I would say it all depends on your situation.
In my case, the high school guidance counselor told my kids to apply to Rutgers and RIT. I asked her why and she said she recommends all of her students to apply there. Great answer - right? She also told us to stay away from the smaller schools! I actually attended a smaller school that was 1600 in size and I realized she doesn’t know a thing about my children and doesn’t have the time. My son even told me she has way too many students and not enough time.
So I realized I had to help my kids. I tried to learn the college process and after several weeks, I realized how daunting it was and we were starting kind of late. I chose to hire a private counselor through a friend and she was the best thing that ever happened to us. She had 20 years+ experience of being an admissions officer at a top 10 university and also a guidance counselor - she had experience from both sides. She only has around ten students at a time which made a huge difference.
She was very helpful as far as which colleges would fit my children. She spent several hours learning what they wanted out of college, what they wanted to study, what kind of students they are, what their interest were, etc. She knew about a lot of colleges - their cultures and she would steer my kids away from places that were cut-throat or too politically liberal, etc. (which my kids didnt’ want). She also saved us money from visiting schools that usually don’t accept OOS students.
Basically, you are entering a world of what you don’t know you don’t know. It is like anything else in life, you have to learn, research, etc. It takes a lot of time. All these colleges are different. However, if you are just applying to state schools then you don’t need a private counselor. My kids both went the private route and they both did well. My kids knew they needed to be in a smaller school to thrive.
They both applied to nine colleges and they were both rejected to two out of nine. She also helped them with their applications and essays - making sure they were appropriate and detailed enough. She basically made sure there were no mistakes and that everything was completely filled out with a “fine tooth and comb”. She also told us when to apply which gave my kids a huge leg up. She was also there to answer a million questions and she motivated my kids to get things done. She had a timeline and kept the process moving because if you wait until the last minute it can get really stressful. I doubt my kids would have done as well without her.