18 | Education
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College Counselor Q&A Continued from page 17 SHAMONA HARRELL is head school counselor at Riverwood International Charter School
Q: Should I take an SAT prep course?
A: We first advise students to do a little self-reflection. If they are very disciplined and will set aside weekend hours to practice sample test questions available on the internet, they can benefit tremendously from this at no cost. Practicing questions and reviewing the answers is a great start. Secondly, Riverwood offers test prep classes at a minimal cost. Thirdly, students can pay for test prep through several local companies and private tutors.
TYLER SANT is director of college counseling at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School
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Q: How do I decide what college is right for me?
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A: As counselors, we advise students to consider multiple factors while developing their prospective college lists. These factors include school type (public, private, two- or four-year), size, location and climate, travel distance from home, cost (tuition, room and board) and availability of scholarships, available majors and special interests, acceptance rate, etc.
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Q: How many schools should I apply to?
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A: Some students know exactly where they want to apply; others want to develop a broader list to include a wider range of colleges. An average list typically includes six to eight colleges covering various cost and admission ranges.
Q: What’s the best way to have my application stand out?
A: Students are advised to meet the application deadlines and that includes deadlines for all supporting documentation. Secondly, the student’s short answer essays or personal statement as well as teacher recommendations can truly help the student stand out among multiple students applying for the same spot in a freshman class. We like to be able to learn about the student from reading their essays. Thirdly, we advise students to make sure senior grades are maintained at the highest level possible.
Q: Should I take the SAT or ACT or both?
A: We typically recommend students take at least one real SAT and one ACT to determine if they prefer one test over the other one.
Tyler Sant
Q: How do I decide what college is right for me?
A: Finding what college is right for you requires both research and self-reflection. Knowing yourself is just as important as knowing something about a variety of colleges. Once you have an idea of what’s important to you — the things you might want to study, the types of people you want to be around, the sort of environment in which you feel comfortable — you can begin to match colleges to those criteria. And there’s no one-and-onlybest-fit college. Keep an open mind and explore broadly. You’ll find many colleges where you can be happy and successful.
Q: How many schools should I apply to?
A: There’s no right or wrong answer to this (unless you’re applying to a huge number of schools with little understanding of how they might be a good fit; in that case, that’s a wrong answer). The college counseling team at HIES encourages students to apply to anywhere from two to eight colleges, de-
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