<p>Okay, the only times I have ever seen my guidance counselor is when I was doing course selections. What can I possibly do to make myself look good for the counselor, and hopefully get a good recommendation letter?</p>
<p>Well, it can't hurt to stop in, perhaps under the pretense of an SAT question or something, but I get the feeling that the GC rec is really just supposed to help colleges put you in the context of your school. Ths other thing is: teachers talk. Depending on the size of your school you GC probably knows something about you from hanging out with your teachers.</p>
<p>you could try to be their TA</p>
<p>The GC's at our HS don't know the kids either, you have to write a resume for them so they can use it in their recs.</p>
<p>My GC didn't know most of her kids very well, but she knew me really, really well. She actually transferred into my school in my junior year, but I had so many scheduling conflicts and then a lot to talk about concerning summer stuff so we had to talk a lot. We usually ended up just talking about things completely unrelated to guidance/college issues, and then we got to a point where I would just stop by to talk to her with no specific intentions. She still asked me to answer questions and send her a resume and everything to fill out my recs, but that's because we didn't talk about my classes and activities all the time. But she knew my personality and liked me a lot (nominated me for programs/awards) so I'm sure her recommendation was strong with anecdotal evidence and such.</p>
<p>It really depends on your GC, though. Mine just happened to be really talkative, and we ended up having a lot in common. Don't worry if it doesn't happen for you, though; colleges know most GC's don't know their students, so their rec can never hurt you, only help you.</p>
<p>(Offering to assist in the guidance office is definitely a good way to get to know the whole office, including the secretaries who you rely on to send everything on time!)</p>