As the winter approaches, seniors are making their college decisions and taking on loads of work to prepare for life after graduation. Application deadlines, essay revisions, letters of recommendations, and college visits are all very overwhelming and time-consuming in the lives of seniors along with Foran faculty. Since the beginning of the year, there have been many changes seniors have made and many lessons they have learned that helped them get to the finish line.
Some seniors were completely unfamiliar with the college application process, being the first in their family to attend college. Not only does this affect them, it also affects their families.
For example, senior Joselyne Cruz states, “…as a first generation college student my parents are new to the college process. I really have had to figure things out mostly on my own as well as with the guidance of the counselors.”
Guidance counselors and Foran’s College and Career Counselor, Mrs. Pamela Procyk, have been a significant help for seniors. They see countless students each year go through similar challenges and struggles with the transition they meet after graduation.
Mrs. Pamela Procyk explains, “I think seniors struggle with their essay. I have heard many college reps tell students that they should write about something they are passionate about! If you are bored writing it, how do you think the rep will feel reading it?”
Other seniors struggle with the college application sites, like Common App. Many seniors have spent the beginning of their school year learning to navigate the Common App website to begin their application process.
Senior Julian Sevillano claims that navigating the website and all of its terminology was a struggle for him in the beginning. However, he says, “It has all been very confusing and stressful but I am thankful that I am almost done with it.”
A lot of seniors find themselves worrying over having to pick their major for the next four years. The majority of universities available around the U.S. offer an undeclared/undecided major. This allows students to give themselves the time and resources to explore different majors offered by the campus and declare their major around the middle or end of their sophomore year.
Seniors are beginning to complete their college applications, many of them choosing to apply Early Action to their schools. This allows students to find out their acceptance around January and February. Visit the counseling office for more information on application deadlines and college visits.
