SCHOOLING WITH PURPOSE
College Counseling
Starting Early With a Tailored Approach
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inding the right college can be overwhelming, and the admissions process is complex and often timeconsuming. King School has worked for decades to create a college counseling program that aims to alleviate this pressure by offering ongoing, personalized support to students and their families. While most schools begin exploring colleges in 10th or 11th grade, King’s College Counseling program begins in Grade 9 with a unique, four-year developmental approach that helps students discover and target the colleges most suitable to their interests and personalities. “My King friends have all sorts of interests, and they are at all sorts of amazing schools, including New York University, Georgetown, and Harvard,” said Max Helman ’18, who attended Columbia University after graduating from King. “I am just amazed by how King finds such perfect fits for everyone.” The program includes a team of four counselors who develop relationships with students as soon as they enter the Upper School. By getting to know the students, they can draw on their expansive knowledge of colleges and universities both domestically and internationally to match students with the best fit. “The college guidance process starts early at King,” Jenna Macrae ’19 said. “Teachers set high expectations for their students and create a plan to help you meet those
24 Quest 2023-24
expectations. Princeton was my dream, and they helped make that a reality and prepared me thoroughly to be challenged academically and athletically once I got there.” “Our goal is to help students identify their unique talents and interests and then to match them with colleges that will help them flourish.” —Jessica Landis, Director of College Counseling Students are paired with experienced counselors who guide them through the process. In the early years of Upper School, counselors help students reflect upon who they are and how best to explore their interests. As students grow, they are ready to connect what they have learned about themselves to colleges that best support their goals. They continue working with their counselors to develop a list of potential colleges, write essays, and prepare for interviews. The program has helped many King students attend their top-choice colleges and universities. “I started college counseling in ninth grade,” said Maeve Snover ’18, who went to Bucknell and worked with Director of College Counseling Jessica Landis during her time at King. “Ms. Landis helped me find schools I was interested in,” she said, “and helped me throughout the application process to figure out what I wanted to talk about when I applied
