College Admissions Process

What should I be doing during my Junior and Senior Years of

High School?

Fall of Junior Year

• Take the PSAT in October• Research colleges on Naviance,

collegeboard.com, princetonreview.com• Keep your resume on Naviance updated

with extra-curricular activities (clubs, sports, employment, volunteer activities, honors, awards, etc.)

Fall of Junior Year

• Keep your grades up, improvement counts!

• Maintain a good rapport with your junior year teachers, most likely these will be the teachers who will write letters of recommendation for you.

• Sign up for the SAT question of the day at CollegeBoard.com and practice!

Winter of Junior Year

• Study Hard! Remember how important Junior grades are for your GPA and college apps!

• Read over break!• Continue with extra-

curricular activities• Plan a challenging Senior

Year curriculum

SAT/ACT Testing

• Considering applying to a college Early Action or Early Decision? Take SATs twice in Junior Year

• February: register for SAT if you would like to take it in March

• March: register for the SAT if you would like to take it at WHS in May

• April: register for the June SAT – a good time to take SAT Subject tests

• Prepare for the SAT or ACT!

SAT II's (Subject Tests) - More Info    

Check Admissions Requirements to see if College requires SAT II'scheck for a list: http://www.compassprep.com/admissions_req_subjects.aspxColleges that require SAT II's:Columbia, Cornell, Duke, MIT, UPenn, etc.

Colleges that Recommend* SAT II's:Emory, Lafayette, Lehigh, UDel, etc.

*Anytime something is "Recommended", be sure to complete it.

Spring of Junior Year

• Attend College Fairs• Write letter of intent to Military Academy if interested• Refine your college list • Study for finals!

Summer between Junior and Senior Year

• Arrange college tours for the summer

• Athletes: register with NCAA Clearinghouse after July 15th

• Keep extracurricular activity and community service efforts going

Fall of Senior Year

• Your college list should be narrowed to about 5 or 6 schools with a good spread

• View on-line college apps for those schools

• List colleges on Naviance• Request letters of recommendation if your

colleges want them• Take SAT/ACT as needed (PREP!)

Fall of Senior Year

• Don’t procrastinate with your apps! The earlier the better

• Complete all college apps by December 1st

• Once you have completed apps, request that your transcript be sent to the college by your HS counselor

• Send Thank you notes to anyone who helped you

Winter of Senior Year

• January 1st – first day to apply for financial aid using the FAFSA

• February 14th – finish FAFSA – your gift to yourself!

• Mid February: Mid-year grades will be sent – keep your grades up!

Don’t Catch Senioritis!

• Sen-ior-it-is [seen-yer-eye-tis]o -noun Slacking off in the

Spring or after being accepted

o Every year colleges rescind offers of admission or alter financial aid packages as a result of Seniortis!

o Because colleges do not receive final grades until July, students often don’t learn of revoked admission until August

o Don’t be a victim!

A Good List of Colleges

• 1 Safety School*: Little chance of rejection• 2-4 Good Matches: Schools that match

your needs and wishes and that you could happily attend

• 1-2 Reach Schools: Your top choices but schools at which you are less likely to be accepted

• *Keep a financially Safe school on your list

Early Decision vs. Early Action

• Early Decision applicants • Apply early (usually in November) to first-choice college • Receive an admission decision from the college well in

advance of the usual notification date (usually by December)

• Agree to attend the college if accepted and offered a financial aid package that is considered adequate by the family

• May only apply to one college for early decision • May apply to other colleges under regular admission • Must withdraw all other applications when accepted by

ED • Usually must give a nonrefundable deposit well in

advance of May 1

Early Decision vs. Early Action

• Early Action applicants• Apply early • Receive an admission decision early in the

admission cycle (usually in January or February) • Do not have to commit to an EA college • May apply to other colleges under regular

admission plans • Must give the college a decision no later than the

May 1 national response • How do I remember the difference?

o db –Early decision is binding

Rolling and Regular Admissions

• Rolling Admission: colleges review your app and notify the you of their decision within a few weeks from submission.

• Regular Admission: traditional admission process. Colleges notify you of acceptance in the Spring of Senior year.

When Should I Apply to College?

If applying to a four-year college:     Strong students apply early in the Fall

If applying to a two-year college or technical school:    Apply for Fall admission during the prior Spring semester

What Really Matters to Colleges?

• There is no “magic formula”

• There are no “rules”• Small Schools pay

greater attention to the person

• Large Schools often use a mathematical formula based on GPA, ACT/SAT and favor in-state applicants

What Really Matters to Colleges?

• Courses Taken – colleges want to see academic discipline and a challenge

• Grades Received• Rank• SAT/ACT Scores• Essays• Recommendations• Extracurricular Activities

o truly commit to 2-3 activities

• Interviews

Most Significant Factor in Admission:

• Grades Earned in ACADEMIC Courses! 

• Transcript is the BIGGEST DRIVER in the whole process!!

*Admissions counselors report that colleges recalculate GPA, using only academic courses

Other Trends in College Admissions

• Admissions counselors reveal: oRigor comes up often; looking at caliber of

coursesoThrough the SSR and HS Profiles,

colleges can discern how many AP and Honors level courses were offered.Did the student take advantage of available courses?

Letters of Recommendation

• How many letters are required?

• Standard is TWO Letters of recommendation from ACADEMIC sources (teachers)

• Look at application instructions for each schoolMake a positive impression by having students

ask for letters from teachers with whom they have a good rapport and in whose classes they worked very diligently.

Senior Year Reference College Application Process in 14 Easy STeps

1.  Narrow College choices to 5-8 schools.2.  Put choices in Naviance.3.  Visit School Counselor and list schools to which you are applying.  (Be sure to tell your School Counselor if you are using the Commonapp for any colleges).4.  Check College application Deadlines.5.  Complete Teacher Letter of Recommendation request forms and ask two teachers for letters.6.  Go to colleges’ websites, click on Admissions/Undergraduate Admissions and complete applications on-line.7.  Request official scores from Collegeboard and/or ACTstudent.8.  When you have finished applications, tell your School Counselor to send your transcript and letters of rec.9.  Go to FAFSA.ed.gov and create a PIN number. 10.   Go back after Jan 1 and complete your FAFSA.11.  Wait for notification from colleges.12.  If colleges send emails or letters saying items are missing, call the admissions offices to double check.13.  Receive admission or denial letters from colleges.14.  Send in “Intent to Register” notification to colleges by May 1 along with housing deposit.    

 SAT/ACT Testing Schedule

1.  October Junior Year - take PSAT (about $13, scores not reported to colleges).2.  Fall or Winter Junior Year - Take SAT/ACT practice test (about ($10, scores not reported to colleges).3.  Winter of Junior Year - begin SAT and/or ACT prep.4.  March and/or May of Junior Year - take SAT*.5.  April of Junior Year - take ACT.6.  May or June of Junior Year/Fall and/or Winter of Senior Year- take SAT II’s if needed (look at the colleges’ admissions websites to see if they require SAT II’s).7.  Fall and/or Winter of Senior Year - re-take SAT and/or ACT to improve scores if necessary**.

*when registering for SAT and/or ACT be sure to take advantage of the FREE score reports and send scores to colleges to which you might apply.

**if re-taking the SAT/ACT, be sure to PREP!

Senior Year Reference Two-Year College or Tech School Application ProcessApplications are completed after the first of the year for fall admission.1.  Visit college/Tech school website and go to “Admissions”.2.  Download paper application (or complete on-line application and then notify your school counselor).3.  Complete paper application.4.  Submit paper application along with application fee to your school counselor.  Your counselor will mail your application, fee and transcript to the College/Technical School.5.  Schedule the Accuplacer (placement exam)a.  SCC: take the Accuplacer at WHS, meet with a college advisor to choose coursesb.  All other community colleges and Tech Schools: you will receive communication from the school indicating when you can take the accuplacer/placement test and meet with an advisor to choose courses.c.  Explore specialty programs (Nursing, Nuclear Medicine, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Sustainable Energy Technology, etc) to determine admission requirements*

 * You may need SAT or ACT scores