College Counseling Programming Preparing Upper School Students

Programming provided by ESJ’s College Counseling staff for students this fall has included Application Camp for seniors in August, which gave students the opportunity to get ahead on all of their college applications; a Zoom meeting for parents of seniors on September 3 to cover the nuts and bolts of the application process, as well as important topics such as schools that are now test-optional and FL Bright Futures funding; a Zoom meeting with all of the juniors on Sept 10 to prepare them for the coming year, including choosing their college counselor; and personal meetings with individual students every day to narrow down their college lists, discuss their essays, and options for applications such as Early Decision.

Yesterday College Counseling held a Zoom meeting for all parents featuring Alicia Keaton, Director of Student Financial Assistance from the University of Central Florida. Ms. Keaton presented information on what parents need to know when filing the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student) and the CSS Profile (required by many private colleges and universities) and what factors are considered when determining need-based financial aid. Federal and state aid information was also available. Finally, watch Mr. Riggs on News4Jax with alumna Jen Waugh ’89 as he discusses the ACT and SAT.