Did my counselor screw up?

completelykate
Tue, 11 Jan 2011 12:21:14 +0000

I’d contact admissions to ask, just in case. However, the counselor letter is not really weighed that heavily. For one, it is mandatory - meaning you don’t get to pick who writes it, like you do with teacher recs (which say a lot about your style and personality).

In perspective: my counselor was in charge of 900 students. She didn’t know my name or who I was, despite the fact that I saw her at least once a week to discuss classes. She asked me to write my own counselor recommendation and then she signed off on it and it was sent to CMU. This is an extremely common practice at larger high schools, and admissions is aware of it.

Don’t be too worried. What the counselor does is out of your hands as a student. It won’t count against you.