The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine school counselors' preparation for college admissions counseling, strategies counselors utilize to stay current on college admissions processes and trends, and professional development needs related to college admissions counseling. Study findings indicated school counselors did not complete…

Past work and college-access programs often treat college knowledge as discrete pieces of information and focus on the amount of available college information. I use ethnographic and multiwave interview data to compare college-aspiring working- and middle-class black 9th and 11th graders across almost two years in high school along with their…

Based on a case study of two majority-Black public high schools in a highly segregated American school district, the article employs a critical intersectional framework to examine the experiences of ten college-aspiring young Black men as they navigate the college choice process. Findings indicate that working-class Black male students are less…

High school counselors play a vital role in helping students prepare for attending college. They are the link between students and families and institutions, providing counseling, information, and motivation to help students make it through their enrollment journeys. Along the way, they have to help students cope with a wide variety of challenges:…

While many high schools reproduce social inequalities in college access, little is known about the schools that successfully reduce them. To this end, Gorana Ilic and James E. Rosenbaum studied an urban high school that expressed a strong commitment to supporting all students' college applications. In this article, they describe the organizational…

Applicants from high-performing high schools routinely enter the college admission process overscheduled and overwhelmed. Stress and sleep-deprivation have reached epidemic proportions at competitive high schools, while rates of depression and anxiety among US teens and young adults have skyrocketed. For this generation of students, the stakes…

The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study was to examine the high school counselors' perception of their ability to influence low socioeconomic students' postsecondary enrollment decisions in seven Title I high schools in southern California. Perna and Thomas' Student Success model and the Delivery System of the American School…

This study investigated the effect of the "College Possible" program, which is designed to serve low-income high school students. "College Possible" provides a 2-year afterschool curriculum to high school juniors and seniors that includes SAT and ACT test preparation services, college admissions and financial aid consulting,…

The White House will soon unveil a final version of its "college scorecard"--an online tool giving college-bound students and their families a hype-free snapshot of reliable information about any U.S. campus: real costs, graduation rates, student debt statistics, and earning potential of graduates. The college scorecard is a good idea…

The entrepreneurial admission sector is comprised of commercial enterprises aimed at helping students increase their odds of admission, as well as providing general college information to the masses. As for-profit entities, a goal of companies in this sector is to maximize revenue and profit. Existing research identifies four main activities as…

While benefits of college matriculation are well-established, the portal controlling access to higher education is the institutional application. The bulk of the college application process takes place during a student's senior or 12th-grade year; however, parents and caregivers of high school students need to know that the quest for college…

State public policy has been an important tool for improving the educational preparation and opportunity for many communities. However, without concerted statewide efforts it will continue to be difficult to substantially expand opportunities to accelerate higher education attainment and workforce preparation. Over the next 15 years, the states…

For-profit college-admissions counseling and college-preparation companies are expanding, and existing test-preparation centers are planning to begin offering admissions-counseling services. One company envisions a national chain. Some educators welcome the trend, while others feel the commercial enterprises may take an inappropriate approach to…

While American community colleges are highly regarded for providing access to higher education for many students, especially those from educationally disadvantaged backgrounds, many of those students never make significant progress in earning a baccalaureate degree. In order to do so, they must successfully transfer to a four-year institution. For…

Observes that admissions counselors have been concerned with policies that affect the lives of students as they make the transition from high school to college. Traces the ways in which the National Association of College Admission Counselors has worked to ensure that all aspects of human relations are addressed. (ABB)