With the stress of applying to college running rampant this time of year, it can feel like there is no way of making it to the finish line, what with meeting deadlines, completing essays, acquiring transcripts and collecting letters of recommendation. 

However, for the seniors at Prep, most of this weight was lifted off their shoulders. The solution? Passaic Preparatory Academy’s first Senior Seminar.

Seniors at Prep were given the opportunity to utilize the entirety of a school day to work on important documents, including college essays, college applications and resumes. Students were able to receive help navigating Naviance, the system used to transfer transcripts, letters of recommendation, and to organize future career and college goals. Under the guidance of teachers such as Ms. Sciametta, Mr. Graham, Ms. Carl, Ms. Mold, Mr. Tereshko and Ms. Lauricella, students were able to complete and continue working on aspects of the process that sometimes their day-to-day lives would not allow them to. 

The seniors were broken up into five groups. The groups followed a schedule in which they were told when they would rotate to their next session. During period one, students were introduced to the proceedings of the day. There were six sessions total and the final period of the day was used as flextime and a reflection period. 

Mr. Tereshko helped edit and structure the final drafts of college essays. Ms. Sciametta taught students how to format presentable and concise resumes. Guidance counselors, Ms. Mold and Ms. Carl helped students navigate Naviance and the Common Application. During this session, students were able to complete their senior brag sheets and career surveys. Finally, giving a presentation on interview preparation along with some helpful tips was Mr. Graham. 

Students at Prep said the seminar was valuable but could be expanded even more.

“The seminar should be longer,” said senior Gila Gershman. “I enjoyed the seminar, but I think an extra day is needed in order to have sufficient use of time in each session. The extra day or even half of it could be used as a flex period.” 

“The senior seminar was fun,” said senior Lixangelys Ruiz. “I loved being able to interact with my fellow class of 2020 peers and transition into this rocky yet rewarding time in our lives.”