Sample College Admissions Roadmap

In Session

• Introductions

• Timeline for the college process

• Outline of deliverables

• A deeper dive into areas that excite you or are particularly meaningful to you

• Touch upon a testing plan

Homework

• Complete the What Matters? Survey
• Your parents will complete a similar What Matters? Survey

In Session

• Review survey responses
• College admissions "vocab" and an overview of the three big buckets
• Establish next steps regarding researching and selecting schools
• Discuss teacher letters of recommendation

Homework

• Share your login for your high school’s data management platform
• Draft emails to teachers to request letters of recommendation
  
  

In Session

• Continue school selection research and move closer to a finalized list

• Start using the Cambridge Coaching College Workbook

Homework

• Start adding selected information to your College Workbook

In Session

• Move towards finalizing school selection
• Make a plan for visiting schools and information sessions (in person or virtual)
• Brainstorm your "one great question" to ask in information sessions
• Discuss college in the context of social media

Homework

• Continue to add colleges to the workbook
• Continue to add to the chart as you learn more about the colleges on your list
  
  

In Session

• Bucket school list into categories: Likely, Target, Reach, and Unlikely
• Confirm recommenders

Homework

• Using the Workbook, categorize each school on your list into buckets.
• Fill in: “how did you determine the categorization?”

In Session

• Finalize a narrow and strong list with 3-4 Likely, 3-4 Target, 3-4 Reach, and 2-3 Unlikely schools

Homework

• Order your list
• Research what types of applications are offered at each of the schools on your list (ED, EA, Rolling, Regular, Restrictive EA)

In Session

• Build an action plan around deadlines

Homework

• Share action plan/list with your family
• Take a look at the Common App prompts

In Session

• Review the primary essay topics, common misconceptions, and what constitutes an excellent essay

• Go through a variety of structured brainstorming exercises together

Homework

• Start with the Common App questions and cross out the questions that feel impossible
• For the questions that remain, sketch out brainstorms (or word clouds) to support an answer to that question

In Session

• Start drafting an essay; your coach will help you organize and prioritize your thoughts

Homework

• Send a rough draft to your coach for feedback before the next session
• Invite a trusted adult to read your rough draft and provide feedback

In Session

• Finalize and polish your essay

Homework

• Create a Common App account

In Session

• Fill out the “easy parts” of the Common App ( your Dashboard of colleges and  Pages 1-4 of the Common App itself)

Homework

• Complete the Dashboard and pages 1-4 of the Common App

In Session

• Tackle the Activities List

Homework

• Continue to tweak and edit the “Description” section

In Session

• Determine which schools have supplements and begin brainstorming responses

Homework

• Prioritize the supplements -start with the EA and ED schools before tackling RD

In Session

• Interview must-dos and don'ts

• Practice responding to common questions

Homework

• Don’t forget to send your interviewer a thank you email to follow up!