by Candice Jeremie, Contigo Ed Content Expert

How do we support our students in navigating their transcript, course selection and pathway questions amidst the Back to School counselor hustle and bustle?  Let’s talk about it!  

Connection seems obvious, but despite our best intentions, it’s time-consuming and can challenge our capacity.  As a result, making connections with our students and families can be placed on the back burner and often overlooked due to our busy schedules and multi-faceted roles. Yet, getting to know our students and their families builds trust and fosters positive relationships both of which leverage positive outcomes when it counts the most. 

I know what you’re thinking…This sounds great, but how do I connect with EVERY student in my caseload?   Glad you asked, let’s reimagine Connection Touchpoints. 

Introduce Yourself.  Yes, nothing beats human connection, but in our roles caseloads can be large and time fleeting. If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s how to utilize tech to connect.  Send out a welcome message via email, text, Teams, etc. introducing yourself, team and college center ( if applicable.) Be sure to include a brief bio, contact info, availability and some context about you and your systems, specifically course selection. Can your systems be accessed online? Be sure to include hyperlinks! Need a Welcome Message example, click here. Want other cool tools and ideas to build connection with ALL students and families check out this Contingo Ed Connection Counselor Tech Toolbox resource.

Get to know your Students.  Never underestimate a student interest survey! There’s only so much we can gather from the previous years’ transcript and academic profile.  Large or small caseloads, student surveys give you bang for your buck access to all of the students you serve with little man power on your part. Distribute a Student Interest Survey link complete with questions about their interests including: colleges and career aspirations, extracurriculars, community service, current courses, etc… The student deets you gather are a resource you can leverage to identify high priority student check-ins, as well as inform future semester course selection, college, career and learning opportunity options for individual students.  Student Interest Survey Template | Fun Enneagram Personality Quiz Connected to Careers   

Make Space. Create check-in spaces for you and your students.  Some can be held in-person, whereas others can be held virtually to maximize your time. Notice any course selection concerns or flags in any student survey responses or on transcripts, prioritize meeting with those students first. Large caseload? Consider hosting grade level sessions, office hours, or a Counselor night or day event either virtually or in-person to prevent introducing universal information repeatedly. Too many course selection requests and questions at one time, schedule check-ins using Calendly to avoid calendar disruptions and overbooking. 

Our students only know what they know, and they, along with their families, rely on us to fill gaps to ensure their access to the unknowns of college, career readiness and you guessed it, their course selection options.  

If only there was a universal tool all students and their families could use to explore course and pathway options?  There is, it’s called a School Profile.  

A School Profile, is a document colleges request and high school counselors provide to give a snapshot of all campus academic and leadership offerings including courses, rigor, activities, pathways and more.  Yet, most students and their families are not introduced to it, nor know how to access and engage with the tool, unfortunately.  

Introduced yourself? Check! Collected and read over student surveys and transcripts? Check! Created space to meet with students? Awesome.  Next, introduce your School Profile and engage students and families in understanding and utilizing the tool in your check-in’s or at your counselor event with special attention to the listed course offerings, graduation requirements and pathways.  Don’t have a school profile, or need School Profile upgrade tips? Check out ContigoEd’s School Profile Template Here or College Board’s tutorial here. 

How can we expect students to make informed decisions about future course selections, if their understanding of their courses on their transcripts are unclear? We can’t. 

In one-on-one check-ins, grade and class level sessions, or at your counselor events host a Transcript Crawl.  Think of it as a transcript deep dive, where students are empowered to review their transcript or a mock for understanding patterns that inform potential majors, career or course selection interests and graduation pathway requirements. It’s a scavenger hunt of sorts where students utilize their transcript key to explore and piece together their or a mock academic narrative.  Allow students to personalize the activity with color coding, notes and annotation annually or by semester. ContigoEd has a great resource to help you navigate and plan your transcript crawl here!

Course selection and pathways are as varied as the students we serve. Some students know their future career pathway or course of study for sure and others like my 17 year old self are undecided and exploring interests, courses, colleges, majors and careers over all.  Both instances are completely normal and acceptable and can be supported by the dynamic counselor, I know each of you are! You got this! Remember to connect, engage and empower your students on the journey!

Hi, I’m Candice. I’m a creative, out the box thinker that values authenticity and creativity.  A native New Yorker, Houston Transplant, Creative, Content Developer and Educator, I’m a tapestry of my experiences and interests. I've designed and facilitated engaging and impactful learning experiences for over a decade!  I am driven by missions and initiatives that create equitable access spaces reflective of a myriad of experiences and diverse perspectives, especially in college access.