College Counseling

An Individual Approach

The college counseling program at Hockaday is as individual as each of our students. Four full-time college counselors support students and their families, meeting with them regularly throughout the college research and application process. Our goal is for each student to find and be admitted to colleges that meet their interests, ensuring the most successful college career possible.

Class of 2024 Highlights

List of 5 items.

66

matriculations to unique universities
24

business/finance majors
13

college-bound athletes
58

STEM majors
6

visual and performing arts majors

The formal college counseling process begins in the junior year, and for families of freshman and sophomore students, we host a series of coffees throughout the year specifically designed to offer guidance and answer questions. The college counseling team speaks to freshmen and sophomore students about standardized testing, planning their courses, their summer activities, and other relevant topics. Many sophomores will choose to attend College Previews, one of the largest college fairs in the city.

The college counseling program becomes even more robust in the junior year, beginning with an informational meeting for all juniors and their families. Students may meet with college representatives who visit Hockaday in the fall, they can opt to take a mock ACT on campus, and they and their families can attend workshops on topics related to college admissions, such as the financial aid process, standardized testing, visual and performing arts portfolios and auditions, and collegiate athletics. In addition, college admission deans will offer their candid advice on the admission process at the annual College Deans Panel.

In the second semester of the junior year, the college counselors begin to engage students in a process of self-reflection. Through personal interviews and anecdotes from families, counselors learn their students’ hopes and dreams. The college research process, while guided by the college counselors, is primarily driven by the student’s growing awareness of their interests and strengths and is conducted to find colleges that are a good match for the student as an individual.

By the time the college application season arrives in the fall of the senior year, students have been educated about every element of that process and can prepare their applications with the confidence that they are presenting themselves as personally as possible to colleges that they are eager to attend. When decisions are returned, our college admission list is always as varied as our student body. Once more, at this last stage of the process, the college counselors listen to and guide students toward their final decision. Each year we watch our students go on to begin their brilliant lives at the colleges of their choice.

College Admission Reps

As we partner together to connect our students with you and your institutions, we are excited to host in-person visits and welcome you all to campus this fall.

This year, the Hockaday College Counseling Office will welcome college admission representatives to campus between Wednesday, September 4 and Wednesday, November 6, 2024. Each visit slot is 40 minutes in length, and open to current juniors and seniors.

Visits can only be scheduled through MaiaLearning. You can create a MaiaLearning college representative profile if you don’t already have one by selecting University Sign Up on the MaiaLearning home page, and schedule visits on our school page. We do our best to accommodate as many visitors as possible. Please contact Aspen Arnold (aarnold@hockaday.org) with any questions.

Please note that the 2024-2025 school profile will be available on the College Counseling page in mid-September.