College Counseling

College Counseling at Pinewood is an integral component of each student’s high school education. The process of deciding what to do after high school is a time of great discovery and development as students transition to a life of increased freedom and responsibility. Success in this process requires an open mind, strong communication, and a willingness to stretch boundaries. The goal of our College Counseling Services is to provide solid advice and guidance to students as they decide where to continue their studies after graduation.

To that end, the College Counselor, Mr. Tsachtanis, designs meetings throughout the year for freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors. Importantly, in the Junior and Senior years, students begin to meet one-on-one with Mr. Tsachtanis to discuss future plans. Pinewood’s College Counseling Services are highly individualized to meet the diverse needs and interests of our multicultural student body.  

In the regular On-campus Learning Model, College Counseling Services include a monthly college counseling journal with announcements, resources, advice & tips, two college nights (one for senior students/parents and one for junior students/parents), SAT Prep courses on Saturday mornings throughout the year, several college workshops for students, and the scheduling of college/university admissions representatives from the United States for on-campus meetings each fall and spring. These admissions representatives present important admissions, scholarship and financial aid information to our Juniors and Seniors.

This year, university admissions representatives have announced that they will not be traveling to schools due to the coronavirus pandemic. Thus, a number of universities may set up virtual meetings to present and answer questions for students. Mr. Tsachtanis will keep our students informed of any such meetings.

In addition, we anticipate that the two college nights (one for senior students/parents and one for junior students/parents) will be held online in order to comply with Covid-19 regulations in schools.

In the Hybrid Learning Model, College Counseling Services will remain the same as above.

In the Distance Learning Model, the College Counseling Services will transition all services to online modes of delivery. Thus, in addition to online college nights and online admissions representative meetings, the SAT Prep course will transition to an online delivery mode via Zoom and the individual meetings with Juniors and Seniors will be conducted via Zoom. This will ensure that all students’ needs are met, particularly during the critical Senior year.