Happy New Year!
We are excited to announce that our latest upgrade—Corsava Cloud—is now live, with lots of new features and some surprises. Check out all of the features in depth in What’s New. Explore our short videos highlighting how Corsava’s tools can streamline your work with students and elevate the college process to a new level.
There are so many ways you can use Corsava with your students—with large groups by simply posting or sharing a link, in your office in hard-copy or online format, and remotely with students anywhere. We are seeing so many ways to impact students—from community-based organizations building a college-going culture or international students finding a good fit, to schools with large caseloads—and hearing feedback that drives us forward.
There are countless ways to customize Corsava to meet the individual needs of your students and also the needs of your organization. Design your own Corsava deck to include specific cards you choose, and easily makes changes should you decide to do so. We wanted to make it as flexible as possible for you to add, hide, delete, or customize your deck. We have added 36 new cards in both hard-copy format and online. Based on your feedback, we think these will resonate with your students!
January means the college list-building season kicks into high gear, as juniors begin to think about which colleges would be a good fit, schedule college visits, do their research, and make a plan for standardized tests. And that means first focusing on ways to start the conversation and help students relax and stay positive as they consider their college options. This is a very intuitive part of the process, like when the pieces of a complex puzzle fall into place, and the part I enjoy the most.
Change 1, Status Quo 0
My system for building lists with students has worked for me for a long time, and the simplest path is to stick with Plan A. However, a new year signals change, and I like to find ways to improve how I do things. It is always worth the effort and invigorates me in my work.
This year my changes include using Apple TV to write notes on an iPad during meetings, then sharing to-do lists and college lists with families right then and there (no more running to my back office for paper copies before families leave). Improving my handwriting when using a stylus is a peripheral goal, but essential :). The age spread between me and my families grows each year, so I make every effort to design my system to work within their parameters, and that means no paper and multiple electronic sharing methods.
As I think about making changes in my process, I am reminded of something that happened several years ago as I was meeting with a family. My student finished his card sort, and he offered to help by putting the cards back in the case. I told him thanks but to leave them in their separate piles, as I needed to enter his sorting results on an Excel spreadsheet to document and share his preferences. He laughed and asked why I didn’t just use my phone to take a picture. And that was the end of the spreadsheet. Change 1, Status Quo 0.
I admit it, I still like the hard-copy cards. I’m used to using them, even though it means entering sorting results online after a meeting to create a report to share with families. And, despite the ease of the online platform, school counselors tell me they still have a place in their offices for sorts, as many of their students with learning differences appreciate the time sitting with a peer or counselor while holding each card and discussing their choices. But even some of my most fervent hard-copy card champions are making the switch, and this gives me encouragement. My goal this year is to use the online version with my students so their results will be created in a report automatically and I can skip the data-entry step. Additionally, my students will have access to their accounts from home or on college visits and can make changes while I monitor these from my Corsava account.
With our latest upgrade, students can create and manage their accounts themselves. You have access to their choices and impressions, with the student account tied automatically to yours so that you can see their progress. You will also now know in real time when a student has completed a sort so you can view it easily in your counselor account. This is a long way of saying that making changes for the better is important.
I am also looking forward to using the online map with my students as they reflect on where they might like to study. I will make sure the map is up on my computer so that they can quickly select different parts of the country as Must Have or Would be Nice. While I know there are places they never would consider, I like to have those fall into the Don’t Care category (no data entry, that is automatic!). That way, we can leave their options open since colleges are reaching further to find good-fit students and provide funding accordingly.
Big Fish in a Little Pond
I have to share something that really hit home as I listened to a student panel during a college tour in Washington, DC. The counselors in the room were given the opportunity to ask the students questions, and someone asked a student how he made his final college selection. The student admitted that as much as he hated it, his Dad had made him list all the things he wanted in a college and then check off each preference at each college they visited. It’s what made him select this particular university. He admitted that he wanted to become a big fish in a little pond, and lots of the counselors in the room nodded. I had to laugh to myself. This is just what the cards offer, in a fun, interactive, and personal application—the “Big Fish in a Little Pond” card.
Lately, I have been telling all my students to take the results of their card sort, the Corsava Report, on their visits and note how the campus fits their likes. It will make that essay on “why this college” a lot more targeted and meaningful if the college learns how it fits well with student preferences. If students take photos and notes on their phones, they will remember why they prefer one college over another, and their experience will be a lot easier to write about when the time comes.
Coming Full Circle
I feel like I have come full circle since my first NACAC conference in San Diego many years ago, when I was so taken aback by the rankings, the power they had, and how counselors were being sidelined in the process. Our goal to bring great technical solutions to counselors and students has been a long time coming, and we are closing the gap, reaching more students and counselors, and helping them make a positive impact on the college process. After all, who hears from their students year after year, who visits colleges, who meets with the reps when they come to town? Who better to provide this feedback and help other counselors in their list-building while building their own resources? It is time we draw upon our collective wisdom to make a difference to students no matter where they are, or how much support they have.
I am excited that students are telling us that they are relieved to be asked what they want, rather than being told what they “should” have. We love the fact that they’re having fun with the card sort, thinking about what matters most to them as they head to college, without being put off by being asked for scores and GPA as they start the process. We all know there are colleges out there for everyone, so why not start first with building the encouragement and confidence that all students deserve? The inspiring stories continue to come in from counselors finally seeing a positive breakthrough when working with the shyest and most reticent students!
Roadmap
We are working on new features such as a college visit app for your students, tying their impressions to your account so that you can see what your students think about various campuses, programs, and websites. And we are building more of your feedback on colleges into the launch of the Counselor Café, so that you can use it to build lists, share notes and feedback, and manage your resources in one location. And thanks to Ethan Sawyer—the College Essay Guy—who invited me to be interviewed and produced a terrific podcast about Corsava. Our story continues to grow.
I know 2018 is going to be a great year!
Would you like to write about your experience with Corsava? We are gathering stories of how working with students has changed their directions, aspirations, and goals. Share your ideas on how to best use Corsava to support your students.