Interlake High SchoolSenior Guidance

You made it to the final year…so what next?

College Admissions is anxiety inducing

Where are you?

Where do your parents see you?

www.testprepgurus.com

Sayonara to Senior year stress

Step one: BREATHE…

Plan ahead and relax!

Is acceptance to a selective college the key to success in life? Is enduring any amount of stress worth the reward?

Average admit rate for Ivy schools in 2014: 10%.

Does that mean the other 90 percent are failures? (many with perfect SAT scores and/or valedictorians) NO!

How will we help reduce stress?Senior Blitz: 15 minute individual

meetings with your counselor (next 2 weeks) to discuss grad requirements, college admission strategies, and college lists

A note will come to class in advance of your appointment with the specific meeting time.

If your child has a conflict, we will be sure to re-schedule

College CorpsTrained volunteers who will review your

child’s college search, application and essay with you in the career center. It doesn’t matter where you are in the process and it is FREE!

Monday and Tuesday 3:05-4:05 and by appointment. Email collegecorps@bsd405.org or Mrs. Scott at scottar@bsd405.org for more information.

Choosing a College

Factors to consider When you’re on

campus, it feels good.

Admission requirements

Programs/degrees offered

Public vs. Private Cost Size Location

How many schools will you apply to?

Don’t make it a contest!!

One REACH School– “I hope to get in”

Three HOPEFULS— “I should/hope to get in”

One SAFETY—“I will very likely get in here”

Early Decision vs. Early Action Early Decision

Apply to one school.

If accepted, you must enroll.

Financial aid packages and scholarships may not be as lucrative since you cannot compare one schools package to another.

Early Action

You can apply to more than one school.

Acceptance is non-binding.

You have more opportunity to compare different financial aid and scholarship packages.

Some schools offer a non-binding Early Action

College Admission Options

www.testprepgurus.com

Penn State University of Penn

VS.

Earnings Difference Between the Schools?

+15%

Earnings Difference Between Students Accepted to Both Schools?

0%*Source: Study by Stacy Dale and Alan Krueger

Letters of Recommendation for Private Universities

At least 15 school days (3 work weeks) before the university’s deadline please do the following:

Counselor Letter (1): Log in to your Naviance account and download/print the

Letter of Recommendation Packet (Document Library link)

E-mail the required information to your counselor Ask three teachers to complete the teacher feedback

forms (different from teachers who will write your letters of rec)

Teacher Letter (2): Talk to your teacher in person to ask if they will

be willing to write a strong letter on your behalf. Invite the teacher in Naviance to write the letter

of rec

Applying To Four Year Public Schools Complete the online application and meet deadlines!

SAT/ACT: You must request official scores be sent to the college or university.

Request official transcripts through your Naviance account at least five (5) days before your application is due. Pay the $10 Senior Fee to the Accountant (unless on Free/Reduced lunch).

Request financial aid information from your college or university.

**Remember: If you used a fee waiver for the SAT, see your counselor for a college application fee waiver.

Your transcript

Request a transcript from Ms. Bickerstaff by filling out a blue (transcript request) form.

All seniors who request a transcript for college applications will pay a flat $10 fee to the accountant.

Please review your transcript carefully.

* If you see an error see your counselor ASAP! (write the errors you see on your transcript and we’ll look into the problem)

ACT/SAT ACT - $56.50 www.actstudent.org($39.50 without writing)

English Math Reading Science Reasoning Writing Section

SAT Reasoning - $54.50 www.collegeboard.org Critical Reading Mathematics Writing

SAT Subject Tests – $43 The SAT subject tests are 50-minutes long. For example, writing,

math and biology. Some colleges require these tests in addition to the SAT Reasoning. You must take the SAT reasoning and subject on different test dates.

Community and Technical CollegesOne system. 34 colleges. Unlimited possibilities.

29 community colleges 5 technical colleges

March 15th Universal Deadline for Financial Aid

Senior Year Planner September/October Link Common App and

Naviance accounts (Directions in Naviance Document Library)

Take final SAT/ACT exams and send scores to colleges to which you are applying.

Request letters of recommendation.

Research scholarships, financial aid, and college costs.

Maintain and improve academic grades, stay involved in extra-curricular activities.

October 14th – Super Wednesday – get College Essay Writing Help and/or College Application Help in the Library. English Teachers and College Corps will be there to help.

Attend NACAC/Seattle National College Fair –

Friday, October 16th (9-12 pm) or Saturday, October 17th (12-4 pm)Washington State Convention Center (Seattle)

Senior Year PlannerSeptember/October cont.

Meet with college representatives that visit IHS! (Mrs. Ball)

Almost 100 schools scheduled so far

125+ visited IHS last year

Schedule is on Career Center website, Naviance, and posted in the Career Center

https://www.bsd405.org/interlake/counseling/career-center/

Senior Year Planner

January/February Submit FAFSA (January 1st)

Complete any applications still due.

March/April Begin comparing admission

and financial aid packages from schools.

Apply for scholarships.

Select and inform college that you will be attending by May 1st

May Take applicable IB/AP Tests

Let your counselor know your post high schools plans and where to send your final transcript in Naviance

June Senior Awards &

Graduation

November/December Submit college applications

Request FAFSA pin number

pin.ed.gov

Start gathering financial information to complete FAFSA

Net price calculators are available on most college admissions websites

Continue to meet college reps

Meet with College Corps

FAFSA, WASFAFAFSA – Free Application for Federal Student Aid (or

WASFA—Washington Application for State Financial Aid) must be filed to be eligible for any federal student financial aid and many school loans.$ Go online and request a PIN now

$ You CANNOT file a FAFSA application before January 1st, but close to it is recommended. It is helpful to have accurate information, but you may estimate.

$ Complete the FAFSA at www.fafsa.ed.gov (NOT fafsa.com—scam)

$ Submit a FAFSA form even if you think you may not qualify. Some scholarships require that you don’t qualify for federal aid.

**Mrs. Scott will meet with students to review your FAFSA line by line

Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.

Students may enroll in many public two-year and four-year college programs at a reduced tuition level: 150% of the institution’s regular resident tuition.

To be eligible for WUE, students must indicate when they turn in their application they are interested in the Western Undergraduate Exchange.

These tuition breaks are program-specific (not all majors are available at the WUE rate)

http://wue.wiche.edu/

Scholarship ResourcesMs. Bickerstaff will add local scholarship info on the IHS Counseling website under “college planning”.

Check the scholarship list in Naviance under the Colleges tab and check it often for updates

Use Internet search engines such as: thewashboard.org, meritmoney.com, finaid.org, gocollege.com, collegeanswer.com, or collegeboard.com/student/pay

**Remember, you never have to pay for scholarship info. Beware of scams!!

Athletics in college

If you are a student athlete you must file with the NCAA (Division I and II) and/or NAIA Eligibility Center in order to be eligible for interscholastic competition.

Don’t be benched! Even if you are recruited, you must meet minimum eligibility requirements. See Ms. Roloff or Mr. Marcum if you have any questions.

Be ProfessionalHas your child created a “college” e-mail

account?Ex: firstnamelastnamecollege@gmail.com

Be aware of things they are presenting in social media

(Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, etc!)

Could you be connected to admissions reps through other friends/family

NAVIANCE

All college admission applications MUST go through Naviance – Start to finish!

Search for Scholarships and access their applications

The more information you add, the more the program will help you find the “best fit”

Log in Now: www.connection.naviance.com/interlakehs

NAVIANCE

NAVIANCE

NAVIANCE

NAVIANCE

Questions? Ask the experts Alicia Williams A - C

williamsa@bsd405.org

Carri McDermott D - J mcdermottc@bsd405.org

Maya Vergien K - Mvergienm@bsd405.org

Chelsea Kearns N - Snkearnsc@bsd405.org

Scott Marcum So - Zmarcums@bsd405.org

(425) 456-7231