Sonia Bell and her team of expert counselors spend a lot of time talking with you. In classrooms. On sidelines. Over snacks. (We meet you wherever you are, literally.) Why? Because finding the right college starts with knowing you—what makes you curious, what makes you laugh, what keeps you up at night (besides essays).
You won’t arrive at college counseling as a blank slate. Through years of self-reflection and goal-setting in our Compass program, you will have already begun mapping out your values and interests. By senior year, college counseling picks up the baton, offering deeply personalized support that helps you navigate the college application process with confidence and clarity (and sanity!).
Our counselors bring deep knowledge of colleges and deep knowledge of you. That’s the magic. It’s not one-size-fits-all. It’s one-size-fits-you.
Your Journey, Mapped: College Prep by Grade
9th Grade
Ninth grade marks the transition into Upper School and the official start of a student's academic transcript. While formal college counseling hasn’t begun, families are invited to attend insightful presentations from college admissions officers to learn about the selective admissions process and discover what makes a college the right fit. These early conversations help demystify the road ahead, with past speakers from schools like Bates, Johns Hopkins, and University of Richmond.
10th Grade
The official start of the college counseling process begins the spring of the 10th grade year. Parents attend a workshop introducing standardized testing and the differences between the ACT and the SAT. Students are encouraged to take practice SAT and ACT tests offered at SLS to determine which test works best for them. Tenth graders have one-on-one meetings with college counselors to discuss the upcoming fall college trip for the 11th grade class.
11th Grade
Junior year kicks off with a group college trip, offering shared experiences and exposure to diverse campuses. Families participate in workshops to understand the admissions process, and students begin one-on-one meetings with their college counselor in November. Starting in spring, students attend a college counseling class focused on essays, applications, and college research tools. Conferences throughout the year help narrow college options and guide students through visits and self-reflection.
Summer After 11th Grade
Students and families travel to explore colleges and continue refining their list. Essay workshops and counselor check-ins provide valuable support as students begin preparing applications.
12th Grade
In the first conference of the fall, counselors help students trim their long list to a short list of strong options—largely based on campus visit reactions. We help students create a plan to remain organized and focused during the fall as they move through the application process. Twelfth-grade students meet with their counselors whenever they have questions or need advice. After students submit applications, counselors submit school documents, including teacher recommendations, and follow up with phone calls to the admissions office.
Event Calendar
Meet Our Team
Our college counselors do more than help you make a list—they’ll help you stay grounded, make thoughtful choices, and find the school you’ll love.
Matriculation List
- American University (2)
- Amherst College
- Auburn University (3)
- Babson College (2)
- Barnard College
- Bates College
- Baylor University
- Belmont University
- Boston College (13)
- Boston University (2)
- Bowdoin College (5)
- Bowie State University
- Brigham Young University
- Brown University (2)
- Bryn Mawr College (2)
- Bucknell University (8)
- California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
- Carleton College
- Carnegie Mellon University (2)
- Case Western Reserve University
- Central Connecticut State University
- Chapman University (2)
- Claremont McKenna College (2)
- Clemson University (2)
- Colby College (8)
- Colgate University (13)
- College of Charleston (2)
- College of the Holy Cross (3)
- College of William & Mary
- Colorado College
- Colorado School of Mines (2)
- Columbia University
- Connecticut College
- Cornell University (7)
- Curry College
- Dartmouth College (5)
- Davidson College
- Denison University
- Dickinson College (3)
- Drexel University
- Duke University (3)
- Elon University (4)
- Emerson College
- Emory University (2)
- Fairfield University (5)
- Fashion Institute of Technology
- Fordham University (2)
- Franklin and Marshall College (3)
- George Washington University (2)
- Gettysburg College
- Hamilton College (8)
- Harvard University (3)
- Haverford College (3)
- High Point University
- Hobart and William Smith Colleges (2)
- Howard University (3)
- Indiana University (13)
- Johns Hopkins University
- Kenyon College
- Lafayette College (4)
- Lehigh University (8)
- Loyola Marymount University
- Marist University
- McGill University (3)
- Mercyhurst University
- Middlebury College (7)
- Mount Holyoke College
- Muhlenberg College
- New York University (3)
- New York University Shanghai
- Northeastern University (9)
- Northwestern University (4)
- Oberlin College
- Old Dominion University
- Olin College of Engineering
- Oxford Brookes University
- Pennsylvania State University
- Post Graduate
- Princeton University (3)
- Providence College (9)
- Purdue University
- Quinnipiac University (2)
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (3)
- Roger Williams University
- Sacred Heart University (2)
- Salve Regina University
- San Diego State University
- Santa Clara University (4)
- Savannah College of Art and Design
- Scripps College
- Skidmore College (2)
- Southern Connecticut State University
- Southern Methodist University (8)
- Springfield College (2)
- St. Lawrence University
- Stanford University
- Stevens Institute of Technology
- Stonehill College
- Swarthmore College
- Syracuse University (7)
- Temple University (3)
- Texas Christian University (5)
- The Ohio State University (2)
- Trinity College (3)
- Trinity College Dublin (2)
- Tufts University (3)
- Tulane University (8)
- Union College (5)
- United States Military Academy at West Point (2)
- United States Naval Academy
- University of Alabama (2)
- University of California Berkeley
- University of California, Los Angeles (2)
- University of California, Santa Cruz
- University of Chicago
- University of Colorado, Boulder (7)
- University of Connecticut (4)
- University of Denver (2)
- University of Exeter
- University of Georgia (2)
- University of Maryland (2)
- University of Miami (4)
- University of Michigan (4)
- University of New England
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (3)
- University of Notre Dame (5)
- University of Pennsylvania (7)
- University of Pittsburgh (2)
- University of Puget Sound
- University of Rhode Island (3)
- University of Richmond (10)
- University of South Carolina
- University of Southern California (3)
- University of St Andrews
- University of Tampa (2)
- University of Tennessee
- University of the South (Sewanee)
- University of Utah
- University of Vermont (5)
- University of Virginia (3)
- University of Wisconsin (5)
- Ursinus College
- Utica University
- Vanderbilt University (2)
- Vassar College (2)
- Villanova University (12)
- Virginia Tech (2)
- Wake Forest University (16)
- Washington and Lee University (3)
- Washington University in St. Louis
- Wesleyan University (2)
- West Virginia State University
- Worcester Polytechnic Institute
- Yale University (2)
