extracurricular involvement: leadership, initiative, and dedication. Of course, from the university perspective, this lens is used to evaluate the choices a student makes in regards to how he/she spends time outside of school, but from the perspective of an individual student, this is a good way to think about the significance of the commitment. 

First, leadership. Are there ways in which you serve as a leader? This can be in terms of title or influence. Perhaps the leadership you have shown has been over particular components or areas of the extracurricular. So much of this one is the way in which you interact with others surrounding your extracurricular involvement. Being able to articulate this is the important piece!

Second, initiative. How have you taken it upon yourself to pursue this extracurricular? What efforts or lengths have you gone to in order to engage with this? For example, if your school does not offer computer science, what have you done to try it? 

Third, dedication. What has your commitment over the years looked like here? Lots of people bemoan their piano lessons, but not too many talented pianists will! Dedication is a function of consistency over time. 

In examining your current extracurriculars, how might you articulate the choices you have made? And, of course, take some time to consider the argument for finding a passion (or trying to find one)!

What Can Lamplighter Do For You?

Over recent weeks, I have received a number of questions from folks about the services that Lamplighter Consulting can provide. With a focus broadly on educational consulting and some particular focal points on systems thinking, university application processes, and leadership/mentorship, there is much to share. Of course, the website does share some general information, but this tends to be broad and vague information, not to mention anonymous, given the requests of the clients. As such, I wanted to run through a handful of recent projects to share some ideas of the ways Lamplighter Consulting might be helpful to you.

• Coaching sessions with college counselors. I have arrangements for periodic, individual check-ins with a handful of counselors. These individuals have sought these sessions for a variety of reasons. Additionally, these individuals are experienced directors, new directors, counselors making the transition from social-emotional counseling to college/university counseling, and counselors new to the profession. These discussions range, as you might imagine, from the day-to-day minutiae of the work to emerging trends and best practices. Finally, these conversations are a mix of informational and mentorship, from discussions about germane topics to support sessions facing the emotional and psychological rigors and demands of the work.

• Meeting with Boards. I have spent time working with trustees and boards and members thereof about trends and concerns within the university admission world. As one colleague humorously represented it recently, I have served as an “expert witness” in the constant interrogation of the complex and ever-changing university admission landscape. In these cases, the boards sought to gain additional perspective on the admissions world. (In one case, I served as part of a two-person panel during a trustee meeting alongside a university admissions director.)

• Advising Heads of School. On several occasions, I have met with heads of school for specific conversations about, typically, specific elements of the college counseling or university admissions process. For example, some of these conversations focused around the process for hiring, ways to evaluate college counseling programs and college counselors, and trends in the industry.

• Supporting Counseling or College Counseling Audits. Given my focus on systems thinking, I have been engaged in two capacities related to formal audits of programs: one, I have been asked to provide an independent audit of a comprehensive counseling program with concrete strategies and recommendations; and, two, I have engaged in many discussions in the aftermath of having received an audit from another organization, working to design and to implement responses to the recommendations. Of course, some of the conversations with counselors often revolve around audits as well.

• Consulting with agencies and firms. A variety of different organizations have engaged seeking perspectives on establishing college counseling programming. These have run the gamut of student-focused non-profits to athletics-oriented groups to tech companies, typically examining how best to serve students or how best to enable other adults to support students. 

• Supporting students and families through the college process. Of course, Lamplighter Consulting was formed with the intention of supporting students with independent consulting services; however, as things have emerged, as the above suggests, the bulk of the work has shifted from students to adults, but the commitment to working with students remains at the heart of the work we do, and we do support students and families directly. 

• Engaging in the Discussion. In addition to these interactions with individuals and organizations, Lamplighter also engages in discussions and trends within the world of education. One way is through the routine sharing of current news through the Lamplighter Facebook page, and another is the monthly College Counseling cheatsheet. 

If any of these services -- or others that you might have -- sound interesting, I strongly encourage you to reach out for a conversation. Please be in touch if you have any ideas for how Lamplighter Consulting might be helpful to you or your school!