On January 6, the College Counseling team hosted a panel of young alumni, featuring members of the classes of 2024 and 2025 who shared candid insights on college with the current senior class. The panel included Gabe McGuire ‘24, Maddie Goodhart ’24, Ava Guzic ’25, and Jack Lewis ’25 attending the University of Pennsylvania, New York University, Cornell University, and University of Pittsburgh, respectively.
Rachel Mallory, College Counselor and primary event organizer, said, “It's something we've actually done in the past. I think the Class of ’21 or ’22 was one of the first groups that we did it with. We took a hiatus last year and decided to host it at the beginning of January as a good way to kick off the idea of you all transitioning out of Mercersburg.” Mallory reached out to the alumni via personal contacts and assistance of the alumni office. “This is the first year we've had students who are two years out and one year out, which is really exciting because you've got the perspective of those who just finished their first semester and those who've been at it for a year and a half.”
The honesty and transparency of the grads offered refreshing insights. Ava Guzic ’25 said, “I tried to be as honest as possible when answering the questions so the current seniors could get an accurate representation of what college is like. I remember someone asking about AI use in college, which was really funny because the professors in college definitely have a different attitude towards it compared to teachers at Mercersburg. Everyone in the panel said that we use AI basically all the time, which I think shocked a lot of the seniors.” Maddie Goodhart ’24 added, “I know as a high school senior, I really wanted these raw and honest opinions about college. So I really appreciated that we were able to talk to them pretty freely. AI is used all the time every day in college; all of the other panelists agreed. It's just important to use it properly. It's really integrated into the courses.”
The social aspect of college life also emerged as a prominent topic. “It definitely gave me a little bit of a reality check in that you really need to plan time out really well with your friends and the people you care about because you have so much free time, but at the same time everybody's schedules are going to be so messy and disorganized,” said Katie Lee ’26. “I learned from the alumni that your friend group in college evolves and changes as you gradually find your people. It was interesting to hear how much more free time there is in college compared to high school,” commented Cole Piraino ’26. “I was surprised that a lot of them said that it could be pretty bad at first, but stick it out and it'll get better,” added Reese Alter ’26.
The student response to the panel was generally positive. Piraino said, “It was easing to learn that everyone deals with the same issues and experiences regardless of where they are going, especially in the midst of hearing back from college decisions. It was nice to hear that although the transition at the beginning might’ve been challenging, everyone ended up being happy with where they are right now.” Andrew Chang ‘26 said, “It was helpful because I was able to learn how to transition directly into college out of Mercersburg in a way that's tailored to our school, and it wasn't from the perspective of someone really late into college.”