For those of you who want the good stuff right away, scroll on down. We won't be mad. Those of you who want a little bit of an appetizer, read on.
What’s the German word for shaking your head while letting out a pained and grimaced laugh? Because that’s the word coming to mind when I think about this past year. Though 2020 has alternated between being a breathless sprint through a minefield and belly-crawling through broken glass, I know I have it better than most as I count my blessings and see the light at the end of the tunnel. Like all my Collegewise colleagues, I’m looking forward to the holiday break. The same is true for many of my counseling friends in high schools, as we set aside our professional lives and deservedly seek to recharge, recalibrate, and return to work in early January.
Still, for many high school seniors, college application and financial aid deadlines continue to loom, arrive, and pass. And inexplicably, the deadline for several dozen universities is Friday, January 1st or over the weekend that follows. Disproportionately, these are selective schools with (a great deal of wealth and) robust financial aid programs. It follows that many of the seniors who would most benefit from admission to such well-resourced schools are precisely the students lacking most greatly in resources over the break.
Recognizing our blog readership is wide and varied, this post is specifically for those students who don’t have a parent or sibling or trusted adult to turn to on New Year’s Day as the clock ticks down on applying to a dream school (or six) and for those students looking to be “productive” over the break for apps with later January and February deadlines. It’s also for the counselors of those students who want to share out additional resources before you head into your break. I’ve compiled a list of favorite resources that won’t in any way replace a great caring adult but have just enough information, guidance, and wisdom to pull a student over the hump (if getting over the hump isn’t the theme of 2020, I don’t know what is).
With one personal and biased exception, I’ve also focused explicitly on pieces that are specific in nature and aren’t one-size-fits-all. These speak to particular populations of students who are often marginalized when it comes to college attainment, such as LGTBQ+ youths, undocumented immigrants, military veterans, and so forth. It also serves to highlight the often unheralded work that so many folks are doing in CBOs and non-profits around the country. For the adults reading this, many of these orgs are deserving of charity dollars, so please consider them in any year-end giving plans.
So with that, let’s go!
P.S. This list is more sampler than buffet to keep this consumable. But if you’re an educator familiar with other outstanding CBO/non-profit resources that warrant inclusion, please email me at arun@collegewise.com. Thank you and happy holidays!
About Us: With more than twenty years of experience, Collegewise counselors and tutors are at the forefront of the ever-evolving admissions landscape. Our work has always centered on you: the student. And just like we’ve always done, we look for ways for you to be your best self - whether it’s in the classroom, in your applications or in the right-fit college environment. Our range of tools include counseling, test prep, academic tutoring, and essay management, all with the support of our proprietary platform, leading to a 4x higher than average admissions rates.