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The Lay of the Land

It’s hard to describe how much the landscape of college admissions has changed in the past 30 years. For many of the parents who have kids applying, the entire college application process can seem completely different from the one they went through. College applicant numbers seem to increase year over year, which creates a negative feedback loop. Students apply for more colleges to increase their odds of admissions, which forces colleges to read through more applications, which lowers acceptance rates, which pushes students to apply to more institutions. It’s a trend that’s only continued to get worse as the years go on. Speaking from personal experience, many students apply to upwards of 20 colleges, while a couple decades ago, they might’ve only applied for 2.

And despite all this, the college admission process is notoriously opaque. There isn’t much insight into what happens behind those closed doors. Especially for older siblings, it can be a confusing process, one that high school didn’t prepare them for.

A Seemingly Green Light

In all this uncertainty, there seems to be one group of individuals who offer a sense of salvation, College Counselors. For many parents, especially if it’s their first time going through the admissions process, having the advice, mentorship and guidance of a professional can be invaluable. In this article, I’m going to reflect on my own experiences and from what I’ve seen with others to try to answer the question, “Are college counselors worth the cost?”

School Counselors

I want to preface by talking about school counselors. These are the individuals who are in charge of writing the counselor letter of recommendation and helping make sure the college application process goes smoothly.

In my opinion, these are a pretty underused resource. My high school has a college/career advisor, and from talks with them, I’ve gained some invaluable insights into the college admission process. Sometimes, they’ll have talked with the admission officer that will be reading my application and be able to provide additional insight into what kinds of essays they like. It is quite literally their job to know the ins and outs of the admission process. They have some great advice and are usually more than happy to help students out.

No matter where you are in the admission process, I’d strongly recommend reaching out and engaging with the counselors at your school. After all, they’re here to help you succeed.

Private Counselors (Paid)

I’ll start by making two confessions:

  1. I had a private college counselor throughout my process of applying to college, although I mainly tried to do my applications independently.
  2. I personally morally dislike private college counselors.

With that out of the way, I’ll try my best to reflect on my experiences with them and avoid my personal moral reservations against them.

It’s almost comical how many different services exist out there, all promising to boost your admission chances. Anything from AP review books (Looking at you Princeton Review and Barrons) to SAT prep classes boasting a “guaranteed” score increase of 100 points or more.

Personally, I’d say that test prep materials can work, but shouldn’t be thought of as your ticket to success. There’s plenty of great online resources out there, Khan Academy, Heimler’s History etc. If you’re looking for more comprehensive review materials, test prep materials can work, but I’d say start with the free content out there and turn to review materials if you find that the free content just doesn’t work for you.

For college counselors, I have to admit that they can definitely be a great help. Especially for those who are applying for the first time, having the guidance and personalized advice of a counselor can help demystify what you should expect. That being said, I would strongly recommend that families understand that college counselors won’t make a bad application great. A college counselor will help you find ways to accentuate your strengths and craft a personalized message. But how individual admission officers perceive that story, and if they decide that you’re the type of student that they want on campus is different.

The college admission process isn’t entirely merit based.

That’s the stark truth. Everyone comes from various backgrounds with a variety of unique experiences. Unfortunately, that’s not all captured in a standardized test score. It’s the college admission officer’s job of determining what kind of student you are and how you would fit into their campus. You may be an exemplary scholar but based on the type of freshman class the university is building, may not be a good fit. Unfortunately, that’s out of your control and of any college advisors. At best you can present your unique compelling message and hope the admission officer wants your unique experiences in their freshman class. College consultants can help you craft that story in an attempt to make it more compelling, but that’s about the most they can do. In summary, there’s a lot of moving parts in the college admission process. As much as college counselors may market themselves as your ticket to the ivy leagues, they simply cannot guarantee admission for anyone. They can certainly provide valuable insights, but if their services are worth the thousands they charge is a judgement that’s left up to you.

I did also want to end on a note of reassurance. One of the personal reasons why I dislike college consulting firms is the pressure it puts on students as well as the fear mongering tactics they use. They brag about acceptances of students that have worked with them (in some ways, taking credit for a student’s achievement that they had little to no role in), and craft an image that without their services, you’ll struggle to break out from the crowd. Trust me, that’s not true. The college admission process is certainly a stressful process, but it’s also one that’s unique to each individual. There’s nothing that you have to do to earn admission to your dream colleges. Some of my friends who’ve made it to institutions like Yale and Northwestern did so without the services of college counselors. Whatever path you choose, whether that’s with or without college counselors, things can/will work out.

Author’s Note

Thanks for reading the latest segment breaking down certain aspects of the high school experience. When I decide on topics to write about, they’re mostly based off things I find interesting and would have liked to know more about. That being said, I’m mainly going off my own experiences/the suggestions of other people in leadership (thanks Song Ling for this topic). If there’s some questions that you as the reader might have, feel free to let me know. My contact information is on the home page of this website.