Presented by Pam Mason and Rebecca Lyons Preparing for College: What can be done 9th, 10th , and 11th grade years Presented by Pam Mason and Rebecca Lyons

Make classes count All semester grades will be posted on the high school transcript. Most college applications are due in the fall or early spring. This means the college application will be based on grades from 9th through 11th grade. Things to consider: Take classes that challenge (even through your senior year) Don’t wait to get help (FIT, tutoring with teacher, tutoring center, etc.) If a student doesn’t do so well your Freshman year it is never too late to start working harder now. Colleges notice when a student makes improvements from year to year.

Get involved In school Join clubs and activities Benefits: Fun Meet other people with similar interests Build college resume Outside of school Community Activities, Volunteer Work, Jobs, Summer Camp Benefits: Allows you to explore career interests Build college resume Quality not Quantity are what colleges are looking for in their applicants. It’s better to be involved in a few things that really define the student than to be involved in a lot of things that mean little to the student.

Keep track of accomplishments Suggestions: Keep a box at home where you can place any awards, certificates, or notes of activities the student has a participated in. Start an Excel spreadsheet Utilize the Resume builder in Naviance (activities, accomplishments, and work experience)

Start Exploring Colleges and Careers Now Use the online tools such as Naviance or Big Futures Attend college and career fairs Juniors and Seniors can visit with College representatives when they are at Anderson. This give students an opportunity to really ask questions. The reps that visit are often the ones who read the students application, so they are great contacts! Students can sign up in Naviance. Visit the colleges. Take a tour. Talk to current students. Ask people you know (Friends, Family and/or people from your community) about their career and college major.

Take the PSAT All 10th and 11th graders will take the PSAT on October 11th. Students will receive scores in December or January. The score report will outline the students strengths and weaknesses. This information can be used to determine what to focus on before taking the actual test. Link the PSAT and Khan Academy accounts for personalized SAT online preparation.

Register for the ACT and/or SAT The ACT and the SAT are different tests. Many students do better on one than the other. Colleges will look at your highest scores only. If possible, take both tests in the spring of your junior year. This gives you time in the fall of your senior year to retake them if you do not get the score you want. You can buy study guides or check them out from the Library. You can also find study questions through Khan Academy on the student cloud.

It’s never too early to start talking about finances FAFSA4caster FAFSA workshops Start saving now Naviance scholarship list

Scholarship List in Naviance Up Coming FAFSA Workshop for Seniors

When you have questions contact us Counselors ALL 9TH GRADE GEOFF HARTER GEOFFREY.HARTER@AUSTINISD.ORG A-C 10TH-12TH NATALIE SAN MIGUEL NATALIE.SANMIGUEL@AUSTINISD.ORG D-HM 10TH-12TH LEA ANN ROSS LEAANN.ROSS@AUSTINISD.ORG HN-MN 10TH-12TH REBECCA LYONS REBECCA.LYONS@AUSTINISD.ORG MO-SAN 10TH-12TH SUSAN DEVANEY SUSAN.DEVANEY@AUSTINISD.ORG SAO-Z 10TH-12TH GARETH HORWOOD GARETH.HORWOOD@AUSTINISD.ORG College and Career Center Pamela Mason pamela.Mason@austinisd.org Cathy Painter catherine.painter@austinisd.org