Junior College Unit Class of Part 2 Patty Devecka A -K Suzanne Lyke L-Z

Topics for today… Review of the Junior College Unit - Part One. Where you should be in the college planning process as of now What you can do between now and the Fall of your senior year What you must wait to do until school starts in the Fall Distribution of College Planning Guide

Review of Junior College Unit – Part 1 Types of colleges How colleges evaluate you Testing College searches College visits Choosing a major Self-Assessment and Interest Inventories Scholarships and Student Aid Review your handouts from the Fall. That presentation is also available on the High School webpage. Go to “Counseling,” then “College Planning.” Topics Covered :

Where should you be now? SAT/ACT completed or registered for the June test College search almost completed – have a list of schools of interest Interest inventory completed College visits…..hopefully started – continue this summer Scheduled meaningful courses for next year….ones that will help you explore and gain information about your interests, and meet college admission requirements Meet with your counselor

SAT/ACT completed or scheduled Some schools advise you to take both tests. The only SAT date left this year without late registration is June 6 th. The registration deadline is May 8 th ! The only date left without late registration for the ACT is June 13 th. The registration deadline is May 8 th ! This is given in Altoona. You can also take them in October of your senior year. SAT registration at collegeboard.orgcollegeboard.org ACT registration at actstudent.orgactstudent.org

Other Tests SAT subject tests….check to see if the schools you are applying to want these. AP Exams…..happening over the next two weeks. ASVAB….check with your military recruiter Make sure you have your SAT and/or ACT scores sent directly by the testing service to the colleges and programs you’re interested in.

College Search Well Under Way Choosing a college is a big decision. Remember, there is more than 1 “perfect” school out there. It’s what you make of it. Have you done a college search? You should have a list of schools of interest at this point. Explore college websites and attend college visits in the Counseling Center collegeboard.org- Big Future collegeboard.org educationplanner.org passhe.edu- Pa. State System of Higher Education (Lock Haven, Bloomsburg, IUP, etc.) passhe.edu

Matching Admissions Standards to Your Profile As part of the college search, you should compare your academic and personal qualifications to those of students typically admitted to schools where you want to apply. Check out sites like collegeboard.org and cappex.comcollegeboard.org cappex.com

Selecting an Institution - Is it a good match for you? Size Location Environment Facilities Admission Requirements Availability of major Cost Academics Class Size Activities Sports

Majors If you know what you want to study, research reputations of academic departments by talking to people in the field that interests you, reading journals related to the field and using resources in the Counseling Center. If you’re undecided, relax and pick an academically balanced institution that offers a range of majors and programs. Students are typically not required to select a major until the spring semester of their 2 nd year, except in some direct enrollment majors.

Majors – cont’d Many colleges have divisions for the “undecided” student – such as the Division of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) at Penn State. Explore majors at This is from Penn State’s DUS, but can be helpful for any school. Go to search?navid=gh-cs to explore colleges and majors. search?navid=gh-cs Take a look at collegemajors101.comcollegemajors101.com

Interest Inventories Not sure what you want to study in college? Why do you want to go to college? Have you completed an interest inventory and seen your counselor? educationplanner.org careercruising.com Username: scahs Password: lions

College Visits and Interviews (Pages 21-23) A visit gives you the chance to talk with students, faculty, financial aid and admissions officers. You will be spending years of your life and $50, ,000 on your college education - you must visit before deciding to make the investment. Start with college websites and virtual tours - campustours.com is a good site. campustours.com THEN – YOU MUST GO THERE!

Penn State “Spend a Summer Day” Dates are not yet set for this summer– they will be in late July and early August Check PSU.EDU in late May or early June and search for “Spend a Summer Day”PSU.EDU

What To Do Now? Go through your College Planning Booklet cover to cover. Sign up for the SAT, ACT and subject tests if applicable. Continue to look at colleges and do more college visits. Narrow your choices down. Research scholarships and learn about the financial aid process. Get an estimate of your eligibility for financial aid at e1s1 e1s1

NCAA Eligibility Center Registration During May of junior year, register at: and complete the NCAA Amateurism Questionnaire (remember your login information). Look under “Resources.” In the North Counseling Office, request that your final junior transcript be sent to the NCAA. (Note: If you attended more than one high school, send a transcript from each school attended). Every time you register for the SAT or ACT, be sure to include the NCAA Eligibility Center Code (9999) as a score recipient.

NCAA Eligibility Requirements NCAA recalculates your GPA based on your 16 “Core Courses” - English, Math, Science, Social Studies, World Language. Only NCAA approved courses count (college prep level). List of State High approved courses is on the Eligibility Center website under “Resources.” A sliding scale with core GPA and SAT/ACT scores is used to calculate initial eligibility. Refer to pages in College Planning booklet.

Military Academies/ROTC Page 39/40 reviews the information for applying to Military Academies as well as ROTC. You need to request a nomination letter from Congressman Glenn Thompson ASAP. There is a limit to how many nominations he will make to the Military Academies. His contact information is on page 39. Make note of all deadlines when you begin the application process.

Common Application The “Common App” is a common, standardized application form used by over 500 public and private member institutions. The application is filled out once online and then submitted separately to each of the schools you apply to. You can start the process this summer by checking to see what this year’s essay questions are and begin working on them – go to essay-prompts/ essay-prompts/ The application process for your graduating class will open up on August 1, 2015.

Will you need a letter of recommendation? Some colleges/universities, scholarships and military academies require letters from teachers and/or counselors. You will need 2 teacher recs and a counselor rec if you use the Common App. Check college websites to see if recommendations are required. Teachers will write about you as a student in their class. Counselors write a letter about you as a whole person called a “composite” letter. This summer you can complete the questions on page 13.

Etiquette for asking for a Letter of Recommendation First, you will ask a teacher if they are willing to write a letter of recommendation. If you have teachers in mind, you may want to ask them this year. Procedures vary as to how letters of recommendation are submitted – you will need to let teachers know in the fall how your letters are to be submitted. Always send an or a hand written note thanking them for their time. VERY IMPORTANT

Looking Ahead – Things To Do In The Fall Senior College Unit - We will be meeting with you in September to give you clear directions about applying to colleges. We will not process any applications or take transcript requests the first two weeks of school. If you would like to access further information prior to our September presentation please visit the SCAHS Counseling webpage at Get in the habit of reading your school !!! Pay attention to deadlines!!!!!!

What about Penn State? Application process opens September 1, 2015 Starting September 1, 2015, you will be able to work on your Penn State Application. Be patient – there is no need to apply earlier. Nov. 30 is the preferred deadline. This includes the Schreyer Honors College. You must fill out the regular PSU application in order to access the Schreyer Honors application. Penn State does NOT require letters of recommendation, unless you are applying to the Schreyer Honors College. You can attend Spend a Summer Day and visit with the department you are interested in.

Other Colleges/Universities Most other college applications open up sometime in August. You can look at the college websites to see what you need for each application. Develop some type of organization for each application. Deadlines are critical! See organizational handout. ********IMPORTANT******* We will NOT process any applications, send transcripts or write letters of recommendations during the summer and the first two weeks of school for college applications. Military applications are the only exception.

Types of Admission Regular Rolling Early Decision Early Action Pages of the College Planning Guide

Mrs. Wolanski and Mrs. Dodson Counseling Support Staff

Common Questions Do I need my class rank for college and athletic applications? No, you do not want to place your rank on your application without discussing it with us first. In most cases your rank will hurt your application. You WILL need it if you are applying to a Military Academy or for some scholarships. What if I do not get into any of the schools I apply to? It is important when you apply to schools that you apply to at least one “safety” school. Even for the top students, having a Safety School is important. Ivy League Schools are considered Reach Schools for everyone….even the brightest!

Continued…………………. How do I get Financial Aid? It may seem backwards, but for government financial aid you need to wait until January 2016 to apply. Some schools will provide additional financial aid after you are accepted. You can also apply for private scholarships. Page How do I keep up with the latest information? Follow along on Twitter

Any Other Questions?