BY LAUREN MATTHEW
Staff Writer
Furthering students’ education after high school graduation has become increasingly important, as more and more jobs have upped the stakes for educational background in the hiring process.
For local high schools, providing a challenging curriculum to make students more competitive has become a must.
According to the state Department of Education’s report card for the 2003-04 school year, 57.9 percent of public high schools throughout Middlesex County were pursuing four-year colleges, with 27.5 percent going to two-year colleges and 1.6 percent continuing education in other college settings.
Numbers are up from last year’s reported percentages in Monroe. Of Monroe Township High School seniors last year, 61.5 percent were pursuing a four-year school. Another 29.1 percent were going on to a two-year institution.
South Brunswick High School’s numbers have also risen, with 74.2 percent of last year’s seniors planning on a four-year college and 20.9 percent attending a two-year college.
East Brunswick’s numbers have risen steadily over the last three years. The school, which boasts a 98-percent graduation rate, reported last year that 73.9 percent of its seniors would go on to a four-year school, with 19.3 percent in two-year schools.
North Brunswick Township High School’s four-year numbers have jumped 10 percent, from 59.7 percent of the class of 2003, to 2004’s 69.6 percent. In addition, 20.2 percent of 2004’s graduates planned to attend a two-year school.
South River High School’s comparatively low numbers saw a small drop. Some 33.1 percent of the school’s seniors planned on moving on to a four-year school, and 37.5 percent to a two-year school.
Old Bridge High School’s numbers remain moderate, with 47.9 percent of last year’s seniors headed to a four-year college and 28.5 percent planning on a two-year school. Those numbers were higher in 2003, when 49.3 percent went to a four-year school; and 30.8 percent to two-year schools.
Sayreville War Memorial High School also saw a drop in percentages. In 2003, 48.5 percent of seniors pursued four-year schools and 35.4 percent intended on a two-year school. In 2004, however, students reported that 42.7 percent were planning to attend a four-year school and 31.8 percent planned on a two-year. However, graduation rates in Sayreville are at a high of 96.1 percent.
Lenore Kingsmore, supervisor of the guidance department at Sayreville War Memorial and president of the Middlesex County Board of Counselors, noted that the percentage of students going on to college is linked to the fact that getting into college is harder now than it has been in recent years.
“Statistics have shown that we have a lot more 18-year-olds than we have seats in colleges,” Kingsmore said.
Competition is much more intense than it has been in the past, though Kingsmore predicts things will level off.
“I think after 2006, we’ll see a decline again,” she said.
For now, though, more students are being wait-listed at schools, Kingsmore said, mainly because of population movement .
“We have some really top kids who have to wait,” she explained.
Colleges can afford to be choosier than they have in past years, because the pool of applicants has grown.
North Brunswick Township High School counselor Charlie Nemeth said he did not see the same patterns.
“I don’t see a lot of change,” Nemeth said.
Students have not experienced the same problem, Nemeth said, unless they are trying to get into more selective schools, such as those in the Ivy League.
“We seem to have quite a few [students] get into those as well,” he said.
North Brunswick school officials are pleased with the numbers, Nemeth said, noting that many of its graduates are going to Rutgers University, New Brunswick.
Two-year schools are popular among graduates, he said, because schools like Middlesex County College, Edison, are less expensive and credits earned there generally transfer to other schools. No one asks where students started school, Nemeth said, just where they graduated from.
As far as the number of students who plan on furthering their education, Kingsmore said that more Sayreville high schoolers are planning on college than before.
“It goes in a cycle,” she said. “I see more of our students going on to an institution after high school.”
Sayreville has seen an increase in college attendance in the past five years, she said. Kingsmore attributes this to teachers, counselors and parents offering more encouragement for high schoolers to go to two- and four-year schools.
Sayreville brings college representatives for a college fair every April, and in the fall, admissions counselors from in and out of New Jersey meet with students one-on-one to discuss their plans.
“The host of schools is very varied,” Kingsmore said.
Kingsmore credits good relationships with college counselors, in addition to curriculum and encouragement, for higher college numbers.
The percentage for 2004 is normal for Sayreville, she said.
“Of course, we would want it to be higher,” she noted.
More students, 4 percent of the school’s seniors, planned on military careers in 2004.
Overall, Kingsmore is pleased with Sayreville’s report card. “Our goal is for students to have a focus after graduation,” she said.
College is not for everyone, she noted, but counselors encourage trade schools or other post-secondary pursuits in lieu of that.
“Students are realizing college is really necessary in most careers,” Kingsmore noted.
Advanced Placement classes also play a role in college acceptance and planning.
“There’s a direct correlation to AP,” Kingsmore said. “Chances of college retention are higher [for those students].”
Sayreville promotes AP, as do many Middlesex County schools.
“[AP classes] do a great job in preparing students for college work,” Kingsmore said.
Class of 2004 college-bound seniors
Colonia H.S.
4-year
47.5%
2-year
32.5%80.4%
East Brunswick H.S.
4-year
73.6%
2-year
19.3%92.9%
Edison H.S.
4-year
54.0%
2-year
33.0%87.0%
JF Kennedy H.S.
4-year
51.3%
2-year
31.7%83.0%
Metuchen H.S.
4-year
72.2%
2-year
21.2%93.4%
Monroe Twp. H.S.
4-year
61.5%
2-year
29.1%90.6%
No. Brunswick Twp. H.S.
4-year
69.6%
2-year
20.2%89.8%
Old Bridge Twp. H.S.
4-year
47.9%
2-year
28.5%76.4%
Sayreville War Mem. H.S.
4-year
42.7%
2-year
31.8%74.5%
South Brunswick H.S.
4-year
74.2%
2-year
20.9%95.1%
South River H.S.
4-year
33.1%
2-year
37.4%70.5%
Spotswood H.S.
4-year
58.6%
2-year
34.9%93.5%
JP Stevens H.S.
4-year
79.4%
2-year
15.1%94.5%
Woodbridge H.S.
4-year
45.9%
2-year
29.9%75.8%