College Admissions Process: What Should I Be Doing?

1. College Admissions Process What should I be doing?

2. Fall of Junior Year Take the PSAT in October Research colleges on Naviance, collegeboard.com, princetonreview.com Keep your resume on Naviance updated with extra-curricular activities (clubs, sports, employment, volunteer activities, honors, awards, etc.)

3. Fall of Junior Year Keep your grades up, improvement counts! Maintain a good rapport with your junior year teachers, most likely these will be the teachers who will write letters of recommendation for you. Sign up for the SAT question of the day at CollegeBoard.com and practice!

4. Winter of Junior Year Study Hard! Remember how important Junior grades are for your GPA and college apps! Read over break! Continue with extra-curricular activities Plan a challenging Senior Year curriculum

5. Spring of Junior Year Attend College Fairs Write letter of intent to Military Academy if interested Refine your college list Study for finals!

6. Summer between Junior and Senior Year Arrange college tours for the summer Athletes: register with NCAA Clearinghouse after July 15th and let your academic advisor know. Keep extracurricular activity and community service efforts going Start your College essay Parent Brag Sheet Letter of ask for Teachers

7. Fall of Senior Year Your college list should be narrowed to about 5 or 6 schools with a good spread View on-line college apps for those schools List colleges on Naviance Request letters of recommendation if your colleges want them Take SAT/ACT as needed (PREP!)

8. Fall of Senior Year Don’t procrastinate with your apps! The earlier the better Complete all college apps by November 1st Once you have completed apps, request that your transcript be sent to the college by your HS academic advisor Send Thank you notes to anyone who helped you

9. Important Dates of Senior Year October 1st – first day to apply for financial aid using the FAFSA October 14th – finish FAFSA – your gift to yourself! November 1st – Complete College apps November –March – Scholarship applications Mid February: Mid-year grades will be sent – keep your grades up!

10. Don’t Catch Senioritis! Sen-ior-it-is [seen-yer-eye-tis] -noun Slacking off in the Spring or after being accepted Every year colleges rescind offers of admission or alter financial aid packages as a result of Seniortis! Because colleges do not receive final grades until July, students often don’t learn of revoked admission until August Don’t be a victim!

11. A Good List of Colleges 1 Safety School*: Little chance of rejection 2-4 Good Matches: Schools that match your needs and wishes and that you could happily attend 1-2 Reach Schools: Your top choices but schools at which you are less likely to be accepted *Keep a financially Safe school on your list

12. Early Decision vs. Early Action Early Decision applicants Apply early (usually in November) to first-choice college Receive an admission decision from the college well in advance of the usual notification date (usually by December) Agree to attend the college if accepted and offered a financial aid package that is considered adequate by the family. LEGALLY BINDING AGREEMENT. May only apply to one college for early decision May apply to other colleges under regular admission Must withdraw all other applications when accepted by ED Usually must give a nonrefundable deposit well in advance of May 1

13. Early Decision vs. Early Action Early Action applicants Apply early Receive an admission decision early in the admission cycle (usually in January or February) Do not have to commit to an EA college May apply to other colleges under regular admission plans Must give the college a decision no later than the May 1 national response How do I remember the difference? db –Early decision is binding

14. Rolling and Regular Admissions Rolling Admission: colleges review your app and notify the you of their decision within a few weeks from submission. Regular Admission: traditional admission process. Colleges notify you of acceptance in the Spring of Senior year.

15. When Should I Apply to College? If applying to a four-year college:      Strong students apply early in the Fall If applying to a two-year college or technical school:     Apply for Fall admission during the prior Spring semester

16. What Really Matters to Colleges? There is no “magic formula” There are no “rules” Small Schools pay greater attention to the person Large Schools often use a mathematical formula based on GPA, ACT/SAT and favor in-state applicants

17. What Really Matters to Colleges? Courses Taken – colleges want to see academic discipline and a challenge Grades Received Rank SAT/ACT Scores Essays Recommendations Extracurricular Activities truly commit to 2-3 activities Interviews

18. Most Significant Factor in Admission: Grades Earned in ACADEMIC Courses!  Transcript is the BIGGEST DRIVER in the whole process!! *Admissions counselors report that  colleges recalculate GPA, using  only academic courses

19. Other Trends in College Admissions • Admissions counselors reveal:  • Rigor comes up often; looking at caliber of courses • Through the HS Profiles, colleges can discern how many AP and Honors level courses were offered. • Did the student take advantage of available courses?

20. Letters of Recommendation • How many letters are required? • Standard is TWO Letters of recommendation from ACADEMIC sources (teachers) • Look at application instructions for each school • Make a positive impression by having students ask for letters from teachers with whom they have a good rapport and in whose classes they worked very diligently.

21. Senior Year Reference College Application Process in 14 Easy STeps 1.  Narrow College choices to 5-8 schools.2.  Put choices in Naviance.3.  Visit Academic Advisor and list schools to which you are applying.  (Be sure to tell your Advisor if you are using the Commonapp for any colleges).4.  Check College application Deadlines.5.  Complete Teacher Letter of Recommendation request forms and ask two teachers for letters.6.  Go to colleges’ websites, click on Admissions/Undergraduate Admissions and complete applications on-line.7.  Request official scores from Collegeboard and/or ACTstudent.8.  When you have finished applications, tell your Academic Advisor to send your transcript and letters of rec.9.  Go to FAFSA.ed.gov and create a PIN number. 10.   Go back after Oct 1 and complete your FAFSA.11.  Wait for notification from colleges. 12.  If colleges send emails or letters saying items are missing, call the admissions offices to double check.13.  Receive admission or denial letters from colleges.14.  Send in “Intent to Register” notification to colleges by May 1 along with housing deposit.

22. SAT/ACT Testing Schedule1.  October Junior Year - take PSAT (about $13, scores not reported to colleges).2.  Fall or Winter Junior Year - Take SAT/ACT practice test (about ($10, scores not reported to colleges).3.  Winter of Junior Year - begin SAT and/or ACT prep.4.  March and/or May of Junior Year - take SAT*.5.  April of Junior Year - take ACT.6.  May or June of Junior Year/Fall and/or Winter of Senior Year- take SAT II’s if needed (look at the colleges’ admissions websites to see if they require SAT II’s).7.  Fall and/or Winter of Senior Year - re-take SAT and/or ACT to improve scores if necessary**.*when registering for SAT and/or ACT be sure to take advantage of the FREE score reports and send scores to colleges to which you might apply. **if re-taking the SAT/ACT, be sure to PREP!

23. Senior Year Reference Two-Year College or Tech School Application Process Applications are completed after the first of the year for fall admission. 1.  Visit college/Tech school website and go to “Admissions”. 2.  Download paper application (or complete on-line application and then notify your school counselor). 3.  Complete paper application. 4.  Submit paper application along with application fee to your school counselor.  Your counselor will mail your application, fee and transcript to the College/Technical School.5.  Schedule the Accuplacer (placement exam) a.  SCC: take the Accuplacer at WHS, meet with a college advisor to choose courses b.All other community colleges and Tech Schools: you will receive communication from the school indicating when you can take the accuplacer/placement test and meet with an advisor to choose courses. c.  Explore specialty programs (Nursing, Nuclear Medicine, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Sustainable Energy Technology, etc) to determine admission requirements* * You may need SAT or ACT scores