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Graduate students (N=13) in a counselor education program in New York State participated in a study about what they thought were the main concerns of eighth grade students. A needs assessment is often a helpful method for counselors to plan and deliver services. The responses of the school counselor trainees were very different from the responses of eighth graders surveyed by other authors in North Carolina and from the responses of eighth graders in New York interviewed for this study. Counselor trainees thought eighth graders were concerned with superficial things such as clothes, attractiveness, and relationships. In reality, the eighth graders said they were concerned about academic success, family health, and death. The study confirms that school counselors should not develop programs based only on what they think is important to students. Utilizing a needs assessment is a more accurate tool for planning programs, and offering material on needs assessment would be benefit in any research course offered to graduate students. (JDM)