How do you build a good relationship with your high school guidance counselor?
In these days when counseling departments are regularly hit with budget cuts, many students don't even know who their counselor is, let alone have a good relationship with him or her. This doesn't mean you should give up and go it alone.
Counselors are in the profession because they love working with kids, and if you're proactive, it's very possible to form valuable connections with your guidance counselor. The best way to start? Make (and keep) appointments to see your counselor. Go to your meetings well prepared and with a list of questions. Check in regularly, and don't wait for the mandatory junior and senior year meetings to reach out. View your counselor as an important resource, and share your appreciation with him or her. Spend time in the counseling office looking at view books and searching for scholarships; this will give you a chance to chat with counselors and also show them that you're serious about college and taking the initiative to do research.
It also can't hurt to say hi when you pass your counselor in the hallway. :)