HPHS Postsecondary Counseling News

Class of 2025 ~ As you begin your junior year we wanted to communicate with you on a variety of topics and supports available to you regarding planning for life after high school. The postsecondary team offers several programs and services to meet the needs of students and families wondering what their next steps will be. Please read through this newsletter as there are some programs and opportunities highlighted that can support you this academic year. Continue or make a pledge to do your best this year: be there for each other, be flexible and be open to new ways of searching, learning and reflecting on what's important to you. Getting involved in clubs, activities and the outside community will help create connections and enhance your year tremendously. Knowing what you like and what you don't like will benefit you in the postsecondary exploration process and we look forward to working with you later this year.

The Postsecondary Counseling Team

Mr. Rob Becker - CRC Coordinator

Dr. William Morrison - Postsecondary Counselor

Mrs. Jen Pendergast - Postsecondary Counselor

Ms. Holly Siegel - Postsecondary Counselor/School Counselor

The official HPHS Postsecondary Program begins in the fall of junior year with our Kickoff to Postsecondary Planning Program on November, 8, 2023. This program will be held in-person in the HPHS Auditorium where the Postsecondary Counseling (PSC) team will share an overview on what to expect and things to consider, followed by smaller breakout presentations with your individual school counselor. You will receive more information via email as it draws closer with more details. This program will cover a variety of topics from college visits, to search and selection, to testing, to finding the right fit. Further programming will be offered throughout the year as we go through the winter and spring months, with the majority of our programs taking place virtually. Invitations to each event with the appropriate details will be sent out throughout the year so please check your email and Giant Life News regularly. For a comprehensive list of program offerings and a wealth of other information check out the “Information for Juniors” page on our Postsecondary Counseling website.

The Postsecondary Counseling Curriculum at Highland Park High School is a developmental program designed to assist students with career exploration and the college search, selection, and application process. We work closely with students and parents/guardians to ensure that students craft a plan that is right for them. Please check out our website and our Facebook page to learn more about us and how we serve students.

Website: https://www.dist113.org/Page/349
Location: 433 Vine Avenue, Highland Park, IL, USA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HPHS-Postsecondary-Counseling-520027864823500

Individual appointments with postsecondary counselors begin second semester. Students will be assigned a postsecondary counselor who they will meet with for the duration of the process. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns in regards to postsecondary planning feel free to reach out to your school counselor. They are very well-versed in the process but if they are unable to answer your question they will connect with a postsecondary counselor for assistance. We are a team and work together to support our students.

MaiaLearning is the online career and college resource tool utilized by Highland Park High School. It contains a wealth of information on the college & career process and includes a number of tools that will help students identify possible career, major, and college matches. We know that many of you may be undecided on your next steps after high school, and that is normal. However, we also encourage you to use the tools in MaiaLearning to help you learn more about your interests for careers and at least start the exploration process. All students have accounts in Maia and can simply sign-in using the Google button with their school email address. For a video tutorial and/or a handout with more specifics on this platform, visit the MaiaLearning portion of our Postsecondary Counseling website.

Colleges and universities continue to offer a number of different virtual programming options. This is a whole new way of exploring colleges and we wanted to make sure you knew that these are tools and resources available to you as a way to learn more about a campus, possible majors and/or the college admissions process. We also encourage students to register for the mailing lists of each of the schools they are interested in to make sure to receive the most up-to-date information on what these colleges will be offering. We would highly recommend creating a separate email account for all of your college or postsecondary related information so that it can all be found in one inbox. This way it won't get lost with other emails and it's helpful once you begin applying to colleges to have a simple, straightforward email to use in this manner. You will typically find this information on the college's admissions section of their website. Check the individual college and university sites to see offerings. These virtual programs are a great way for you to "visit" a college and learn more from an admissions representative.

College fairs are typically a great way to meet with numerous admissions reps in one evening, to answer quick questions and to pick up some information about the college. At this time, the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) will be hosting mostly regional, in-person college fairs with a few virtual fairs available. To see a list of these virtual and in-person college fairs happening this year, check out this link. To get a general idea of what to expect from a college fair, check out that section of the College Planning Handbook. We will do our best to keep you informed of these offerings throughout this year.

The postsecondary counseling team will stay in touch with you in a number of ways throughout this process. Keep an eye out for these quarterly newsletters, watch for email communications from us, and join our Facebook page. Finally, familiarize yourself with the many resources available on our Postsecondary Counseling website.

We want to make sure you are aware of an in depth resource tool on all things related to the college application process. On the PSC website, under Information for Juniors, The College Planning Handbook is an e-binder with topics tabulated for your reference and review. Using this tool will allow you to learn more about many of the different aspects to the college search, exploration and application process. Some of the many topics covered are:

• Why self assessment is such a big part of this process
• What criteria to consider when selecting a college
• What services are available to you in the CRC
• Information on financial aid and scholarships
• What to expect at a college fair
• What to do on a campus visit
• Nuances to the process for special populations like performing arts
• What roles essays and letters of recommendation play in the process
• Suggested timelines to consider and handouts to help you as you visit and research schools

Please take a look at this resource as it will empower you with information and knowledge necessary on this journey towards reaching your postsecondary goals.

In the United States, the SAT will be a new digital format starting in 2023. District 113 Postsecondary Counseling will be hosting a College Admissions Testing Overview/Update on October 10, 2023. This will be a virtual event with more details sent out closer to that timeframe via email.

** Please note that if you are planning to take the PSAT-NMSQT in October, the format for that test will also be digital.