Academics
College Counseling
College Counseling at RE
Our College Counseling Office, staffed with four full-time college counselors and a coordinator of student-athlete college recruitment, works to ensure all students matriculate to a college or university suited to their personalities and passions.
Timeline
List of 3 items.
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Freshmen & Sophomores
Beginning in the ninth grade, a series of class meetings for students and evening programs for parents is offered to inform families about the college search and application processes.Freshmen students and parents attend “The Road Ahead” program during the spring semester where college planning resources are introduced laying the foundation for a successful college admissions journey. During sophomore year, multiple “Nuts & Bolts” programs educate families on a variety of topics designed to jumpstart their college search including an introduction to Naviance, our college planning technical tool.
The College Counseling Office is open to underclassmen on an as-needed basis. Common questions concern standardized testing, summer programs and course scheduling. Through partnerships with advisory, college counselors are available to all underclassmen to answer any and all questions during the first two years of high school. -
Juniors
Individual college counseling assignments occur during the fall semester of junior year. The kickoff event, our College Admissions Symposium, provides juniors and their parents in-depth insights into the admission process. The 18-month process will include frequent meetings between counselors, students and parents, along with continued class meetings, workshops and evening programs.Juniors are provided the opportunity to meet with college admissions representatives during fall visits to RE and in the spring at the AIMS College Fair, where over 250 colleges gather. -
Seniors
The College Counseling Office holds a series of senior workshops aiding students in all aspects of the college application process including composing effective personal statements and supplemental essays, completing the Common Application and applying for financial aid and scholarships. Mock alumni interviews and an application submit-a-thon are also signature events held during the fall semester.Throughout September and October, RE welcomes more than 100 admissions officers to campus, allowing students to learn about colleges in an intimate setting.
College Counseling News
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College counseling office offers guidance during Senior Parent Night
Senior parent received guidance about the college process and insight into new approaches at Ransom Everglades from RE's Executive Director of College Counseling Jason Locke and Director of College Counseling Patrick Tassoni during a Senior Parent Night on August 31 at the Lewis Family Auditorium.Read More -
Finding the extraordinary in the ordinary
It has been nearly eight weeks since I stepped onto campus in my new role as Executive Director of College Counseling here at Ransom Everglades School and the one word that keeps coming to mind is extraordinary. Having spent 23 years in Ithaca, New York, I find it remarkable, if not somewhat disorienting, that I pass by palms on my way to work each morning. Driving onto the RE upper school campus each day and seeing the Biscayne Bay in the distance is also a rather astonishing view even as I consider the gorgeous views of Cayuga Lake that I had from my office at Cornell. It is hard to believe that this extraordinary backdrop fades to the recesses of my mind the more that I learn about the exceptional educational opportunities available for Ransom Everglades students.Read More -
New directors arrive to RE college counseling
Jason C. Locke has accepted the newly created role of Executive Director of College Counseling at Ransom Everglades, and Patrick R. Tassoni, Jr., has agreed to become Director of College Counseling. Jason joins Ransom Everglades after more than two decades working in the admission and enrollment office at Cornell University, and Patrick arrives from the American School of Dubai. This dual appointment brings decades of experience, strong leadership and strategic thinking to the helm of Ransom Everglades' college counseling office.Read More -
Class of 2022 heading to 81 colleges in five countries
Ransom Everglades seniors planted colorful mini flags to mark their college destinations on a map posted in the Ansin Breezeway on May 2, lighting up locations around the nation and globe. With a few of RE’s 156 seniors still deciding, the Class of 2022 is heading to 81 colleges or universities in five countries and 24 states and the District of Columbia.Read More -
Students, parents attend College Counseling Case Study Night
Read MoreCollege admissions officers from ten colleges and universities came to Ransom Everglades on April 11 to lead the College Counseling Case Study Night, an annual event that takes RE families behind the scenes in a simulated college admission selection committee process. More than 200 people attended the April 11 event at the upper school, working in small groups with representatives from Case Western Reserve University, Colorado College, Denison University, Florida State University, Fordham University, Johns Hopkins University, Purdue University, University of Miami, University of Richmond and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. -
Juniors hear from college admission officials
RE juniors and their parents assembled at the upper school on January 8 to hear from a panel of experts in the field of college admissions on a range of topics that surround the college search and application process. Representing a variety of school types (a highly-selective, private, liberal-arts school; a highly-selective national university; and a flagship public university), admission directors Chris Gruber from Davidson, Denny Paredes from Tufts and Charles Murphy from the University of Florida, entertained and informed during the school's annual College Admissions Symposium.Read More -
College counselors tutor junior and sophomore parents
Read MoreRE’s college counseling office met with junior parents on November 10 and sophomore parents on November 22, sharing each group specific information about the challenges ahead as their children prepare for the college admission journey. The Junior Parent Program and Reception at the Lewis Family Auditorium included a talk by Bowdoin College admission office vice president and dean Claudia Marroquin and an introduction by Acting Director of College Counseling Terry Giffen. -
Seniors gather to submit college applications
More than two dozen seniors gathered in the Dan Leslie Bowden Library at the upper school on October 24 to submit early college applications. With assistance from RE's college counseling office, the seniors proofed and reviewed their application materials and enjoyed mini-celebrations each time they clicked "submit." Counselors Lew Stival, Daniel Creasy, Aleny Garcia and Claudia Jolivert helped students as they stopped by between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.; they estimated that, by the end of the day, about 30 percent of seniors' early applications had been submitted. Most early deadlines are November 1.Read More -
RE parents study up on financial aid
Ransom Everglades parents received guidance on how to navigate the college financial aid process during a remote meeting hosted by the school's college counseling office on October 14. Chanell Thomas, the Associate Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships at Vanderbilt University, provided an in-depth remote presentation on the financial aid process, covering topics ranging from sources of aid, applying for aid and schools' varying approaches to financial aid. At the end of the session, she took questions.Read More
View the presentation here. -
RE alumni offer mock interviews for the Class of 2022
Twenty-one RE alumni and three parents conducted mock interviews with members of the Class of 2022 on September 19 to help prepare them for college admission interviews. More than 40 seniors took part. The interviews occurred throughout the upper school, and students received personalized feedback. RE's college counseling office organized the event in partnership with the school's advancement office.Read More
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James Weaver ’90, member of Ransom Everglades board of trustees
“Some of my greatest lessons at Ransom Everglades were just as much outside of the classroom by engaging with my peers and teachers in an informal and inclusive environment. These skills developed as a student at RE continue to influence me today as a global business leader working in a global economy.”
List of 6 items.
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College Admissions Symposium
The annual and highly anticipated College Admissions Symposium in January offers our students and their families insights on the college process from a panel of admissions deans and directors. The event follows the release of college counselor assignments and acts as a kickoff to individualized college counseling for juniors. -
Standardized Testing
Annually, through class meetings and evening sessions, college counselors provide students and parents with tools to best prepare for taking the SAT and/or ACT. All juniors sit for the PSAT in October. RE provides a test prep program free of charge for all students. -
College Case Study Night
Admission representatives from various colleges and universities guide Ransom Everglades parents and students through a mock college admission process in April, taking them behind the curtain to help them prepare for their own forays into the college process. -
Senior Workshops
RE's college counseling team leads a series of senior workshops and bootcamps from May through December, offering sessions on college applications and application writing (personal statements, supplemental essays) as well as detailed suggestions for how students can organize their time to reduce college-application stress during the senior year. An application submit-a-thon is offered at the end of October to aid students with final details before they click submit. -
Athletic Recruitment
Student athletes and families looking to navigate the college athletics landscape are provided resources through the college counseling office including individual appointments with a coordinator of student-athletic recruitment. -
Financial Aid and College Costs
This special session on financial aid and college costs offers students and parents a comprehensive primer on financial aid, FAFSA, the CSS Profile and much more.
Resources
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College Counseling Resource Page
A comprehensive college counseling resource page is available to all enrolled students and their parents via the myCOMPASS login.
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Methodize
Methodize is a proven ACT and SAT test prep program through Method Test Prep. All Ransom Everglades students have access to Methodize resources for free.
Middle School
2045 South Bayshore Drive, Coconut Grove, FL 33133Phone: 305 250 6850
Upper School
3575 Main Highway, Coconut Grove, FL 33133Phone: 305 460 8800
Founded in 1903, Ransom Everglades School is a coeducational, college preparatory day school for grades 6 - 12 located on two campuses in Coconut Grove, Florida. Ransom Everglades School produces graduates who "believe that they are in the world not so much for what they can get out of it as for what they can put into it." The school provides rigorous college preparation that promotes the student's sense of identity, community, personal integrity and values for a productive and satisfying life, and prepares the student to lead and to contribute to society.