1. Junior Guide to College (What to Focus on This Year)
Class of 2019

2. Wendy Nelson
Help parents and students navigate the college search process
Started mykidscollegechoice.com in 2012
Launched meritscholarshiplist.com in 2016 to help families search for merit scholarships offered directly by colleges

3. Junior Year Focus - Topics
College Prep Activities
How to Find & Track Potential Schools
Parent’s Role
College Cost

4. Congratulations!
You are in a great position for college applications and scholarships
Colleges want students like you
Continue to build upon your momentum
Grades
ACT/SAT Test Scores
Leadership

5. College Prep Activities for Junior Year
PSAT and ACT/SAT Tests
College list
College visits
Teacher & mentor relationships
High-quality extra-curricular activities

6. How to Find Schools College Fairs College Search Websites
Collegedata.com
Bigfuture.collegeboard.org
Nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
Admission Rep Visits to OHS
College fairs at local community colleges in the fall – regional schools; for national variety of schools, there’s a very large college fair at Navy Pier in Chicago in September
College search websites allow you to enter criteria and then they spit back a list of schools to consider. Criteria ranges from location, to size, to majors offered, to selectivity of admissions and more.
Take advantage of all the admissions reps who come to OHS to talk about their schools.

7. Track Your College List on a College Search Spreadsheet

8. Parents – You Play a Key Role
Every kid is different
Motivation
Organization
Schedule college visits
Provide guidelines

9. How Much Will College Cost?
STICKER PRICES
Community College
Tuition & fees - $3,500 or less per year
No room & board
IL State School
Tuition & fees – Ave $10,000 - $17,000+
Room & board – Ave $9,000 - $13,000
Out-of-State Public College
Tuition & fees – Ave $15,000 - $30,000+
Private Colleges
Tuition & fees – Ave $24,000 - $40,000 +
Room & board – Ave $9,000 - $14,000

10. How Much Will College Really Cost?
Don’t focus on the “sticker price”
Find your Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
FAFSA4caster or collegeboard.org
Net Price Calculators
Need-Based Aid
Based on your EFC vs cost of college
Not guaranteed
Not always “free” money
Determine how you will pay your EFC
Savings
Cash Flow
Merit Scholarships – thousands up to full ride

11. Where will we find the best deals?
Community colleges offering full-tuition awards
Non-flagship IL state schools (ISU, EIU, WIU, SIU, etc)
Public schools in other states offering deals (Midwest Student Exchange Program)
Colleges offering large merit scholarships
Colleges that are generous with need-based aid
Local community colleges offer full tuition to top students
There’s a handout with a list of schools in IL and surrounding states that offer full-tuition and full-ride scholarships. These are worth looking into.
IL does not participate in a true reciprocity program with any other states. Midwest Student Exchange Program offers discounted OOS tuition.
Use net price calculators and college search websites like collegedata.com to find schools that are generous with need-based aid

12. Out-of-State vs. In-State Example 1
University of Wisconsin - Madison
University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign
$34,783 Tuition & Fees
$10,842 Room & Board
$45,625 Total Price Per Year
$15,868 Tuition & Fees (base)
$11,308 Room & Board
$26,938 Total Price Per Year

13. Out-of-State vs. In-State Example 2
University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point
(with Midwest Student Exchange Program)
Western Illinois University
About $11,459 Tuition & Fees
$7,290 Room & Board
$18,749 Total Price Per Year
About $11,560 Tuition & Fees
$10,230 Room & Board
$21,790 Total Price Per Year

14. Great Merit Scholarship Examples
St. Ambrose University, IA
$29,736 Tuition
$20,000/yr automatic scholarship for 28+ ACT and 3.8 unweighted GPA
North Central College, IL
$37,569 Tuition
Between $18,000 - $22,000/yr scholarship based on ACT and GPA
Valparaiso University, IN
$37,550 Tuition
Between $17,000 - $26,000/yr scholarship based on ACT and GPA

15. Great Merit Scholarship Examples
Northern Illinois University
$12,273 Tuition & Fees
33 ACT and 3.75 GPA qualifies for consideration for full-ride scholarship
$7,000/yr scholarship for sliding scale of ACT/GPA combinations (i.e. 24 ACT & 4.0 GPA, 26 ACT & 3.9 GPA, 28 ACT & 3.75 GPA, 30 ACT & 3.65 GPA)
Western Illinois University
$11,560 Tuition & Fees
$10,000/yr scholarship for 30 ACT and 3.0 GPA
Can compete for full ride President’s Scholarship with a 30 ACT
Illinois State University
$14,062 Tuition & Fees
Up to $11,000/yr scholarship for 30 ACT and 3.5 GPA

16. Questions?