While You Were Away: How We Spend June

Have you ever wished you had a team of elves taking care of your work while you slept?

We have. But the dream has never delivered — which is exactly why we try to be the helpers we wish we’d had.

This week, we were largely unavailable to our students. No, we weren’t on vacation. June is when the Throughline Guidance team gathers in person (we work remotely the rest of the year) to put our heads together and map out — in exhaustive detail — the college admission plans of every rising senior on our roster. Part of being a good counselor is being “on” during sessions; the other part is being able to build a stellar plan. We think we do both pretty well.

We divide and conquer: Liz scoured college websites to make sure we didn’t miss any scholarships for eligible students. Nikki updated testing and score-reporting policies for each school, helping students strategize which scores to send where. Anna updated the list of essay prompts each student needs to write across their schools and scholarships. I added target deadlines based on each student’s program and goals, along with application checklists for every school — FAFSA, CSS Profile, letters of rec, essays, and more. Our typical student applies to 15 schools. All told, it’s 60 hours of focused work.

The collaboration makes for a better, more tailored plan for each student. Hours of quiet focus were punctuated by occasional street performers outside our window in downtown Santa Cruz, breaks to stand, stretch, and eat — and by the little excited exclamations we’d hurl at each other:

“Is Jack eligible for this scholarship?” “Yes! Add it to his plan — and make sure he hits that early deadline!”

“Did you see the new portfolio submission option? Tell Allie she can share her cello recordings!”

“This Cognitive Science and AI program is perfect for Sam. He needs to see this.”

In July, we’ll meet with every student and their family to walk through their plans. Here’s the honest truth: college planning involves a staggering number of steps with almost no standardization between schools. AI can help, but it still misses and muddles too many important deadlines and requirements to be relied on. This work is tedious — but it matters. It’s how we’re able to usher hundreds of applications across the finish line and help our students earn over $11 million in scholarships. It’s highly individualized, time-consuming, and ever-changing.

Thank goodness for a smart, funny, dedicated team — and for students who inspire us with their ambitions to change the world. The work would be impossible without both.

Get Your Own Elves