Introduction to College Counseling at UHS January 13, 2015

Context of What We Do: The Big Picture  Guide students and families to make thoughtful decisions in an often overly complicated process  Provide knowledge about college admission based on firsthand experience  Advocate for and support students  Partner with mentors to ensure the best support for students

Context of What We Do: The Details  Present about various college topics at class meetings throughout junior spring and senior fall  Meet as often as needed with students to answer all questions  Advise about college visits, testing, UHS course selection, essay writing, and college lists  Host and meet with college representatives  Write the secondary school report (counselor recommendation)  Attend national and local conferences  Visit colleges and attend local college presentations

What We Expect From Students  Take the lead in communicating with the college counselor, mentor, and parents  Be open-minded and thoughtful  Engage in the discussion– this is your process! Be honest and open to having courageous conversations, and keep your support team informed  This is an inherently emotional process. Maintaining perspective, balance, and humor will help along the way  Remember, in the end, it will work out because it always does

What We Expect From Parents  Keep the child at the center of the process. Encourage independence and self-advocacy  Help your student with logistics, but resist making decisions  Listen before acting  Reach out to us with questions as they arise  This is an inherently emotional process. Maintaining perspective, balance, and humor will help along the way  Remember, in the end, it will work out because it always does

The First Meeting: Approaching the Process with a Growth Mindset Applying to college should be a journey of self-reflection and discovery. It is not a race; it is a process. It is about growth, change, and self- understanding. It should not be primarily about “getting in.” It is meant to be a part of a UHS education, not an exception. There is plenty of time, and you should take your time.

The First Meeting: The Practical Details  Create a preliminary college list: Don’t panic because of what is or isn’t on it, this is just exploratory for now  Review transcripts and discuss a standardized testing plan  Discuss travel plans for visiting colleges  Introduction to Naviance and understanding published college statistics  After we meet with each student individually, we invite parents to meet with us

Selection Criteria: a family perspective  Size  Geography (distance from home/weather)  Urban v. rural  Extracurricular opportunities  Family history  Fun  Cost  Prestige

Selection criteria: a college’s perspective  High School transcript: curriculum and grades  Standardized testing (if required)  Recommendations  Essays  Extracurricular contributions, special talents, and other “hooks”: arts, athletics, diversity, legacy

Intro to Naviance Graphs  Naviance is a valuable tool for researching colleges. Using scattergrams is a good way to get a sense of your chances of being admitted to a given school. Be warned: you will never see what other attributes might have helped or hurt a candidate. If you see an outlying admit, chances are, the student was in a special category.

UCLA

UC Santa Barbara

University of Pennsylvania

USC

Boston University

UHS College Counseling Junior Spring Timeline January 16: Questionnaire due JanuaryFebruaryMarchAprilMay January-February: Individual meetings with students. Parents come in after initial meetings. March 10: Junior Family Athletic Recruitment Evening April 19: Case Studies Program/ College Fair at Saint Ignatius May th : Final Exams at UHS. Summer questionnaire ed after final exams. January 31 st : SAT/ACT diagnostic testing through the Princeton Review at UHS from 9 AM-1:15 PM in the theater. February 11: Princeton Review parent follow-up to diagnostic testing from 7-8 PM in the library.

SAT/ACT Standardized Testing Spring Calendar SAT March 14th May 2nd June 6th Regular Registration DeadlineFeb. 13thApril 6thMay 8th Late Registration DeadlineMarch 3April 21stMay 27th ACT February 7th April 18th June 13th Regular Registration DeadlineJan. 9thMarch 13thMay 8th Late Registration DeadlineJan. 16thMarch 27thMay 22nd

Resources  Your college counselor  Mentors and deans  Visits to colleges – tours, information sessions, interviews  Case Studies Program/ College Fair at Saint Ignatius on April 19 th  Meetings with admission reps at UHS this fall  College counseling library and general guidebooks (Fiske, et. al.)

The Money Question: What to do?  An open conversation between parents and child  Consult with us, learn all the deadlines and guidelines, set up a check sheet, and follow it  UHS will have a formal presentation on financial aid next fall for senior families  Merit aid: rapidly changing and different at each school– requires student research

The Net Price Calculator  The Net Price Calculator (NPC) is a tool that you can use to estimate your “net price” at a particular college or university. Net price is the difference between the “sticker” price (full cost) to attend a specific college minus any grants, student loans, and work-study that you might be eligible to receive.  The Net Price Calculator (NPC) is a tool that you can use to estimate your “net price” at a particular college or university. Net price is the difference between the “sticker” price (full cost) to attend a specific college minus any grants, student loans, and work-study that you might be eligible to receive. All colleges are required to have a NPC on the financial aid section of their website.

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