College application season is well underway and I, like most other high school seniors participating, have never been more stressed out. Luckily, as a student at the Mississippi School of Mathematics and Science, I have access to counselors and resources that help calm my nerves.

Every few weeks, there is a representative from a local college or university in Hooper lobby, ready to answer questions from MSMS students. These representatives come prepared with pamphlets and brochures about their respective institutions and are often able to answer any questions thrown at them. Kobe Van Someren, an MSMS senior, is glad that this is a part of life at MSMS.

“The fact that I can make a connection with a college personally is something I was never offered at my old school. I enjoy knowing that MSMS is supportive of me by giving us much needed exposure,” he said.

Every MSMS students know how important checking their email every day is. This is partly because the MSMS counselors are constantly emailing students about college visits and scholarship opportunities. As students, we are often too busy to search the internet for these things and the fact that our counselors are generous enough to do it for us is very beneficial.

The most important opportunity that MSMS offers to its students is the College Fair: a required attendance event in which numerous colleges from across the county collect in Pohl Gym and offer their representatives to students. When I went to the College Fair last year, I was clueless on which college I should speak with. As someone who wants to pursue the arts professionally, I assumed that every college present was a college that focused on math and science (since this is math and science school). Luckily, I told my friend of my situation and he suggested “go to SCAD now.” I went to the SCAD, or Savannah College of Art and Design, booth and began to fall in love. Last June, I toured SCAD and a day after returning from my tour, I began applying (while wearing a SCAD shirt that I bought after the tour). If it were not for the MSMS College Fair, I never would have found my dream school.

“I think it is vital for students to visit a college before committing to attend.  The first time you see the campus should not be when you are pulling up on move-in day; what if you get there and you hate it?  The college decision process is all about finding the right fit for you, and it’s hard to determine that based just on paper or what you read online.  It’s also important to remember that what’s a good fit for your family and friends may not be a good fit for you,” said Dr. Stevens, one of MSMS’ counselors.

As students who will soon be embarking on their journeys to further education, we are very lucky that we have counselors and administrators that aid us in our college searches. They help make a stressful college search a little less stressful.