by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA

On Tuesday I will travel to attend my 15th conference of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. It’s only a one-hour drive to Baltimore, but as I make my way I will be reflecting on how dramatically different the terrain looks today for independent educational consultants, compared to that first meeting.

Back then about some 30 consultants were in attendance and if the other attendees had their way, we would remain invisible. Independent consultants were neither respected, nor for some even tolerated. It was perfectly acceptable to bash consultants publicly and colleges could be heard proudly exclaiming that they don’t talk to consultants. At one session, after listening to a presenter blast consultants, I stood up, introduced myself as the IECA Executive Director and took apart the criticism line by line. A few listened, but many more refused to hear my words. I think I was actually booed when I stated that consultants in IECA were serious professionals who emphasized great matches between students and their college choices.

Since that time we have engaged in a serious, sustained effort on many fronts. One way was to better educate NACAC organizationally. Through meetings between IECA and NACAC staff and Board members, we ended virtually all discrimination against independent consultants that was allowed to exist. Today, consultants comprise a major—and growing—slice of NACAC membership and conference attendees. Consultants serve nationally and regionally on ACAC Boards and in other leadership roles, and last year a candidate for NACAC president came from the IECA membership. The Independent Educational Consultants Association’s annual lunch for members and college admission representatives continues to grow, to the point that this year our numbers threaten to outgrow even the ballroom at the Marriott. For several years IECA and NACAC have partnered to present a pre-conference workshop for those transitioning from an institutional position to private practice.

The change in attitude is evident among most school-based counselors who heed the NACAC and IECA Principles of Good Practice that require independent and school-based counselors to work together in the best interest of students. Today, for every negative comment uttered about independent consultants, I hear ten positive—and another ten school consultants who tell me that independent advising is in their future.  The old view “you take money for advising students and that makes you a bad person” has given way to the reality that everyone who works as a college counselor–whether in a public school, a private school, or in private practice is being paid for the work they do. More and more school-based counselors see IECA members as allies in serving a student’s needs, just as a math tutor is an ally to the math teacher or a family therapist is an ally to the guidance counselor.

The most dramatic change may be the change in college admission offices. The number of colleges today who say they “don’t work with consultants” has shrunk from hundreds to a handful—and most of those remaining few are working with consultant client students…they just don’t know it. This year more than 300 colleges will take part in an IECA program: an IECA conference, an organized campus tour, a presentation, or participation in one of our special events. Colleges volunteer to serve on IECA committees. Many colleges now invite educational consultants to participate in campus tours. Virtually all colleges that do not invite consultants make an exception to include IECA members. And colleges increasingly organize special tours just for IECA members, a recognition of the valuable role consultants play in matching students to colleges where they think students will thrive and be successful.

If you will be at NACAC, and whether you are a member of IECA, a non-member consultant,  school-based counselor, or an admission director, please stop by our booth, #1005, in the exhibit hall and help us to plan and prepare for the next 15 years of serving students and families toward achieving collegiate success.

Related posts:

1. School District Moves to Contract with Educational Consultants for College Advising; are we moving toward the tipping point?
2. Colleges Turn Out by the Hundreds to Connect with IECA Member Educational Consultants
3. 100+ IECA Members Creating a Buzz at NACAC
4. Educational Consultants Devote Hour Together to Discussion of Service
5. College-Bound Students who Work with Educational Consultants Enroll Very Differently Than Peers–New Survey Shows

This entry was posted on Monday, September 21st, 2009 at 11:14 am and is filed under college consulting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.