Kenmore West College Planning Night March 13 2019

Kenmore West College Planning Night March 13, 2019

Many factors to considerwhen planning for college: ❑Two or four year college? ❑Local school or go away? ❑What do I want to major in? ❑What kind of career am I thinking about? ❑How will I afford college? ❑How much money do I want to make? ❑Where do I see myself in 5 -10 years?

What are colleges looking for ? ❑ Grade point average ❑ Strong transcript ❑ Standardized test scores (SAT, SAT Subject test, ACT) ❑ College essay ❑ Letters of recommendation ❑ Community service, clubs and activities ❑ Involvement in athletics, arts, music, etc. ❑ Work or intern experience

Grade Point Average ❑ ❑ ❑ Grade Point Average (GPA) is calculated in the fall of senior year. The GPA includes all grades in any high school class for which the student earned credit in grades 8 – 11. Courses of higher levels (IB, AP, Honors) carry weighting with them for the purpose of computing GPA. IB = 1. 10, AP = 1. 10, Honors = 1. 05, Regents = 1. 0 Students receive their GPA/rank in fall of their senior year.

Strength of Transcript Colleges have “recommended” minimum academic requirements for applicants. Look at college websites under the Admissions section for requirements or Naviance college page. Students are always encouraged to achieve more than the minimum required high school requirements. We recommend challenging yourself as much as possible in order to stay competitive: Honors & AP courses Articulated courses Other advanced courses Challenging electives Full high school schedule

Standardized. Tests Registerfor SAT and/or ACT tests: SAT: www. collegeboard. com ACT: www. actstudent. org **If you are a special education student with testing accommodations planning to take either of these tests, you. MUST see your IEP teacher and counselor before you register. Standardized tests are NOT required for admission to two-year community colleges.

ACT Four parts to the test: English, Math, Reading, Science writing section is optional Each section is scored separately, with a total composite score of 36. The cost of the ACT is $50. 50, with writing section is $67 Both include sending scores to 4 schools at no additional cost. Next test date: June 8 Registration deadline : May 3 Fee waivers are available to students who receive free or reduced lunch. Check the ACT website or KW Counseling Center website for 2019 -20 dates & information.

SAT Three parts to the test: Math, Reading & Language, and. Writing writing section isoptional Each section is scored out of 800 points. The cost of the SAT with Essay is $64. 50 The cost without the Essay is $47. 50 (this includes sending scores to 4 schools at no additional cost) Next test dates: May 4 (April 5 deadline) June 1 st (May 3 deadline) Fee waivers are available for students who receive free or reduced lunch. Check the College Board website or KW Counseling Center website for 201 9 -20 test dates & information.

SAT Subject Tests SAT subject tests are one hour long, content-based tests which allow you to showcase achievement in specific subjects. Students choose the test(s) that best show achievement & interest. Certain schools will require a SAT subject test for specific majors. Subject tests are offered in the following areas: Literature, US History, World History, Math, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, French, Spanish, Latin, Italian, German, Latin, and modern Hebrew. Recommended that students take these in June of junior year (after AP exams. ) Cost of a subject test is $26, each additional test is $2 2. Please check with college of interest to see if these are required.

Sending Your Scores Many colleges prefer you send your SAT and/or ACT scores directly from the testing company (for security purposes) When you register for either test, you can send your scores to FOUR colleges for free. ACT and College Board will charge a fee to have your scores sent to additional colleges. SAT & ACT score report fee: $12 per school.

Letters of Recommendation & Essay Some colleges may require letters of recommendation and an essay. Ask 1 -2 people to write a recommendation letter for college applications or scholarships and begin working on college application essay. Be sure to give your recommenders enough time so the letter will get to the college on time. Complete the resume section on Naviance so recommenders can write a quality letter. You may be able to use a general essay you’ve already written, but some colleges may want you to write an essay on a specific topic. Ask your current English teacher for help with your essay.

Gathering Information Look at college and university websites under Admissions or Prospective Students. Use Naviance, the S. U. N. Y. website, & Common Application website for information on colleges (admission requirements, financial aid, etc. ) Attend college fairs(next week Thursday 3/21 there is field trip to the National College Fair) Meet with college representatives in Career Center this spring & next fall. Visit schools - you won’t know if it’s a good fit for you until you step foot on campus.

Information. About Careers Use online resources such as: Naviance – website for career and college information Bureau of Labor Statistics www. bls. gov U. S. Department of Labor www. careeronestop. org N. Y. Department of Labor www. labor. ny. gov Look for more resources on the KW Counseling webpage→ Career Planning

Naviance is a website used by KW for all students to research college information & careers, manage applications, create a résumé, & more. Students login via Clever in their Ken-Ton Sites folder. We encourage parents to access their student’saccount.

Naviance (continued) Counselors meet with students in all grade levels each year to familiarize them with Naviance: Grades 8 & 9 create account, explore career strengths and interests , create a résumé Grade 10 career search, update résumé Grade 11 college search, updaterésumé Grade 12 review features, match Naviance account with Common App account, request letters of recommendation

School counselors submit student anscripts tr electronically to the colleges through Naviance. Colleges do notify us when an application is submitted online. Students must be sure their list of college applications in Naviance is accurate. Students are responsible for communicating with counselors when applications are submitted. Colleges will NOT review a student’s application until he/she has submitted all required documents (transcript, SAT/ACT scores, letters of recommendation, essay, etc. ) Counselors will provide more specific information about the college application process during individual Senior Review meetings (fall of senior year. )

Senior Review appointments Your school counselor will make an appointment for your Senior Review in September or October. During the Senior Review, students will review all credits earned & needed for graduation, and diploma type. Students will also discuss post-high school plans with their counselor andreview the college application process. Counselors will follow up with Seniors through the year as needed.

Common Application The Common Application is used by more than 800 colleges and universities. Complete one Common Application online, and it can be sent to numerous member schools. Students must MATCH their Common Application account with their Naviance account. This is done by birthdate an d email address. There is a separate section in Common App for each individual school. Some require different documents (essay or the number of required letters of recommendation. ) An application fee is still required for each school you apply to.

College Acceptance Students should know whether they have been accepted by early Spring (every college has a different timeline) Applicants may either be accepted, wait listed or denied admission. Once all offers are on the table, weigh the pros and cons of each school, together with the financial packages offered & make the best decision for you.

Mid Year Reports Some colleges may require a mid year report to check on your 12 th grade classes and grades. Mid year report requests must be submitted to your counselor. If the college requires these, KW will send a copy of your 2 nd marking period report card.

Other applicationinformation: Some schools may require additional materials (ie. art schools may require submitting a portfolio , music/theatre programs require an audition) Students interested in a health or medical field must apply earlybecause these programs are competitive and fill up quickly.

NCAA If you plan on participating in Division I or Division II athletics during college, you must register with NCAA Clearinghouse, prior to senior year. It is the student’s responsibility to register and to let his or her counselor know if transcripts need to be sent to the NCAA. www. ncaa. org

Scholarships Check the Scholarship filein the Counseling Centeron a regular basis. The Scholarship Bulletin is updated monthly and posted on the Kenmore West Counseling Center website KW Scholarship website Talk to parents about scholarship opportunities through their employers. Look online forscholarship opportunities. Obtain scholarship information throughwww. fastweb. com Scholarships require most of the following: application, transcript, essay, or letter of recommendation. Pay attention to deadlines!

Financial Aid File FAFSA starting. October 1, 2019 FAFSA link *Do not let the tuition cost of a private college prevent you from applying. Private colleges often offer comparable financial aid & scholarship packages for students vs. public colleges.

Please call or email us at any time with questions or concerns. Last name ■ ■ ■ ■ Mr. Gourlay: Mrs. Sedita: Mrs. Serio: Mr. Panepinto: Mrs. Handley: Mrs. Sullivan Mr. Lorentz A-De Di - Hr Hu - Mol Mom - Sci Se – Z 8 th graders, A-Joh 8 th graders, Jor-Z Visit our website for additional help: www, ktufsd. org Schools> Kenmore West> School Counseling

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