With college application deadlines approaching, many Arrowhead students are looking to their counselors for guidance in planning their academics beyond high school.  

According to the American Institute of CPAs, most college applications are due generally be either November 1 or November 15. AHS kids applying to UW schools have a deadline of the 15th.

Devin Kritner, an AHS senior, says, “I’m not really stressed when it comes to college applications. I feel like throughout high school I’ve been preparing for it and I know what I want to do in the future. If there is one thing I am stressed about it’s probably just the high price of schools, but I know that Arrowhead shows a lot of students the opportunities we have for scholarships so it’s not even that big of a deal.”

Angela Rodenkirch, an AHS guidance counselor says, “Arrowhead does a very good job with preparing students for college applications. The preparation for college applications can be go back to freshman year when counselors work with students to help them pick the appropriate classes and make sure they are on track for graduation. Junior year we do junior conferences with the student and their parent to take a close look at credits and make some recommendations for what colleges might be a good fit for them. We encourage students to do college visits, and make sure they’re doing the ACT until they get the score that they want.”

“We encourage students to do college visits, make sure they’re doing the ACT until they get the score that they want,” says Rodenkirch.  

On the Arrowhead homepage, there is also a section specifically for college preparation. It outlines a variety of college resources: a senior year reference guide, transcripts, career cruising, college visits, and scholarships. These resources can be found at http://www.arrowheadschools.org/counseling/collegecareer.cfm

“The summer before senior year, we offer a program called Flight which helps seniors put together their college applications, their timeline, their college essays, and their letters of recommendation,” says Rodenkirch. “Throughout senior year we check in with students on a drop-in basis and they sometimes come in with their computers and we show them how to set up their transcripts, we show them how to set up their applications, and work through any issues they’re having.”

“I think AHS does a good job, not only with preparing us for college, but also giving me an idea of what I want to do for a career,” says Kritner. “There is such a wide variety of classes available and any student could see what careers interest them and what they could be successful in. I’ve taken a couple DECA classes and because of that, I might want to have a business career in the future.”

“I’m happy I go to Arrowhead because I don’t think any other high school around here prepares students for their future past high school as much as AHS does. I’m excited for college and even though there is some stress that comes with growing up, I feel ready for it,” says Kritner.