Hayes High School Counseling Dept. Junior College & Financial Aid Meeting Mrs. Leigh Conant, College & Career Counselor

Is College for me? Yes…but it’s not always necessary. Everyone should seek training whether on-the-job training, certification, or a degree. College is advanced education in a field or area of study intended to prepare a student for a career or additional training/education. “What do you want to be when you grow up?” – Do you know at 18? Look outside of the professions you see daily. Check job sites for careers in a salary range you like or in a field that interests you…what degree do they require? Job shadow! Do these professions require college? Are you college-ready academically? Do you understand the process of admission, financial aid? Are you prepared to research and then ask questions to find the answers?

Junior Year To Do List – College Register for the ACT and/or SAT – FREE ACT on March 21st Begin or continue your college/career search Schedule college visits now What do you need to apply? Begin collecting information, awards, resume, etc. Learn the lingo…Early Action, Early Decision, Rolling Admissions, FAFSA, Common App, etc. Comb college websites for information.

When do I apply for college? Common Applications and many Direct to Institution applications will open on August 1…but some open earlier (BGSU opens April 15!). Some schools let applicants select an application: Common App, Direct to Institution, or Coalition App. College App Boot Camps will be offered at Hayes after August 1 for seniors interested in getting a head start on applying.

A Complete Application Application completed by student Application Fee (waivers available for qualifying students) Official ACT/SAT scores sent from ACT or College Board (allowed 4 to be sent for free, additional reports cost extra, Mrs. Conant can’t send these!) Official Transcript sent from Hayes through Naviance Official College Transcript sent from the college for all CCP courses Common App Teacher/Counselor Forms (Common App only, always required) or Secondary School Report (Direct to Institution only, not always required) Letters of Recommendation (not always required, good to have for scholarships) Portfolio or Audition: Fine Art and Music Majors FAFSA: not required, necessary for certain types of financial aid (done after college app)

Regular, Early, Rolling Regular Decision: Typically the last date to apply to a college, pool of students compared to each other Early Action: Earlier deadline that Regular, non-binding, pool of student compared to each other Early Decision: Earlier deadline than Regular, binding, pool of student compared to each other Rolling Admission: Once college receives a complete app package, they will review and send a decision

College Readiness Test Free ACT offered to juniors on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 English, Math, Reading, Science….NO Writing section ACT PREP on March 10, 2017 – Registration Forms available TODAY!! DO NOT register online – the district has registered the students Students will have a pre-registration session in English classes to complete the college and career information…students may select up to 4 colleges to receive these scores for free during this pre- registration! Additional ACT will need to be registered online in the student’s account…don’t forget the 4 colleges here! Score reports not sent to colleges will need to be ordered online to be sent for a fee.

How important is…? Grades and Rigor are probably at the top of most college’s list on “important stuff about an applicant”. ACT/SAT scores are second - Test scores and grades will determine many scholarships! AP scores, CCP grades are great to show potential. Leadership is more important than just showing up for club meetings. Balance…deeper involvement in a few activities…paid work/volunteering

College Scholarship Example CHECK their website for scholarship information!

Selecting a college Reputation for Major Fit (It may be “home” for four years…do you want to live and make friends there?) Location (travel to home and back is an added expense) Size (1,200 at Ursuline College vs 66,000 at Ohio State) Cost – wide variety of cost. Private colleges will have a higher initial price tag but could be cheaper in the long run.

Is the student loan hype real? General student loan debt facts: $1.28 trillion in total U.S. student loan debt 44.2 million Americans with student loan debt Student loan delinquency rate of 11.0% Average monthly student loan payment (for borrower aged 20 to 30 years): $351 Median monthly student loan payment (for borrower aged 20 to 30 years): $203

Advise from a pro… Do not borrow more in students loans total than you will make in your first year’s salary…for example: a teacher makes about $30,900 in the state of Ohio during the first year, so to obtain an education degree, the student should not borrow more than $30,900 in loans. Exhaust all saving, gift, grant, scholarship, and payment plan opportunities first! Take CCP and AP courses to earn college credit while in high school.

Financial Aid One year at OSU Main Campus will cost about $25,000 for tuition, room, board, books, fees, and misc. expenses. OSU at Marion will cost about $8,000 for tuition, books, and fees. Columbus State will cost about $5,000 for tuition, books, and fees. What is your plan to fund college?

Financial Aid Saving – yes, there is still time! Gifts – anyone want to donate to the fund? Scholarships – Based on merit…See the next slide Grants – Based on financial need Payment Plans – What you owe for a semester divided by 5 or 6 payments Loans – See the slide after Scholarships

Scholarships College Scholarships are offered directly from the college, many automatically without an additional app – these can be renewable. Department or Specialty college scholarships – some may require an additional app (check the scholarship page on the college’s website) External Scholarships require applications and must be located…check the Local Scholarship page on the Hayes College & Career Counseling site…do a simple Google search…try an online search engine. Look at parents’ work to see if they offer a scholarship, organizations like scouts, 4H, NHS all offer scholarships. Search everywhere and apply, apply, apply!

Federal loans Federal Subsidized and Unsubsidized Student Loans – Unsub Loans accrue interest as soon as they are distributed to the college. A typical student can borrow $27,000.

Federal Loans Parent PLUS Loans can equal the remainder of the need: For example: Year One = $25,000 - $5,000 Scholarship - $5,500 Student Loan = $14,500 remaining…parent can apply for a PLUS loan to cover that amount and any additional costs (books, fees, etc.) Student Loans are in the STUDENT’S NAME. PLUS Loans are in the PARENT NAME and can NOT be transferred to the student. Federal Perkins Loans are for students with financial need and can be up to an additional $5,500 a year.

FAFSA Free Application for Federal Student Aid Opens online October 1 – some deadlines are December! This application qualifies you for Federal, State, and some College FA Parent(s) who provide more than 50% of financial support + Student financial information 2016 taxes can be automatically added using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool! Colleges must be selected to receive your FAFSA…it can be sent later to other colleges if you forget one or decided to apply later.

Private Loans Banks, Credit Unions, Sallie Mae, Sun Trust, Wachovia, Wells Fargo, etc. These require a credit check, and very few 18 years olds will qualify, SO… They will want a co-signer Read the fine print, can the co-signer fall off after a set number of consistent, on-time payments? The co-signer is “on the hook” and non-payment will affect student and co- signer credit. Interest rates, consolidation, and repayment schedules will differ from Federal Loans.

Naviance! Students have online Naviance account where they can: Research colleges and keep lists of those they like Communicate with Mrs. Conant Keep track of deadlines Have teachers upload letters of recommendation for applications Alert Mrs. Conant when a transcript must be sent Students MUST use Naviance – this is the online system we use to submit documentation to colleges.

Colleges Visiting Hayes Throughout the year, many colleges send representatives to high schools to visit with potential students. You are invited! Here are several colleges already scheduled to visit Hayes…sign up in Naviance! 1. Log In to Naviance 2. Click the Colleges tab 3. Click view all upcoming college visits 4. Click Sign Up for any of the visits

Scholarships Millions of Scholarships – How do you find them? College & Career Website > Local Scholarships College & Career Website > Web Resources Fastweb.com Scholarships.com Myscholly.com Raise.me Google search

College & Career Website

Using an independent college counselor or financial aid advisor Do not pay anyone to complete your FAFSA – it is not too difficult for you to complete yourself or with some free help. Hayes High School (i.e. Me) still must submit all official transcripts, write letters of recommendation, forms, etc. There are some great paid services locally who will offer more one-on-one time, but some are pricey.

Final Thoughts 66% of high school graduates go on to attend college. Almost half do not finish. Getting into college is the easy part…persisting and finishing is difficult. Why do students leave college? Loan and credit card debt (credit card companies prey of college students) Lack of readiness to be independent Lack of academic skills/unprepared for the work load Family Issues/personal emergency Needed to work full-time Stress Unsure of field of study/major Did not need to complete degree to obtain a desired career Lack of advising Too much fun outside of the classroom

Communication! Communicating with Mrs. Conant Email, Phone, Appointment, Naviance Communicating with YOU Email, Listserv, Remind, Website, Twitter, Naviance *It is very important that the students are the primary point of contact to prepare them for being independent in college.