215: 17 Things Students of Color (+ Their Counselors and Parents) Should Know When Applying to College

In this episode we cover, among other things:

• Ways that students of Color can advocate for themselves while in high school
• How to research Historically Black Colleges and Universities
• Ways to learn more about fit at colleges that are not minority-serving
• Where to find more financial aid after you’ve been accepted
• How parents can get involved to advocate for their students in high school and college
• How counselors can more fully serve students of Color
• & First steps that counselors can take to become focused on racial equity and anti-racism

Resources:

• Shifting Narratives Toward Healing: Disrupting Trauma Exploitation in the Admissions Essay Writing Process 
• https://www.bigjeducationalconsulting.com/resources
• https://www.smontgomeryconsulting.com/admissions-news-and-topics/2020/8/3/how-to-estimate-your-familys-financial-aid
• http://www.thehundred-seven.org/
• https://hbculifestyle.com/
• https://uncf.org/scholarships
• https://www.blackscholarships.org/p/black-student-organizations.html
• https://www.aises.org/
• Race and Equity Resources 
• Graduate Certificate in Anti-Racism in Urban Education
• The Institute for Anti-Racist Education 
• Center for Racial Justice in Education
• Reimagining Education: Teaching Learning and Leading for a Racially Just Society Summer Institute
• Anti-Racism, Education, Programs, and Resources
• Checklist for Combating Racism
• https://www.smontgomeryconsulting.com/barrier-breakers-college-edition
• https://www.smontgomeryconsulting.com/break-the-cycle
• https://www.smontgomeryconsulting.com/blog
• https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV0seRFpfJU6JKEQWagqOsg/featured?view_as=subscriber
• https://www.antiracisted.org/
• How to Write a Financial Aid Appeal Letter
• “When someone does a favor for you, they actually like you more”
• White Privilege and Multicultural Counseling Competence: The Influence of Field of Study, Sex, and Racial/Ethnic Exposure
• Common App Activities List

Play-by-play:

• [1:00] Who is Sydney Montgomery? 
• [3:00] Why does Sydney do this work? 
• [3:45] Tip #1: Own your academic journey
• [6:30] #2: Strive to reach higher than just the bare minimum graduation requirements. 
• [7:48] #3: Make sure that your college application list is tailored to your academic profile. 
• [10:15] #4: Make sure you and your counselor have a good fit relationship 
• [13:14] #5: Form allies outside of your counselor or teacher.
• [14:04] #6: Prepare a brag sheet for teachers’ letters of recommendation
• [15:40] #7: Parents should start to request information about FAFSA and financial aid in the 9th grade.
• [17:20] #8: Parents and students need to consider finances when building a college list
• [22:15] #9: Students should advocate for themselves in the early stages of the college application process
• [23:30] #10: Don’t overlook the importance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities
• [27:40] #11: Speak to students in the Black Student Union or other cultural affinity groups when on college visits.
• [28:50] #12: Look up a school’s profile on the Common Data Set
• [32:25] #13: Apply to scholarships offered by Black Sororities and Fraternities (the “Divine Nine”)
• [33:05] #14: Apply to scholarships with Black churches
• [33:30] #15: Don’t discount things like church activities and helping out at home or with younger siblings
• [35:20] #16: Actively pursue certain specialized programs like magnet programs.
• [36:15] #17: Parents can push school districts and boards of education to fund schools on an equitable basis to combat education disparities.
• [37:45] How counselors can more fully serve students of Color
• [43:30] First steps that counselors can take to become focused on racial equity and anti-racism