Class of 2019 Senior College Planning Meeting Stacy Morris Margaret Feldman COLLEGE & CAREER COUNSELOR DIRECTOR OF COLLEGE ADVISING TC WILLIAMS SCHOOL COUNSELING SCHOLARSHIP FUND OF ALEXANDRIA
College & Career Center (CCC) Post-Secondary Planning & College & Career As sistance Navigating Naviance The Common Application Military Testing Job & internship Opportunities NCAA Clearinghouse & Eligibility Resumes & College Essays SAT/ACT Registration & Prep College Visits from Representatives Financial Aid & Scholarship Searches Ms. Morris | stacy.morris@acps.k12.va.us | A-114
College & Career Center (CCC) Post-Secondary Options Career/Technical school (Certification Program) Community College (Associates Degree) Community College, then transferring to four-year school (Bachelors Degree) Four-year college (Bachelors Degree) Employment Military Ms. Morris | stacy.morris@acps.k12.va.us | A-114
Scholarship Fund of Alexandria (SFA) SFA supports TC students with: Scholarships for College Gave out $1 million to TC grads in 2018 50% of applicants win a scholarship College, Career, & Financial Aid Advising Assistance with choosing best fit colleges Editing college essays and résumés Applying for financial aid and scholarships, etc… Stop by anytime 8am-4:30pm Monday-Friday Ms. Feldman | margaret.feldman@acps.k12.va.us | A-115 Ms. Osei | abigail.osei@acps.k12.va.us | A-121
Common App
Common App Step One- Common App-Complete Profile, Education, Family and FERPA
Naviance
Naviance Step Two- Connect your Naviance account
Coalition
Coalition
Responsibilities Your counselor is your gatekeeper for the college application process Counselor Responsibility Sending Official Transcripts, School Profile, ACPS LOR, Common App. Evaluations Student Responsibility Application & Fee, Test Scores (SAT & ACT) and Outside Letters
Choose the right colleges for YOU
Think about your college major Take Naviance career and personality assessments (under “ About Me ” tab) Fill out questions about your interests to help decide what careers might be a good fit for you BLS Occupational Outlook (www.bls.gov/ooh/) Figure out what education/training you need for the career of your choice; this will help you determine a college major Also, find out average salary, day-to-day responsibilities, and employment outlook
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Compare your GPA & SAT/ACT scores Take a look at Naviance scattergrams Use “Search for Colleges” and select a college of interest View “Admissions ” and scroll down to view scattergram Take a look at Ms. Feldman’s GPA chart on p. 19
Research affordability Will the colleges you are considering offer enough financial aid and scholarships for you to attend? A college isn’t a good match unless it’s also a financial match
What is Financial Aid? Financial aid is money that helps your family pay for college There are 3 types of financial aid Scholarships/Grants = Free Scholarships/Grants Money Work-Study = Must work to Work Study earn funds Loans = Must pay back Loans
How do you apply for financial aid Federal & State Aid Institutional Aid Private Scholarships FAFSA FAFSA and/or CSS Profile Individual application for each (opens October 1 ) (opens October 1) private scholarship (year round) Application requires: Applications require: Applications require: • • • Income information Income information Transcript • from student/parent from student/parent Essays • Résumé • Recommendations • SAT/ACT scores • Income information from student/parent Types of aid given: Types of aid given: Types of aid given: • • • Scholarships/grants Scholarships/grants Scholarships/grants • Work-study • Loans
How much financial aid will I receive? Find out how much each school will cost before you apply! Go to: collegecost.ed.gov/netpricecenter.aspx
Let’s look at some examples Using the Net Price Calculator, we can determine that if a family of three makes $30,000 per year, they would pay the following net prices: College Sticker Price Net Price University of $61,370 $2,195 Richmond University of $28,856 $4,050 Virginia George Mason $25,192 $15,547 University $15,650 (living at home) $7,605 (living at home) University of $42,919 $33,324 Maryland
What if you can’t afford the Net Price? It’s OK to borrow a manageable amount of money in Federal Loans because college is an investment in your future However , if you don’t have enough cash to attend the college of your choice after receiving: Federal and State Grants, Federal Student Loans, Institutional Aid, and Private Scholarships, then you need a backup option
How America pays for college From a 2016 national study by Sallie Mae
Let’s talk about
The cost of Using the Net Price Calculator, we can determine that if a family of three makes $30,000 per year, they would pay the following net price: College Sticker Price Net Price Northern Virginia $5,610 - $485 Community College (living at home) (you get money back) (NOVA)
Transferring from Guaranteed Admission: You can be guaranteed transfer to the Virginia public college of your choice if you graduate from NOVA with an Associate’s Degree and the required courses and GPA Each 4-year school has different course and GPA requirements to transfer, so you should choose which 4- year school you’re aiming for before you start classes at NOVA Competitive Admission : You can transfer to any college in the country (in-state, out-of-state, public, or private) after 1 or 2 years at NOVA You will still write essays and be evaluated on both your high school and college transcripts. However, your college transcript will carry a lot more weight than your high school one
Research return on investment Be sure you’re making a wise investment of your time & money Use CollegeScorecard.ed.gov to research graduation rates and average salary of graduates
Finalize your list of colleges Choose 5-8 colleges that: Offer your major of interest Match your GPA & SAT/ACT scores At least 2 safety, 2 match, 2 reach Will be affordable for your family Will provide you with a return on investment
College application checklist
Take college entrance exams SAT and ACT are two different college entrance exams All colleges accept both – they don’t have a preference So take both and then focus on preparing to retake whichever exam is a better fit for you If you receive free/reduced lunch you can take both the SAT and ACT for free 2x each SAT Test Dates SAT Registration Deadlines October 10 – SAT School Day N/A November 3 October 5 December 1 November 2 ACT Test Dates ACT Registration Deadlines October 27 September 28 December 8 November 2
Write admissions essays Most applications require one or more personal essays Share your background story, interests, & struggles Free assistance with brainstorming & editing your essays from: Ms. Feldman in SFA Ms. Morris in CCC Your Counselor Your English Teacher
Prepare a résumé A one-page summary of your academic achievements, extracurricular involvement, work experience, & skills What colleges & scholarships want to see on your résumé: Consistent involvement in a few activities (sports, clubs, religious community) Volunteer experience Employment Honors/Awards Languages spoken, etc. See SFA or CCC for a résumé template & assistance
Request recommendation letters Most colleges will ask for: 1 recommendation letter from school counselor 1 recommendation letter from core subject teacher (English, math, science, foreign language, or history) 1 recommendation letter from either core subject, elective teacher, coach, employer, etc. (just not a family member or friend) Your recommenders should be able to speak to your character, work ethic, academic achievement, & activities/responsibilities outside of school You don’t necessarily need to have gotten an “A” in the class for the teacher to be a good recommender, maybe you got a “B” but you went in every day for extra help
Request recommendation letters Ask for recommendations in person first Provide your recommenders with a copy of your resume and your earliest college deadline Then submit request through Naviance, NOT Common App More information on using Naviance and Common App to come…
Complete the FAFSA FAFSA Completion Workshops Free, confidential help with FAFSA FAFSA doesn’t look at your grades or require essays FAFSA doesn’t require you to take out loans (it gives you free money to pay for college) Free McDonald’s chicken sandwiches Wednesday, October 3 rd 4pm – 7:30pm Wednesday, November 7 th 4pm – 7:30pm FAFSA only takes 45 minutes, so you don’t have to stay the whole time! Be sure to bring 2017 tax documents!
Complete the FAFSA
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