Verbena High School Class of 2018 Senior Information September 18, 2017

WELCOME to COLLEGE ADMISSION 101

KEEP IN MIND…… Colleges are concerned with GPA as well as curriculum. Colleges DO NOT know what diploma type you receive. Follow your teachers’ recommendations concerning your course selection. Students who take advanced coursework will score higher on the ACT.

Alabama One HS Diploma In order to streamline the graduation process, the state of Alabama recognizes one basic diploma type. This indicates the student has completed the required coursework for graduation. Colleges look at the types of courses by reviewing course names and GPA’S. Honors and AP courses are weighted.

Diploma Requirements (Minimum 24 Credits) All students must have 24 total credits to graduate. ENGLISH COURSES (4) CREDITS English 9, English 10, English 11, English 12 (or 12 AP or Eng. 101&102) MATH COURSES (4) CREDITS (Career) Algebra I, Geometry, Algebraic Connections, & Algebra II OR (Honors) Algebra I Adv, Geometry Adv, Alg II with Trig, Precalculus

Diploma Requirements (Minimum 24 Credits) SOCIAL STUDIES (4) CREDITS World History, US History I, US History II, Government/Economics SCIENCE COURSES (4) CREDITS Biology, Physical Science (or Chemistry I), 2 other sciences – Must be advanced level for honors diploma REQUIRED ELECTIVES (3) CREDITS Career Preparedness Health LIFE PE, Band, Foreign Language (if honors), and/or Career Technical Education Courses

What does preparing mean? There are many options after high school. Work Military Trades Apprentice programs College

GUIDANCE OFFICE PROCEDURES Transcript Request Forms: Are located in the front office, in the box outside Mrs. Muncher’s door, and online GPA and Class Rank: I can provide you with this information Will not change until the end of the course (year long courses end in May)

Senior year timeline FALL: Continue to achieve the best grades possible Register for the SAT/ACT if needed Recommendation letters Check college financial aid processes (each is different) Visit colleges you plan to apply to Visit a college fair Complete your FASFA

Senior year timeline Winter: Investigate scholarship opportunities File scholarship applications Spring: Confirm your intent to enroll Pay deposit by May 1 Notify colleges you are not attending Write thank you notes for rec letters

College Applications Selecting colleges and applying for admission is exciting! Be sure to meet all deadlines and follow directions so that you don’t get frazzled!

Where do you want to go? DREAM SCHOOL—where you would like to attend if you have the $$$ and funding; it has your intended major and you have a competitive GPA (3.0 or higher) and ACT score (22--24 or higher). REACH SCHOOL—this school has basic admission requirements, such as a competitive GPA of 3.0 and an ACT of 20—22 or higher.  This is a school where you have some funding to help pay for your education, since the cost of college attendance PER YEAR is $12,000—$18,000. SAFETY SCHOOL—this is usually a junior college, or a college within a 30—45 minute drive) somewhere you can attend if you have a lower GPA and can take advantage of lower tuition.  You can often complete basic courses and then transfer to another school to focus on your major.  

How do colleges decide? Academic record and school recommendation GPA Test Scores (ACT, SAT, etc.) Activities Personal factors (special skills such as athletics or drama, unique financial need, etc.) Essays Interviews Teacher recommendations

What role should finances play in deciding whether or not to go to college?

What role…. NONE! Remember, do not eliminate any college because of costs before receiving financial assistance information. Remember to check with college financial aid offices for accurate costs.

Types of Scholarships Academic-based – grades, test scores, transcript is most important Merit-based – Leadership and community service, extra- curricular activities, honors, etc. are most important Need-based – Financial need as seen on tax information and household income are most important

Start Searching for Scholarships Now Start searching for scholarships as soon as possible. There are scholarships with deadlines throughout the year, so the sooner you start searching, the more scholarships you will find. There are even scholarships for children in the grades K- 8 in addition to scholarships for high school students in grades 9-12. You can continue searching for scholarships after you are enrolled in college.

How Do You Find Scholarships? Use a free online scholarship match service like www.FastWeb.com. It takes only half an hour. The site matches your personal background characteristics against a very large database of scholarships, so you will see only those scholarships for which you are qualified. The FastWeb database is updated daily, with automatic email notification of new awards that match your profile. The FastWeb site also provides a lot of news, information and advice.

Now what? Start applying Bring a copy of your acceptance letters as they come in to Mrs. Muncher Bring a copy of your scholarship award letters to Mrs. Muncher as they come in