Guidance
The mission of the guidance department is to provide comprehensive support to each student in our care, empowering her to reach her full potential academically, emotionally, and socially. We recognize that each student is unique, with individual strengths, challenges, and aspirations, and we are committed to fostering her growth in a supportive and nurturing environment.
​
A key component of this mission is assisting students in discovering their passions and talents, guiding them toward meaningful personal and academic goals. Through personalized counseling, we encourage self-awareness, resilience, and a strong sense of purpose, helping students navigate the challenges of adolescence with confidence and clarity.
​
As part of this journey, we place significant emphasis on helping students formulate thoughtful career and college goals. Beginning with early exploration of interests and opportunities, we work collaboratively with students and families to develop a clear plan that aligns with their individual aspirations. This culminates in intensive guidance through every stage of the college selection and application process, from researching institutions and writing essays to applying for scholarships and preparing for interviews.
​
By equipping our students with the tools, knowledge, and support they need to succeed, the guidance department strives to ensure that every graduate is well-prepared to pursue her dreams and make a positive impact on the world.
​Guidance Staff
Mrs. Christina Palmer
Guidance Counselor
​
Ms. Gabrielle Rivera
Guidance Counselor
​
College Guidance in the Classroom
Guidance counselors meet with juniors every three to four weeks throughout the year in small group sessions. Senior classes meet once a week in the month of September and resume normal frequency thereafter. In the first semester, the junior curriculum focuses on career exploration with particular emphasis on self-assessment and identifying general career interests. The second semester curriculum centers on the process of choosing a college and the many factors that enter into that decision.
​
Detailed discussion of public versus private colleges, inevitably leads students to a more sophisticated understanding of their options as well as familiarity with the subject of financial aid and scholarships. Specifically, we introduce students, by means of our classroom technology, to the many internet tools available to them in the college search process. In these guidance sessions juniors choose their subjects for senior year and learn to write the college resume. English Department Chairperson and our guidance counselors work together to conduct a workshop on how to write the college application essay.
​
The senior guidance curriculum for the fall semester moves students step-by-step through the college application process. The second semester is devoted to discussion on making the transition to college: study skills, social and academic adjustments, strategies to cope with change, and the formation of healthy relationships in college.
PSAT, SAT and ACT
Sophomores and juniors sit for the PSAT in October of each year. It is expected that all juniors will take the ACT or SAT I for the first time in the spring of that year and again in the fall of senior year. Students are also offered guidance on the appropriateness or otherwise of preparing for the SAT II Subject Tests.
​
Saint Saviour runs an in-house ACT prep course on two afternoons a week during the months of February and March in preparation for the May test. The moderate fee charged for this course allows for an affordable alternative to other test preparation options offered outside of school.
Calendar of Guidance Events for the Year
Check school calendar for dates:
​
September
Orientation Morning - parents of incoming freshman and transfer students
College Financial Aid & Information Night – parents of juniors/seniors
CUNY Application Day- seniors
October
Annual College Fair
College Visits at Saint Saviour - juniors and seniors
PSAT Administration - sophomores and juniors
SAT School Day Exam - seniors
November
Onsite Admissions Week - seniors
College Visits at Saint Saviour - juniors and seniors
December
College Visits at Saint Saviour - juniors and seniors
February-March
ACT or SAT Preparation Course – juniors
Guidance Resources
Students are provided with additional resources in the Guidance Google Classroom. These span the gamut from time management activities to opportunities for internships and shadowing programs. When students enter their senior year they are entered into another Classroom specifically for seniors that updates the students on what deadlines are approaching for their college process. Both groups will also list scholarship opportunities as appropriate.
​
College Office Links:
Information and Registration for the ACT
​​
Information and Registration for SAT and SAT Subject Tests, College and majors search
​​
The on-line version of the Common Application
​​
CSS Profile
A financial aid form required by some colleges as part of their financial aid application.
​
FAFSA
Free Application for Federal Student Aid