Kids from Portland have a world of adventure at their fingertips. Students who hail from the Rose City have access to some of the nation’s richest landscapes and are often exposed to politics and activism early. A liberal town (with a strong island of conservativism), Portland breeds kids who are thoughtful, interested, and laid back. We find that our students from Portland gravitate towards schools in cities within driving distance of natural escapes. They also tend to enjoy liberal arts colleges, as opposed to big state schools. But they’re not the only kids in the country who are cerebral and active. Schools tend to limit their regional admissions and competition can be high among pacific northwesters.
When we work with students from Portland, we strive to get to know them well. We want to know about our students’ interests, hobbies, and personalities so we can help gear them towards schools that are a perfect fit for them. While some college counselors just want kids to get into the highest-ranked schools, we find that a better strategy is for students to get into the highest-ranked school that matches their own personality. They’ll have a better chance of admission, but they’ll also be happier where they end up.
Our Process
Our strategy is different for every student, but here’s a sample of the ground we cover:
Extra-curriculars: We have our students explore their passions in life. This is the basis for creating a personal, academic brand they will develop throughout high school.
Sophomore Year: One of our students wasn’t sure exactly what they were passionate about. We worked with them weekly to identify 3-4, highly specific, academic areas of interest and finally honed in on one (computer science). We identified 1 club within their school that the student joined and developed a strategy to take on a leadership position by junior year. We also identified a summer course at a prestigious university in computer science that our student enrolled in.
Junior Year: We coached our client through the process of taking on a leadership position in both clubs. We also worked with them to identify a professor at a university who was conducting research the student was interested in and helped the student develop a pitch to become their research assistant for a semester.
Senior Year: For the summer leading up to senior year, we helped our student secure an internship in computer science where they were doing actual computer science work instead of just getting coffee for employees. By mid-year, they were done with their college applications
The College List: A really important step in the college admissions process is determining what you want in a university. We help our students build out college lists with schools that are strong matches for them.
Timeline: We work to help our students get organized around the four-year process so it’s a manageable one. We streamline the process, aiming for quality of action above quantity.
Essays: Our strategy hinges upon helping students match with the best schools for them. Throughout the application process, students will write a number of essays. This exercise is all about showing schools how your personalities are a great match. We place significant emphasis on college essays because we believe, while strong GPAs are crucial for admissions, essays are the best way to let a school know who you really are.
Connecting with a Portland Counselor
The college process can be daunting. We’re experts at helping students navigate it in a way that’s seamless and manageable to them. While we pride ourselves in working with kids for all four years to develop a strategy that’s right for them, we help students at all stages of high school.
To learn more, contact us here.