College Major Exploration
If you are not sure how to decide on a college major, you are not alone. It can be extremely difficult for high school students to choose a course of study and narrow their career path options. After all, most high school students have a limited work history and have not had the opportunity to explore their options effectively through high school career assessments. Some students end up choosing a major simply because it is a field with which they have some familiarity, only to later decide they are not interested in that career path after all.
Structured Help with Choosing a Major
Career placement tests for high school students—sometimes offered and administered by guidance counselors—can be a good start in helping students with college major exploration. Unfortunately, in most schools, counselors lack the resources and time to help each college-bound student dive into the results of his or her high school career assessments and take the critical next steps.
HelloCollege’s process does not tell students what major to choose. Instead, it is designed to equip college-bound young adults with information, showing them how to decide on a college major for themselves. Individuals begin with a comprehensive career aptitude test for high school students. From there, a certified career coach works closely with the student to help him or her understand and evaluate the results, discussing potential college majors and career choices that are aligned with the student’s aptitude and interests. The result is a tailored list of options students can use to find the right fit.
College Exploration Services Help Students Make the Most of College
Nationally, 80% of college students change their major at least once before graduation, and just 21% graduate within four years with a job in their major field of study. At HelloCollege, we believe that taking a proactive approach to choosing a college major, beginning with our career aptitude test for high school students, can change those statistics. In fact, of the more than 1,200 students with whom we have worked, just 14% changed their majors and 82% graduated within four years with a job in their major fields!
We are committed to helping college-bound students with every aspect of the process, including college major exploration. To learn more, contact us today!
Explore Majors
We’re passionate about your college success
Kevin Krebs
Founder and Managing Director
Inspired by his parents, Kevin’s journey from a first-gen, diverse, low-income background to Northwestern University shaped him. After experiencing challenges, including student loan debt, he founded HelloCollege and has spent the last 30 years helping students successfully navigate college admissions.
Allison Dahleen
VP of Client Services
As an MSA holder, Allison brings a wealth of experience supporting students in higher education. As the respected Service Leader at HelloCollege, she leads her team in expertly navigating admissions and academic advising, empowering students to achieve their goals with confidence and success.
Amanda Yoder
Director of Counseling
Amanda leads our counseling team with over 15 years of experience and 12 years of high school counseling. She holds a Master's in Education with graduate certificates in Military & Family Education and Administration & Supervision, and has helped students gain admission to almost every Top 50 colleges, including Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, CalTech and West Point.
Kim Shipman
Lead College Counselor
Kim brings over 10 years of experience in college counseling, including 7 years as a high school college counselor. With a background in career services at universities including Rice and Duke, she has supported students in earning admission to institutions such as Cornell, Johns Hopkins, UT Austin, Rice, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, University of Michigan, and Boston University.
Don Keller
College Counselor
Don brings 30 years of experience in college admissions and counseling, including 10 years as a licensed high school counselor and 8 years as an admissions reader for UC Berkeley, Northeastern, and the QuestBridge Scholars program. Throughout his career, Don has guided more than 10,000 students through the application process, supporting acceptances to institutions like Brown, Dartmouth, UChicago, Northwestern and UT Austin.
Raymond Gonzales
College Counselor
Raymond brings 11 years of experience guiding students to Ivy and elite college acceptances from Brown, Duke, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame, and UCLA. A first-generation college graduate with master’s degrees from Harvard, UPenn, and USC, Raymond specializes in BS/MD programs, liberal arts colleges, and nursing students. He also serves on the Common App Advisory Council.
Miracle Husband
College Counselor
Miracle brings 16 years of experience guiding students through college admissions, including 6 years as a high school counselor and 3 years in admissions at UC Berkeley. She has helped students gain acceptance to elite schools such as Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Notre Dame, UNC-Chapel Hill, Michigan, UCLA, and USC.
Leslie Riccio
College Counselor
Leslie brings 20 years of college counseling experience, including 15 years as a licensed high school counselor She has helped students earn admission to highly selective universities, such as Harvard, Brown, MIT, UVA, and Notre Dame, while specializing in athletic recruiting and East Coast admissions.
Adam Salazar
College Counselor
Adam brings 8 years of experience working directly in university admissions and student advising. He has served as an Admissions Advisor, Admissions Committee Reader, Graduate Advisor, and financial aid specialist at the University of Central Florida, giving him an insider’s perspective on how applications are evaluated.
Claire Kirchoff
College Counselor
Claire is a licensed high school counselor and Fullbright Scholar with 10 years of experience guiding students through highly selective and Ivy League college admissions. She has served as a counselor across public, private, and boarding school settings, supporting acceptances to institutions such as Harvard, Cornell, Vanderbilt, and Emory.
Kevin Paul
College Counselor
Kevin brings over 15 years of experience in college admissions and advising, including serving as Assistant Director of Recruitment and Admissions at UChicago's Booth School of Business. With a college advising certificate from Teachers College, Columbia University, he has helped students earn admission to top institutions including Harvard, Yale, Brown, Princeton, Cornell, UPenn, UChicago, and Northwestern.
Kristen Stephenson
College Counselor
Kristen brings nearly 20 years of experience in college advising, with a background spanning independent college consulting, essay coaching, academic tutoring, and school counseling. She has worked with both domestic and international students to navigate the admissions process and has guided students to highly selective universities including Harvard, Rice, Duke, Cornell, Vanderbilt, NYU, and Georgetown.
Michael Broderick
College Counselor
With 20 years in college counseling and former roles as Director of Admissions & Financial Aid, Michael is an experienced admissions strategist who has helped students gain acceptance to top universities including MIT, Harvard, Yale, UPenn, Columbia, UChicago, Michigan, NYU, and Carnegie Mellon.
Chelsea Zimmerman
College Counselor
Chelsea is a college admissions and career planning professional with 11 years of experience helping students navigate the transition from high school to their next chapter. She’s guided students through the admissions process at a wide range of institutions, including highly selective universities, large public schools, and international programs. Her students have earned admission to schools such as Tufts, UT-Austin, University of Rochester, University of Georgia, Case Western and IU-Bloomington.
Shaun Tarantelli
College Counselor
Shaun is a passionate educator and counselor with over 15 years of experience in teaching, school counseling, college counseling, and college admissions, including serving as a BS/MD application reader. His students have earned admission to highly selective institutions including Princeton, Cornell, UNC Chapel Hill, NYU, the University of Michigan, Boston University, and Johns Hopkins.
Gerene Keesler
College Counselor
Gerene is a licensed high school counselor with 20+ years of experience in college counseling, admissions advising, student success, and career planning. Known for her empathetic coaching and clear communication with families, she has supported students in earning admission to Duke, Cornell, Notre Dame, Emory, University of Michigan, NYU, Boston University, and William & Mary.
Gina Twardosz
College Counselor & Essay Coach
Gina is a college counselor, essay coach, and award-winning writer with 7 years of experience supporting students through the admissions process. Her students have earned admission to Brown, MIT, UPenn, Duke, Georgetown, Northwestern, Michigan, Notre Dame, Tulane, and Boston University.
Elizabeth Wiet
College Counselor & Essay Coach
Elizabeth is a writer, editor, and educator with a PhD in English from Yale University and a BA from Dartmouth College. Her students have earned admission to institutions including Yale, Princeton, Cornell, UC Berkeley, Michigan, Emory, and NYU.
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