Q&A GVHS Counselors

Application Materials- What Colleges Need Submitted online by the student individually to each college/university using the school’s own application , the Common App or the Coalition App Often includes a resume/list of activities and essay(s) Test Scores Unless the school has a test-optional policy, scores must be submitted by student from the testing agency websites (College Board and/or ACT) directly to each school Colleges that do not require test scores can be found at www.fairtest.org School Packet (details next slide)

Application Materials- What Colleges Need School Packet Sent by the Counseling Office when requested by student Request made by turning in Application Submission Form (allow 15 days for processing and sending materials to school) Includes Official Transcript, Counselor Letter of Rec, School Profile, Teacher/Counselor Checklists and Requested Teacher Letter(s) of Rec Students must give teacher recommenders the follow up form ASAP Official Transcript includes final grades in 9-11 and senior year courses. Whenever a school packet is requested, the college will also automatically receive a mid-year report, which includes marking period grades and midterm exams from the 1st semester (sent after 2nd MP report cards are distributed)

How to Access the Application Applications as well as instructions and requirements can be found on the individual colleges’ admission web pages. To determine if a college will accept the Common Application, look on the college’s admission page or on NAVIANCE under “Colleges I’m Thinking About” (CA means that the school accepts the Common Application). Markings for Coalition App school are not yet marked by NAVIANCE For colleges that do not accept the Common Application, access and submit the application directly from the college’s website or if a Coalition App school by creating a Coalition App account. If the college allows students to use the Common Application to apply, students can access the application at www.commonapp.org and they may apply to multiple schools using this one application. In the common application, students must create an account and add their schools of interest. Each school may have supplemental requirement (essays, additional questions, etc.).

Coalition Application Coalition Applications are not indicated on NAVIANCE at this time. 100+ colleges are part of the Coalition for College Access You can go on the Coalition website to determine if your colleges accept it. To see if your college/university accepts it you can go to: http://www.coalitionforcollegeaccess.org/ This is a the second try at using this application. There were many problems with it last year and they ended up closing it for the year. We recommend avoiding it if you can.

When Are Materials Due? BEFORE the College’s Deadline!! No Deadline/Rolling- submit materials by the end of Oct. Priority Deadline – Most deadlines in October or November Early Action/Early Decision- check for Oct/Nov. deadlines Regular Decision- check for Dec-Feb deadlines IMPORTANT: your application materials are arriving in separate pieces from you, the testing agencies and our high school. It is your responsibility to ensure that all pieces arrive to the college before the application due date.

Review of Deadline Policies Rolling- students may submit application materials anytime and applications will be reviewed as they are received Early Action- students must submit application materials before the EA deadline, and applications are reviewed after this date with decisions being released before winter break Early Action Single Action- college’s with this policy limit how many applications can be submitted early by a student, and only allow applicants to apply early to their school- check your college’s policies Early Decision- students must submit application materials and an ED agreement by the ED deadline, and they commit to attend the school if accepted. Decisions are released before winter break. Regular Decision- students must submit application materials by the RD deadline, and applications are reviewed after this date with decisions being released by the end of March.

What Happens After I Get Accepted? Students will receive responses from colleges throughout the year (Oct – March) depending on their application review procedures & deadlines. It is the student’s responsibility to notify all colleges of whether or not they will attend by May 1, 2018 at the latest. Students should commit to one school, and notify the other schools of their choice. If a student is admitted under the Early Decision plan to a college, they must withdraw their applications to other colleges as soon as they are made aware of their acceptance. And in this case, counselors cannot continue to submit transcripts to any additional colleges/universities

What about Financial Aid? Students/Families should complete the FAFSA at www.fafsa.gov as soon as possible after October 1, 2017 It is important to check the college’s financial aid webpage for details on additional application forms required for financial aid consideration, as well as special deadlines Families should complete the CSS profile (information on Fin Aid web pages and at https://student.collegeboard.org/css- financial-aid-profile) for schools with this requirement, and by the college’s deadline date Local Scholarship Applications will be made available in March, and students can access applications via NAVIANCE

Q & A What Questions Do You Have Q & A What Questions Do You Have? This PowerPoint will be posted on the High School Counseling Website!