Senior Parent Night Class of 2012

1. Senior Parent Night Class of 2012 Clyde A. Erwin High School

2. Presenters: • Russ Harris- Project Discovery WCU • Jeanne Nagel- Counselor A-G • Carl Firley- Counselor H-O • Michele Ferry-Winne P-Z

3. Be Organized • Keep a folder of important college information • Usernames and passwords • FAFSA • CFNC • College Application Portals • Deadlines • Application • Scholarships • SAT or ACT

6. College Exploration Use CFNC …..it is your friend www.cfnc.org

7. CLICK HERE

8. CLICK HERE

11. YHyperlink

14. CFNC College Application Week Here at Erwin November 13th All Day!!!! We will be pulling Seniors by homeroom to apply.

15. Application EssaysLet the fun begin!! • Start early so you can take your time. • Save everything to a hard drive. • Utilize CFNC or Common Application so you can do multiple applications at the same time.

16. Application EssaysContinued • Proof read and re-proof read….this is your first impression. • Ask a teacher to proof read. • Follow instructions to the T.

17. Sample UNC Chapel Hill Essay Prompts 250-500 words • Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.  • Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you. • Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.

18. UNC Chapel Hill Essay Prompts • Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc) that has had influence on you, and explain that influence. • A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.

19. Second UNC Chapel Hill Prompt 500 words. • You just put a message in a bottle and threw the bottle out to sea. What is the message? • If you could design and teach your own course, what topic would you cover? What texts, assignments, projects, field trips, or other resources would you use in teaching this course? • What is your comfort food and why?

20. Second UNC Chapel Hill Prompt • You just made the front page of the New York Times for doing something important that no one before you has ever thought to do. What did you do and why did you do it? • Carolina encourages students and faculty to solve problems. What problem are you trying to solve, and why is it important to you? • Tell us about a time when you changed your mind about something that mattered to you. What led to that change? 

21. What are Readers looking for? Show, don’t tell. • For example, rather than just telling “I am an adventurous person,” why not show your adventurous spirit by recounting your latest adventure with colorful details and descriptive language. • Showing is always more persuasive and interesting than telling. 

22. What are Readers looking for? Focus • Don’t try to tell your entire life story (it’s impossible). • Think about how you can communicate one little slice of life. • Can you tell a story that will illustrate one aspect of your personality? • Can you zoom in on an idea that you find compelling? • Can you incorporate details that will be memorable to your reader? 

23. What are Readers looking for? • Remember it doesn't have to be all about you. Some of the best essays are about people or ideas outside the writer's own life--these essays can still tell us a lot about the person who did the writing.  • Be concise. Don’t use 10 words when five will do the trick. 

24. What are Readers looking for? • Don’t feel strictly tied to the essay prompts. Use them as jumping off places, and feel free to let your creativity take you where it may. • Be yourself. Instead of trying to figure out what people want to hear, ask yourself how you can portray your unique voice and personality.

25. Letters of Recommendation • Ask teachers who know your abilities well. • Ask if they can write you a good letter of recommendation. • Have teacher save it on a hard drive. • Give them plenty of time! • Fill out student self evaluation found on Erwin High’s website.

26. hyperlink

28. Scholarships • Visit the Erwin High School website often. • Avoid paying for “Scholarship services” . • All of what you need is free!! • www.fastweb.com • www.scholarships.com • https://abt.starsscholarshipsonline.com/stars/

30. Sample Scholarship Essays • An essay of 500 words or less that describes your career goals, future plans, etc. If you are applying for a scholarship that specifies a career (i.e. education or nursing), include why education or nursing is your career goal and discuss any event that has influenced your choice. Also, you may want to talk about a specific person who has been instrumental in your decision. ----Last years prompt for Buncombe County Schools Foundation

31. Sample Scholarship Essays • What are your personal, education, and Professional Goals? • Submit a typed, double-spaced statement of 1-2 pages in length describing your short and long-term goals and how you plan to achieve them. • Prompt for Personal Statement on Community Foundation of Western North Carolina common scholarship application.

32. FAFSAFederal Application for Free Student Aid • Attend our Financial Aid Night November 27th, at 6:00pm. • DO NOT begin applying now for next fall.

33. The End