Senior Parent Information Session

1. Senior Parent Information Session September 16, 2015

2. So far this year: • Through group advisement, we have given each senior a folder with information about the college application process –if you haven’t seen it yet, please look at it! Especially the FAQ pages! • They also gave us an email address that we will use at least once a month with important information. • Through individual advisement, we have started seeing students via senior conferences, to discuss their after high school plans and during that time, we will give them a notebook to help them stay organized through this process

3. What to do after high school? Joining the military Going to a 2 year community college Going straight to work Going to a 4 year college/university

4. Community College • Community college is a great option for students who want a 2-year degree or want to save money by going there for 1-2 years (complete their basic courses) and then transfer to a 4-year university • Requirement: High School Diploma • $69-72 per credit hour • If they are interested in transferring to a four year University, be sure to talk to the community college about the “college transfer program” • RCCC, CPCC, Stanly CC- Medical Assistant, Dental Hygiene, Culinary, Automotive, Heating and Refrigeration, Welding, etc.

5. Agenda • What does your child need to know to apply to colleges? • What college is right? • Applications • Transcripts • Letters of recommendation • Essays • SAT/ACT Scores • Senior Athletes • What do you need to know about paying for college? • Financial aid • Scholarships

6. What college is right for your child? • Hopefully, they have visited some college campuses • Do they want close to home or far away? • Do they want small town or big city? • Do they want public or private? • Do they know what major they are planning on? • Have they considered going in as “undecided”? Have they talked to the college about what this means? • Hopefully, they have researched the GPA and SAT/ACT requirements • The “best fit” is a realistic one • We always also encourage a “safety school” and a “reach school” • www.cfnc.orghas a “matching assistant”

7. What college is right for your child? • The minimum GPA required for a public NC college/university is a 2.5 • After researching and visiting colleges, your child will hopefully have an idea of what colleges are realistic for them

8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill • 9of our seniors went to Carolina last year • Clemson University Students can get scholarships ranging from $500 to in-state tuition rates at Clemson, University of South Carolina and various other out of state schools. Usually, recipients of academic recruiting scholarships have an SAT score of at least 1370 in R/M (ACT 31) and rank in the top 10 percent of their senior class.

9. Davidson College Colleges in North Carolina accept both SAT or ACT scores. Duke University University of North Carolina at Charlotte North Carolina State University

10. How many college applications? • We recommend applying to 3-5 colleges, if the student can afford the college application fees • If your child is on free/reduced lunch and received a fee waiver for the SAT, they can have up to 4 college application fee waivers • This year, collegeboard will send college application fee waivers to those students who had an SAT fee waiver last year. • If your child does not receive them through collegeboard, just ask your counselor for those.

11. Paper Transcripts • Must fill out the Transcript Request Form (online, in their folder, or in the guidance office) • One filled out per college • If student is under 18, you have to sign; if they are 18 or over, they need to sign the request form • Give Ms. Ryan 48 hours to process • Student will receive a note that says “Your transcripts are ready to be picked up” – you put postage on the envelope and mail it • County Policy: First 3 are FREE and after that $5 each

12. Electronic Transcripts • Students can send transcripts electronically if they prefer through www.cfnc.org for FREE • Be sure your child checks their “transcript manager” on CFNC to see if the transcript has been received • Common App and SendEdu are also ways some colleges may ask for transcripts to be sent electronically (they count as one of the 3 for free) • The student has to put their counselor’s email address in and it notifies us they need a transcript.

13. College Applications • Students can apply to colleges online through a variety of ways: • Preferred method by some colleges: the college’s own website (Future 49er for UNCC) • www.cfnc.org for any and all colleges in North Carolina – fill out application once and then it self populates for additional colleges • Be sure to complete any supplemental forms for each college • The Common Application-Chapel Hill, UNC Wilmington, NC State etc. (www.commonapp.org)

14. Letters of recommendation • Some colleges require them, some are optional and some do not look at them • Give the teacher or counselor 2 weeks to write a good letter • Fill out the letter of recommendation request form and make copies of it (PDF on student services website or in their folder) • If using cfnc.org or common app, be sure to look at “supplemental forms” for each college • It will be given back in a sealed envelope (student waives their right to see it) • You put postage on it and mail it

15. Writing a good essay • Some schools have them and some don’t • Most importantly, be sure your student gets someone to PROOFREAD the essays (consider BULL time sessions) • Writing a good essay includes: • Not writing a “generic” answer – it should reflect the student! • Tailor the essay to the school’s mission – you need to show that you will fit in at that college • Spell correctly! Don’t count on spell check alone

16. SAT/ACT Scores • All juniors took the ACT last year at least once • Hopefully, students also took the SAT—they would have signed up through www.collegeboard.org • Our transcripts do not have ACT/SAT scores listed • Students must go to www.collegeboard.org and/or www.actstudent.org and tell them what colleges should receive scores -- when registering for the test you get 4 free – after the test, it costs a fee of approximately $13 per college • Most colleges look at the best score in each category for the SAT (even if students took it multiple times)

17. SAT vs. ACT (which one to use?)

18. Senior Athletes • If your senior wants to play a sport at college, they need to be registered with the NCAA clearinghouse • There are GPA and SAT/ACT requirements for Division I and II schools – know your requirements • NCAA looks at only “core classes” including English, Math, Science, Social Studies and World Languages • This website also contains an informational video about the requirements for Division I and II schools

19. “To Do List” • Complete online college applications • Including writing/proofreading essays (if applicable) • Ask teachers/counselor for letters of recommendation • Sometimes schools/scholarships will want a “community recommender” – consider the student’s boss, church youth group leader, etc. • Send ACT or SAT scores to all colleges that you are applying to • Send in transcripts either by paper or electronically • Be registered with NCAA (if trying to play a sport in college)

20. How are you going to pay for college?

21. Financial Aid • Financial Aid comes from the Federal Government in the following forms: • Grants: Funds that usually do not have to be repaid. An example would be the Pell Grant • Student Loans: Funds that do have to be repaid. Some of these are subsidized by the Government (they pay the interest while the student is in college) • Work Study: these are government funded jobs on college campus

22. Financial Aid • Direct Costs: • Tuition • Books • Room/Board • Meals • Required Fees • Indirect Costs: • Transportation to and from home • Personal Computer • Loan Fees

23. FAFSA • FAFSA –Free Application for Federal Student Aid –www.fafsa.ed.gov • (notice it is not FAFSA.com!) • You can’t fill out the FAFSA until January of your senior year, but you can begin researching the process • www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov – predicts what funds you could be eligible for based on last year’s income • Go ahead and get a PIN number • Issued to an individual and is a “signature” for Federal Student Aid purposes • Faster than using paper signature • PIN is valid for years • Parent’s PIN may be used for multiple children • Each student must have own PIN • Obtain PIN from www.pin.ed.gov Results available online in 48 hours and to the institutions you list on the FAFSA

24. What is an EFC? • EFC---Expected Family Contribution • EFC is the end result after submitting a FAFSA • It is the determination of the amount per year a student’s family can pay toward their child’s college education • The higher the EFC, the lower the chance a student will have to receive “free” money from the government • Calculating Your Financial Need

25. Special Circumstances after the FAFSA is filled out • Significant change in your family… • Unemployment of a parent • Death in the family • Change in parents’ marital status • Medical expenses not covered by insurance • Student cannot obtain parent information Notify the financial aid office at your college of any special circumstances. Be prepared to provide documentation of any change, including the financial impact of the change.

26. Subsidized or Unsubsidized Loans • Subsidized Loans are available to undergraduate students with financial need and they do NOT accrue interest while the student is in school. • Unsubsidized Loans are available, even without a financial need, and they DO accrue interest while the student is in school.

27. CSS Profile • Check to see if the school you will be attending requires an additional application. Hundreds of schools require students to complete the CSS PROFILE, an online application that is more extensive than the FAFSA. Your school will let you know if the form is required when you apply for aid. • Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, and Davidson are just some colleges that require the PROFILE • Financial Aid Video from CFNC

28. Additional Information for need based financial aid • College Foundation of North Carolina • www.cfnc.org • Federal Department of Education • http://studentaid.gov/ • Student Financial Aid for North Carolinians • www.cfnc.org/fabook • The SmartStudent Guide to Financial Aid • www.finaid.org

29. Scholarships • Merit Based: given primarily based on grades, SAT scores, rank, GPA, etc. • Need Based: scholarships that consider a family’s financial need for money to pay for college • Criteria Based: given based on criteria such as a desire to study Nursing or Accounting (a specific major). They usually have a merit component • We send to the students, via email, a listing of scholarships for that month and the next at the beginning of each month (Senior Notes)

30. Scholarship Scams • “The scholarship is guaranteed or your money back.” No one can guarantee your scholarship before it is awarded. • “Come to our free seminar and we’ll show you how to get more financial aid.” This is a sales pitch. Don’t pay for information that you can get elsewhere for free. • “The scholarship requires a small fee.” Never pay a fee to get a scholarship. • “You are a finalist” for an award you never applied for. If you did not apply, it is not a legitimate offer. • “You can’t get this information anywhere else.” Everyone has access to the same information.

31. Upcoming Events • September 30, 2015 from 6 to 8:00 pm • Cabarrus County Schools is hosting an annual College Fair at the Cabarrus Arena • Come prepared to speak to college admissions officers • Get on their mailing lists (your address label) • Be sure to stop by the HRHS table and sign in • There will be two county wide Financial Aid Nights: • Nov. 16th – 6:30 at Winkler Middle School • Jan. 25th – 6:30 at CMC Northeast Hospital • November 2-6, 2015 • College Application Week – certain colleges will waive their application fee if you apply during this week

33. Visitors Tonight • Rowan Cabarrus Community College • College Transitions • Wells Fargo