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College Counseling
The Oakley School offers comprehensive college counseling services for our enrolled students. Our focus in the college counseling process is to continue to educate and empower the ideal of autonomy and personal responsibility as we guide our students to a post-high school education search that fits the individual student both academically and socially.
Many of our families work with Educational Consultants. If this is the case with your family, please let the college counselor know as soon as she begins working with your student on college planning to what extent the educational consultant will be involved in college planning. That way, we can all collaborate and work together for a successful college placement.
Our college counselor offers the following assistance and guidance for our seniors:
- Assistance with college research and college list development
- Evaluation of personal strengths and areas in need of development for effective college admission (academics, testing, leadership, etc)
- Assistance in accessing, completion and review of college or university applications
- Essay development and review
- Interview preparation as needed
- Financial Aid and Scholarship search as needed
- Assistance with evaluation for final enrollment decision
College counseling is a year long process. During the fall, seniors focus on list development, college research, and working through applications. In the spring, after applications are due, seniors will begin working on independent living skills and transition goals for college. Juniors will also have the opportunity to begin meeting with the college counselor in the spring to get a jump-start on college preparation. Summer is a great time for juniors and seniors to visit college campuses and meet with admissions counselors.
Throughout the school year, our students have access to college admission representatives who visit our campus in the fall and spring months, and students may take the opportunity to participate in college visits as well as other college preparatory and planning activities.
100% of Oakley School Seniors who apply to colleges and/or universities are accepted.
Approximately over the past 11 years:
95% of Oakley School graduates enroll in 4 year colleges or universities
3% of Oakley School graduates start at a community college
2% of Oakley School graduates defer enrollment for a year
Notes from Oakley Parents on their Experience with Oakley's College Counseling Process
"The whole college application process is intimidating.and when your child is at Oakley, away from home, you wonder: how will they ever negotiate what they are dealing with at Oakley as well as figuring where to apply, what is a "good fit", and how to go about the just getting the apps in on time. Lauren is there.she is calm, amazingly organized, and gives the students the guidance they need without doing it for them. And for the parent who is "far away", she keeps us in the loop, answers e-mail and phone inquiries in a timely fashion (an astonishing feat given the number of seniors she was working with) and is open to any and all suggestions from the home front. When acceptances were forthcoming, she made immediate arrangements for our son to call home and tell us the good news. After he was accepted, Lauren assisted with the second application to the Honors Program as well."
-Parents of a Westminster College Student
"Choosing a college with a graduating senior is a daunting task. Doing it remotely is just plain difficult. Lauren Alexander, college counselor at the Oakley School, managed it all in a timely manner with a calm, pleasant demeanor. She met the many twists and turns of my senior's choices and managed my changing requirements while keeping me informed through it all. In all, Lauren provided information for my senior and me about six or eight colleges and universities and applied to about six over a few short months. Now my graduating senior is accepted a different university that was his last minute choice. I simply could not have done this without Lauren."
-Parents of a University of Alabama Student
"Lauren Alexander, Oakley's college counselor, was a tremendous help in assessing our son's college selection and working tirelessly with him to complete the application process. We feel her help was key to our son's successful matriculation to higher education after Oakley."
-Parents of a University of Mississippi Student
"The college application process can be daunting under typical circumstances. At Oakley, there are often other issues that can complicate this process. Working with Lauren, our son was able to calmly and methodically get through it all, taking the responsibility for the work that was required of him. Lauren Alexander created a balance of being a steady guide while at the same time navigating a balance ensuring our son's essays were well written and deadlines were met. She empowered our son to take responsibility for his future. The end result is he got into his first choice of college, early decision!"
-Parent of a 2009 Oakley Graduate