COLLEGE PREP 101 College Search & Campus Visits Applying For Admission Scholarships!! Financial Aid Application

CAMPUS VISITS  Must be arranged through Ms. Paper to be “excused absences”  Call / me to make the appointments or if visit is arranged by the college  No specific limit  Campus visits DO count as a school absence (regarding “Perfect Attendance”)

CAMPUS VISITS SENIORS Usually completed in the Fall Go on a Visit Day, but all colleges allow individual appointments as well JUNIORS Recommend Spring semester of Junior Year Attend a Visit Day for best information Return in Fall 2012 for a second look if needed Iowa Private College Week in August:  Visit 3 or more private Iowa colleges  ALL Iowa private colleges waive application fees  Go to

COLLEGE SEARCH College information and selection software program Online at school or at home Create portfolio for yourself Select ‘Wilton’ as your school district

COLLEGE SEARCH WHS Counseling Center Website   Click on ‘Guidance’, then ‘College, Vocational School & Military Information’ Access any College website Link to vocational & technical schools Link to Armed Services websites

APPLYING FOR ADMISSION Most applications can be done online Have this information ready  GPA and Class Rank  Titles of any AP or College Credit Courses  , home phone, home address Print out any counselor transcript release or recommendation forms  Give to Ms. Paper for completion Activity Resume” given to her for the best recommendation!  Include your “Activity Resume” given to her for the best recommendation!

APPLYING FOR ADMISSION How many colleges do I apply for?  Private colleges vary in their aid package 1-3 depending on your interest You may wait until after April 1 st to decide  State universities will be a mid-range cost  Select a community college (free application) If circumstances change and you go to a CC, you will have missed out on aid if you do not apply for both admission and financial aid You can always decline/withdraw your application for admission

APPLYING FOR ADMISSION Admission Transcripts must be OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS  Sent by the HS Office  Signed by a school official  Embossed with the school seal  Include all ACT scores Contact Deb Brenner or Jill Proctor

APPLYING FOR ADMISSION ESSAYS  Check out some sample essays Look at local forms on the guidance website  Know what you are interested in and what motivated you to pursue that major  What makes you unique  What assets do you bring to their campus Volunteerism & interests, activities Bragging is OK—sort of

Regents Admission Index Uniform standards for all 3 state universities Combination of GPA, Rank, ACT, and Core Courses taken in High School

Regents Admission Index Students from Iowa high schools must have an RAI score of at least 245* and take the minimum number of required HS courses to qualify for automatic admission to ISU, UNI, and the College of Liberal Arts &Sciences at U of I.  (*265 for Engineering at U of Iowa) Students who achieve a score less than 245 will be considered for admission on an individual basis, with rare exceptions.

STEP ONE Multiply your ACT COMPOSITE SCORE times 2

STEP TW0 Write in your current High School Class Rank, expressed as a percentile ~found in ( ) on your transcript~ (For example, if you rank 5 th out of 100, your rank is 95)

STEP THREE Multiply your Current High School GPA times 20

STEP FOUR Multiply the number of High School Core Courses Times 5 (see Core Courses Chart)

WHS CORE COURSES EnglishMathScienceSocial StudiesForeign Language English I - 1.0Algebra I – 1.0Earth Sci – 1.0Amer Hist – 1.0Spanish I – 1.0 English II - 1.0Geometry – 1.0Biology – 1.0World Hist. – 1.0Spanish II – 1.0 English III - 1.0Algebra II – 1.0Chemistry – 1.0Psychology – 0.5Spanish III– 1.0 Commun. I - 0.5Algebra Plus – 0.5Physics – 1.0Sociology – 0.5Spanish IV – 1.0 Drama - 0.5Trig – 0.5AP Biology II – 1.0Economics – 0.5German I – 1.0 Journalism I – 0.5Pre-Calculus – 0.5Government – 0.5German II – 1.0 AP Eng Lit – 1.0AP Calculus – 1.0Mod US Hist. – 0.5German III – 1.0 Studies in Lit – 0.5Alg Concepts – 1.0U.S. Problems – 0.5German IV – 1.0 Adv. Comp – 0.5 Adv Pub Spk – 0.5 TOTAL 1 =TOTAL 2 =TOTAL 3 =TOTAL 4 =TOTAL 5 =

STEP FIVE – Add 1-4 Step 1 – ACT x 2____ Step 2 - Percentile Rank____ Step 3 – GPA x 20____ Step 4 – Core courses x 5____ STEP 5 – TOTAL____ This is your RAI Score.

Minimum HS Coursework 4 years of English 3 years of Math (through Algebra II) 3 years of Science (2 of Chemistry, Physics, and Biology)  Intro Chem/Physics is not included 3 years of Social Studies Foreign Language

Scholarships!!  Register at or other search siteswww.fastweb.com  Check resources at click on ‘Guidance’, then ‘Financial Aid’  Local forms are online at this website  View now for sample questions and begin writing your essays  Submission will be after winter break

Scholarships!! Prepare your ‘Resume’  School activities  Athletics  Work experience  Church & Community activities  Awards & Honors  Intended major & why, if known Provide this to any of your ‘recommendation writers’ – better info, better recommendation

Scholarships!! Check daily announcements  Open block or don’t hear them? READ THEM AT LUNCH!! Check scholarship file weekly Check the website Check any bulletins you get in Seminar  Gone from seminar? Pick one up from Ms. Paper!

Scholarships!! College-based Scholarships  Check with the colleges. Many have online applications & deadlines  Many are campus-specific. MCC and SCC have different scholarship funds Work-based Scholarships (you or your parents)  Wal-Mart, auto dealerships, HON, Bandag, REC, WTC Communications, etc

Iowa State U-President’s Award For Competitive Excellence $1750/year for 4 years (Totaling $7000) Requirements  AP Calculus  Biology, Chemistry, and Physics  4 years of a single foreign language  ACT Composite score of 28  GPA of 3.30 or higher

ISU Academic Recognition Award  Two Award Levels  $1000/year for 4 years  Class Rank in the Top 10% OR are ranked #1 or #2  $500/year for 4 years  Class Rank is 11% to 15%

SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS Essays are VERY important Follow directions carefully Provide ALL information requested Meet all deadlines! LOCAL Scholarships  If you turn it in to me, I WILL ADD THE TRANSCRIPT! Many need to be copied and taken apart for committees  Do not use the forms online until after January 1 st.

FAFSA Forms Apply for your FAFSA PIN number now at  One for the student  One for a parent (use same PIN for all of your children) Arrange for taxes to be done ASAP after January 1 st Attend the Financial Aid Night on January 16 6:30 pm Sign up for the FAFSA “Fill Out the Forms Night” on February PM

FAFSA FORMS All colleges require the FAFSA to receive any aid Regardless of income, complete the form! Colleges use federal & state money first, THEN their financial aid funds.

ACT TESTING Retake or not?  Our website has some guidelines Juniors  WHS ACT Workshop on January 30 & 31  Recommend in February, April or June Seniors  December (February, at the latest, if shooting for a specific score)

For assistance:  Check the Website at Click on Guidance  Look in the Course Description Book (also online)  Call or Char Paper at  , ext. 211 