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The SWOT matrix has traditionally been used to plan projects in a business context. But there’s no reason why students can’t use it to organise their college applications. Here’s how counsellors can support this

Counsellors can direct students to careers resources but cannot offer insights from lived experience of different careers. That’s where a careers fair comes in

For younger students, stories and metaphors are often easier to understand than abstract concepts and unfamiliar ideas

Educational card games can help students make decisions about future university choices and careers

Cross-cultural kids, who move between multiple education systems and cultural expectations, often have multilayered identities – and complex university and career goals

Many students don’t know what they want to study, or where. So, how to start the process of helping them to focus on possible pathways?

Walking around the school and having casual conversations with students allows for a more natural and open counselling relationship

Whether students are choosing A levels, DP subjects in the IB programme or APs, the decision they make will shape their next two years – and affect their university options

Geology encompasses a variety of degree courses and career options. Find out more here

Counsellors can play a transformative role in people's lives – so why not use your skills to contribute positively to the world as a volunteer?

Offering university and career counselling to middle school students can provide them with motivation, direction – and a head start for competitive courses

Remember the classic game, ‘Guess Who?’ This counselling version allows students to consider what’s most important to them when choosing a university destination

We can use the language of academic best fit to help students find their reach, target and safety choices from a financial perspective

Everyone in school – students, subject teachers, school leaders and parents – has something to say about IB predicted grades. Managing these competing viewpoints can feel like walking a tightrope

Yein Oh recently took students on a university campus visit for the first time. Here are her tips for other counsellors organising their first field trip

Students as young as Year 9 can already show an interest in studying medicine – which gives them plenty of time to build up relevant skills and experience

Choosing a degree course is like ordering from a menu: some students will know exactly what they want; others would prefer an all-you-can-eat buffet

By partnering with universities, counsellors can give students a taste of academic life – and can bridge the gap between theoretical learning and practical application

As counsellors, we want students to realise their academic and career ambitions – and a formal alumni programme can help them see how this is done

A school in Brazil has created an elective module for students to prepare them to apply to universities abroad and settle into life in a new country

Students typically categorise their university choices into ‘reach’, ‘match’ and ‘safety‘ – but is it time we replace the term ‘safety school’ with something else?

Work experience provides students with practical experience, bridging the gap between academic learning and real-world application

Your student’s heart is set on a career as a doctor but their grades don’t match their ambitions. All is not lost: there is a range of options for them to consider

This counselling activity asks students to close their eyes and imagine themselves in a decade’s time – what do they want their working lives to look like?

A university preparation week for Year?12 students can cover everything from managing money and cooking bolognese sauce to considering best fit

Looking to help your students find their competitive edge in a complex job market? Huron University’s Linea Dacosta addresses an important topic students and their parents should not overlook.

Rather than championing conventional career success, a pathways and possibilities day invites stories of personal struggle, squiggly careers and significant pivots

This counselling activity helps students to identify patterns and themes in their life, and to gain insight into their strengths, passions and values

Our students all grow up in different environments – and are formed by those environments. Awareness of these wider contexts should inform our counselling

Careers fairs are a useful way to educate students and to involve parents and local community members in school life – but they take a lot of careful planning

Gen Z students are often misunderstood, but a new report from Duolingo reveals their true attitudes to social media and global issues

Many students won’t have heard of occupational therapy – but it’s a competitive course, so in-depth research and preparation is vital

For students with special educational needs and disabilities, the university application process presents unique challenges – and counsellors play a vital role

Mock interviews are a useful way to prepare for forthcoming university interviews – but they can also help assess a student’s fit for a particular field

Counsellors help students with academic planning, essay writing and choice of university – but their job doesn’t end when students hit ‘submit’ on university applications

Meaningful, structured gap years are periods of time designated for exploration and personal growth – and can help prepare students for university

This interactive group activity encourages students to think about what they want from their university experience – and what a university might want from them

There is often a need to unravel with students how studying psychology at university differs from doing a personality quiz on TikTok or watching Inside Out 2

Guided journalling can encourage students to think about what matters to them about going to university – and how they can set about achieving it

Archaeology, anthropology and Classics can lead to a range of careers – but inconsistency in naming courses can make it hard for students to work out which degree is which

Starting at a new school mid-year can be challenging – especially when faced with tasks that require in-depth understanding of students you haven’t met yet

As counsellors are increasingly referring to themselves are future pathways coordinators, Ruth McAteer shares how to set up a future pathways programme at your school

Integrating online career exploration platforms into regular counselling sessions and one-to-one meetings can help students find their career path

Counsellors can use the principles of Universal Design to ensure that their lessons and presentations are accessible to all students

Rachel Doell is an accidental counsellor: she actually wanted to become a doctor. But careers are not always linear – it can take time to find the right job

Taking students on a challenging outdoor adventure is not just a physical journey, but also a metaphorical journey towards their future goals

Using these techniques to effectively communicate with parents and other stakeholders can help to improve relationships

Counsellors are uniquely positioned to help students fulfil their potential by identifying mentorship opportunities or serving as mentors themselves

These three steps can be adapted to help counsellors in any advising scenario

Yes, training to practise as an architect can take seven years – but plenty of jobs are available for graduates of a three- or four-year degree in architecture

As university counsellors, we often hear our students say they want to study ‘business’ – but what do they really mean by that?

A programme in Togo provides high-achieving, low-income students with the resources and guidance to continue their education

Being a counsellor is not just about the short-term goal of getting students into university – it’s also about helping them to find satisfaction in their future careers

School counsellors can connect with the school and local community to ensure that all students reach their goal

Too often, students are asked ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?’, but perhaps that isn’t the right question. Instead, asking them to identify what issues they believe in and what brings them joy might help them to identify their career paths

Students are often interested in the work that engineers do – but find the E-word offputting. How can counsellors change their mind?

Career-development and guidance theories underpin much of the work that counsellors do – but they can have limitations as well

Counsellors can look to university careers services when helping students choose universities and, ultimately, understand what their return on investment might be

What can origami paper ducks teach students about future career options? Rather a lot, it turns out

As counsellors, one of our responsibilities is to get to know our students. Could these personality tests help?

Working with students on applications for art and design courses can be enjoyable and challenging – and a refreshing change from reviewing personal statements

High school counselling can be like the unfolding plot of a Netflix series. So what are the central themes of each season?

Many students believe that a history degree will limit them to a teaching career on graduation. Rebecca Jennings from UCL states the many reasons why a history degree has good earning potential and teaches key skills that all employers are looking for

Samantha Caras uses her “Finding Fit” activity to help students better understand the concept of best fit – and she learns something new every time, too

The university application process is filled with data. In order to provide informed guidance, counsellors need a basic understanding of statistics

Law is a highly transferable, sought-after degree – but applying to study law involves more than just watching back episodes of Suits

Career Exploration Day is a classroom activity designed to help students fuse multiple academic subjects into different professions

Students assume that apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships are for the less academically able – but they provide exactly the skills that employers are looking for

Generalists tend to explore widely, take on failure and gain confidence in who they are – all traits we should be encouraging in our students

The Japanese concept of ikigai refers to something that gives a person value, joy and a sense of purpose in life. How can we help our students find theirs?

With nearly 30,000 universities around the world, it can be difficult for students to know which ones to apply to – which is why visiting some of them can be helpful

Just as wearing a poorly fitting pair of shoes is an uncomfortable experience, so students will find it uncomfortable attending a university that isn’t the best fit for them

Preparing students for the professional world is crucial – and where better to start than with your school’s community network?

Choosing which universities to apply to is one of the biggest decisions of our students’ lives. How can we use psychological research to help them with it?

One of the best ways to be an effective counsellor is to implement a social-emotional learning approach. But how do you do this?

Counsellors, students and parents can have very different ideas about what higher education should achieve. Can those ideas be reconciled?

The vast array of university options can leave students afraid of making the wrong decision. How do you bring order to the chaos?

University visits involve welcoming representatives from colleges and universities to your high school to speak to students. But what do they actually achieve?

Students whose passport country is different from their country of residence often have unique needs and considerations. How can you best support them?

Increasing students’ awareness of the skills they will need for their future careers helps to prepare them better for success at university, says Alan Perkins

Most students follow a well-trodden path – but there are alternative routes that may be better suited to helping them achieve their goals. Arjumand Rafiq considers the benefits of veering off the beaten track

Climate change will have an impact on the skills required in the future and will lead to the creation of new careers. It’s time green guidance became part of the counsellor’s job, says Khushboo Bedi

Effective college counselling can take place in offices with relatively few resources, thanks to the internet and the generous college-counselling community

What happens when you start a new role with no structured handover or formal onboarding process? A few simple strategies can make the transition easier

Presenting a session at a college-counselling conference is an exciting way to progress in your career. And anyone can do it –?as long as you have fresh insight to bring

‘Career’ may not be in our official job title, but students and parents often expect counsellors to offer advice about employability, career prospects and job markets

Each is a different type of counselling role – and it’s not unusual for counsellors to move between each of them, depending on context and time of year

Few people begin with university counselling as their career objective – but nor is it the equivalent of putting a racehorse out to pasture

Counsellors occupy an important and unique place in school life – but what does their job actually involve?

Five tips to help people working in university admissions cross over to the other side and start counselling high school students

Jim Faherty did not plan to follow his parents into education – but a job teaching English in China set him on the (slightly winding) path to becoming a counsellor

Doubling as a classroom teacher offers counsellors a range of opportunities to boost students’ university application chances by stealth

During her first year in the job, Cheong Yi Teng's understanding of the purpose and impact of university counselling has been completely transformed

A set of strategies contained in the acronym ‘Uplift’ enabled Adeola Arofin to manage the annual counselling cycle alongside other deadlines and responsibilities

Setting up a brand new counselling department is exciting – but also potentially daunting. How do you go about it?

Rachel McCann used to send all her students to universities in the UK – so switching to international counselling was a significant step. Here’s how she managed it

You’ve supported cohorts of students with their applications. You’ve organised university fairs. You’ve attended conferences. What next?

As counsellors progress through their careers, the way they mentor and encourage young counsellors can have a positive impact on the wider counselling team

In Cameroon, counsellors are supposed to work closely with 300 pupils. But a shortage of counsellors means that they’re more likely to be working with 900

The right CPD enables counsellors to keep up with sector trends, enhance their knowledge and support students more effectively

Counsellors will often have to move abroad and learn new languages and a new culture. These tips can help counsellors to bridge those gaps and assimilate into a new place

Recognising your own strengths allows counsellors to tailor CPD activities accordingly. These tools can help you identify the areas where you excel

Counsellors spend a lot of time advising students on how to find their best-fit destinations – but ‘best fit’ can apply equally to job-hunting counsellors, too

The path to becoming an effective university counsellor inevitably involves mistakes. What are some of the common ones?

Working in remote or less-touristed areas can be challenging – but also exhilarating and rewarding, as long as you learn to expect the unexpected

New and experienced counsellors alike might be looking for new challenges and the opportunity to develop new skills – but where should you begin?

Are you thinking of training to be a university counsellor? Here’s the information and resources you need to get started

As a counsellor, it’s easy to feel as though you’re the only person guiding students to their destinations. But is it up to you to have all the information?

In order to do our jobs to the best of our ability, school counsellors must first define who we are doing it for, says Deborah Mason Pontual

Counsellors should never stop learning and growing, no matter how experienced they are. David Hanna offers some tips on staying ahead of emerging trends