SIFC 2019

Up until January 23th 2019, we have completed the first round college applications. SIFC students have received 27 offers from top universities in United States, United Kingdom and Australia, for example, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (World University Ranking #20), Tulane University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

One of the reasons why SIFC students receive so many satisfactory offers is that they have strong support from counselors. In SIFC, we do not only have the traditional so-called class teacher, we also have counselors who are responsible for students' daily life. Starting from Grade 9, counselors will follow students throughout their 4-year journey at SIFC. Based on students' background, academic interest, hobbies and career planning, counselors will conduct a personalized plan for each student, so that to help students to make clearer goal about university and provide guidance in terms of schools, majors and activities.

Counseling Department

The Counseling Department aims to enable students to prepare well for college application. They assist with the necessary documentation and ensure that the students are meeting all requirements to enter a college upon graduating from high school. The Counseling Department is also equipped with an experienced international teacher, who mainly helps students with their college application essays and interview. It’s definitely a bonus for students.

SIFC

Key Strength of College Counseling Service

Small student/faculty ratio about 15:1, which allows college counselors to closely monitor students.

The counselor will shepherd students through the college process by educating students and their parents, both in groups and individually. Regular events including parent salons, Introduction of summer activities and mobilization meetings for Grade 12 students etc. Every two weeks, Counseling Department will hold counseling class for Grade 9 to 12 students, which focus on different topics according to their grade.

Support high school students in identifying a realistic and appropriately challenging academic curriculum and eventual list of colleges which meet their academic and personal goals.

Present workshops and meetings for parents, students and other faculty members. School counselors will regularly visit different colleges, for example, Jacobs University in Germany and Bocconi University in Italy. Counselors will also attend overseas counseling meetings such as International ACAC.

Counselors will guide students through the entire application process, helping them to craft the most thoughtful, effective, comprehensive and accurate applications possible. The goal is for the application to showcase the strengths, talents and abilities of the student.

Write a letter of recommendation for each assigned senior.

The counselor will maintain ongoing relationships with college admissions offices through professional organizations and hosting college representatives at the school. Colleges that paid a visit to SIFC include University of Rochester, New York University Abu Dhabi and Union College, etc.

Participate in the life of the school through such additional activities as serving as faculty advisor to a group of students.

Sharings

In terms of curriculum, counselors will refer to graduation requirement before the end of semester and guide students to choose the most suitable courses they will need to take.

Outside of class, counselors also encourage students to explore different clubs and activities so that to develop all-round. In SIFC, we realize that every student is different, for example, Mr. ZHANG Xuanyi started his study in 8th grade at SIFC. He is passionate about community service. Unlike other students who only joined in regular volunteer activities, he established a platform that focused on teenager development and shared stories about building up relationship between parents and children. After helping 55 families successfully, he was invited to the radio station to share his story.

As for college application, counseling service counselors provided is based on students’ strong points and interests. In this regard, counselors should understand students all-sided and it's a time-consuming task. Another showcase is Mr. GUO Kailin from Grade 12 this year, he was admitted by Boston University. Whenever he’s free, he likes to analyze different cultures, read diverse history related books and write history articles. Meanwhile, he's a member of SIFC street culture club, which aims to combine street culture and performing arts creatively. Due to Mr. KUO Kailin's interest in cross-culture, his counselor encouraged him to demonstrate his interest and talent in his essay. In addition, his counselor advised him to apply for Boston-London program in College of General Studies (CGS). This cross country program offers student more opportunities and platform to explore and conduct research, which is of no doubt a best choice for him.

College counseling is a long-term and difficult task and it takes time. We believe that with our strong counseling team, students will receive more and better offers in the future. Stay tuned!