Beginning at Brooks

As students enter Brooks School in their third-form (freshmen) year, they face an adjustment to high school life both academically and socially. The College Counseling office does not officially work with the third-formers in their first year, intentionally giving students the time and space to adapt to their new surroundings.

The college counselors get to know the students organically by seeing them around campus, in the dining hall, at sporting events, activities, etc. The college office is always available to all students for guidance or discussion, but a formal start with the students does not begin until their fourth-form year, when students are officially assigned a college counselor.

Kicking Off

In the spring of a student's fourth-form (sophomore) year, the college office will begin the students’ college process with a one-on-one meeting with each student.

The goal of this meeting is to begin to establish a relationship between the student and their assigned counselor. The meeting is intentionally casual with general discussions about life at Brooks and the student’s interests in and out of the classroom.

The topic of college and future plans is put aside for a later date.

Setting the Foundation

In January of their fifth-form (junior) year, the college process is off and running. The college office will hold two informational virtual events for parents to outline what is ahead in the application process. One of these meetings will be with the family's college counseling team. The other will include college admissions representatives to answer some of your questions and give you their perspective on the current college landscape.

During the fifth-form spring semester, students will learn to take ownership of their college process with tasks to complete and deadlines to meet along the way:

- Students will be scheduled for a minimum of three individual meetings, as well as several small group meetings, with their counselors, during which the pieces of the application puzzle will begin to come together.

- Students and parents will gain access to SCOIR, our online college platform that offers students and families a powerful tool to research colleges all over the world. Some of the features of SCOIR include detailed college scattergrams with prior student data helpful in predicting a student’s acceptance chances, virtual college campus tours, career planning guidance and overviews of college-specific programs and activities.

As each student is unique, so is their college process. The counselors will give individual guidance to each student as each of their journeys will be different. Counselors will:

• initiate thoughtful discussions on standardized testing and whether or not to submit scores to test-optional schools.
• build realistic application lists.
• assist in completing of the Common Application.
• assist in essay development and the completion of supplemental materials.
• provide guidance to those students who hope to participate in college athletics, explaining how to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center.
• discuss the cost of attending college, including the availability of financial aid and the importance of filling out the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

Applications & An Informed Curriculum

When a student's sixth-form (senior) year begins, the college process continues right away as the first college application deadlines can be as early as mid-October. Students and their family will work together with their college counselor to finalize each student's college list.

From early September through the end of October, the college office will host nearly 100 admission officers from colleges near and far. Sixth-form students are invited to meet with these admissions representatives in Brooks' college office to help answer questions and finalize application decisions. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to make a connection with an admission representative who will most likely be reading their application.

As the fall semester progresses, students will continue to meet with their counselors to manage the flow of application materials, discuss admissions outcomes as they become available and manage the anticipation of the waiting game of college admissions. The college office will provide personal, individual support throughout the whole process.