Overview

The newsletter, This Week in Guidance, provides valuable information about registration deadlines and dates for tests including the PLAN, PSAT, ACT and SAT. It also includes information about financial aid, scholarships, scholarship guides, and upcoming college visits each month open to all high school students.

With over 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S., the process of choosing just one may seem like an impossible task. These pages are intended to provide some basic information and resources.

In a nutshell, the college admission process involves knowing your reasons for attending college, researching college characteristics, comparing and visiting colleges, creating a list, applying and observing deadlines, developing a plan to finance your education, and reviewing and finalizing your plans.

Guidance counselors, parents, coaches, teachers, and the student all play a part in the college admission process with the student taking the lead. Applying to college is a learning process, a key step on the road to maturity and independence.

As you move through the process remember a few key points:

  • Stay organized by using admission file folders and a calendar of deadlines
  • Keep copies of everything
  • Be proactive; ask for help; get your questions answered
  • Prepare for entrance exams and retake them 2-3 times to improve scores
  • Take challenging courses in high school
  • Devote your time to keeping your grades up
  • Invest time in researching scholarships on-line or in the guidance office

Helpful college search links:

The College Board
U.S. News & World Report’s College Search and Rankings
Peterson’s (college, career, test prep, and career site)
The Common Application (used for select colleges/universities)
Cappex (college searching made easy)
Black Excel (resource for African American schools)
American Association of Community Colleges
Trade & Vocational Schools.com
The Princeton Review (college search, support, and test prep site)
College Degrees Search

In keeping with the Guidance Office’s goal of providing personalized service to each MRH student, the counselors are available to help you navigate through the college admission process. We look forward to working with you!

Gwen Donnell, 9th-10th Counselor
Justin Harcharic, 11th-12th Counselor
Patti Johnson, Guidance Secretary
Guidance Office: (314) 446-3805