Getting ready for the upcoming NACAC National Conference?
Make sure to tune into Admissions Live at 1 p.m. (ET) Monday for a special episode previewing the three-day gathering in Boston.
Continue reading Tune In: ‘Admissions Live’ Episode Will Preview #nacac17
Planning to work during the school year to help pay for college?
Incoming freshmen should start searching now to increase their odds of landing a great campus job, according to a post on Homeroom — the official blog of the US Department of Education.
“If you’re interested in working part-time while in school, it’s best to start checking out those opportunities early, even before you get to campus or start classes,” notes blog author Susan Thares, who works with the department’s office of Federal Student Aid.
Continue reading Students: Start Searching Now for On-Campus Jobs
Diversity on campus strengthens our colleges and our country.
Yet a large number of qualified students from low-income and minority populations are still underrepresented in American higher education due to inadequate access to college advising resources.
Continue reading 4 Ways College Counselors Can Increase Access for Underrepresented Students
Editor’s note: A version of this post originally appeared on Admitted in June 2016. It’s being republished as part of NACAC’s Best of the Blog series.
Hoping to play sports in college? Make sure your social media accounts send the right message to recruiters.
“Right or wrong, most college coaches will assume that how you act on social media will be how you act on campus,” according to a recent USA Today column by Fred Bastie. “For that reason, your actions and behavior on social media in high school are critical if you expect to play in college.”
Continue reading College Coaches Use Social Media to Vet Recruits
NACAC President Nancy T. Beane responded Wednesday to media reports suggesting the Trump administration is considering legal action against colleges and universities with race-conscious admission policies.
In a statement released to the press, Beane noted that the Supreme Court upheld in 2016 the right of colleges to consider a student’s race or ethnicity as one factor when making admission decisions.
“By disregarding the Fisher ruling, the administration and Justice Department would frustrate efforts to improve educational opportunity, and would erode respect for diversity in higher education,” she said. “This initiative would be a serious challenge to the critical work of improving college access and success for all students.”
It’s human nature: Difficult conversations are often the easiest ones to avoid.
Yet when it comes to discussions surrounding diversity, bias, and cultural fluency, educators owe it to themselves and the students they serve to tune in.
Next month, attendees at NACAC’s national conference in Boston will have the opportunity to do just that. Two interactive Real Talk sessions—one addressing workplace issues, the other focused on the needs of students and families—will be facilitated by Lisa D. Walker, former director of Cross Cultural Student Development at the University of California-Berkeley.
“Good conversation and effective dialogue can inspire us to change individually and collectively,” Walker told Admitted. “In my experience, those changes often start small but can gain momentum over time.”
Continue reading Real Talk: Discuss Diversity, Bias, and Cultural Fluency at #nacac17
From negotiating language and cultural divides to interacting with agents, US high school counselors face unique challenges when advising international students about their postsecondary options, according to a new report from NACAC.
The association’s latest study, Supporting International High School Students in the College Admission Process, draws primarily upon interviews with 20 counselors from public and private schools, as well as the NACAC’s 2016 Counseling Trends Survey.
Interview respondents reported that international students often have difficulty understanding vocabulary and slang specific to the US college admission process. And counselors themselves said they were uncertain of how best to collaborate with agents — professionals contracted by schools and universities to recruit international students or hired by families for college counseling services.
Continue reading More Training Needed for High School Counselors Serving International Students
College enrollment rates increase when high schools cover the cost of college entrance exams, new research suggests.
The finding — published by Education Finance and Policy — is based on a study of six classes of high school juniors who attended Michigan schools from 2003-04 to 2007-08. The state has required teens to take a college entrance exam since 2007.
“Overall, the policy increased the probability that students would enroll in college by about 2 percent,” according to an Education Week article about the new research. “Students at schools with higher poverty rates increased their college enrollment rates by 6 percent, and those students who had a low to middling probability of taking the ACT before the policy took effect saw their rates improve by 5 percent afterward.”
Continue reading Free ACT/SAT Exams Boost College Enrollment Rates
Prospective students should take the lead during campus visits, but if parents are tagging along they also have a role to play.
An extra set of eyes and ears can prove invaluable, W. Kent Barnds, executive vice president of Augustana College (IL), wrote in a recent Huffington Post column.
And perhaps more importantly, moms and dads can help prepare their student to make the most out of the visit.
After 67 years working with students, one of NACAC’s most experienced members has stepped away from the desk.
Lillian Orlich retired last month from her position as a counselor at Osbourn High School in Manassas, Virginia. She spent all but three years of her career serving students in the Manassas area, first as a teacher and then as a counselor.
“Her former students and counselees became doctors, lawyers, accountants, and landscapers,” according The Washington Post. “Manassas City Major Hal Parrish was in her social studies course in the late 1960s. NBA legend David Robinson checked into her office in the early 1980s.”
Continue reading NACAC Member Retires After 67 Years Serving Students