College Placement at EA

| Upper School Profile 2012-2013 |

Elgin Academy has two college counselors and an administrative assistant, all of whom have many opportunities to get to know students in a variety of different ways. As a result, our process is first and foremost a personal one built upon solid relationships.

Our college counseling office provides the following services:

• The availability of a counselor who knows each student at all points in the process.
• Sophomore College Night, an evening geared to introduce each family to the college process and the components of each student’s application.
• College Night for Juniors, the formal beginning of the process at which families receive the extensive “College Handbook,” a complete resource for every aspect of the process. This night also includes representatives from local colleges and universities to discuss the college search and application process.
• Many college visits by representatives from schools all over the country that are here to recruit Elgin Academy students.
• Family meetings, the result of which will be a detailed list of colleges from which families can begin their search. This list is derived after students and family members answer detailed questions about their preferences in preparation for these meetings.
• Access to Naviance, an Internet-based management system that helps our office and families remain informed about the progress of each student throughout this process.
• Complete support for the application process:
  - Each Academy application contains a thoughtful school letter of reference written by a member of our counseling staff meant to encapsulate the student as a member of our entire community.
  - In addition, our staff compiles each application and sends the school portion (transcript, test scores, letters of reference from faculty members and the counseling office, any other materials necessary for a particular application) as a complete unit and then tracks the universities’ receipt of those materials.
• Advice concerning the process of choosing the appropriate college.
• Advice concerning preparation for the standardized tests needed for the process.
• Advice concerning the process of acquiring need-based and merit-based aid to defray the costs of college attendance.
• Publication of, and support for, merit-based scholarship opportunities in the local area and all over the country.