College Counseling 

The goal of our college and career counseling program is to help students explore all their available options so they will have the tools to make informed and educated decisions about their future.

Because a high percentage of our students continue into higher education, a major focus of this office is college counseling. However, we are equally supportive of students who do not plan to go to college, and we strongly encourage all of our students to take advantage of the career resources that are available to them.

Student Driven Process

The success of the College and Career Counseling Program depends on the initiative of our students. To take full advantage of our counseling services, each of our students must define their personal needs and ambitions. Then, with our help, students create a list of schools that seem to be a good match and proceed with the application process.

Discipline Reporting

We spend a good deal of time assisting students in an exploration of their academic, personal, and social interests. College should be used primarily to provide a foundation of higher learning and secondarily to prepare a student for a vocational pursuit. We encourage students to seek further education, not just look for a fast-track to high salaries and material success. A well-rounded, well-educated individual makes a more useful citizen, parent, or church member.

Upon direct request from a college or university for information pertaining to a student’s discipline record, college counselors will honestly and fully disclose if a student has been subject to a disciplinary response including, but not limited to, probation, suspension, dismissal or withdrawal from Academy of the New Church. The student should work closely with the college counselor to ensure that both are responding in a consistent and thoughtful manner. Colleges and universities typically require applicants to answer questions about discipline on the application and require counselors to address discipline on the secondary school report.

If a student’s disciplinary status changes after the filing of college or university applications, the student has the opportunity and obligation to inform all schools to which an applications have been submitted or the school at which the student has submitted an enrollment deposit. The student should notify the colleges or universities within two weeks from the date of the change in status. Two weeks after the change in status, the College and Career Counselor will notify the colleges and/or universities in writing that the student’s status has changed and the reason for the change. The college admission officer will be directed to the student and the family for further information.

This policy is in compliance with the National Association for College Admission Counseling's Statement of Principles of Good Practice.

Because most of our students continue into higher education, a major focus of this office is college counseling. For all of our students (and the parents of our students) planning to continue their educations after leaving ANC, we highly recommend reading Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools College Admissions Process Guideline.

 

• Planning Calendar for Juniors
• Planning Calendar for Seniors

A Challenging Curriculum 

The secondary schools offer a broad curriculum: students can take honors level and/or accelerated courses in all five core areas (history, English, science, math, and foreign language). Currently, students can graduate with 4 years of one foreign language, 6 years of science, 4 years of history, 5 years of math (including Calculus), and 4 years of English.  

Our academic offerings give our students the opportunity to meet the academic preparation requirements of the most prestigious colleges and universities.

Standardized Testing

As far as college preparation goes, our students are doing quite well. In the last five years (2008-2013), our students have scored 120 points above the national average on the Critical Reading and Mathematics sections of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Typically, about 98% of Academy seniors take the SAT or the American College Testing (ACT) exam in preparation for college admissions.

Advanced Placement

The Academy offers two Advanced Placement (AP) courses: Calculus AB and Statistics. Additionally, students in honors US History, Honors English 12, and upper level foreign languages are also strongly encouraged to take the AP test in their content area.

The AP test grades students on a five point scale to assess their qualification for college level credit. The scale is as follows:

• 5 – Extremely Qualified
• 4 – Well Qualified
• 3 – Qualified
• 2 – Possibly Qualified
• 1 – No Recommendation

Over the last 5 years, 77% of ANC students who take the AP exams earn a score of 3 or higher (compared to a national average of about 65%).

National Merit Status

Every October our juniors take the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT). Students who score high enough can qualify for national recognition and possibly merit scholarships. Nationally, for the class of 2013, students average a 48 on the verbal section, a 49 on the math, and a 47 on writing skills. At ANC our students averaged a 55 on the verbal, a 55 on the math, and a 53 on writing skills.

Since 2000 ANC has graduated 67 Nationally Commended students and 22 National Merit Finalists. On average, about 10% of each graduating class has been recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. (Nationally, only about 3% of each graduating class is formally recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.)