Pine View School College Planning Night April 2 nd 2014

Pine View School College Night Opening Session: An Introduction to College Planning Lance Bergman (6:30 -7:25PM - Auditorium) Breakout Sessions (7:30-8:00 and 8:05-8:35PM) Costs and Funding of Your College Education - Jane Robbins and Paul Dietrich (Auditorium) Standardized Testing and College Essays - Chris Deveau/Neil Schliefer and Brie Shannon (Cafeteria North) Special Circumstances: Sport Eligibility and Recruitment, Military Academies, Twice Exceptional and Under- represented Students – Lance Bergman and Lynn Halcomb (Cafeteria South)

Plenary Program and Objectives An Introduction to College Planning Our Mission Pine View College Resource website Ethics in College Application Process Naviance/Family Connection Application Timeline and Tasks Your College Search: Research and Fit Guidelines/Tips for the Application Process The Florida State University System UF, FSU and the SUS Matrix Bright Futures Eligibility Timeline for Spring - Summer 2014 “Finding Your Fit” – Jane Robbins

The Pine View College Resource Website Pine View College Resource Mission (Handout)

Ethics and Responsibilities Applying to College Ethics Statement (Refer to Handout) Ethics Statement Student Responsibilities

Naviance/Family Connection Required of all Pine View students - Electronic delivery of all PV application materials Go to Log in using your PV student N# and PIN and add your parents’ to your accounthttp://connection.naviance.com/pineviewsch

Naviance/Family Connection College Research – SuperMatch and College Compare Pine View specific data (Scattergrams) Standardized test preparation (PrepMe) Completion of Assigned Tasks

Naviance/Family Connection Assigned Tasks (found under the About Me tab ) Complete Student Questionnaire (due today) Colleges I’m Thinking About (due today) Complete the Game Plan Survey (due today) Answer Recommendation Prompts (April 16 th ) A Personal Resume. Create a resume using the Resume Builder or upload one you already have (May 26 th ) Students will be given time in Junior English classes to complete these and other college-related tasks

Naviance/Family Connection

What Do Colleges Want? Overall High School GPA Rigor of High School Coursework (and Focus) SAT or ACT Scores (SAT Subject Scores, if applicable)* Extracurricular Activities (depth v. breadth) Community Service/Volunteer Work Strong Personal Statement/Essay(s)* Letters of Recommendation Interview with Admissions (if offered, say yes!) Demonstrated interest in the University and Program A Standout Factor or two

College Planning College Search Composing Your List Visiting Colleges “Fit” – Selecting the Right College for You

“Fit” - Creating Your List* Using charts/matrices on the website and on the web consider and weight some of the following factors: Cost/Affordability – “Financial Fit” Liberal arts vs. vocational/career Academic Majors/Programs (Honors, dual degrees…) Size of college/classes - small, medium, large Locations that are possible/desirable (distance) Setting - state, geography, urban/rural, college town Campus Atmosphere – campus life, athletics, clubs Housing/Facilities – dorm options, recreational, dining Finding Your“Fit” – Jane Robbins

Financial “Fit”* No surprises! Your family must research the total costs of each college and your ability to pay. How much is the family able and willing to spend for an undergraduate education? Family conversations are very important. *Use the tools mentioned in the Costs and Funding of Your College Education session (Jane Robbins) Resources can also be found on the PVS website Paying for College/Funding StrategiesPaying for College/Funding Strategies

Financing a College Education* Develop a Plan Determine all college costs Consider ALL possible resources Investigate all sources of financial aid: scholarships, grants, loans & work-study (use financial aid offices) Universities are required by federal law to provide Net Price Calculators to help determine actual costs of attending. Consult university website The College Scorecard offers specific information about a college’s costs and allows you to compare fafsa4caster on calculates the amount of federal aid a student is eligible to receive based on a number of factorswww.fafsa.ed.gov

College Research College searches available on the internet. Refer to Resources/Helpful Links on pvscollegecounseling.com Resources/Helpful Links Visit college websites. Call and request information Books and brochures in the college resource room College fairs/representatives on campus Visit the college campus (take tours and meet with admissions) Parents, teachers, former PV students, alumni Questions to Ask When Choosing A College (Handout)

To How Many Schools Should I Apply? Ideally no more than Selective Schools 3-4 Target Schools 3 Safety Schools

Think Outside the Box $$ Colleges That Change Lives (non- profit). New College, Reed, Rhodes, Juniata… Fiske’s Best Buy Private: Adelphi, Baylor, Drexel, Florida Southern, Elon, Macalester, Olin College of Engineering Public: Georgia Tech, McGill (Canada) New College, UNC –Chapel Hill and Asheville, U of Oregon Peterson’s Best Fit, Cappex.com, Zinch.com, Unigo.com…

Campus Visits Arrange for a campus tour Meet with an Admission Counselor Verify admission requirements Determine actual college costs Ask about financial aid opportunities Investigate your academic program(s) Questions to Ask When Choosing A College (Handout) Attend class (if possible) Talk with students and faculty (PV Alum too) Tour the surrounding area Students should plan visits, talk with and make all future contacts with admissions officers!

Admissions Decision Plans Applying to College/Decision Plans Regular Decision (most January 1 st ) Rolling Admissions (apply early-scholarship priority) Early Decision I Restrictive Early Action Early Action Early Decision II FSU - October 15 th UF - November 1 st

Standardized Testing: SAT and ACT* College Planning/Standardized Testing The PVS website describes the different tests (including SAT IIs and APs), and offers information on test preparation resources, suggested timelines and strategies, new SAT and fee waivers College Planning/Standardized Testing SAT – sat.collegeboard.orgsat.collegeboard.org ACT - Test Preparation - PrepMe on Naviance/Family Connection, in-house, online and private companies *More info provided in the Standardized Testing and College Essays session (Chris Deveau)

Private College/University Applicants Tips/guidelines for applying to private can be found on the PV website For most applications you will use the Common Application (500+ schools) One to two teacher recommendations are required in addition to a guidance letter (requested through FC) You will choose one of five CommonApp essays There is a Transcript Request process The Common Application will open late summer The revised Common Application Essays have been released*

The Common Application

Teacher Recommendations Ask teacher recommenders in advance Guidelines/Instructions for requesting letters of recommendation are on the PV website recommendation/ recommendation/ SUS colleges do not require letters

State University System of Florida Students are advised to apply to one or more Florida public universities Refer to the SUS Matrix (handout) and specific admissions information (on the PVwebsite) Pay close attention to SUS timelines and requirements

Florida Schools 2014 Report University of Florida - Gainesville (50,000/33,000UG) Single application deadline November 1st- Mid- February Middle 50%: GPA; ACT; SAT R , M , W Honors College – Must apply 80% reported 3 or more AP scores 45% accepted Fall 2013 Essay very important. No letters of recommendation Fall 2015 SAT /ACT 28-32/GPA % accepted (PV 55%/74% including Santa Fe and PaCE)

Florida Schools 2014 Report Florida State U – Tallahassee (42,000). Smaller than UF/UCF Mid-October early deadline - Notification date mid- December. Second deadline mid-January Middle Range ; ACT – 27-30; SAT M , R , W Students invited to join honors program Students with high academic achievements automatically considered for scholarships 44% of applicants accepted Fall 2013

Florida Schools 2014 Report New College – Sarasota (800) GPA ; ACT 27-31; SAT M , R , W November 1 and Rolling thereafter to 4/15 U.S. News and World Report - Best Buy #2 WSJ placed it second on list of top feeder public schools in the country (% of students going on to graduate schools) Only honors college in the state No T.A. or graduate students teaching classes/1:11 faculty/student ratio

Bright Futures ( ) Florida Academic Scholar Award - GPA (3.5), ACT (29) or SAT (1290-R&M only), Community Service hours (100) Florida Medallion Scholar Award– GPA (3.0), ACT (26) or SAT (1170-R&M only), Community Service hours (75) The FAS award was $103/credit hour (Medallion $77) University of Florida 2013 tuition and fees $6170 Bright Futures funded approximately $3000 Florida State University tuition and fees $5170 All students will sign up in December 2015 * The Florida State legislature adjusts requirements and awards each year. Keep posted.

Additional Thoughts Additional information will be mailed home at the end of May, and is/will be posted online. This will include: A Senior Timeline The Statement of Ethics A Parent Questionnaire Additional instructions for matching Naviance and Common Application accounts Please call Mrs. Manders for an appointment with me. Spring appointments are most important for early admission plans and special circumstances (military, athletic)

Summer 2014 Research, visit, and compare colleges Review admission requirements and deadlines Attend summer programs, work, volunteer Plan for additional SAT/ACT testing When able, look at essay prompts and begin writing Work on Community Service hours If applying to Common App schools, when open begin the process Review CA essay choices and begin writing Narrow down college choices. Do not apply if you are not seriously willing to attend. Match and Fit! If using an outside counselor share ALL Pine View materials with them (including the Statement of Ethics and deadlines)