A recent study released by the NACAC, the National Association for College Admission Counseling, and reported in The New York Times, found that nearly half of public schools have increased the caseloads of high school guidance counselors.
According to the “2009 State of College Admission,” the average increase exceeded 53 students.   In addition, the study found that the number of applicants to four-year colleges continued to increase as well as the number of students applying to colleges and universities under early decision programs.
The study also found that the number of students graduating from high school annually peaked in Spring 2009, at 3.3 million, so competition for college seats should ease slightly over the next few years.   The New York Times reported that by 2017-2018, the nation’s collective high school graduating class is expected to be approximately 3.31 million.
Among the states with the highest counselor-to-student ratios are California (986 students to 1 counselor), Minnesota (799 to 1), and Utah (720 to 1).