1. Post-Secondary Planning: Part 1
Central bucks high school south
Class of 2018
Taryn Barrett
Laura Ladley

2. OVERVIEW Junior Year Timeline Resources
Standardized Testing ACT, SAT, AP
Test Prep
Career & College Search Process: Naviance
Questions?

3. Junior Year Timeline FALL WINTER/SPRING SUMMER
Attend Open Colleges- meet with faculty/students/staff, tour, interview.
Call admissions to set up campus tours and visit schools of interest.
Meet visiting college admission reps visiting South.
Attend District College Fair on March 22nd, South.
Register for fall SAT, ACT and SAT Subject tests as needed.
PSAT October Scores available online in December.
Take the SAT/ACT & if necessary
SAT Subject Tests, AP exams.
Start looking at college applications.
Naviance:
Research careers/majors from surveys completed in 10th; update resume and game plan with major.
College search process. Identify colleges of interest. “Request for Counselor Recommendation”.
Parent & Student complete “Request for Counselor Letter of Recommendation”.
Create important accounts:
E-Prep (Mr. Pecic)
CollegeBoard/ACT
Khan Academy (app based)
Inquire about recommendations from 11th grade teachers.
Revisit college application essay written in English 11 & fine-tune existing activity resume.
These are general guidelines to help students/families focus on time-relevant tasks throughout the year.

4. Resources
Guidance Webpage Naviance (parents- counselor for account) Counselor Chats Titan Forum Visits Individual Appointments ACT and College Board websites
Guidance Website- Postings: Annual Presentations (College Planning, Financial Aid Night), Application Process, Document Request South for Records
Links to: Naviance, E-Prep, Financial Aid Information/FAFSA, State Schools Consortium Information, CollegeBoard.com, ACTStudent.org
Counselor Chats- Counselors will meet with students in small groups once a month during lunches to discuss a specific topic. College Visits were discussed in September.
TF visits- another way counselors reach out o students about time-sensitive and relevant information regarding the college search and admissions process.
Individual Appointments- This year, we are asking that students initiate appointments with us as needed, as often as they need, to ask questions about the process, their own testing timeline, advice on schools, etc.
ACT/CollegeBoard Websites- find everything from admissions to financial aid and more on these sites- very helpful!

5. ACT SAT Subject Tests Advanced Placement Testing
These are the various tests, aside from possible Keystone retests, that students might encounter junior year.

6. Testing Timeline
SAT Spring of Junior Year Fall of senior year ACT Spring of Junior Year Fall of Senior Year AP First 2 weeks of May; same year as AP course SAT Subject Tests Immediately following related coursework
When to test is a personal decision. We suggest waiting to take the SAT or ACT in the spring because the more academic work the students have completed, the better they do on the exams.
Some students are taking prep classes and their instructors are encouraging them to take the exams sooner, which is fine.
The ACT is accepted by all colleges and universities, just as the SAT is.
Students cannot take an SAT test the same day as an SAT Subject Test. Subject Tests are only required by the most competitive schools. Students can take up to 3 subject tests on one day.

7. ACT vs. SAT Structure/Format
Note that the essay on both exams is optional. Students should check with their schools of interest to see if they require the essay.

8. Social Science/Reading- 22
ACT vs. SAT Scoring
Benchmarks indicate that students have a 50% chance of earning a B or higher and a 75% chance of earning a C or higher in their freshman year classes. However, a benchmark score is not the same as the score required by schools for admission. This can vary greatly from school to school.
ACT Benchmarks
English- 18
Algebra- 22
Social Science/Reading- 22
Biology- 23
STEM- 26
SAT Benchmark
Reading/Writing- 480
Math- 530

9. Test-Prep Resources (Khan Academy available for free!)
Collegeboard.org
(Khan Academy available for free!)
Act.org
ePrep (see CBS Librarian to activate account) FREE!
Public Library resources
SAT/ACT Verbal or Math electives
Private SAT Courses- $$
Fairtest.org
We recommend taking practice tests in advance to deciding which test(s) you will take. The SAT and ACT are similar, but not the same. Some students do better on one over the other and should therefore focus their energies towards taking their strongest test more than once to “superscore”. Superscoring is something that colleges do during the admissions process- taking the best subcore from one test date and combining it with a stronger subscore from another date to get a higher overall composite.

10. Khan Academy: Free ACT/SAT Prep
If you’ve taken the PSAT or new SAT, share your scores with Khan Academy:
Create a Khan Academy account.
Choose to share your scores.
Sign in to your College Board account and click Send.
For ACT Prep via Khan Academy:
Take a quick ACT practice test to pinpoint strengths/weaknesses and begin practicing.
Khan Academy Demo
Khan Academy is just one of many test-preparation sites. Click on the link to see a video demo. E-Prep is an additional resource, students can access e-prep by getting a login from Mr. Pecic in the library. Khan Academy is accessible online for free or via tablet/smartphone app.

11. ACT Test Dates
Stars indicate when the test is being offered at South.

12. SAT Test Dates
Stars indicate when the test is offered at South.

13. Fees
ACT Basic ACT-$39.50 Basic ACT plus Writing- $56.50 SAT SAT- $45 SAT with Essay- $57 * 4 free score reports per test date *

14. Testing: “Official Score Report”
Most schools will accept scores from the transcript, some do not (most notably PSU).
Student contacts/pays testing company to send score report directly to college.
Takes about 4-6 weeks
When registering, students can request scores be sent to up to 4 colleges for FREE.
Some colleges require “official score reports” directly from testing company
Is score choice the right choice?
Most colleges, if viewing all test results will consider or combine the highest score from each section for a “Super Score”.
SAT
Students are encouraged to add 4 colleges to the list of schools to receive their scores when they register. Some colleges will want “OFFICIAL SCORE REPORTS” sent directly from the testing agency. This means scores must come directly from CollegeBoard or ACT as opposed to our official school transcript. If you didn’t initially send your scores upon registration, you’ll have to pay an additional fee to have those scores sent later.
When registering for any standardized test, be sure to include
CB South school code and check Parent Portal to make sure scores have been sent to South (assessment tab).

15. Test Security Policy SAT ACT
Online registration requires student to upload a digital photo, which will be included on a photo admission ticket.
Students required to present photo admission ticket and a valid form of ID for admittance to the designated test center and at various times throughout the day. Absence of either document will preclude student from testing.
Students must pre-register; standby (walk-in) testing is not permitted, nor will test center changes be permitted on test day.

16. Advanced Placement (AP) Testing
Why take the AP Test?
Can be used for college credit and course level placement.
May help students “place out” of college courses.
May allow students to achieve advanced standing
Check individual college policies
on credit awards:
Administered first 2 weeks of CB South during school day.
19 AP courses offered at
CB South
Students should check each college’s individual policies about how/if they will accept AP credit. Will they be given elective credit? Core credit? Exemption from a pre-req?

17. Beginning the College Search Process
No worries…there are nearly
4,200 post-secondary schools
in the United States
from which to choose!

18. Naviance as a Valuable Resource
Meets all your needs throughout the entire process…
Organize and keep personal records
Analyze Data
Visit College Websites
Application links
Scholarship list
Career and College Search Tools
Career Plan Surveys (Completed in 10th as part of CBSD Graduation Requirements)
Counselors will be talking to students more throughout Junior Year about all that Naviance has to offer. In the meantime we recommend students log in to explore as much as possible early in the process. Parents can request a login from their student’s counselor.

19. Begin Your College Search…
Narrow your search to find the best fit
2 or 4 year
Public vs private
Coed vs single sex
Size of locale
Enrollment
Location
Distance from home
Religious affiliation
Competitiveness
Major
Sports & Divisions
Two different search options in Naviance. Students should also talk to their parents, relatives, etc to gather more information. Counselors will also suggest schools based off a student’s interest and academic profile when having conversations with students.

20. Keep a record of your research
It’s important to add your schools to the “colleges I’m thinking about list” because students will get s when the college is sending an admissions officer to visit CB South. Additionally, it is a great way to keep track of the schools.

21. Applicant Comparison
Scattergrams are much more effective right now when looking at ACT scores since the College Board recently revamped the SAT test and scoring. Therefore, SAT scatterplots will not give an accurate reflection of accepted/denied scores because of the different scale now being used. Keep in mind, there will be outliers on the scattergrams for various reasons.

22. FEBRUARY 23, 2017 MAY 18, 2017 SEPTEMBER 2017
Join us again….
FEBRUARY 23, 2017 MAY 18, 2017 SEPTEMBER 2017
Topics TBD. Want us to discuss certain topics? Let us know!!

23. Text TARYNBARRETT714 to 37607 to join the session
Questions?
Text TARYNBARRETT714
to to join the session
Students can also make a list of questions and then make an appointment with their counselor to discuss their interests further.