DEB DONLEY COLLEGE COUNSELING
DEB DONLEY COLLEGE COUNSELING
An individual, student-centered approach to applying to college
Welcome to an individualized, student-centered approach to the college application process. Located in the northern suburbs of Chicago, our goal is to take the fear out of the college admission process.
With over twenty-five years of direct, individual college counseling experience, Deb knows the process inside and out, and will help students navigate the journey with ease, reducing anxiety with every step.
College counseling designed with your student in mind
The college admission process often induces anxiety and so our objective is to de-mystify the process and organize the tasks involved to make the process less overwhelming. It's also important to understand the philosophy of admission at the various institutions you are considering.
The most selective colleges are difficult to get into because they are popular, not because they are inherently better; selectivity typically has nothing to do with what goes on in the classroom. Generally, college admission becomes selective when colleges receive more applications than usual, often due to a winning sports team, the rumor that a celebrity is enrolling, or because of other media attention that increases their visibility.
Other colleges use different approaches because their institutional mission determines how they will admit candidates. Some public universities must follow state-mandated admission standards, while other universities set admission standards that reflect a student's chance of success in the classroom. Those standards may include the overall grade point average, trends in classroom achievement, how any submitted standardized (ACT or SAT) test scores compare to classroom achievement, and any obstacles a student has encountered that has impacted their ability to achieve in the classroom or participate in activities.
Applicants need an understanding of the way admission works for their particular colleges. The goal is to create a list of options with the academic programs and co-curricular life that meets the expectations each student sets for their college experience as well as having this list include schools the student would be proud to attend.