Profile: Ginger Miller

Ginger Miller

Associate Director of College Counseling

Landon School

How long have you been in admissions/college counseling? Share your journey story!

Ten years as College Counselor

I always thought I would be a psychologist because I love people and trying to understand how they think. I majored in American Studies and minored in Psychology in college and earned an M.Ed. in Counseling and School Administration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. College counseling seemed a good fit.  

How did you get started in college counseling/admissions?

As an English and AP US History teacher, I always wrote recommendations. Also in my early teaching years, I worked on admissions committees at Choate Rosemary Hall and at Noble and Greenough School. Later I served as Associate Director of Admissions for The Langley School in McLean, Virginia where we also had to find placements for eighth graders heading to high schools. Finding the best matches for students whether coming into a school or going out from a school has always interested me. There are so many wonderful colleges, and I enjoy the process of helping students explore their options.   

What's your favorite admissions/counseling memory?

At a NACAC meeting I ended up in the elevator not once but twice with a prominent director of admissions from a prominent university, and it just happened to be the first choice of a qualified student who had a very complicated home life. I decided on the second time to share this student’s story. The director told me to email him and admitted this student who has remained in touch with me while I college. He has now asked me to help with his PPE application. I take students’ stories one at a time and try to see where I can help. When they come back and let me know that the college placement has served them well for life, I add these stories to my favorite memories.

What advice would you give to someone looking to pursue leadership (or membership) in PCACAC and/or NACAC?

Get involved now because life is short. Getting involved is the best way to remain aware of trends and to have meaningful conversations about significant issues in our field. Currently, I serve on the PCACAC Affiliate to NACAC for Government Relations. The people with whom I serve are some of the best in the field. I continue to serve my college, Wheaton College (Norton, Massachusetts) as a class office and member of its alumni council because I am grateful for the strong liberal arts education I received there. (Recently, I checked, and Wheaton was tied for ninth among liberal arts colleges with the most Fulbright Scholars and one of the most successful colleges in the country naming Rhodes Scholars). I think it is important to try to make a difference in the world.     

If not working in admissions/college counseling, what else could you see yourself pursuing? 

I think I would be working to make sure each child has a great start to his education including three meals a day and medical care. Head Start was one of the first places I volunteered, and I was certified in K-8 education in college when I volunteered in a preschool and student taught in third grade.  Or I would be helping to train new young college counselors in the same way I used to supervise teachers in training for the Harvard Graduate School of Education. 

What's one thing that most people don't know about you?

I play competitive tennis with a coed group and also race sailboats. I attended two colleges and one of them called me back about four years ago to give me a Varsity letter for having played two varsity sports, field hockey and tennis because Title IX happened after our time, and only men were awarded varsity letters then. This experience was exciting to think perhaps we had made a difference for women in sports.  

What's a current trend or future issue you're passionate about right now? And why?

I am passionate about reducing the ratio between students and college counselors in public schools.  I attended a public high school and still see that the demands on school counselors include advising students about curriculum, psychological counseling, and college counseling. I think public high school counselors deserve professional days for training and the opportunity to visit colleges. They also need better definitions to their jobs so they have more time with students in a complex, constantly changing college landscape.