How to cultivate a whole-school approach to counselling

In my role as university counsellor at an international school in Singapore, I have worked hard to build strong relationships with the senior leadership team (SLT), championing my role and the role of the university counselling department.

As a department, we keep an activities log in which we record all our interactions with students, parents and external stakeholders, including university reps. This acts as a justification for the number of staff we require, as well as the hours involved.

Sharing data and attending meetings

Furthermore, I anticipate the needs of the SLT by providing them with precise data on things such as scholarships awarded and destination trends. I also work closely with the diploma programme (DP) coordinator, recording students’ aspirations and offers alongside their progress.

I have access to the assessment data for all students in grade 11 and grade 12 (Years 12 and 13), and I am able to collaborate with the DP coordinator to see which students are on target to meet their offers and which are in danger of missing them.

I regularly share literature with the SLT related to university applications. These range from books to resources such as College Board or THE articles.

I would strongly encourage my fellow professionals to ask if they can attend SLT or middle-management meetings in their school. I attend a weekly sixth-form tutor meeting, where I am able to keep up to date with any issues related to our students, as well as making sure that tutors are aware of deadlines and upcoming tasks.

Being present for parents

I attend parent-teacher conferences from grade 10 (Year 11) upwards. It’s important for the SLT to see that I am present and needed by the parents in exactly the same way that a subject teacher is. This also provides parents with the opportunity to talk to me in light of the feedback from subject teachers.

I have developed very strong relationships with academic heads of department, and regularly collaborate with them on careers events and academic enrichment. We have developed a parents’ network, and regularly invite parents from a variety of backgrounds to work with students. For example, we recently invited in three parents who had a fintech background, and they each delivered a session for our grade 10 (Year 11) computer science and economics students. I also work closely with them for admissions tests for certain universities.

Taking counselling into the curriculum

Being involved in curriculum planning is an excellent way for counsellors to champion their role. I have negotiated one timetabled lesson a week for university guidance for grade 11 (Year 12). We meet weekly with the grade 11 students to look at destinations, courses and the details involved in crafting an application.

My department and I have also offered university counselling sessions to students in grades 8 and 9 (Years 9 and 10), as part of their personal curriculum. We have taken a leading role in developing a university enrichment programme that allows students to attend lectures and workshops that give them a taster of undergraduate-style learning. I have even led some of these seminars myself, which has broadened my role and made me more visible to our students.

Training for staff

Finally, I regularly hold training sessions for school staff. These can be related to external events, such as last year’s change to the Ucas reference, or can be broader sessions, such as how to write a US letter of recommendation.

My colleagues are part of the broader counselling community, and I want to cultivate a whole-school approach rather than working alone.