Throughout the school year, the University Guidance Officers at YCIS Shanghai Gubei and Century Park Campuses host a great number of universities, holding information sessions with Secondary students. During recent information sessions, students were able to meet with representatives from well-known universities, including George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University, New York University, Tulane University, Northeastern University, University of Victoria, Hong Kong University, University of Toronto, University of New South Wales, and University of Sydney. The discussions with university representatives help YCIS students clearly understand the programmes and degrees offered at each school, as well as student life on campus, and representatives are able to answer questions, helping students focus their interest.

Ms Kelly Flanagan, a University Guidance Counsellor at Century Park Campus, explains the importance of these events, saying, “The information sessions offer our students the chance to meet with several universities at once. This helps students compare schools, and introduces the students to the university admission representatives. Very often, these are the same people who will read their applications, so the conversations provide very useful insight.”

Students are also able to gain important information about the admission process, notes Mr Karel DeCock, a University Guidance Counsellor at Gubei Campus. “In addition to learning more about individual universities, the students are able to ask pertinent questions during the information sessions; for example, students have been able to ask university representatives for guidance on writing personal statements.” Mr DeCock also emphasises that the experiences provide students with additional support that continues on beyond the initial visit. “Meeting the university representatives is an excellent opportunity to establish contact, and allows our students to email the representatives with any further questions,” he says.

In addition to arranging regularly scheduled University visits, YCIS Shanghai’s team of University Guidance Counsellors work with students to help them plan and prepare for life after graduation in a number of ways, including one-to-one long-term education and career planning, helping students use online tools to narrow down their school choices, and by holding many workshops for students and parents. A new workshop series this year are the College and Career Night Planning Workshops, designed to help students learn about various careers from industry experts. December 4 marks the first workshop in the series, with a focus on careers in health and medicine. Featuring respected practitioners from a variety of occupations in the medical field, including physicians, therapists, and a TCM practitioner, the workshop will allow students to get a feel for the educational path each speaker followed, the types of personality traits that fit well with each career, and the speakers will answer questions about their “real life” work experience in their chosen profession. For more information about the event, or to RSVP, please click here.

By arranging for students to meet with university representatives, and by supporting Secondary students with planning sessions and workshops throughout the year, YCIS Shanghai’s University Guidance Counsellors help ensure students graduate with a firm understanding of their options, and a solid plan to move forward in studies that will support their intended future career.