Pocket Guide Comments

From High School Counselors

“Thank you. I love to show off your powerful little brochure. I tell families, ‘it's probably the smallest thing in your packet but probably one of the most important.’”
– High School Counselor, Ann Arbor, MI

“We are going to distribute it to our juniors and their parents and talk to them about why it is important to look beyond name recognition. We want them to dig deeper and go beyond the standard questions...class size, study abroad programs, etc.”
– Director of College Guidance, preparatory school, Chattanooga, TN

“I plan to give a copy to each junior and senior. We will discuss the survey, the colleges who have participated, and how to use the questions in the booklet. I teach a class called ‘Senior Seminar,’ which spends significant time on college research and application strategies. I also meet with juniors and their parents in the spring to officially open the college search process.”
– Director of College Counseling, private school, Snyder, NY

“We do a Junior Career Week (in March) and will hand them out to any of our juniors interested in having a copy…Thank you for your support of high school students!”
– Counselor/Dept. Chair, high school, Hastings, MN

“I am very excited about getting these guides. They will be so helpful for our juniors and seniors who are beginning the college application process. Thanks!”
– High School and College Program Coordinator, youth program, Chicago, IL

“I will distribute them to the entire junior class when I make presentations to them in the spring. I would also like a few to have available for parents who drop in to my office and for younger students. I also intend to put the link to your website in my Junior/Senior Planning Handbook so that families can become familiar with NSSE.”
– College and Career Advisor, high school, Pleasant Hill, CA

“The guide will be distributed to parents and students in our Advancement via Individual Determination (AVID) program. We will ask parents to use them on our tours of various college campuses.”
–AVID Coordinator, high school, La Palma, CA

“Our seniors are required to plan independent trips to check out colleges this fall. I plan to go over the brochure with them in preparation of these trips.”
– College Counselor, private academy, New York, NY

“We advise students regarding college search and application issues. We also provide scholarships to students based on need and merit. We will distribute them to students with whom we work.”
– Director of Academic & College Guidance, high school, Los Angeles, CA

“We'll give it to our juniors as they start their college search process. We hope to get it to them in November.”
– Director of College Counseling, private school, Atlanta, GA

We use it with “…seniors and juniors in preparing them for college selections as well as with a PowerPoint I have developed to address this exact subject.”
– College Counselor, private academy, Las Vegas, NV

“The pamphlet will be used at college planning sessions for parents and classroom sessions for students,”
– Counselor, high school, Aurora, OH

“We plan to give the copies to our students during our Junior Parent Meeting.”
– Counselor, high school, Auburn Hills, MI

“We will hand out to students and parents in 1-1 counseling sessions. We will offer to parents at parent nights.”
– Director of Guidance, high school, Montpelier, VT

“I plan to distribute them to tenth and eleventh graders as they begin to consider their college choices.”
– College Counselor, private school, Huntingtown, MD

“I wish I had done this earlier so I could give them to my juniors and parents tomorrow at my evening college planning night. However, I will distribute them at another time. I will give them to the other classes at suitable evening programs.”
– College Counselor, private academy, Tampa, FL

We give out the pocket guide “…as part of an ongoing college admissions program. This year I will distribute them to 11th grade students in the spring.”
– Director of Guidance, private school, Bethlehem, NH

“We plan to use the pocket guide for student and parent information sessions when guiding them through the college search and application process.”
– College Counselors, private academy, Villanova, PA

“We do a Junior Career Week … and will hand them out to any of our Juniors interested in having a copy. Any remaining copies will be made available to others visiting our career resource center…Thank you for your support of high school students!
– Counselor, high school, Hastings, MN

“I will distribute the copies to the entire 7-12 grades at our building. With the 8-12 they will be part of a packet that is used when registering for classes in the spring.”
– College Counselor, school administrative district, Portland, ME

“Each year our counselors hold college planning conferences for their juniors and their parents. We include this information in the college planning folder that we hand out to families.”
– Director of Guidance, high school, Mequon, WI

From College and University Recruitment and Admission Offices

"Many families don’t know which questions to ask when visiting a college campus. I find that the pocket guide is the perfect collection of questions to help students get information about the most important aspects of a college experience. With answers to the pocket guide questions, students are certain to have the information they need to make an informed college decision."
- Director of Undergraduate Admissions, Madison, WI

“We plan to distribute them to our recruiters and high school liaisons. We will take them on high school visits and offer them to interested students.”
– Director of Admissions, Wichita, KS

“I am conducting a workshop for staff/faculty families on how to prepare for college search and admissions, and thought this a great handout to include along with a few…” other items.
- Associate Director of Recruitment, Seattle, WA

We use the Pocket Guide “…to help train admissions volunteers (tour guides, alumni volunteers, etc) and to give to junior visitors beginning their college search during our junior open houses.”
– Associate Dean of Admissions, Portland, OR

“We were sent some samples two or three years ago and have since used them for all of our Open Houses and private visits to campus. They're terrific!”
- Assistant Director of Admissions, Elkins, WV.