Students at WHS work hard with the help of school faculty to prepare for the lengthy college application process. 

The college application process is a big step for high school students. With so many factors to take into consideration, Woodbridge High School senior Lorena Gama feels it’s best to start the college search and application process as early as you can. 

There’s no doubting the amount of stress that students face when it comes to making these important decisions. Lorena Gama herself is going through the stress of this process. 

By starting her search and application process early, Gama was able to avoid the additional stress of potentially missing scholarship and application deadlines. Gama recommends applying for early action because it “gives you a higher chance of getting better scholarships from schools.”

In an interview with the Barron Perspective, Ms. Gama revealed that “getting to know the few schools you actually see yourself attending and giving most of your efforts to those schools in particular” is the best strategy when applying to schools.

There’s no doubting the amount of stress that students face when it comes to making these important decisions. During this process, students work closely with teachers and counselors for advice, support, and assistance. 

WHS Careers and Financial Literacy teacher Anthony Hein was inspired by his own experience to create the College Club at Woodbridge High. The College Club welcomes all students who are seeking help with deadlines, scholarships, financial aid, college applications, and even the college search. 

“My own experience back in my high school felt very lonely with my parents, who never graduated college, believing that I knew enough and was receiving sufficient help from the school counselors,” Mr. Hein said in an interview for the Barron Perspective. 

Mr. Hein advises college applicants to “talk to their families about their input and financial expectations, then start researching which institutions best match their criteria.” 

Mr.Hein says, “rejection is very difficult but I would still recommend every student apply to at least one or two ‘reach’ schools because if you never try, you’ll never know.” 

Guidance counselors play a key role in the college application process. WHS guidance counselor Lauren Rich meets with students in 11th and 12th grade to assist them in using Naviance and researching schools.

Any student who plans on applying to college is responsible for researching potential schools, knowing deadlines, submitting applications, requesting letters of recommendation, and staying in touch with their counselors. 

Ms. Rich says, “I feel that I need to be there to assist them in this whole process, as it can be overwhelming.” 

The WHS counselor works to make sure her students are making the right choices when it comes to college selection, application, and commitment.