Scope of Services
Aspire College Counseling services are designed to support and lead students through the college process. The climate of the college search and admission process has placed greater demands on students and parents who are inexperienced in navigating the college puzzle. We understand the pressures families face and will become an integral part of the process by guiding, recommending, monitoring, and offering essential knowledge and experience.
The scope of services is tailored to each individual student. Students are able to select and concentrate on the appropriate needs, which may include testing opportunities, resume building, essay writing, developing a balanced college list, focusing on a timeline to complete applications, visiting colleges, and developing interviewing skills. These services may include the following:
- Solidify academic profile, including GPA and rigor of coursework
- Explore and potentially expand or develop leadership experience, extracurricular activities, community service, internships, sports and work opportunities and expand resume building
- Review components and develop strategy for testing – SAT, ACT, SAT Subject Tests if appropriate, as well as test prep options, and consider from score comparisons, the best testing opportunities for preparation and professional mentoring
- Create a strategy with students who have accommodations for learning styles
- Review the types of application plan, from non-restrictive to restrictive, Regular, Rolling, Early Action, Early Decision, Priority, and Restrictive Early Action
- Review the types of applications – Common Application, Apply Texas Application, Coalition Application, institutional applications, scholarship applications, and honors applications – to determine the best plan in applying to colleges
- Review international admissions, if appropriate
- Discuss and identify career interests and major choices
- Review financial need and the components of FAFSA and the CSS Profile
- Explore guidelines for selecting a college
- Discover potential colleges and acceptance norms that fit within the student's range of academic performance , geographical preference and financial considerations
- Develop an initial list of colleges to research that are competitive for each student
- Assist in the development of the student resume – format, wording, editing, feedback
- Assist in the development of application essays – brainstorming, drafting, student’s voice, the “hook,” the format, editing and finalizing
- Guidelines in preparing for campus visits – questions and considerations when on campus
- Discussion of demonstrated interest and the impact with specific colleges
- Create with the student a well-balanced final list of colleges
- Assist in the preparation and submission of the college applications
- Follow-up and guidance throughout the process
The initial consultation will provide an outline for future services. Services can be structured as individual meetings or as a series of meetings, with flexibility to design a package that optimizes a student's success. These meetings can be customized, from hourly meetings with specific goals to a series of planned meetings that encompass all areas of the college admission process.