1. College Application Process
Skyline High School
Welcome Seniors! We know that thinking about next year can bring both excitement and some anxiety. Our hope this morning is to provide you with information that will lessen some of this stress by knowing exactly what you need to do in the coming months. Although this slide says “college application process”, please know that there are different paths after high school for every student. Today we are going to talk about how to apply to two year and four year colleges, how to enlist in the military and how to look for apprenticeships. Last year we surveyed our seniors at the end of the year to see how we could improve on this presentation and two things became clear, students wanted the information earlier and they wanted more details about the four year application process. So this year we are doing this presentation much earlier and going more in depth on the four year college process as it has the most steps to the application process and time sensitive deadlines.
College Application Process

2. Counseling Staff Ms. Jen Marbut Counseling Office Secretary
Mrs. Angela Menon Counselor A-De
Mr. Shawn Mulanix Counselor Df-Jo
Mrs. Shauna Jacobs Counselor Jp-Mo
Mrs. Miranda Partridge Counselor Mp-Sh
Mrs. Kristen Flemer Counselor Si-Z
Mrs. Heidi Hendrickson Registrar
Mrs. Creslyn King College & Career Specialist
Mrs. Laura Sherman College & Career Specialist

3. Post High School Options
Community College
Technical College
Military – Academies and Enlistment
Apprenticeship
Volunteering
Gap Year
4Year College
82% of the class of 2015 attended a 4 year college directly after high school so our presentation is geared around this population. However, 12% of this same class went to a community college, military, or technical school. These are great cost saving options, and provide skills directly related to existing jobs. Technical degrees allow students to start working earlier and some actually have a higher income than some occupations that require a four year degree!
Admissions for Community Colleges and Technical Colleges usually include completing the online application, passing the COMPASS test, sending a transcript, and meeting with an advisor to plan your classes.
Prestigious Military Academies are very similar to highly selective college applications. You’ll need a recommendation from your School Counselor and you’ll have to contact your Congressmen’s office about being appointed. In the fall of each year the local academies liaisons host an informational event for students interested in the Military Academies. This information will be posted to the CCC website as soon as it is available. Officer training can also be accessed through ROTC programs at various colleges.
To join the military you’ll need to contact a recruiter in the branch you are interested in and take the ASVAB test. Military recruiters from each of the service branches visit Skyline High School two times a year: once in the fall and once in the spring. This information will be posted on the CCC website as soon as it is available.
Gap year is a great option if you aren’t sure about going to a 4 year college and have a concrete plan to further your career/life goals. Some students will use an accredited Gap Year Program while others will create their own program. Some students will get accepted into a four year college and then take a deferment to start a year later.

4. College & Career Center
College Visits
SHS will host approximately 50 colleges during the fall
Students must sign up in the CCC and submit teacher approval to Attendance Office 48 hours in advance if they will miss class time
It is a great opportunity to learn about schools, meet admissions representatives and get your questions answered

5. College & Career Center
Scholarship Opportunities
Field Trips
Brown Bag Lunches (Career exploration presentations)
College Corp Essay Help starting September 23rd
CCC eNews
Planning for College Funding Night September 27th
Keep an eye on eNews to look for career field trip opportunities. Need to sign up for College Corp Essay ahead of time ASAP.

6. College Application Timeline
SHS Dates:
Evening College Presentation September 13th at 6:30pm
Planning for College Funding Night September 27th at 6:45pm
Other Dates:
September – June College Application Deadlines
October 1st, FAFSA opens
October 21st – 22nd National College Fair
October 25th Seattle Performing & Visual Arts College Fair

7. How many colleges should I apply to?
Play Video:
Director of college admissions from Georgetown talking about how to choose the colleges that you’re applying to.

8. Early Action Single Choice
Types of Applications
Early Decision
Apply to only one early decision college. If the college accepts you & provides enough financial aid, you must attend that college.
Early Action
You can apply to more than one early action college. If you’re accepted, you can choose to accept or decline their offer.
Early Action Single Choice
Same as Early Action except that you can only apply to one school under this option.
Regular Admissions
Apply during regular admissions.
Most students apply regular decision. Not all schools have all of these admissions options.
About 450 colleges offer early admission plans. Under these plans, students can apply to colleges early — well before the usual deadline — and get a decision early. Check with each individual college regarding their policies on your application and if they will review your application again if you weren’t accepted early decision or action.
Applying early can be a good idea if you’re sure about which college you want to attend. That means you’ve researched its programs and, if possible, visited its campus.
But think twice about applying early if:
You want to compare admission and financial aid offers from several colleges.
You’d benefit from having another year of high school work to show colleges (you may want to have your January grades on your transcript.
There are three main types of early admission plans. All three plans usually require you to apply in October or November. All the plans give you an early decision; you’ll know in December or January if you’ve been accepted.
Early decision plans:
You can apply to only one early decision college.
If the college accepts you and offers you enough financial aid, you must go to that college. That’s why these plans are referred to as “binding.”
Early action plans: 
You can apply to more than one early action college.
If you're accepted, you can say yes right away or wait until spring to decide.
You can also decline the offer.
Single-choice early action plans:
You can apply early to only one college. Otherwise, these plans work the same as other early action plans.
You can still apply to other colleges through the regular admission process.
You don't have to give your final answer to the early application college until spring.

9. 5 Things you need to know about college admissions
You really can get in. Really!
You are more than test scores.
You are in charge.
You are unique.
You are not alone.

10. Components of a College Application

11. Components of a College Application
Essays
Letters of Recommendation
Test Scores
Transcript(s)
Secondary School Report
Application fee
Mid-year & Final-year Reports
Play Video: felt-impossible-broke-into-step

12. Application
Most applications are completed online and can be found on the admission’s website of each college
The Common Application is a standardized application used by more than 525 colleges so that instead of filling out many different applications, you can simply fill out one and submit it to each college.
The Common Application is a standardized application used by more than 525 colleges. Instead of filling out eight different applications, you can simply fill out one and submit it to each college.
Be aware that you may need to submit additional or separate documents to some colleges. You also still need to pay individual application fees for each college.

13. The Essay Find out if you need to write one
Share a story/event that illustrates personal growth
Go through the editing process
Think of it as a personal interview on paper
If you’re having trouble getting started, record yourself talking about the question and then listen back to it and type what you hear. Now you have a starting place!
Football player/ Christmas Picture story. Get to know who you are.
Share about any hardships that have taught you to persevere
According to The College Board, the college essay matters. Your essay reveals something important about you that your grades and test scores can't—your personality. It can give admission officer a sense of who you are, as well as showcasing your writing skills.

14. Letters of Recommendation
Some colleges require letters of recommendation from people who know you well
It is important to follow instructions regarding:
How many recommendation letters to provide (it’s not seen as going the extra mile, it’s viewed as not following the directions!)
Who should provide the recommendations (teachers, coaches, counselors)
Say thank you!
Choose one of your teachers from junior year or a current teacher who has known you for a while. Colleges want a current perspective on you, so a teacher from several years ago isn't always the best choice.
Perhaps most important, pick someone who will be enthusiastic about writing the letter for you.

15. Test Scores: Submitting Scores
SAT & ACT scores can only be ordered from their websites and submitted to your colleges – Skyline CANNOT do this for you!
It is very important to follow the instructions given by each college regarding the process for submitting test scores

16. Transcripts – Ordered through Parchment
Visit the SHS Home page and click "Request my Transcript"
Create a Parchment account
Choose where to send transcripts
All schools on the Common Application should be sent to "The Common Application" instead of each individual school
For schools that aren't on The Common App, choose to send your transcript directly to the school
*The first 5 transcripts are free – each additional transcript is $5

17. Secondary School Report
A Secondary School Report is a form that is completed by your School Counselor and typically includes the following items:
GPA (unweighted only)
Senior year schedule
Level of course rigor
Level of involvement in leadership, volunteer service, etc.
The fee for the counseling office to mail/process a paper copy of a secondary school report is $4 per application.
Don’t play video

18. Application Fees
College application fees vary, but generally it costs from $35 to $60 to apply to each college.
Fees are nonrefundable.
Many colleges offer fee waivers (that is, they don’t require the fee) to students who can’t afford to pay. Talk to your School Counselor if you need a fee waiver.

19. Mid-Year & Final Reports
The mid-year report is another application form that your counselor completes and sends directly to the college (or The Common Application).
The Mid-year Report and Final Report gives colleges the opportunity to ensure that students aren’t “slacking off” during their senior year.  
 Colleges want to make sure you continue preparing for your future once you’ve submitted your application. As proof, some will send a letter to admitted students that warns them not to slack off.
But how would a college know if you slack off towards the end of the year? They require a Final Report from your high school. This is another application form that you will give to your school and that it will complete and send directly to the college. The form requests your final grades for your senior year, which most likely weren’t available when you sent a copy of your transcript.
A college may also require a Mid-Year Report prior to the Final Report if no senior-year grades were available at all when you sent your transcript.
According to The Princeton Review (

20. SHS Procedures

21. Counselor Recommendation Letters
SHS Counselors write approximately recommendation letters each year
In order to meet college deadlines, students must submit their paperwork at least 3 weeks prior to their first deadline
From turned in by
College Application Deadline
Sept 30th
Oct 15th
Oct11th
Oct 31st or Nov 1st
Oct 25th
Nov 15th
Nov 10th
Nov 30th or Dec 1st
Dec 5th
Dec 31st to Jan 15th
Jan 11th
Feb 1st
Feb 8th
Mar 1st
Mar 10th
Apr 1st

22. The Common Application
Create an account on The Common App
On the Recommender/FERPA tab, invite your School Counselor to complete the Secondary School Report
If you have a college that REQUIRES a letter of recommendation from a School Counselor, invite the Counselor to be a recommender
Order your transcript through Parchment and indicate “The Common Application” for the destination
Submit a completed Counselor Recommendation Form to the Counseling Office at least three full weeks prior to your first college deadline
The Common Application is the preferred application for our department as it gives us one place to manage most of our recommendations.

23. Schools NOT on the Common Application
Application Requirements
Transcript Only
Secondary School Report
Secondary School Report & Letter of Recommendation
Directions
Request an Official Transcript through your Parchment account to be sent directly to your intended college
Print out all required documents for your counselor to complete
Address a manila envelope to the college & pay the SHS Bookkeeper $4 per envelope
Submit the documents, envelope and receipt to the SHS Counseling Office at least one week prior to the deadline
Submit the documents, envelope, receipt & Counselor Recommendation Form to the SHS Counseling Office
Processing Time
24-48 hours
5 school days
15 school days
Your counselor will complete the documents and mail the documents before the post-marked date.
Most Washington public schools and community colleges don’t require a counselor letter or secondary school report. For those applications, we recommend that you just follow the instructions carefully and come to College Chat Fridays to ask questions when you’re not sure.

24. Your To-Do List! Find out your first college deadline
Check to see if any of your colleges require letters of recommendation
Speak with your teachers about letters
Fill out the counselor letter of recommendation form
Go on Parchment.com and request your transcripts
Go on SAT/ACT website and request your test scores be sent
Check Gradebook for your cumulative GPA

25. Financial Aid & Scholarship Info
Never pay to apply
Be wary of “guarantees”
Don’t give out confidential information
FAFSA
College Board – Big Future
Scholarship Sources & Resources:
Parent’s employer, bank, community, alma matter
Career Center database
Scholarships from colleges
WUE
Washboard
Remember that after financial aid packages are determined, most students will pay far less than the "sticker price" listed on the college website. You don’t always know if you can afford a college until after you apply and find out how much financial aid that college will offer you (if you’re accepted). Fill out the FAFSA as early as possible after Jan. 1 to qualify for the most aid.
Every student should apply for financial aid. In order to qualify for grants, student loans, or work-study, you must complete the FAFSA.

26. College Search Web Sites
SHS Counseling website:
SHS College & Career Center website:

27. Mention that students can email their counselor for class rank once per semester.
Questions?