With the stress of applying to colleges throughout high school, many people don’t know where to look for help. With schools reverting to requiring test scores and more people applying to big colleges, many turn to college counselors. Students or their families hire college counselors to help with navigating the often uncharted waters of applying to college.
Although looking for a college counselor may seem daunting, it’s as easy as using Google or asking a friend who they are getting help from. Many people recommend getting a college counselor before your senior year, so you have time to prepare and truly take advantage of what you’re paying for. Senior Riley Marks found her college counselor through a family friend and has had a college counselor since May of 2025.
“I found out about them through my mom. One of her friends, her daughter, is using the same college counselor as me,” said Marks. “It helped me, like, come up with a plan on where to go, especially during the summer, when it’s very hard to actually work on that stuff.”
Outside of essay editing, these counselors can help with a variety of different parts of making sure your college application is the best that it can be. Marks said that getting a college counselor both helped her become more confident in her writing, but also in her test scores and application overall.
“You understand what you’re missing in your college transcript, like classes or extracurriculars. I found that I was missing a couple of leadership roles, so he wanted me to focus on that,” said Marks. “And depending on who else helps you, they also offer test prep, like ACT and SAT. I feel like my essays are a lot better because I had a college counselor.”
However, getting a college counselor does come with some challenges, whether it’s how expensive it is or how far away the counselor lives.
“My college counselor is very far away from my house. It’s all the way up in North Raleigh. So every time I go there, I get stuck in traffic, and it’s the commute is part of it. It’s like 30 minutes from my dad’s,” said Marks. “Sometimes you’re waiting on their edits for stuff, and then that can like slow down your process.”
If getting a personal counselor is too expensive or just not convenient, there are other resources to make sure that your application is the best it can be. Senior Bayan Al-Masri says that although she didn’t use a counselor, she was able to find other ways to get the same experiences as someone who has.
“I’m pretty confident in my own writing, and I also have my mom, who used to be an English teacher, so I knew her help would be useful, and I wouldn’t need to pay one,” said Al-Masri. “I also used my friends from last year who were already in college, and they were giving me tips because they’ve already gotten accepted.”
Although essay editing is a large part of what these counselors do, Al-Masri says that the other benefits and resources could be helpful. However, they aren’t necessarily needed to succeed and get accepted into colleges.
“The only reason I would [get one] is just for information on admissions and how to make sure I do the right stuff,” said Al-Masri. “I got an average score [on the SAT]. Like, I did fine, but I had someone sit down and help me make sure I got a good score, then that would have been nice.”
Other resources available to help make college applications stronger are the counselors in student services here at Athens. With a team of five counselors and several other members of Student Services, college counselors aren’t the only way to go. Counselor Kirsten Long says that the group of counselors is another way to receive help for admissions.
“We also have other great resources on campus like our FAFSA counselor and career development coordinator,” said Long. “CFNC is a great online resource for North Carolina college information.”
Although some college counselors advertise themselves as being able to ensure you are admitted to the school you are applying to, Long says that this isn’t a reality. College counselors can help, but so can other resources.
“Everyone wants to know what the ‘secret recipe’ is that is going to get them accepted. The truth is, there isn’t one,” said Long. “I think a college counselor could be helpful in helping students navigate the process, but I also think your school counselor could help with that without the additional cost.”
In the end, whether you hire a college counselor or not, the college process can be stressful. However, the most important part of the process, Long says, is to keep your options open in regards to your future.
“UNC Chapel Hill and NC State are great schools, but there are other great schools that may actually end up being a better fit,” said Long. “In terms of how students can adjust, I would encourage them to have an open mind.”
