• College & Career Info
• Financial Aid
• Jesuit Colleges
• ACT/SAT
• College Reps
• Counselors
• Scholarships
• College Day Participants
• Naviance (Family Connection)

De Smet Jesuit Counseling Program

The Counseling Program includes the following services: assistance to each student in his own personal growth and development; academic assessment and guidance; individual and group testing; career exploration; guidance for students conditionally accepted or on academic or disciplinary probation; personal counseling to individual students and small groups; and referrals to outside agencies or counselors when necessary.

De Smet Jesuit also has a full-time learning consultant on staff. Mrs. Linda Doherty works in collaboration with the guidance counselors to coordinate support services and accommodations for students who have service plans. In preparations for semester finals, she runs mini workshops for students interested in developing better study/time management and note-taking skills. Mrs. Doherty selects a small number of students to participate in the STARS program, focusing on Social Empowerment Training for Adolescents with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. If you have any concerns regarding your son's learning style, please contact her at extension 258 or via e-mail.

Student counseling conferences are private and privileged. At no time will a counselor or advisor be asked to provide information arising from a private conference. Any student who needs help beyond his regular conference is encouraged to ask his counselor for an appointment. Every effort will be made to meet his needs.

Students are assigned to Counselors alphabetically:

The College Guidance Program provides a four-year program of career and educational information and guidance.

Freshmen receive an introduction on Orientation Day to the type of program offered by a college preparatory high school and to the kind of work habits, involvement, and attitude they will need to make full use of that program. In the fall they will take the National Educational Development Tests.

Sophomores take the Preliminary ACT (PLAN) in the fall. Those who wish may take the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test in the fall, as a preparation for the junior PSAT, in which they compete for National Merit Scholarships.

In junior year, a more concentrated approach to college preparation and selection begins. The College Counselor visits junior English classes during the year to present basic information and helpful materials. Juniors take the appropriate tests (PSAT, SAT, ACT) as advised by the counseling department, relative to the needs of college admissions. Other activities include a College Information Day at De Smet Jesuit, a Financial Aid Workshop for parents, and the All-Metro College Day attended by 300 colleges and universities. In February, the College Counselor begins individual interviews to lay a foundation for the college choice decision in senior year. Summer conferences with the College Counselor are an optional part of the program available to students and their parents.

Seniors need to explore actively their goals in view of graduation. The senior should make an early appointment with the College Counselor in order to review grades, test scores, and establish realistic plans for application to colleges.

College Applications: The Guidance Office can direct the senior to the appropriate locations to apply for college.

College Tests: All seniors intending to apply to a college should take the ACT or SAT tests. Some colleges require the results of one or the other, or both, with applications. The school code used by these testing services for De Smet Jesuit is 260781.

Deadlines: The senior should take careful note of any deadlines for application materials, scholarship, or financial aid requests ACT or SAT results. These may vary for each college.

Family Connection: Family Connection from Naviance is a web-based service designed especially for students and parents. Family Connection is a comprehensive website used to help make decisions about courses, colleges and careers. Family Connection is linked with Counselor's Office, a service De Smet Jesuit uses to track and analyze data about college and career plans. Family Connection allows you and your child to get involved in the planning and advising process; research colleges; compare GPA, standardized test scores and other statistics to historical data from our school for students who have applied and have been admitted in the past. Family Connection also lets us share information about local scholarship opportunities and other web resources for college and career information. To visit De Smet Jesuit's Family Connection site, click here.

College Representatives: Each year about 100 college reps visit De Smet Jesuit. The days they will be here are noted on the senior bulletin board and in the announcements. A senior who wishes to talk to a school rep must sign up on the sheet outside the Counseling Center at least one day before the rep's visit. He will be sent a form during homeroom period on the day of the meeting confirming his appointment with the rep.

Financial Aid Information Night: This is held in November at De Smet Jesuit for students and their parents. Information presented at this meeting can be invaluable in enabling a student to attend the college of his choice. FAFSA forms may be submitted online.

College Visits: When they are planned and desirable, visits to prospective colleges are encouraged. These visits are for seniors only and are limited to two days per year involving absence from school. A senior must have written parental permission and obtain the approval of the College Counselor on the College Visitation Form. This form must be given to Mr. DeGreeff at least one week before the scheduled visit so teachers may be notified. A note of verification from the college visited may be required. No visits may be scheduled during the week before or after a school holiday. And no visits may be scheduled after the first Monday in April.

Transcript Requests: The transcript is the official school record of the student's grades. It is required with all college applications and is required for employment or scholarship applications. The first transcript request is sent with no charge. For additional requests a fee of $5.00 is charged for each. Transcript request forms may be found at the Registrar's desk in the Main Office or by clicking here. All official transcripts must be mailed directly from the office to the recipient institution; the student cannot mail a copy himself.

Alumni Mentor Program: The Reverend Richard L. Bailey, S.J. Alumni Mentor Program is a collaborative effort between the De Smet Jesuit Alumni Association and the counseling department, and focuses on providing interested students with access to De Smet Jesuit alumni who have careers in areas of high interest. The goal of the mentor program is to provide current students with a unique opportunity to be mentored by De Smet Jesuit alumni with experiences in a variety of career paths. The students meet with alumni approximately six times per year. Each meeting matches alumni from a particular profession with those students interested in that field. The mentors will discuss the work that they do and how they arrived at their chosen field, and will provide time for students to ask questions.

In summary, all college-related materials are available for senior research and reference in the Guidance Office. The College Counselor will be happy to help the student with the materials and procedures.