Our Programs

College Counseling

An Individualized Process

List of 1 items.

  • Determining the Best Route to Success

    At Northwest Academy, college counseling is an individualized process that encourages students to examine their ambitions, abilities, and interests to determine the best route to success. Students concentrate on finding schools that will fulfill their academic needs and be a good match for them personally. Our role is to assist, encourage, challenge, and support students as they set goals and make decisions about college attendance. While the school invites parent involvement, we also firmly believe that students should take ownership of the process.

    More than 50 college and university representatives come to campus each year to visit with the juniors and seniors to talk about their programs. We provide workshops for students to prepare for the college admissions process. Northwest Academy graduates attend a diverse selection of colleges and universities across the country, including Pitzer College, New York University, Bard College, and Rhode Island School of Design. Northwest Academy alumni are currently pursuing goals as varied as acting on television to completing a Master’s Degree in infectious disease and microbiology.

Contact Us

List of 1 members.

  • Photo of Julia Cain

    Julia Cain 

    Director of College Counseling
    (971) 865-8770 or x116

College Reps!

We’d love to have you visit Northwest Academy!

We use Cialfo for visit scheduling. 

If you have any questions, please contact Julia Cain.

College Counseling Events

List of 10 events.

  • Oct
    19

    NACAC College Fair

  • Oct
    19

    CV - Deep Springs College

    College Name: Deep Springs College Rep Name: Matteo Ponzi Rep Title: Rep Email: mponzi@deepsprings.edu Rep Mobile: - Want to make changes, reschedule or cancel the visit? Click here to view the Visit. Staff Note:
    Location: College Room
  • Oct
    19

    CV- Eastman School of Music of the U of Rochester

    College Name: Eastman School of Music of the U of Rochester Rep Name: Colby Carson Rep Title: Director of Admissions Rep Email: ccarson@esm.rochester.edu Rep Mobile: +1-5852741062 Want to make changes, reschedule or cancel the visit? Click here to view the Visit. Staff Note:

    Hi Julia,


    Following up to schedule the visit as discussed in via email last month.


    For more than a century, the Eastman School of Music has been one of the professional schools of the University of Rochester. Our faculty and students are devoted to the pursuit of the highest level of musical artistry.


    As you may know we offer classical and jazz performance along with composition and music education. We are also excited about a new program at Eastman created by Dennis DeSantis, Associate Professor of Music and Technology here at Eastman - the BM in Music Creation and Technology.


    Let me know if there is any specific information your musicians may be interested in.


    Thanks,

    Colby

    _____________________________________________________

    Colby Carson, EdD (ccarson@esm.rochester.edu) from Eastman School of Music of the U of Rochester

    Location: College Room
  • Oct
    19

    CV - Pitzer College

    Rep Name: Marcus Gomez
    Rep Email: marcusaurelius_gomez@pitzer.edu

    Founded in 1963, Pitzer College is a top-ranked liberal arts and sciences institution that emphasizes environmental and interdisciplinary studies and the arts, humanities, and sciences. The College upholds core values of social responsibility, intercultural understanding, interdisciplinary learning, student engagement, and environmental sustainability. With about 1,000 students, Pitzer offers a unique educational experience where students shape their own academic paths, often collaborating with faculty to create special majors and engage in community projects. The College celebrates cultural diversity and intercultural understanding, attracting students from various backgrounds worldwide and offering 46 international exchange programs. Students play an active role in college governance and are encouraged to examine social and environmental policies critically.


    Location: College Room
  • Oct
    19

    CV - St. Olaf College

    College Name: St. Olaf College Rep Name: David Wagner Rep Email: wagner@stolaf.edu
  • Oct
    19

    CV - Allegheny College

    Rep Name: Victoria Smith
    Rep Title: Admissions Counselor and Coordinator of Arts Recruitment
    Rep Email: vsmith@allegheny.edu

    Every Allegheny student takes courses in each division of knowledge — humanities, natural sciences and social sciences — declaring both a major and a minor (outside the division of their major) by the end of their sophomore year.



    Location: College Room
  • Oct
    20

    CV - Drexel University

    Drexel University is a comprehensive R1-designated research institution that has maintained a reputation for academic excellence and positioning students on the frontlines of innovation alongside experts tackling today’s most complex issues.

    _____________________________________________________

    Ruby Bender (rsb329@drexel.edu) from Drexel University

    Location: College Room
  • Oct
    20

    CV - University of Redlands


    The University of Redlands is a small college located in Southern California. With a combination of liberal arts, pre-professional, and alternative programs- students can customize their education to fit their goals and interests.
     Rep Name: Calhoun Helmberger
    Rep Email: calhoun_helmberger@redlands.edu



  • Oct
    20

    CV - University of St Andrews

    College Name: University of St Andrews
    Rep Name: Sarah Smith
    Rep Email: ss461@st-andrews.ac.uk


    The University of St Andrews is Scotland’s top University. Founded in 1413, we have six centuries of experience, which gives us a deep understanding of what students want and need to succeed.

    Location: College Room
  • Oct
    20

    CV - University of Aberdeen

    College Name: University of Aberdeen
    Rep Name: Catriona Milne

    Founded in 1495 the University of Aberdeen is the fifth oldest university in the English-speaking world and is one of the UK's Ancient Universities.

View All Events

College Acceptances

Our graduates are consistently accepted to, and receive awards and scholarships at, a remarkable array of excellent institutions of higher learning.  We are proud to present this comprehensive list of college and university acceptances.

The Class of 2026 was accepted into these Colleges and Universities. *Attending colleges in bold.

Congratulations, Graduates!
Appalachian State University
Bangor University
Bard College (2)
Bates College
Bennington College
Binghamton University
Bucknell University
California Institute of the Arts
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
California State University, Sacramento
Carnegie Mellon University
Chapman University
Clark Atlanta University
Clark University
College of Charleston
College of Wooster
Colorado College
Connecticut College
Cornell University
Davidson College
Denison University
Drexel University
Emerson College (4!)
Franklin University Switzerland
Goucher College
Grinnell College
Haverford College
Hofstra University
Howard University
Ithaca College
Kenyon College
Lafayette College
Laguna College of Art and Design
Lawrence University
Lewis & Clark College
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola University, New Orleans
Macalester College
Maine College of Art
Maryland Institute College of Art
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
New York University
Northeastern University
Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences
Occidental College
Oregon State University
Otis College of Art and Design
Pacific Northwest College of Art
Portland State University
Pratt Institute
Purdue University
Reed College
Rhode Island School of Design
San Jose State University
Sarah Lawrence College
Savannah College of Art and Design
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Seattle University
Skidmore College
Smith College
Southern Oregon University
St. John's College, Annapolis
Stevens Institute of Technology
SUNY Maritime College
Temple University
The American University of Paris
The New School
The University of British Columbia, Vancouver
University of Aberdeen
University of Alaska Fairbanks
University of Arizona
University of California, Irvine
University of California, San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Cruz
University of Colorado Boulder
University of Denver
University of Galway
University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
University of Massachusetts Boston
University of New Orleans
University of Oregon
University of Oregon - Clark Honors College
University of Puget Sound
University of Redlands
University of Rhode Island
University of San Diego
University of Utah
University of Washington
Vassar College
Virginia Tech
Weber State University
Western Washington University
Whitman College
Whittier College
Xavier University of Louisiana

Resources

Below, find general information for students and parents moving through the college search and application process. This list includes major sites with helpful information on college searches, financial aid, scholarships, and testing, along with links to other sites.  

Northwest Academy families: Please log in to MSA and visit your grade-level college counseling page for more in-depth information and resources.

List of 6 items.

  • General Information


  • College Searches

    • Cappex  College search and financial aid information
    • GoCollege  College search, scholarship search, SAT practice tests and campus crime statistics
    • CampusTours  College tours online, plus campus maps and web sites
    • College Confidential  Hundreds of pages of articles about choosing a college, getting into the college you want, how to pay for it, and much more
    • Peterson’s  Detailed information on over 4,000 colleges and universities, online schools, and graduate programs. Also provides financial aid information and test preparation
    • CollegeInsight  A higher-education data and research resource for anyone interested in college affordability, student debt, economic and racial diversity, student success, and other important issues in higher education
    • Unigo Read college reviews, get matched to schools, find scholarships, and more
    • College Navigator – National Center for Education Statistics  A free consumer-information tool designed to help students, parents, high school counselors, and others get information about over 7,000 colleges from the US Department of Education’s database

  • Financial Aid

    • Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)  Complete the Application for Federal Student Aid online
    • CSS Profile  The CSS Profile goes into more detail than the FAFSA and gives a more in-depth financial picture to the college.  Over 350 institutions and organizations use PROFILE to award their aid funds equitably to the right students at the right time.
    • Fastweb.com  A scholarship search program with information on local and federal aid
    • FinAid.org Information on scholarships, loans, and all types of financial aid. Includes a college expense calculator to determine financial aid eligibility
    • GoodCall Scholarship search engine which is one of the largest databases of scholarships on the web. Requires no personal information and it’s free to use
    • CollegeBoard Register for the College Scholarship Service (CSS) Financial Aid Profile. Many schools require the CSS Profile as part of the financial aid application
    • Private Student Loans Guide  Coverage on the latest student loan news and information, plus resources and guides for borrowers and their families about paying for college and repaying student debt
    • SMARTTRACK Northwest Academy is providing access to SMARTTRACK® College Funding to help you learn how best to pay for college, how to pay less for college, and how to keep your retirement safe in the process.
    • Student Loan Guide Free resource designed to help students compare reviews for student loans and make the right consumer decisions for themselves

  • Standardized Tests

    • College Board Register for the SAT and SAT Subject Tests, plus practice tests, information about interpreting scores, and more
    • ACT  Register for the American College Test (ACT), plus prep information, a college search program, and financial aid estimator
    • FairTest Up-to-date source listing colleges and universities that do not require national tests for admissions.
    • The Princeton Review  View average SAT and ACT scores of various colleges and compare and contrast the SAT and ACT

  • Applications

    • Common Application  Download the common application and a program to help you fill it out on your computer, or complete the application online and submit electronically.  Offers links to obtain most of the required supplements to applications
    • All About College  Links to college web pages with downloadable applications and online submission forms

  • Books & Print Resources

    • Colleges that Change Lives by Loren Pope.  Published in 1996 and revised in 2000, this timeless classic reminds students about the tremendous potential that exists for them if they find the right college match.
    • College Unranked: Ending the College Admissions Frenzy by Lloyd Thacker.  In this book, the presidents and admission deans of leading colleges and universities remind readers that college choice and admission are a matter of fit, not of winning a prize, and that many colleges are good in different ways. 
    • Admission Matters: What Students and Parents Need to Know About Getting into College by Sally P. Springer, Jon Reider, Joyce Vining Morgan.  The new 4th Edition offers comprehensive, expert, and practical advice for parents and students to guide them through the college admissions process.
    • The Fiske Guide This straightforward guide describes the academic climates as well as the social and extracurricular scenes at the “best and most interesting” schools in North America.
    • The Insider’s Guide to Colleges Reference book by students covers topics from admission criteria and majors to housing, food, and social life
    • Rugg’s Recommendations on the Colleges A thoughtful approach to ranking the colleges. Rugg’s advice and comments have appeared in such diverse publications as USA Today, Rolling Stone, College Bound, The Boston Globe, Rocky Mountain News, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, New Jersey Monthly, and Your Money.
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