SEEK Counselors work to forge connections with students during the summer before their freshman year and remain with them during their entire college career. During this time, counselors serve as educators, mentors, and provide both personal and academic counseling. Among other things, they teach group counseling courses, assist SEEK students with academic advisement, provide information about on and off-campus resources, ensure that tutoring is received, and facilitate academic and/or professional workshops sponsored by the department.
SEEK Counselors are responsible for teaching theme-based group counseling courses, which are focused on issues relevant to students’ college experience(s). Some titles include Transition from High School to College, Financial Planning and Budgeting, Development of the Self-Concept, and Advanced Career Planning. These courses are in place to give students a voice and help them understand how their personal stories may (or may not) determine their success in college and in life. Some classes are linked to Mission Possible, SEEK’s peer mentor program, which provides each freshman student with a peer mentor- a successful upperclassman that is enrolled in the program.
At the core of the SEEK Counselors’ work at Medgar Evers College is the passion and drive to equip students with the tools they need to become academically, financially, and psychosocially successful. This manifests itself in many forms, and can include teaching and advisement, but is also evidenced by the Counselors’ research and scholarly activity, involvement in celebratory barbeques, and participation in awards ceremonies that mark students’ significant academic milestones. Through the many ways that SEEK counselors interact with their students the primary goal remains the same, to have students be the best they can be before and upon graduating.
