College Counselling Conferences

By Lindsay Stamsos ​

Career & Guidance Counsellor

August and September are often busy months for College Counsellors, as we try to network and make connections with university admissions officers to be able to support our students with their upcoming university applications. Very often, these personal connections with the university representatives can go a long way to help secure offers for our students at appropriate institutions.

On the 22nd and 23rd of August, I participated in the G2 (GlobalED Gathering) Conference, hosted by Gen Next Education, a company that facilitates group university tours for high school students. The G2 Conference is primarily a networking event, complemented by a selection of informative sessions.

The Bangalore Conference brought together a global community of around 150 attendees from the UK, US, New Zealand, and India. The gathering also featured college counsellors from a range of institutions across India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.

The August 22nd gathering in Central Bangalore provided a platform for college counsellors from the region to connect with each other and with university representatives, promoting meaningful relationships and networking opportunities. They held a panel discussion on college dreams and a session on AI.

The August 23rd session was held at Clarks Exotica in Yelahanka, Bangalore. The second day included further networking events between college counsellors and university representatives, as well as a panel discussion on issues faced in the previous year. Overall, this beneficial networking opportunity allowed me to introduce myself to university representatives and plan future visits and masterclasses.

 

The following week, I attended the IC3 Conference in Delhi.

The IC3 (International Career and College Counseling) Conference, a prestigious gathering for college counsellors and university representatives, convened approximately 1500 educators this year. The conference is a flagship event of KIC UnivAssist, a renowned university tour service that facilitates connections between universities and high schools. Though this conference offers an international experience tailored for the South Asian region, it attracts a diverse audience from around the globe.

I attended the pre-conference on August 27th at Shiv Nadar School for counsellors. The sessions revolved around building a customised career counselling system for students. Since I was in Delhi for the pre-conference, I was able to attend the Canadian Appreciation Soiree, which was a get-together with Canadian universities and college counsellors. The event was all about networking. I also attended a Q&A session on visa issues that students in India are currently encountering (i.e. long waits and frequent denials).

August 28th started with networking events, where I met with several university representatives. There were sessions on Gen Alpha and the changing landscapes of the US, Canada, and the UK. Towards the end of the day, there was a university fair, where I introduced Stonehill. This was a great way for me to reach out to universities in Europe and East Asia, currently considered burgeoning markets.  I was also invited to an informal dinner with a few universities from the US.

I attended more sessions on the last day, the 29th of August,  including a very interesting talk on strategic profile building. There was also a school fair, where I spoke about Stonehill. This conference provided invaluable networking opportunities and a platform to increase our visibility and establish ourselves as a prominent player in the international education community.