Karen Mason
Director of College Counseling
Germantown Academy (PA)
What drew you to the world of college admission counseling?
After graduating with my master’s in English, I rethought my plan to pursue a Ph.D. and teach on the college level when the market for English teachers was brutally competitive. A professor suggested I explore college admissions. He thought I would enjoy helping students and the upbeat atmosphere. I landed my first admission position at my alma mater, Wilkes University (PA), where I was fortunate to work in full-time admissions, part-time admissions serving adult students, and a special admissions role in the School of Engineering to advise health science students and launch the PharmD program.
I enjoyed the advisement portion of this last role so much that when I saw an open position for the director of college counseling at Wyoming Seminary (PA), I applied. I love working so closely with high school students and making them feel seen and that they matter. These relationships have kept me on this side of the desk for 29 years, the last 15 at Germantown Academy. In fact, Roger Eastlake, the former director at GA, whom I got to know through PACAC and NACAC, encouraged me to apply for his position when he was retiring.
What is your favorite part of the job?
Being in education and getting to participate in the cycle of the year is such a privilege. Not all professions afford a fresh start in September. I love welcoming students back to campus, seeing how they have physically grown and matured over the summer, and sharing in their lives and their goals. Teenagers are constantly evolving and being a part of that journey ensures that I am never bored and always challenged. With so many pressures on students today, it is imperative that kids have grounded adults in their lives who value them, not their achievements and where they will gain admission to college. I hope I fill that role for at least some of my students.
How has NACAC played a role in your career?
When I began my career on the high school side, I became involved in both PACAC and NACAC to find mentors and guidance on college counseling. I was new to the independent school world and to college counseling without the connections and mentors I found through both organizations, I would have been on my own, especially since I was an office of one. Programming and the e-list, (at the time) certainly helped, but ultimately it was the relationships that fueled my professional growth and expanded my friendship circle well beyond my own neighborhood and community.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing our profession today?
Many of the issues I find most disturbing are related to equity and access: the FASFA fiasco that will continue into this next admissions cycle; the escalating cost of high education; complications to the admission process, such as the SRAR, that add yet another barrier to students, especially those without counselors to help; the failure of the College Board to provide test opportunities for all students on their national test dates; the increased competition at the most prestigious U.S. colleges that is partially behind the mental health crisis of our best and brightest students. I wish the list ended there.
When you aren’t working, what do you like to do?
Be outside. Whether walking, running, or hiking, being immersed in nature restores me and allows me to spend non-phone time with my wife, Joan, and my pup, Percy. Add in a beach setting, and I’m in heaven.
What five words would you use to describe yourself?
Energetic, passionate, curious, problem-solver, hard worker.
Published Sept. 23, 2024
