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Collegiate Compass offers a variety of college counseling services dedicated to maximizing students’ educational opportunities. For freshmen and sophomores, our offerings focus on helping students plan in a way which will enhance their ability to pursue, deepen, and expand their academic and extracurricular interests. For juniors and seniors, our services offer a focused approach to navigating the various parts of the college admissions process. For students who are considering a gap year, we offer advising focused on finding the program which best fits their interests, and which also will make them better candidates for the colleges they are targeting.
Through all our services, we bring individualized support and advice to students in a manner which will help them to increase their educational options. Descriptions of our offerings appear below; for a complete list of prices, please request information on our contact page.
Meetings with Collegiate Compass consultants are held in Manhattan, Greenwich, CT, and Los Angeles. For clients outside of these areas, the majority of our services can be offered through a combination of webcam, telephone, and email contact. Most of our services include some combination of face to-face meetings and telephone/email follow-up. The breakdown of meetings and telephone/email contact is flexible and can be adjusted to meet the needs of students whose busy schedules or geographic location make such meetings difficult.
Consultation
Our meetings with freshmen and sophomores focus on helping
students plan their high school coursework and extracurricular
activities. Our academic advising assists students in ensuring
that they take full advantage of course offerings at their
high school, and in some instances, in considering academic
opportunities outside of their school. We also help students
to think about means through which they can apply both their
extracurricular and academic interests in novel ways, so
as to deepen or broaden their experience in these pursuits.
We will provide an overview of the timeline and various
steps involved in the college admissions process so that
students and parents have an understanding of what to expect
in the years to come. Freshman and sophomore years are the
time to establish a solid foundation in high school and
our consultation can provide a valuable perspective at this
important juncture in a student’s academic career
Consultation
In our junior consultation, we provide a thorough description of the college admissions process and include discussion of a student's transcript, extracurricular activities, and standardized testing plan. We start with an assessment of the student's transcript to date, discuss colleges that the student may preliminarily be considering, and then formulate a plan to either help that student maintain his current high level of performance or improve his high school record as he prepares to apply to colleges the following year. We also discuss a student's extracurricular activities and achievements, and, when appropriate, consider how a student's extracurricular pursuits may create specific opportunities for him or her in the college admissions process. Finally, we help students and their parents to prioritize college visits, and also to learn what to look for on these visits in order to help the student start to refine the list of colleges to which he or she plans to apply.
Junior Premier Advising Packages
These comprehensive packages of services helps students and their parents to plan and to navigate all aspects of the junior year progression towards the college application process, with a focus on the topics listed below. In the Junior Advising Packages, we will:
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Review student's transcript and assess academic strengths and weaknesses; formulate a plan for enhancing academic profile throughout the remainder of student's high school career.
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Consider extracurricular activities; discuss how the student can enhance his commitment to his extracurricular pursuits and any special admissions considerations which may result from these extracurricular talents.
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Establish a standardized testing schedule for the student and discuss test preparation strategies/classes.
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Discuss the importance of teacher recommendations, and start to consider which teachers the student will ask for recommendations.
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Help student to develop a preliminary list of schools that the student will visit as well as a framework of factors to consider on college visits.
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We offer both a full Junior Year Package and a Junior Spring Package to support students in this important college planning year.
Junior-Senior Combined Premier Packages
These packages combine our Junior and Senior Premier Packages and allow us to establish continuity in working with a student through the critical junior and senior years. The Junior Year portion of these packages includes guidance in all the areas described above in the Junior Advising Packages. In the Senior Year component of these Premier Packages, we will:
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Fine-tune the list of colleges that the student is considering; considering Early Decision and/or Early Action choices and strategy.
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Formulate an overall strategy for the student's college applications, focusing on essays, the brag sheet, and considering any supplemental materials the student is considering including.
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Aid in the essay brainstorming process; editing essay and resume drafts.
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Assist students in preparing for college visits, various meetings on campus, and admissions interviews.
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Help student to consider whether to include supplemental application materials, such as portfolios, videos, and/or an additional recommendation.
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Support student in weighing various admissions offers and in the decision-making process after offers of admission have been extended.
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These packages are offered as a Full Junior Year - Senior Year Premier Package and a Junior Spring - Senior Year Package and are the most effective way for us to work with students, as they give us the time to build a strong working relationship with students, establishing a strategy and timeline for the admissions process, and maintaining continuity throughout this process. They are our most popular offerings for juniors and seniors.
Consultation
The senior consultation is helpful for the student who wants a detailed overview of the critical parts of the college admissions process as well as an assessment of his or her academic and extracurricular profile in order to refine the list of colleges that he or she is considering. In this meeting, we will develop a plan for remaining standardized testing, and help the student to formulate an overall plan and strategy for approaching college applications. We will discuss recommendations, highlight what colleges are looking for in essays, and help students to understand what is important to include on their "brag sheet." The consultation includes a set amount of follow-up support which can be expanded on an hourly basis as desired.
Senior Basic and Premier Advising Packages
This package of services helps students and their parents to plan and to navigate all aspects of the college admissions process throughout the student's senior year, with a focus on the topics listed below. The Basic Advising Package differs from the Premier Advising Package in the level of support provided -- please request our pricing sheet for greater detail. In both offerings, we will:
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Assess student's academic and extracurricular profile in order to refine the list of colleges that he or she is considering.
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Develop a plan and timeline for remaining standardized testing, including the SAT I, ACT, SAT II, and AP tests.
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Help students plan college visits and establish a framework for evaluating and comparing various colleges.
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Aid the student in deciding which teachers to ask for recommendations and discuss the best way to ask these teachers.
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Formulate an overall strategy for the student's college applications, focusing on essays, the brag sheet, and considering any supplemental materials the student is considering including; aid in the essay brainstorming process; editing essay and resume drafts.
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Assist students in preparing for college visits, various meetings on campus, and admissions interviews.
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Support student in weighing various admissions offers and in the decision-making process after offers of admission have been extended.
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Student Athlete Consultation
This consultation is helpful for the student athlete who seeks assistance in evaluating college options, including specific consideration of various college athletic programs, as well as how his athletic achievements may improve his chances of admission. In most cases, this means that the student is being recruited by college coaches, but we are also prepared to help students who wish to contact a coach who has not yet expressed an interest in him or her. As in the senior consultation described above, we will provide a detailed overview of the critical parts of the college admissions process as well as an assessment of his or her academic and athletic profile in order to refine the list of colleges that he or she is considering, develop a plan for remaining standardized testing, and help the student formulate an overall plan and strategy for approaching college applications. We will also discuss recommendations, highlight what colleges are looking for in essays, and help students to understand what is important to include on their “brag sheet”. The consultation includes a certain amount of follow-up support which can be expanded on an hourly basis as desired.
Student Athlete Advising Packages
These packages are designed to provide comprehensive advising for the prospective college athlete, and includes all of the services offered in the corresponding advising packages for non-athletes. In addition to the services offered in the standard advising packages, in the Student-Athlete Advising Packages, we will:
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Discuss NCAA rules and regulations relating to recruiting, including college visits and contact with coaches.
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Assist students in preparing athletic resumes and refer student to athletic recruiting video production companies/individuals.
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Advise students on initiating and managing contact with coaches.
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Help students evaluate the pros and cons of different athletic programs and when applicable, scholarship offers, as well as the school-sports balance which generally prevails in these programs.
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Aid students in considering EA and ED opportunities.
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Support student in weighing various admissions offers and in the decision-making process after offers of admission have been extended.
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These services are offered in the following packages:
- Junior Student-Athlete Advising Package
- Junior-Senior Student-Athlete Advising Package
- Senior Student-Athlete Advising Package
In the case of student-athletes, the Junior-Senior Student-Athlete Advising Package is by far the most effective way for us to work with students; Junior Year and the summer before Senior Year are critical times for student athletes when it is important to develop and put into place a strategy for managing the recruiting process, while building a strong relationship with the student.
For students considering or planning to do a gap year, we offer advising services focused on helping students to:
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determine if a gap year is right for them.
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find programs which match their interests, and which also help to make them more competitive college/ university applicants. Taking a gap year can be a very developmental part of a student's broader education and preparation; our experience makes us well-poised to help students in the important process of deciding whether to take a gap year and then in planning activities, courses, and/or work for that year. |
Collegiate Compass also offers services tailored to meet the needs of students in special situations such as transfer students, students wishing to reapply while taking a year off, and students amidst various other special circumstances. Please email us with a brief description of your situation for more information.
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