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4 Simple Ways to Multitask and Make Time for College Planning

High school counselors wear many hats. When there aren't enough hours in the day, how can you find extra time for college planning? We'll tell you!

School counselors are real life superheroes. You may find yourself playing referee, college advisor, sounding board, and even disciplinarian and therapist—all before lunch. With so many responsibilities at hand, your job really boils down to a single objective: mastering the fine art of multitasking. Counselors who are juggling multiple responsibilities for hundreds of students may not be able to devote much time to one-on-one college planning. But there are several ways in which you can maximize the time you do have with each student by giving them the tools they need to explore and apply to colleges on their own.

1. Get your students online

Compile a list of your favorite college planning websites that your students can use to begin their college and scholarship searches. Consider printing out your list and giving it to your juniors and seniors at the beginning of the school year. Some useful sites include FAFSAThe Common Application, and of course, CollegeXpress. You might also list the websites of the colleges and universities that students from your school most often attend, including direct links to their application and financial aid pages.

2. Keep a good line of communication

While you may not have loads of time to spend with each of your students individually, you can communicate via email to answer questions, check in on their progress, and even send out reminders about upcoming deadlines. You could even consider setting up a social media account on Twitter, Instagram, or even TikTok that students can follow and use it to post things like scholarships you've come across, test-taking tips, SAT vocabulary definitions, or college-related news and advice.

Related: 6 Reasons to Put in Effort With Counselors and Teachers

3. Encourage social networking

Social networking can be an excellent tool in the college admission process. Most colleges and universities have Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube accounts, allowing prospective students to connect with them and learn more about what they have to offer. Your juniors can use these sites to explore the schools they're interested in, and your seniors can use them to interact with current students at the schools they’re applying to and to learn about campus events once they've been accepted.

4. Offer group sessions

If your schedule permits, consider offering group counseling sessions. Determine the various categories your college-bound students fall into—such as private or public school applicants, community college applicants, and students in the top 10%—and then offer a few question-and-answer sessions specifically geared toward each group. Students in similar situations will have similar questions for you, so making yourself available to several of them at once will help you juggle many students needs while still giving them the individualized attention they need.

Related: Creative College and Career Prep Ideas for Students

In your multifaceted role as a high school counselor, the time you can devote to college planning may be limited. And while there's no book, website, or social media platform that could ever take your place, these time-saving suggestions, along with a little hard work and ingenuity, will help put you and your students on track for success.

Get great advice and answers to important questions from fellow experts like yourself in our Counselors and Consultants—Ask the Experts section.

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Dani York

High School Class of 2022

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Carlie Cadet

Carlie Cadet

High School Class of 2019

CollegeXpress has helped me learn about an abundance of scholarships available to me and my situation. I was able to do research for colleges in my best interest with your website. I've had multiple colleges email me and offer me multiple scholarships and things of that nature because of this website! Thank you so much for uploading scholarships I didn’t even know existed, even if my life took a huge turn and I wasn’t able to go to college straight out of high school. CollegeXpress helped me a lot in high school to be even more motivated to get into my dream college (which I did, by the way). I'm looking forward to using the materials CollegeXpress has kindly provided me for free to look for scholarships to help pay for college.

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Jada Bohanon

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress has helped me find scholarships for the colleges I applied to. It was very hard for me to find scholarships in the beginning that I was qualified for. My teachers recommended this website to find some, and not only did I find some scholarships but I also got to look into some schools I hadn’t heard of before. I was very happy to have discovered this website, especially with the coronavirus spreading all over as I can’t really go visit many colleges.

Lexie Knutson

Lexie Knutson

High School Class of 2021

This whole website has helped me overcome the attitude I had before. I was scared to even approach the thought of college because it was so much. I knew it wasn’t just a few easy steps, and I panicked mostly, instead of actually trying. Without realizing it, CollegeXpress did exactly what I usually do when I panic, which is take it one step at a time. With college I forget that because it’s more than just a small to-do list, but this website was really helpful and overall amazing. So thank you!

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Damian Rangel

September 2021 Mini Scholarship Winner, High School Class of 2022

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