By Tracey Taylor - St. Brendan HS
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
St. Brendan High students pose for a picture at the University of Florida's Ben Hill Griffin stadium, also known as "The Swamp." On a three-day tour, students visited several universities throughout Florida.
MIAMI | Choosing a college is a very personal and important decision all high school students make. At St. Brendan High School, students dream of becoming professionals in the areas of medicine, law, engineering, and business. Helping them with their decisions are St. Brendan’s college advisor, Jennifer Mendez, and other grade level counselors. St. Brendan students also had the opportunity to visit colleges across Florida and attend a college fair right on their St. Brendan campus.
In
February, 70 students from St. Brendan embarked on a three-day tour of Florida Gulf Coast University, University of South Florida, University of
Florida, Florida State University, University of North Florida, and the
University of Central Florida. This is the seventh year the school has teamed
up with Ron Denaro of College Campus Trips to expose students to an in-depth
introduction to the universities in Florida.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO There is nothing better than speaking with a college representative who is also an alumni. Cornell University alumni representative and NBC 6 meteorologist John Morales (right) speaks with St. Brendan junior Victoria Popp (in black) and her parents, Howard and Vivian Popp, about his college experience at Cornell. Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO Keeping her eyes on the sky, junior Alejandrina Gonzalez-Reyes speaks with Embry Riddle Aeronautical University admissions representative Pablo Alvarez about the college experience and requirements. Embry Riddle and over 100 universities took part in St. Brendan's college fair.
“The
Florida College Tour is an incredible opportunity for students to see our state
schools and hear, from the admissions officers themselves, about what will be
expected from them at application time,” said Laura Moya, junior guidance counselor.
Carlo
Trabanco, a junior at St. Brendan, was enthusiastic about the trip as he
wanted to find out what the requirements were at the state universities.
“I was awakened
by going on this trip, as it helped me get an idea of what I am looking for and
the goals which I need to strive for,” said Carlo, who is interested in attending
the University of Florida. “I now know that the University of Florida is
looking for students who are going to succeed holistically and academically.”
At each
university, student ambassadors offered a customized group tour designed for high
school students to learn about programs and campus life directly from college
students. At the conclusion of each university tour, students were able to
gather with St. Brendan alumni who shared their own college experiences.
“I was so happy to see so many of our alumni
at the state schools,” said Ivette Alvarez, counseling director. “They had a considerable
amount of advice to offer our current Sabres.”
Along
with arranging the college tour, Mendez also hosted St. Brendan’s second annual
College Fair Feb. 21. During the
two-hour event over 800 attendees � from St. Brendan and other local high
schools � had the opportunity to gather information from over 100 university
and college admission counselors from across the United States.
Caridad Dominguez, a junior at St. Brendan, spoke to six universities she hopes to apply to so she can better understand what she needs to accomplish in order to be accepted.
“I believe this is a very convenient event for my school to host, as it gives students and parents, who may not be able to visit the schools in person, the opportunity to come and speak with admission counselors to learn about the schools of their choice,” Dominguez said.
Students and parents were able to obtain valuable information regarding admission requirements, majors offered, scholarship opportunities, study abroad programs, and financial aid.
For those interested in studying outside of the U.S., there were also colleges from France, Switzerland and Spain in attendance.
“Exposing students from all grade levels, as well as their parents, to various universities from across the country is a fantastic opportunity for them to make an educated college decision,” Mendez said.
