Seniors Approach The College Search In Different Ways

By Susan Coney

As with many of life’s major decisions, finding the right college to attend can be an overwhelming and anxiety-ridden experience. While there is no surefire way to eliminate the anxiety, with proper planning and a positive attitude the college search process itself can be a bridge to maturity.

Some students, as well as their parents, find the process daunting, while others accept it as just the next phase of their education. Students attending Newtown High School have a wealth of resources available to them when tackling the search for the perfect school.

The high school guidance department offers a postsecondary planning guide that walks students and their parents through the process of furthering their education after graduation, whether it be by attending college, a trade school, the military service, or entering the world of full-time employment.

The planning guide is available in the guidance office and offers answers to commonly asked questions about the college search process and provides a valuable timeline to assist students in filing college applications, transcripts, and scholarship applications properly.

Guidance secretary Lynn Korotash explained that the Career Center, located in the guidance office, has a number of computers and is available for students to use to access college websites, do virtual tours, file college applications and scholarships, and search for scholarships. In addition to the computer access and numerous books and catalogs available at the center, students may receive assistance from Career Center Coordinator Kitty Latowicki or School-to-Career Coordinator Peg Ragaini.

Ms Korotash said, “Every year we always have a few frantic parents. Then we have some kids who need a jump start on the search process; and then you have the organized ones that have all their paperwork submitted in September.”

Senior Kate Sullivan, the oldest of two children, has found the college search to be a bit stressful. Kate, who is undecided about her major, has an interest in studying either journalism or English. She has applied to nine schools and has been accepted to Notre Dame, the only school she has not visited yet. Kate plans to visit Notre Dame over February break.

“The college search process is exciting and stressful. There is a lot of collective stress in September, October and November when all the students, teachers, and counselors are all trying to get the applications out. It can be frustrating that the colleges only see test scores and it is hard to compress 17 years into that 500-word essay,” Kate said. “It has been a learning experience for my parents, too. Now we are doing all the financial and scholarship applications,” she added.

Eddie Small, the youngest of two children, is undecided about the area of study he will be pursuing, but said that he has an interest in politics. Eddie has applied to several schools but his top choice, Georgetown, is the only one that really stood out for him. “It’s my top choice, but I was deferred until April. I don’t know if I’ll get in there, it is a really popular school. But the waiting doesn’t really bother me.”

He continued, “I didn’t think the college search process was too stressful because I had gone through the process somewhat vicariously with my sister who applied two years before. My parents have been through the application process before.”

Mastering The Process

Elise VanBuskirk has an interest in pursuing a degree in education with a possible art or math minor. “I am the oldest and I began my search this past summer by visiting possible schools. I visited Boston University; we didn’t stay for the tour, I knew right away it wasn’t a fit for me. I really liked Ursinus, a liberal arts college in Pennsylvania. It was small and the kids were very friendly and it had a nice international feel. It is my top choice.”

Elise confided that her parents had been very helpful. “They didn’t stress me out at all. We did The Princeton Review to help match up my interests. I think we had a more laid back approach than most people.”

Senior Danielle LaFrancesca will be attending Southern Connecticut State University this fall. “I love New Haven. It’s such a nice city. I went to visit the school and fell in love with it. I wanted to stay in Connecticut to be close to my family, but I will room there. I want to be a high school English teacher,” Danielle said.

Danielle said that her father has mastered the college application process. Danielle has an older sister who recently graduated from college. Danielle’s father researched schools that offered majors in which his daughter was interested. He then prepared binders where they recorded information on each school in which they were interested. Next he asked how far away from home they wanted to be.

Danielle’s father, Paul LaFrancesca, said he learned a helpful tip from a parent who had already been through the college search process. Following that tip, he asked his daughter to write down her immediate reaction of the school, as soon as they got in the car, while the tour was fresh in her mind.

Mr LaFrancesca said he had both daughters apply to a reach, target, and safety school. “Both my daughters probably lacked the confidence I had in them. Both applied to several schools of various degrees of difficulty and got in to all of them,” he said. “I think we’ve got it down to a science. By the time we did apply it was really easy,” Mr LaFrancesca said.

Rebecca Davila will pursue a psychology degree and attend Western Connecticut State University this fall. “I’m going to live at home for now. I want to keep my job at Big Y. I like it and would like to move up in the company,” Rebecca said.

Rebecca is the oldest of three and it was the first time going through a college search for the family. “Mrs Waterbury, my guidance counselor, helped me a lot by looking over all of the options with me,” she said.

Tyler Nicoll will attend the University of Delaware in the fall as an engineering major. She was inspired to enter the engineering profession by her teacher science teacher Denise Mendoza. “I fell in love with the school. It was a perfect fit for me. My mom was a big help and knew what to do to help get my applications out the door,” she said.

Senior David White is pursuing a certificate in automotive technology at Baran Institute of Technology in Windsor. He will live in a dorm while completing the one-year program. “I’ve always been interested in cars and mechanics. This one looked the best and is the closest. I already know some people who go there and like it.”

David said that in high school he took the three technology classes the school offers, Power tech, Auto I and Auto II. “I liked them all but the technology is not up to date at all. The funding hasn’t been coming for that. I always had the interest and didn’t need to take the SAT test, which was nice, but I did have to take an entrance exam.”

Director of Guidance Neil Culhane stated, “The reaction to the college process for students and their families range from very stressful to ‘yeah, this is the next stage of my life.’ I think the students reaction is how they approach it. I’ve asked them to approach it like a project about themselves, to learn about their strengths and talents. It can be a lot of fun.

“It is a major decision so there is bound to be some stress. It really helps when families have been through it once before. I think the whole thing comes when the students are the most over programmed with responsibilities. It comes at a bad time in their lives when they have all these other functions and activities they want to do,” he said.