Prep Seniors Learn About Top Schools in the Summer Panel Series

Part of a long-standing Prep for Prep College Guidance tradition, this summer’s Panel Series offered an opportunity for rising high school seniors and their families to connect directly with admissions officers.

A two-month-long panel series this summer provided Prep for Prep students with the opportunity to learn about a variety of top U.S. colleges and universities. Hosted by Prep for Prep’s College Guidance Office, the Summer Panel Series included six themed virtual panels, each featuring four to five institutions. Admissions representatives spoke with Prep students and families about the panel’s theme and answered questions about various topics, including the type of student support the school offers, the college application process, and student life. 

This long-standing Prep College Guidance tradition has been among the most valuable resources in helping students develop and refine their prospective college list over the past two decades. In an increasingly competitive college admissions landscape, the summer panel series offers an opportunity for Prep’s rising high school seniors and their families to connect directly with admissions officers from some of the finest colleges and universities in the country to learn more about the schools and to ask any questions they may have. The topics range from STEM and business studies to social and political activism and the creative arts, exposing students to schools they may not have otherwise considered. 

Unlike other visit opportunities, these panels are exclusively Prep-focused, allowing students to connect more meaningfully with admissions officers. In fact, students have often had a chance to speak with the very person who may be reviewing their application. In a time when in-person visits have been limited, these panels have allowed students to get a real sense of a school’s campus life through in-depth, thoughtful questions posed and answered. 

Year after year, college admissions representatives have said that the Summer Panel Series is among the highlights of their visit season. They often reach out ahead of time to ask for dates to make sure they have it on their calendars. They always share how impressed they are by how thoughtful (and hard-hitting) Prep students' questions are. Examples of questions from this year’s panels included:

  • “Can you share your favorite traditions that take place on your campus?”
  • “Looking beyond diversity numbers, how does your school support students of color on its campus?”
  • “What research and internship opportunities are available to students, including freshman and sophomore year?”

In addition, specific questions were asked about certain majors, dual degree programs, travel abroad, residential life, and the best food on campus. 

This summer’s series included the following panels:

Liberal Arts Across the USA
A discussion on the benefits of attending a liberal arts college.
Featured schools: Amherst, Williams, Carnegie Mellon, Gettysburg, and Bowdoin.

Business as Usual - Institutions Paving the Way into the Field
How the featured schools support the next generation of business leaders.
Featured schools: Boston College, Emory, Univ. of Michigan, and Lehigh.

Scientists and Engineers Don’t Just Happen
A guide to the resources that the featured  institutions provide for careers in STEM.
Featured schools: Johns Hopkins, Rice, Washington Univ. of St. Louis, and Univ. of Richmond.

Be the Change You Want to See in the World - Social and Political Activism at the Undergraduate Level
Information about programs offered by the featured  institutions for students pursuing political science.
Featured schools: Princeton, Univ. of Chicago, Middlebury, and Wesleyan.

Creative Interests and the Institutions that Champion Them
Coverage of programming at the featured institutions that prepare students for careers in humanities and the arts.
Featured schools: Kenyon, Syracuse, USC, and Columbia.

Thinking Outside the East Coast Box
An introduction to school options beyond the East Coast through the campus culture and activities offered at the featured institutions.
Featured schools: Stanford, Reed, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, and Oberlin.

This program would not have been possible without the support of the following admissions representatives who shared their time and knowledge with Prep students and families:

Will Cummins, Amherst
Carolina Echenique, Williams
Jerry Morrison, Carnegie Mellon
Tyra Crosbie, Gettysburg
Claudia Marroquin, Bowdoin
Howard Singer, Boston College
Scott Allen, Emory
Jody Gore, Univ. of Michigan
Bruce Bunnick, Lehigh
Calvin Wise, Johns Hopkins
Tamara Siler, Rice
Victor Thomas, Washington Univ. of St. Louis
Mike Pina, Univ. of Richmond
Jenifer Vigilante, Princeton
Liz Schutz, Univ. of Chicago
Nicole Curvin, Middlebury
Chandra Joos, Wesleyan
Chris Renaud, Kenyon
Sofia Amparo Silva, Syracuse
Curtis Ferguson, USC
Nkima Stephenson, Columbia
Karen Blake, Stanford
Huy Trinh, Reed
Niyo Moraza-Keeswood, Northwestern
Derek Nido, Vanderbilt
Leslie Braat, Oberlin
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