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6 Things Students Need to Know About College Admissions
Lessa Scherrer
Your College, Your Way
How to stay on track for college
• P l a n A h e a d
• S h o w Le a d e r s h i p
• Fi n d t h e R i g h t C o l l e g e s
• Wr i t e a K i l l e r E s s a y
• G e t G re a t Le t t e r s o f Re c o m m e n d a t i o n
• S t a y O rg a n i z e d
Step 1
Plan Ahead
Ideally, college planning should start in 8 th grade.
• C o l l e g e p re p
c l a s s e s
• G PA
• Te s t i n g S c h e d u l e
• S o c i a l M e d i a
• E x t r a c u r r i c u l a r s
Plan all 4 years right
awayYou can ’ t take ca l cu lus sen io r yea r un less you
take a lgeb ra i n 9 t h g rade .
Plan your standardized testing
• A P o r I B
• AC T o r S AT o r b o t h
• P S AT / N M S Q T
• S AT I I S u b j e c t Te s t s
• C L E P
Your GPA is an average of
all your grades
Senior year i s too late to t ry
to ra ise i t .
Clean up your social media.
• # Tw i t t e r i s f o re v e r
• O n l y p i c t u re s t h a t s h o w t h e f u t u re c o l l e g e s t u d e n t / j o b a p p l i c a n t
• Pro f e s s i o n a l e m a i l a d d re s s , n o t “ M c P i m p n @ g m a i l ”
Activities Resume
ht tp : / / s choo lbuff .com/Ac t i v i t i e s _Exper iences_Record .pd f
Step 2
Show leadership
You can be a leader inside and outside the classroom
• C l a s s / C l u b O ffi c e r
• Vo l u n t e e r Wo r k
• Pa i d Wo r k
• I n t e l l e c t u a l
c u r i o s i t y
Intellectual curiosity
Making connections and applying
knowledge
Step 3
Find the r ight col leges
What you’ll need to think about
• S i z e , t y p e ,
l o c a t i o n
• Po s s i b l e m a j o r
• Te s t s c o re s a n d
s e l e c t i v i t y
• C o s t
Size and Type
Smal l l iberal arts col lege or
b ig state research
univers i ty?
Location
C lose t o home o r
f a r a w a y?
M oun ta in s? Bea c h ?
Dow n Sou th ?
New E ng la nd?
Test Scores and
Selectivity
Do your scores and GPA match their f reshman
c lass?
The best ways to evaluate a college’s culture
• Vi s i t !
• S u m m e r c a m p o n c a m p u s
• S i t i n o n c l a s s e s a n d / o r c o m m u n i c a t e w i t h p ro f e s s o r s
Cost
Is i t a fi nancial match?
“Sometimes a private
college can be cheaper than a state
school.”
Paying for college
• S a v i n g s ( 5 2 9 p l a n )
• S c h o l a r s h i p s
• G r a n t s
• Lo a n s
Step 4
Write a ki l ler essay
This is how Admissions gets to know the real you
• S h o w y o u r p e r s o n a l i t y
• P i c k a t o p i c y o u a re p a s s i o n a t e a b o u t
• D o n ’ t w a i t u n t i l t h e l a s t m i n u t e
No matter what the topic, the subject is
always you.
You r p a s s i on a n d exp e r i e n c e w i l l m a ke yo u r e s s a y e a s i e r t o
w r i t e a n d t o re a d .
Pick a topic you are passionate about
Be specifi c and show, don’t tell.
The more deta i l you prov ide,
the better your story
Don’t wait until the last
minute
Good essays require t ime for revision
“Be yourself, tell the truth,
and share stories that the people
who know you best would say refl ect
who you are.”Kev in McMul l i n ,
Co l l egewise
Step 5
Get good le t ters o f
recommendat ion
Ask for recommendations from teachers who know you well.
• J un io r y r teachers ,
no t s r.
• Fo re ign l anguage &
a r t s o r c lub sponso rs
• Be p repared
6 Weeks Notice
Teachers are busy and sometimes
forgetfu l
Request Package
Wr i t t e n re q u e s t
B r a g s h e e t / l i n k
S A S E s o r e n v e l o p e s
S i x w e e k s n o t i c e
Send a thank you note!
Handwritten is better than
email .
Step 6
Stay organized
Use the tools most convenient for you.
• M a s t e r c a l e n d a r
• H a rd c o p y f o r
v i s u a l / s p a t i a l
• P h o n e
a p p s / re m i n d e r s
• S e t a l a rm s o n t a s k
l i s t
• E xc e l o r Wo rd
Portfolio Website
ht tp : / /Homeschoo l -Po r t f o l i o .weeb ly. com
ht tp : / /www.zeemee .com
Z e e M e e P re - b u i l t Po r t f o l i o
You c a n fi n d m ore i n f o rm a t i on o n a l l t h e s e
t op i c s on m y w e b s i t e :
Thank you for coming!
www.YourCollegeYourWay.com