College Counseling Program

General Overview

Our robust four-year college counseling program is designed to broaden college access, improve college persistence, and increase exposure to varied career pathways to ensure that each CCSC student -- many of whom are the first in their family to attend college -- graduates prepared to achieve post-secondary success. 

Beginning with our first senior class in 2009, every CCSC graduate has been accepted to college and over 90% have been accepted to at least one 4-year school. Eight CCSC graduates have been awarded prestigious Posse Scholarships. Roughly 95% of CCSC graduates matriculate to college the fall after graduation. Once on campus, CCSC graduates’ persistence and completion rates far surpass the national average for the student demographic we serve. 

 

Our Program

9th and 10th Grade

In 9th and 10th grade, students and families are introduced to our college counseling program through a series of events and programs where they learn more about high school, the importance of enrichment activities, the college application process and timeline, and engage in career exploration. Beginning in the spring of their 9th grade year, students also take part in our twice annual Out to College Day trips. Out To College Day is a full day experience that occurs once in the fall and once in the spring where students have the opportunity to visit multiple colleges in the greater New England area. During these visits they take campus tours, meet with admission counselors, and spend time on campus. This year, we added a College and Career Exploration Day in the fall for all high school students and will continue this programming to give students additional opportunities to learn more about different colleges and career paths.

11th Grade

CCSC juniors take a year-long seminar course that focuses on college exploration and college readiness. Students identify factors that are important to them as they consider their future college home, prepare for the SAT, and begin drafting their college essays and applications. Our college counseling team also meets individually with every student and their family to learn more about how best to support them during the application process. In the spring of junior year, a small group of students also takes part in an out-of-state overnight college trip. We also hold our annual Junior College Book Awards Ceremony every spring, to recognize students who demonstrate excellence in academics, embody CCSC's core values, and demonstrate leadership in and outside of our community.

12th Grade

All seniors participate in a year-long senior seminar where they spend time finalizing college applications, exploring scholarships, completing financial aid materials, and engaging in critical conversations about the transition to college. In addition, CCSC seniors work with volunteers to provide feedback on their college essays and conduct mock interviews. Throughout the year, CCSC hold Submit Parties to celebrate students as they complete their college applications and publicly announces college acceptances at school so our community can (literally) cheer on our seniors as they take the exciting next step in their journey. 

Post-secondary

We are committed to staying in touch with our graduates and providing them with continued support, encouragement, and resources as they matriculate to and persist through college. Our Alumni Coordinator remains in regular contact with students after graduation and we invite CCSC alumni to school and community events.

 

Events and Presentations

Upcoming

Resources from previous events (recordings are hyperlinked)

2020-21 School Year

To learn more about CCSC college seminars or to request more information, please email CCSeminar@ccscambridge.org 

 

Important Links

For Students and Families

For Admission Counselors

Alumni Highlights and Resources

 

Alumni News

Resources for Alumni

 

Key Partners

uAspire: a nonprofit organization ensuring that all young people have the financial information and resources necessary to find an affordable path to and through college

MIT/Wellesley Upward Bound Program: provides rigorous summer and academic year programming at Wellesley and MIT to help prepare first-generation and low-income students for success in postsecondary education 

Summer Search: provides students with professional mentoring and transformational summer experiences, as well as on-going supports in navigating college life, career coaching, and internship placements

 

The College Counseling Team

Ms. Rivera, Director of College Counseling
Ms. Tirella, School Counselor
Ms. Ennis, Writing Center Facilitator