Critical Dates for The College Bound Senior High School Student

August
*Write important dates down so you do not miss any deadlines
*Meet with your guidance counselor to go over college plans and make sure your classes meet the standards of your college goals
*Sign up for the ACT or SAT

September
*Find out when the admission counselor to the college(s) or university(s) you selected is visiting your high school and meet with him/her.
*Ask teachers, high school counselors, employers and others for letters of recommendation for your college and scholarship applications. Be sure to give them at least a two week’s notice!
* Finalize your college application essay. Have a teacher look it over and give pointers and tips
*Make a list of scholarships in your community for which you wish to apply

October
*Finalize the list of colleges to which you wish to apply.
*Submit your applications for any scholarships you may be eligible for
*Re-take the ACT or SAT if you feel you can improve your score

November
*Finish submitting your college applications. Many guidance counselors kindly ask that you have all your applications submitted by Thanksgiving.
*Make a file on each school you applied to with a copy of your application, essay, and letters of recommendation you may have sent and all materials they have given you.

December
*Continue to apply for different scholarships and grants
*Enjoy a relaxing Winter Break—you’ve earned it!

January
*Complete your taxes as soon as possible

February
*Submit your completed FAFSA online if you haven't already. Valentine's Day (February 14) is a good target date to have your FAFSA completed!
*Schedule follow-up visits to your top three schools that have offered you admission. Make sure to schedule an appointment with each school's financial aid office. Consider an overnight visit to get a real feel for the school and student life.

March
*Compare your top three schools and prepare to make your final decision
*Apply for a summer job and save some of the money for college

April
*Decide what college you will be attending. Remember to consider all factors, including academic offerings, student experience and cost. Don't underestimate what feels like the best fit!
*Submit your enrollment fee as soon as you make your decision
*Notify the schools you will not be attending.

May
*Enjoy your last month of high school!!
*Sign up for a summer orientation
*Graduate!

June
*Make sure your high school has sent your final transcript to the school of your choice.
*Take your Math Placement Test before you attend Orientation
*Get a physical and fill out your important health documents as soon as possible.
*Attend Orientation.
*If needed, decide which loans you will need to take out
*Make sure you save some of your summer earnings for college.

Congratulations, you did it! Welcome to college!!

High School Juniors – the “Golden Year” for College-Bound Students

It is in the junior year of high school that you'll make critical decisions that could have a major impact on the next five years of your life (and beyond!) as you start narrowing down lists of colleges and career paths. Here are some of those major decisions.

Classes and Grades. The junior year selection of classes--and the grades you receive in them--is very important because it is the last full year of grades that admissions will review while deciding your future. You'll want to stick to a tough regimen of college-prep classes, including some advanced-placement or other honors classes, if possible. Don't go crazy with the courses and overload yourself, but the courses and grades you receive in your junior year are very important. Some of the teachers you have for classes in your junior year may also play an important role for you in your senior year; you may need to ask them to write you a letter of recommendation for college.

Standardized Tests. The junior year, from start to end, is filled with standardized tests. Early in the year, you'll take the PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test). This test, which measures critical reading, math problem-solving and writing skills, is important for a few reasons. It’s a good indicator and excellent preparation for the SAT test that you will take at the end of your junior year, your score may qualify you for a select group of merit scholarships, and it's one of the first chances you have to begin requesting information from colleges.

College Planning. The junior year is also the time to get organized for handling the blitz of college material that will be coming your way. The whole college search can be a little unnerving, a bit daunting, so just relax and take your time during this year and the summer that follows to really focus on finding the right mix of colleges for you. It is a good idea to develop some sort of filing system so that the information from the colleges on your short list is easy to find when you need them.

Try to use your junior year as a time to get ahead and to start planning academically for your future. Remember that the more you accomplish in your junior year, the more you can relax and truly enjoy your senior year in high school!

Things You Can Do This Summer To Help You Get Into College

Whether you are a senior or an incoming freshman, summer is an ideal time to boost your college preparation. Here are some easy (it is summer “break” after all!) things you can do now to increase your chances of getting into college.

Volunteer- Get involved in some community service doing something you love. Volunteering doesn’t need to be a bummer and can actually be really fun and fulfilling. Find an organization, group, or cause you are passionate about, and help them out.  

Read- Find something to read that is not required for school. Reading increases your vocabulary and gives you material to reference in college applications and interviews. Some college applications ask for a list of book that you have read, and, a typical interview question is “tell me about the last book you read?”

Contact Your Dream School- Many colleges track applicants’ “demonstrated interest”; they want to know if you are truly interested in their school. Introduce yourself, talk about your passion and interest in the school, and ask for more information. One little email can go a long way!

Brainstorm Personal Essay Ideas- Your personal essay will be a critical piece in your college applications, and the best essays are started early. Take a few minutes and write down any personal themes, thoughts, challenges, or accomplishments that you might want to include in your essay.

Visit a College- The first step to creating your college list, is to begin researching colleges. What better way than to step foot onto a college campus! Get out there and visit some colleges; take the tour, explore the campus, and ask questions. You will learn valuable information and can begin exploring what factors will make a college the right fit for you.

Teach Someone Something- Everyone has a skill, talent, or hobby, so why not take the opportunity to teach it to someone else. Your family, friends, and neighbors will be happy to learn a new skill, and this is a great experience in leadership.

Travel- Whether your budget allows for trips to Europe or trips to the next city over, travel experience is fantastic for college. Be creative in thinking about trips; some of the best trips are done by car or bus, and take place within 30-50 miles of where you live. Visit some local landmarks or historical sights, go out to the mountains and camp under the stars. Travel experience exposes you to new things and shows college your curious nature.

Summer Reading for College Bound Students

One thing is guaranteed about your college program – you’re going to be assigned more reading than you ever have been before!

For high school students who are not active recreational readers, the shock of returning to college and being faced with a stack of books can be overwhelming.

This summer, set a goal of reading some classic college-approved books that will keep your reading skills up to snuff, and might even put you ahead when you get to your college courses. Here is a list of fiction books which tend to appear often in college courses, for a variety of reasons:

• ·         Austen, Jane: Pride and Prejudice
• ·         Brontë, Charlotte: Jane Eyre
• ·         Cather, Willa: Death Comes for the Archbishop
• ·         Chopin, Kate: The Awakening
• ·         Crane, Stephen: The Red Badge of Courage
• ·         de Cervantes, Miguel: Don Quixote
• ·         Faulkner, William: The Sound and the Fury
• ·         Fitzgerald, F. Scott: The Great Gatsby
• ·         Hawthorne, Nathaniel: The Scarlet Letter
• ·         Hemingway, Ernest: A Farewell to Arms
• ·         Lee, Harper: To Kill a Mockingbird
• ·         London, Jack: The Call of the Wild
• ·         Orwell, George: Animal Farm
• ·         Steinbeck, John: The Grapes of Wrath
• ·         Stowe, Harriet Beecher: Uncle Tom's Cabin

Don’t see anything that interests you? Consider asking your favorite high school teacher or your guidance counselor for recommendations of books they think you might enjoy this summer.

Freshman College Student Money Management

Going off to college marks the first time that many students will be living on their own, without Mom or Dad to help them manage their finances. It’s not surprising that a number of college Freshmen have difficulty managing a cash flow for needs and wants, or that some make poor financial decisions that can carry far past college. If you’re off to school this Fall, here are some tips to keep you in the black:

Know Your Cash Flow

While you may have totaled up the yearly expenses and income for college, do you know WHEN you’re going to have money (and when you have to scrimp and save)? Get a calendar and circle the payment dates for incoming funds like grants, bursaries, and part-time work income, as well as the payment dates for expenditures for tuition, accommodations, and books. Pay attention to where the gaps occur – that’s when you may need to borrow from family or other sources to make ends meet in the short term. Don’t forget, if family or friends have promised you monetary gifts towards your college education; ask for a specific payment date so that you can plan appropriately.

Set a Budget

“Budget” might sounds like a dirty word when you’re looking forward to the “freedom” of living away from home, but it’s a necessity. Because a student’s cash flow is often sporadic, it’s important to know what your monthly or even weekly limits are on spending, to avoid having to eat nothing but ramen noodles come December! Set a reasonable budget not only for your necessary items (i.e. bus passes, laundry soap, clothes, and basic food items) but also for your entertainment (i.e. restaurant trips, events, and late night pizza runs).  Don’t forget to budget for seasonal items too, such as train tickets to go home at Thanksgiving or Christmas gifts in December.

Be Smart With Your Credit

Once a student is legally an adult, they become fair game for credit card companies, and many students make the mistake of taking on non-academic debt (i.e. consumer debt) simply because it’s so easy to get a credit card. Don’t be fooled by free t-shirts or “student special” credit card offers, or by banks that say “Well, you don’t have to USE it….” If you don’t need to borrow money to get through college, DON’T. And if you do need to borrow, consider friends, family and structured student loans with lower interest rates before you consider credit cards.

A Parent’s Guide to “The Last Summer At Home”

The summer between a student’s Senior high school year and his or her Freshman college year is a bittersweet one for parents. On one hand, they can take a great deal of pride in the fact that their child is approaching adulthood and has been accepted into a great college. On the other hand, they’re faced (usually for the first time) with the idea that their child may be moving away from home for the first time!

Parents often struggle with this “last summer at home”. Here are some tips to make it more enjoyable and less stressful for both parents and kids.

Ready, Set….?

The last summer at home is a great time to be sure that your child has all the skills he or she needs to function as an independent adult. If you’ve always handled your child’s finances or you’ve never allowed him or her to do housework, they’re likely in for a surprise (and not a pleasant one) when they’re out on their own.

View summer as the opportunity to teach your child skills that he/she will need, whether it’s how to do laundry properly, how to budget, or how to maintain the car (if it’s going with them to college).

Create Family Memories

Particularly if you’re sending your oldest child off to college, you may feel as though your family is breaking apart and will never been the same. In some sense, it’s true; even if children return home the following summer or after college, they’ll never been the same age again.

Make time in the summer to enjoy quality family time, either planned trips with the whole family or even just Sunday afternoon lunches around the home when the whole family can be together. By scheduling time, you’re less likely to be anxious about missing your child’s last summer at home or to be resentful of your child’s time spent with friends outside the home.

Develop Your Own Interests

If the phrase “empty nest syndrome” strikes fear into your heart, summer is the time to begin developing your own interests to stave off parental loneliness. While you may have devoted the last several years to your child’s high school life, the coming college separation can leave you with more free time on your hands than you expected.

Take up old hobbies or interests that you may have neglected since having a child. Consider joining new groups and clubs which will let you meet more friends in your area. If you still miss the frenzy and fun of a living around a teenager, consider volunteering at your child’s old high school.

Summer Programs for College-Bound Students

While summer is a great time to rest, relax and unwind, it can also be a great opportunity to further your college dream. Here are some tips on making the most of the summer months with an eye towards getting into your ideal college.

Test Out Your Interests

One of the toughest choices that high school students have to make is settling on a course of study in college. After all, you will be spending 3 or 4 years in your program, and likely looking at a career related to it for years afterwards; better be sure that you like it!

If you’re trying to choose between two or three different college programs, a summer job or summer program that lets you immerse yourself in that field for a couple of months is a good way to make an informed decision, either for or against, a particular program.  Considering a career in business or finance? Consider asking if you can intern (or better yet, get a paid summer position!) with a small local business for the summer. Want to work in the entertainment industry? Volunteer at a local community theatre.

Advance Your Education

If you’re already sure what subject in which you want to major in college, consider getting a head start by taking summer courses or programs. Interested in engineering? Consider taking an engineering summer program at NC State University. Pursuing biotechnology? NC State also offers a college-level course designed for advanced students. Looking at English as a major? Local libraries and colleges offer writing workshops and book clubs that can help.

Not only will summer courses and programs relevant to your future college studies help you be sure that you’re going into the right program in college, they can also giving you a deciding edge in your college application. Demonstrating that you’ve already pursued interests relevant to the college program to which you’re applying can show you’re a committed student.

Work On Your Weaknesses

Not all high school students should play to their strengths when looking at summer activities, however. If you feel you have one or two critical weaknesses that might affect your eligibility to top colleges, consider devoting your summer to working on them.

If your high school record is strong on academics, but light on “character” components, consider working on leadership or community involvement by volunteer coaching a children’s sports league. If you received one or more marginal grades in one of your high school courses, consider asking your teacher or guidance counselor for advice on remedial summer courses or tutors to help you brush up on weaker subjects.