On January 15, Sage Hill hosted the annual Coastline Orange County Case Studies Program, inviting 11th grade students and their parents from Sage Hill, St. Margaret’s, and Tarbut V’Torah to participate in this interactive and very informative event.

After being separated and given random room numbers, the 11th grade students and parents formed imaginary admissions committees, guided by actual college representatives, where they discussed mock applications and collectively decided which out of the fictional characters be admitted, waitlisted, and denied from the also fictional Red Brick University.

The College Counseling team’s main goal by holding this program is for students/parents to understand the ways in which a college application is read, common mistakes made by applicants, and the nuances that go into application review.

“The exercise was really helpful to my family and I in helping us understand what a college admissions board would be looking at when you send in your application,” junior Max Daily said. “It dismissed some myths and made me feel a little more confident in this college admissions process.”

A college fair with over 70 colleges in attendance from across the nation took place after the studies program, where students got to introduce themselves to and interact with college representatives.

“The college fair was a once in a lifetime opportunity that we were so fortunate to be provided with,” junior Katie Mayhew said. “It was such a unique experience to get to hear what goes through the mind of college representatives when admitting students, and it made me more confident about what colleges want from me.”

There were over 200 students in attendance, all seeming to enjoy the interactive aspect of the program along with the college fair and really getting a good grasp of what occurs in a typical admissions office at a university.

“The Coastline Case Studies gave me an insight into how colleges look at candidates that I didn’t even know I needed. Not only was it the most interesting college admission related event that I have been to, it was also by far the most useful,” junior Koby Twist said. “It helped me understand what factors in a person colleges look at, how they are weighted, and what ultimately determines whether or not someone is accepted or not. And to top it all off, it’s followed up by the best college fair I’ve been to.”