All of a sudden, we find ourselves in mid-October. Admissions Counselors are busy visiting schools all over the country. Alumni are representing St. John’s at local college fairs. The leaves are turning gem like colors. The evenings are becoming crisp, all while our students are settling into their books, into their studies, into the deep,…
Author: Natalie Blais
Graduated from St. John's in 1994. Worked in undergraduate and graduate admissions for 10+ years. Also worked as a social worker, publication manager, and a public health program coordinator.
Alumni networking breakfast
This past weekend included the Inauguration of the seventh president of St. John’s College, Santa Fe, several celebratory alumni Homecoming events like seminars, field games, a piano master class and panel discussion with Seymour Bernstein and Michael Kimmelman, and an Alumni Networking Breakfast for current students and alumni. Having graduated from the college 20 years ago, I…
What are your most popular majors?
At St. John’s we do not ask you to select a major. In fact, we do not believe that a college should have departments. “The human mind does not have departments,” as a St. John’s faculty member was recently quoted as saying. The best quick answer to the question, “What are your most popular majors?” is that the top five popular career…
Keeping Quiet
“KEEPING QUIET” BY PABLO NERUDA Now we will count to twelve and we will all keep still. For once on the face of the earth, let’s not speak in any language; let’s stop for one second, and not move our arms so much. It would be an exotic moment without rush, without engines; we would…
A typical morning in the SJC SF coffee shop
In addition to the cooler temperatures, and our first early action application deadline, mid-November also brings with it freshman math tutorials and more in-depth work on Euclid’s Elements. Take note of the chalkboards. Students use them daily as they work together to better understand the mathematical principles at play. Admissions counselors also take the opportunity…
Never Underestimate the Importance of Coffee
Mike Donaldson is the Office Manager for St. John’s College’s Santa Fe campus. Mike just graduated from the Graduate Institute in May and works in our office to help everyone stay organized and on task. In addition overseeing the student workers he also tracks all of our expenditures. Every morning he goes through a series…
Finding the Most Skillful, Bravest and Virtuous Version of Yourself
There are a lot of great things about working as a college Admissions Counselor. We get to talk to excited high school students about their plans for the future, ease the fears of parents who are preparing to let their children leave the home and start on their journey towards adulthood, and inform high school…
A Rare Moment in the Midst of Fall Travel Craziness
Fall is the season of travel for admissions counselors everywhere. For the St. John’s College admissions counselors it means being on the road almost constantly from early September to mid November! This photo depicts a rare moment on the Santa Fe campus. For less than four hours, all of our admissions counselors were in the office at…
Santa Fe and Annapolis Admissions Staff attend National Conference
Members of the Santa Fe and Annapolis Admissions Staff of St. John’s College attended the 2015 National Association of College Admission Counseling (NACAC) in San Diego, CA. With over 7,300 high school and college professionals in attendance, it was amazing! We had a lot of great meetings with colleagues on the other side of the desk….
The Chalkboard 