School Counselor Blog

Marissa at ElementarySchoolCounseling.org is hosting a a School Counseling Job Market Linky Party!  Marissa's Linky Party could not have come at a more perfect time! I recently participated in a panel for an employment workshop for school counseling graduate students at Duquesne University. It was great to be able to share interview and job searching tips with prospective school counselors. I also receive tons of questions about interviewing and job searching from School Counselor Blog readers. I actually posted a question about jobs and interviewing to the School Counselor Blog Facebook Page the other day to facilitate conversation and encourage others to share their tips! I also updated my Pinterest board for Jobs, Interviewing, and Networking . Here are some previous posts where I talk about choosing a master's program, networking, job searching, and interviewing.  Navigating Graduate School for School Counseling Part One and Part Two School Cou...

2010 has been an exciting and eventful year for School Counselor Blog . In 2010, I created podcasts (including a video podcast), hosted a contest, wrote guest blog posts for other education blogs, and much, much more. When thinking about all School Counselor Blog accomplished for 2010, I am so excited about the future possibilities!  Below I outlined 10 of my favorite posts from 2010 and why they made the list. Plan to Be Surprised Plan to Be Surprised is about planning your day, but also being adaptable. Plan to Be Surprised is one of my favorite posts of 2010 because "plan to be surprised," is something I tell myself daily.  Sometimes I have my whole day planned out and have some pretty high expectations of what I am going to fit into my day.  Then, a crisis happen.  An unexpected event can rearrange your whole day... and that's ok.  Thankfully, not everyday includes a crisis. However, adaptability a very important trait to have as a school counselor!...

Congratulations! If you are reading this, you have tackled one of the most difficult parts of job searching, getting an interview. The following post was inspired by reader who asked for tips for an upcoming interview.  If you are searching for a job or will be on the lookout soon, check out my post Make Connections! I describe how networking is a key part of advancing your career as a professional school counselor. Below are tips for interviewing for a position as a school counselor.  Do you have school counselor interview tips? Comment below,  email me ,  tweet , or share on the  School Counselor Blog Facebook Page ! Do Your Homework My number one piece of advice is to research the school and district before the interview. What is the population (rural, suburban, urban, high poverty, moderate, poverty, etc)? Has the school been in the news media for anything noteworthy (awards, grants, etc)? How does the school/district perform on state tests? The m...

I received an email from a reader the other day about graduate school for school counseling. After answering her initial questions, I came to the last line of the email, which asked, "What is your most important advice for an aspiring school counselor?" Wow, I thought, I really need to think about that one. I thought about it last night and now this morning sitting down to write,  I realized I knew the answer all along. I thought about one of the best pieces of advice I ever received and how it has helped me as a professional school counselor and as a blogger. The advice was from my dad, and he continues to give this advice to me often. "It's just who knows who. Then over here you have favoritism." One of my favorite movies of all time is Raising Arizona , a Joel and Ethan Coen movie. My family watches it every year when we go on vacation.  My mom, dad, and I quote the movie all the time.  The quote from the movie that has the most meaning for me,...

A reader asked me about what to look for in a graduate school program for school counseling. Q: I just encountered your School Counselor blog - it's so informative!  My dream job is to become a school counselor.  My passion in life is to help high school students achieve their career goals, including going to college.  I currently work at a community college in Iowa as an admissions representative.  I love my job, but I am so excited to become a school counselor.  Right now, I am searching for graduate programs in School Counseling.  Do you have any suggestions on things I should look for in programs?  Any pointers on actually filling out the applications?  Also, what is your most important advice for an aspiring school counselor?   A: I am so glad you are enjoying my blog and finding it useful! Read below for some answers to your great questions! Begin Navigating  I wrote blog entries about graduate school that you may find help...

Each week I will be selecting an item for Fabulous Find Friday. This Friday's Fabulous Find is Vistaprint ! Vistaprint  is a company specializing in personalized products for professional and/or personal use.  Vistaprint personalizes items such as business cards, pens, t-shirts, notepads, car door magnets, tote bags and much more! Vistaprint hosts great sales and specials and always has FREE personalized items too! (you only have to pay the shipping!) I have ordered products from Vistaprint and I continue to be impressed by the quality and value of the products.  Business cards are one of my favorite products Vistaprint offers. The first time I ordered business cards I used the basic design business cards and received 250 business cards for FREE (I only paid shipping). Vistaprint also allows you to customize your business cards with your own design or logo.  I created a double sideded business card to match my website theme.  My website , em...