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College Counseling

COLLEGE COUNSELING

The success of our college counseling program is due to our student-centered approach focused on self discovery, intellectual passion, and personal goals. Our greatest rewards are in watching students gain self-awareness and confidence and grow in their generosity of spirit and servant-leadership. We know that Potomac has prepared them well to excel as scholars and community members who value lifelong learning and derive pleasure from giving back and creating community.

We encourage students to reach beyond their comfort zones, think critically about their strengths, and develop options for life after Potomac.

PROCESS SUCCESS
We work in close cooperation with faculty, advisors, administrators, and parents, who are key to the success of the process. Although college counseling is primarily focused on students and their families during the junior and senior years, we welcome questions that students or their parents may have at any time. We look forward to helping each student navigate the college search and find the best place to continue their educational career after Potomac.

EXPERIENCE AT WORK
We provide the Potomac community with counselors who are knowledgeable, current, and connected to their professional peers on college campuses and at other independent schools.

JUNIOR YEAR
Beginning in junior year, the college counseling staff conducts a series of group meetings and individual conferences with students and parents. Throughout the school year, college admission professionals from over 100 colleges and universities visit Potomac to meet with our students and staff. In addition, the college counselors visit college campuses regularly and attend college admission events.

OUR RELATIONSHIPS
As members of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), our department adheres to The NACAC Guide to Ethical Practice in College Admission in the college admission Process. In addition to NACAC, the Potomac college counselors continue their professional development and networking with college admission professionals by being active members of the College Board, Potomac and Chesapeake Association for College Admission Counseling (PCACAC), and Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS), of which Potomac is one of the 42 Founder Members.

NACAC PCACAC ACCIS College Board

SCHOOL PROFILE

The Profile is updated each fall prior to seniors submitting college applications for that year’s admission cycle, so it reflects the achievements of and curricular opportunities for that particular graduating class. A PDF of the Profile accompanies each transcript sent in support of a college application and provides an admission reader, who is unfamiliar with Potomac's academic program, with the information necessary to put the transcript into context of The Potomac School.

2024-25 Potomac School Profile

CONTACTS

Stacy Richardson
Director of College Counseling
(703)-749-6382

Christopher Zissi
Associate Director of College Counseling

Sanil Patel
Associate Director of College Counseling

James Hightower, III
Director of Community Engagement

Karen Lawrence Djorup
College Counseling and Testing Coordinator